Rotary Club of Princeton, NJ USA

2008 Changing of the Guard Induction Speech
Shawki Salem, President 2008-2009
June 25th, Nassau Club, Princeton, NJ

Leading an organization is never an easy task. This is true regardless of a group’s scope or purpose. It is a job that takes great sacrifice, insight, and dedication.
Fortunately, this past year we had such a captain. Our President, Len, managed with great success to keep a steady hand on the tiller and lead the club through all kinds of waters in order to accomplish what has been presented to you tonight.
Len, it is my honor and pleasure to present to you, on behalf of the club, a token of our appreciation for your diligent work and commitment to the present and future of this club.
Another great support for all of us has been Cindy Love, our secretary. Things would not have run so smoothly without her. She has graciously agreed to continue serving in this capacity this year.
Dear Friends,
It is a great privileged to be this year’s President of the Rotary Club of Princeton.
I must recognize a few members here who introduced me to the club and who have instilled in me the spirit of Rotary. Many thanks to Ahmed Azmy, who was my sponsor, Jerry Essig, Nick Carnivale, John Powell, and Marge Smith.
Not until I got involved with Rotary 5 years ago did I discover that I live with a great Rotarian, my wife Margo.
This year’s Rotary International theme is “Make Dreams Real”. This may seem a bit cliché, but I can assure you that for our greater organization it is not. Time and again Rotary International has done incredible, tangible work that has transformed hopes and ideals into realities.
For the dream to eradicate Polio, RI has successfully contributed $633 million (since 1985) towards that effort. As a result, more than 2 billion children have received the oral polio vaccine. Now Rotary International is partnering with the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation for matching funds of $100 million by 2010-2011.
For the dream to fight hunger and improve health, Rotary International has contributed more than 74 million dollars towards projects that enhance well-being and alleviate hunger.
For the dream of facilitating strong leadership and scholarship for the future, Rotary International has established and funded one of the largest international scholarship programs in the world. They have given more than 490 million dollars towards these scholarships since 1949.
For the dream that communities embrace diversity with a spirit of mutual respect and understanding, RI established the Group Study Exchange. More than 57 thousand individuals from 100 countries have participated.
It is my intention to harness the great momentum of Rotary International’s accomplishments along with those of our District’s and club’s so that we can fully be part of “making dreams real”.
In this Rotarian year, we will build on the successes we have had in the fields of literacy – here and abroad, mentoring of youth, combating hunger, and controlling disease.
New work will be done in several areas.
1) The retention of our existing members and the growth of our club are crucial to the services we provide in the Princeton community and abroad. We will initiate programs on all levels to accomplish this challenge.
2) Our club is highly respected in our District. It is our responsibility to take a lead in the area of Global Warming and Environmental Protection.
3) It was announced during the RI convention last week that 1313 new cases of Polio were detected in Nigeria in 2007. We must be pro-active and take a significant lead in raising funds to fight that crippling disease.
Dear Friends in the Rotary Club of Princeton, join me, share my enthusiasm and my faith in the goodness of our collective efforts and let us “Make Dreams Real.”