The more we give of ourselves, the more fulfilling our lives are.
Two Notre Dame sociologists refer to that as “The Generosity Paradox”—the fact that giving makes you feel better.
But you don’t need to tell that to members of the Rotary Club of Harrisburg.
“One of the greatest things about this place is you always leave with something,” said Rich Curl, CEO of the Harrisburg-area YMCA and proud Rotarian after the club’s weekly lunch meeting at the Hilton Harrisburg.
Curl wasn’t referring to a full belly or a business card—though he left with those, too.
He meant the good works of the club’s active members, who often share with fellow Rotarians what they’ve been up to over the past month.
“Research shows that people come for the networking, but they stay for the engagement and the service,” member Virginia Roth said. “You come to realize that we are all beneficiaries of something greater than we could ever give.”
Una Martone, the club’s governor-elect, noted the large number of needs within the local and global communities.
“Rotary maximizes and leverages our individual capacity, giving us the power to make a huge difference in the world,” she said.
The organization’s century-old, grassroots approach is not specific to Harrisburg. According to Rotary International, more than 35,000 clubs operate at the local level to serve their communities. Members leverage relationships locally to eradicate disease, promote healthy and safe living conditions, and support education.
What makes the Rotary Club of Harrisburg unique, however, is its focus. The largest recipient of the members’ time and philanthropy is the Harrisburg School District, Martone said.
Martone, who also is CEO of Leadership Harrisburg Area, chairs the Rotary’s committee for Youth Community Development Team, a group that spearheads a yearlong mentoring program for high school juniors and seniors.
“We help students identify the greatest community need and fundraise for that need,” she said.
Martone’s work with youth is only one example in which Rotary’s mission engages others to serve the local community.
The club also sets up a temporary vision clinic at Foose Elementary School, partnering with eye care professionals, who perform free screenings and provide glasses for children who need them. The program screened about 300 children this year, supplying almost two-thirds of them with eyeglasses.
Martone said the committee is currently working on developing a permanent screening location inside Hamilton Health Center.
“It’s all about the people,” said Andy Rebuck, the club’s vice president.
Rebuck has been an active member of Rotary for 25 years, and he sees great value in the relationships he’s formed working alongside fellow members. Rebuck is involved in another service project to benefit the school district—the annual pancake breakfast held at John Harris campus over Homecoming weekend. He, along with other volunteers including fellow board member Joyce Libby, prepare and serve pancakes in the school’s cafeteria for upwards of 1,000 guests.
To Libby, it’s the service work—not the meetings—that offer her the greatest benefits of membership.
“You have to roll up your sleeves and do the work,” she said. “When you do it next to somebody, you get to know them on a deeper level.”
Rotary members roll up their sleeves in the classroom, too. Each fall, Libby and other club members travel to the John Harris and SciTech campuses to recruit students for the “Four Way Speech Contest.” Students choose topics that pique their interest, form an argument, and evaluate it against Rotary’s four ethical questions, which focus on truth, fairness and value. Students compete for cash prizes as they advance through the competition’s three levels. Rotary committee members work directly with the teachers to personally coach and mentor the students along the way.
Committee member Joan Prescott said that witnessing the student’s growth is the greatest reward.
“They learn how to research a subject, open up their thoughts, and express how they feel,” she said. “I’m very proud of them and what they’ve done.”
Libby shared that the Harrisburg High senior who won wrote a thank-you letter to all those who supported her. In it, she credited the contest—as well as the combined coaching and support from the Rotary volunteers and her teachers—for helping her find the confidence to speak her mind effectively.
The district’s educators see the community involvement as a unique learning opportunity for the students.
“There was a neat camaraderie between the Rotary and the kids,” said Maureen Dunbar, instructional coach at Harrisburg High School.
She described the relationship between the students and the Rotary volunteers as one of mutual respect. Dunbar also mentioned that the education was a two-way street.
“The professionals were able to see these kids putting in the work,” she said.
Dunbar added that the more the community gets inside the school, the better.
“The kids see that the community really cares, and they can see there are a lot of good things going on—and a lot of great kids,” she said.
Libby added that, every year, she looks forward to going into the classroom to support the teachers and the students.
“It fills me with pride to see all the students gain confidence and discover more opportunity can be available to them if they do the work,” she said, “And it’s uplifting to think that Rotary had some small part in that.”
Learn more about Rotary Club of Harrisburg by visiting www.hbgrotary.org.
Author: Jen Fertenbaugh
