FIRST
PATH IS THE MOST DIFFICULT(from homepage of the) ST PETERSBURG
ROTARY CLUB
Completed projects of RC "ST-PETERSBURG".
Andrej Ibragimov,
President of the St.Petersburg Rotary Club,
1990-1991
Since the date if its creation in October 1990, RC "St-Petersburg" had participated in the following projects:
Jointly with RC "Rhine" (Germany) there was a delivery of medicines, and expendable medical equipment to Children's Hospital Ý1 of St-Petersburg having the total value of 35,000 DM.
Jointly with an American RC "College Station" and "Heart to Heart" movement a grant from the Rotary Fund was received for acquisition of a "Heart-Lung" apparatus for the city cardiological centre based in the Pokrovskaya hospital.
In 1991 the club had donated a cheque for $1,000 to the library of St-Petersburg State University for the acquisition of computers.
As of 1994 RC monitors the life of Orphanage Ý3, Kalinin region of St-Petersburg, regularly donating money for the needs of its children. Club member Mr.Ozerski is helping the graduates of the orphanage to continue their education in the Shipbuilders Academy.
In 1996, jointly with RC of Lindesburg, a grant from Rotary Fund was received for acquisition of a sensor room for the Orphanage of Fruzenski region St-Petersburg, for mentally retarded children.
Our club helped to establish a Rotary club in Nizhni Novgorod in 1994.
Our club had sponsored a trip of a delegation from military-historical club "Standard" to USA in 1994 and a delegation from St-Petersburg to the conference of Academy of Pedogogical Mastery in France in 1995.
Some time ago, preparing for a speech in our club devoted to the 50th year since the death of Paul Harris, the Founder of Rotary, I re-read his biography and the history of Rotary in different countries. It seemed to me that the history of Russian Clubs is somewhat similar to the beginning of Rotary in the USA. Even though Rotary appeared more than eighty years ago, its ideas and principles were not known in Russia. Therefore, like the first rotarians in the USA, we were the Rotary pathfinders in Russia.
It was in the late 80s..... An interesting time of changes, hopes and faith for a better future, a time of searching for new forms of communication. At that time I worked in the House of Friendship, where we often received representatives of different foreign public organizations.
But at that time I did not go to the root of their ideology. And it so happened that in March, 1989, Frank Devlin, past director of Rotary International, as I found out later, came to Leningrad with a tourist group from Mexico, and we met. This charming and very energetic man spoke to me about Rotary for more than an hour. He left to me many publications about Rotary, including the "Manual of Procedure". But the main thing was that he convinced me that Rotary Clubs could be organized in the Soviet Union, and that they would be beneficial for our society.
I told him that I was going to be the leader of a delegation which was to start on a cruise on a sailing-boat "Mir", and the aim of the cruise was to establish cooperation with the countries of the Baltic region. When Frank heard about that he told me that Rotary was an ideal organization for these aims and promised his full support.
And he held his word - he sent fax messages to the governors of Rotary districts in Helsinki, Marienhamn, Copenhagen, Oslo and Stockholm with the request to give as much help as possible to our delegation, that included scientists, doctors, actors, writers and public figures.
In all these cities Rotarians organized wonderful programs for us, helped start the necessary contacts, and, naturally, our delegation attended club meetings. We were received by Governors of Rotary districts and presidents of the first clubs of the capitals.
First Path is the Most Difficult continue pg2
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