Barry Rassin, of the Rotary Club of East Nassau, New Providence, Bahamas, is the selection of the Nominating Committee for President of Rotary International for 2018-19. He will be declared the president-elect on 1 September if no challenging candidates have been suggested.

As president, Rassin aims to strengthen our public image and our use of digital tools to maximize Rotary’s reach.

“Those who know what good Rotary clubs do will want to be a part of it, and we must find new models for membership that allow all interested in our mission to participate,” he says. “With Rotary more in the public eye, we will attract more individuals who want to be part of and support a membership organization that accomplishes so much good around the world.”

Rassin earned an MBA in health and hospital administration from the University of Florida and is the first fellow of the American College of Healthcare Executives in the Bahamas. He recently retired after 37 years as president of Doctors Hospital Health System, where he continues to serve as an adviser. He is a lifetime member of the American Hospital Association and has served on several boards, including the Quality Council of the Bahamas, Health Education Council, and Employer’s Confederation.

A Rotarian since 1980, Rassin has served Rotary as director and is vice chair of The Rotary Foundation Board of Trustees. He was an RI training leader and the aide to 2015-16 RI President K.R. Ravindran.

Rassin received Rotary's highest honor, the Service Above Self Award, as well as other humanitarian awards for his work leading Rotary’s relief efforts in Haiti after the 2010 earthquake there. He and his wife, Esther, are Major Donors and Benefactors of The Rotary Foundation.

Rassin’s nomination follows Sam F. Owori’s death in July, just two weeks into his term as Rotary International president-elect.

The members of the 2017-18 Nominating Committee for President of Rotary International are Anne L. Matthews (chair), Rotary Club of Columbia East, South Carolina, USA; Ann-Britt Åsebol, Rotary Club of Falun-Kopparvågen, Sweden; Örsçelik Balkan, Rotary Club of Istanbul-Karaköy, Turkey; James Anthony Black, Rotary Club of Dunoon, Argyll, Scotland; John T. Blount, Rotary Club of Sebastopol, California, USA; Frank N. Goldberg, Rotary Club of Omaha-Suburban, Nebraska, USA; Antonio Hallage, Rotary Club of Curitiba-Leste, Paraná, Brazil; Jackson S.L. Hsieh, Rotary Club of Taipei Sunrise, Taiwan; Holger Knaack, Rotary Club of Herzogtum Lauenburg-Mölln, Germany; Masahiro Kuroda, Rotary Club of Hachinohe South, Aomori, Japan; Larry A. Lunsford, Rotary Club of Kansas City-Plaza, Missouri, USA; P.T. Prabhakar, Rotary Club of Madras Central, Tamil Nadu, India; M.K. Panduranga Setty, Rotary Club of Bangalore, Karnataka, India; Andy Smallwood, Rotary Club of Gulfway-Hobby Airport (Houston), Texas, USA; Norbert Turco, Rotary Club of Ajaccio, Corse, France; Yoshimasa Watanabe, Rotary Club of Kojima, Okayama, Japan; and Sangkoo Yun, Rotary Club of Sae Hanyang, Seoul, Korea.

Source: rotary.org

Membership Month

Dear Fellow Rotarians,

This Rotary year has already began and the clubs in District 7020 have a year full of plans to Grow Stronger Serve Better with Rotary: Making A Difference in our Community.

Why are we Rotarians? This is a question each Rotarian should ask and the answer will be differ- ent for the 1.2 million Rotarians around the world. But what is very interesting is that after many surveys, the most frequent answer is SERVICE followed by enjoying the weekly meetings of the clubs and in a third position is friendship.

During the month of August, Rotary International puts emphasis on Membership and invites all clubs to work first on reinforcing existing membership by identifying your club’s weak areas and make the necessary changes to help your club stay relevant for members to become stronger and then encourages growth in the clubs by raising the number of members in our organisation. I know that the clubs in our District have planned to do many activities this month of Membership and many have already inducted new members during the first month of the Rotary year. I want to congratulate all the Presidents who already have increased their membership.

Membership is Rotary’s number one internal priority. Let’s take advantage of this month to let people know who we are, let them know about the good we are doing, let people know that Rotarians enjoy being together and working together. Involving your spouse and family in Rotary, assuring the well being of our members and sharing your love for Rotary, will help us recruit new members and keep current ones. During your fellowship events invite potential prospects to be part of this enjoyable moment.

Rosa and I have already begun our journey visiting the clubs of our District and have been to 19 clubs since the year began: 15 clubs in the North , Central and Metropolitan area in Haiti and 4 in the Cayman Islands, and as we visit the clubs we have felt welcomed and part of this Rotary family. I must thank and congratulate all of these clubs for their tremendous efforts being done in service and engaging their members. We have seen their projects and the visibility that is given to Rotary in their communities and the pride they have in being Rotarians. During our visit to the 19 clubs we participated in the induction of new members. Great way to start this year and work towards the month of August as Membership & Extension month!

During the month of August let us continue to reinforce our clubs with fellowship and look for more quality members, people who have demonstrated good character integrity and leadership; have a good reputation in their business, profession and community. Show them the projects completed and those in place and Invite them to help us serve and make a difference in our community and around the world. With stronger members our clubs will Grow Stronger Serve Better our communities.

Robert Leger
District Governor, 2017 - 2018