The following is the text of the talk given by AG Graeme Prince to Whanganui Rotary Club on 28 November 2022
For several years after I first joined Rotary, like many others, and probably like several Rotarians in this room, I believed that we were all paying vast amounts of subs which were disappearing somewhere overseas, never to be seen again.
Sadly, there are still many who have been Rotarians for much longer than I, who still seem to firmly believe this.
I needed to know what was happening with all of this money so I started talking to other Rotarians and looking online and I soon discovered how wrong my assumption was.
I discovered The Rotary Foundation - the very large charity arm of Rotary International and I read up about it.
I discovered how clubs could get their money back through District and Global Grants. I found that my subs were, in fact, being used after all - for projects which covered the very reasons why I joined Rotary in the first place - to try and help make a difference.
My research was encouraging me to make the Rotary Foundation my charity of choice. Why? .... Outside of Rotary I was already donating small amounts every year to a selection of causes. These mainly involved youth and children.
Guess what! When I looked closer I found that the Foundation, in some way, was covering every one of those causes that I had been supporting and the Rotary Foundation had the ability to add my small amounts into something much larger and very worthwhile.
Look at what Rotary, and in particular, your club has been able to achieve for the new Wellington Regional Childrens Hospital and look at what North has been able to achieve for Orthopedic Surgery in Tonga.
So, our subs were being put to very good use after all and I was left thinking that because of this, instead of believing I was paying vast amounts in subs, I was now feeling that I wasn't paying quite enough to make the personal difference I wanted to.
Then I came across the Centurion Club - an avenue to make a small, regular contribution to the work of the Foundation with the satisfaction of knowing that I personally would be belping to make a difference.
Centurion Club membership costs $100.00/year or if you pay $150.00 the Foundation benefits $150.00 but you can claim $50.00 back as a tax rebate.
Not only did I join the Centurion Club, but who would have thought back in my early years as a Rotarian that today I would be sitting on Martin (Garcia)'s District 9940 Foundation Committee and promoting the Centurion Club.
I really believe that the Centurion Club makes a lot of sense. The Foundation really needs the help of every Rotarian to help us achieve the goals and dreams that we each have as members of this great organization.
The Rotary Club of Whanganui - your club - has about 7 current Rotarians who are members of the Centurion Club. That's a great help and I would encourage more of you to think about what I have said and please read the handout. Think seriously about making the Rotary Foundation your charity of choice and in doing so please simply write your name on an application brochure and hand it to me. I will do the rest for you.