When Aimee Walsh first visited the Rotary Club of Springfield she couldn’t believe how much good work they were doing in the community and abroad – from international water projects to local literacy projects it seemed like they were raising money and volunteering for everything.
“Who are these people?” She asked the woman sitting next to her. She was so impressed.
“We’re Rotarians,” the woman answered. “And you should be one.”
More than ten years later, Aimee knows she’ll be a Rotarian for the rest of her life.
5110’s 2022-23 District Governor fell in love with Rotary in 2009 when her NGO Direction Service was a first-time recipient of Duck Race funding.
Who were these incredibly dedicated people raising so much money to prevent child abuse all over Lane County? And that’s not all they do? They’re eradicating and preventing polio around the world too? And they support youth exchange programs? What’s a Peace Scholar?
Rotary International has more than 30,000 clubs organized by 500 districts. That totals up to more than a million humanitarians around the world who believe in Service Above Self. What kinds of service? All kinds. That is exactly why Aimee became a Rotarian.
She is especially excited about clubs getting to know each other within the district.
Did you know that your club is a member of a district? Not all Rotarians do.
“The whole reason I wanted to be governor is people. I wanted to connect people.” Aimee says, smiling.
What does she love most about Rotary?
Before she became a Rotarian, Aimee was an agency rep for Duck Race and an active member of the steering committee for ten years.
One night, after her first long Duck Race season was over, prizes had been announced and another successful year had been celebrated, she stood in a cold parking lot after the annual awards ceremony with Mary Ellen Riley and Dale Hartley from the Rotary Club of Eugene Airport.
Dale and Mary Ellen explained how money raised by each Rotary club can get matched by district funding and also Rotary International funding.
Aimee loved the multiplier effect. Not only were Rotarians fundraising to do good work all over the world, but they were also leveraging their resources to make every dollar go as far as possible. Rotarians are as efficient as they are compassionate. And we’re ambitious.
What does she want you to get out of this Imagine Rotary year?
“People who don’t vote the same way, or who I might never overlap with outside of Rotary, we come together and unite in service.”
Aimee is a proud member and past president of the Rotary Club of Eugene Metropolitan. She is a wife and mother of five. She has 10 grandchildren and another one on the way. She believes in family as much as she believes in community. And she’s always got her eye on the future.
Imagine all of the friends you haven’t met yet. Imagine all of the things 3,000 people can accomplish when they share the same values.
Rotary is a secular organization. It is non-partisan and apolitical. But there’s one value we all share: we want to make the world a better place. And we know that service is the best way to make lasting change.
“I don’t want to sit around and talk about things, I want to get things done. I’ve seen what we can do. We can make a real difference in the world. We just have the best people.”
District Governor Aimee is right. And we get better every year.
What is your club imagining for this 2022-2023? Let your fellow 5110 Rotarians know by sharing your story here.
Imagine what we can all do together.
To follow DG Aimee’s gubernatorial adventures around the district click here
Image description: A blonde bobblehead of DG Aimee Walsh stands on a wooden kitchen table. She is wearing a black blazer, jeans, and a white top standing in front of a mountain and lake Rotary painting holding a book and some paperwork. She is smiling.