Fellow Rotarians,
Following on the continued successes of our Club and Past Presidents, I am honored to lead our amazing Club through this 2023/24 Rotary year, the 38th such year in Rotary Central’s storied history. I truly feel privileged to be at the helm of such a remarkable Club – one of the best Rotary Clubs in one of the best Rotary Districts in the world!
Rotary Central prides itself in being full of passionate and active Rotarians who mobilize themselves to achieve incredible results. Through signature projects like: our Bus Shelters program, now totaling near 100 shelters across Grand Cayman; Storytimes for children; the annual Music Extravaganza and cash raffle; The Dr. Bill Hrudey Rotary Science Fair; community health screenings, both locally and internationally; as well as our many other various projects, we demonstrate that we are truly PEOPLE OF ACTION!
As we embark on this new Rotary year, Polio Plus remains a key focus as we inch closer and closer to eradicating Polio on this planet. Our District (7020) continues to lead the way on a more recent Rotary International initiative, HANWASH, a program that strives to provide clean water and sanitation to all Haitians. Rotary Central has become one of the leading supporters of HANWASH in our District – the world, actually – and we plan to continue to help lead the way on this vital and impactful project.
This is an exceptionally exciting year since we also have the honor of Cayman’s own David Kirkaldy as our District 7020 Governor and will be lending our full support to his efforts relating to improving Mental Health and Wellness by encouraging important dialogues and raising awareness of the struggles which many are increasingly facing in our communities. DG David’s role this year also means that the Cayman Islands will host District 7020 PETS, Assembly and Conference in late April and early May of 2024 and I know that many of our membership will play important roles in the planning and execution of this gathering of hundreds of Rotarians from across the 10 island nations which comprise our District. It will no doubt be an incredible District Conference, full of learning, inspiration and, of course, that brand of fellowship which Rotary always delivers – this time with a dash of Caymankind!
Rotary International President for 2023/24, R. Gordon R. McInally, wants us Rotarians to ‘Create Hope in the World’, a fitting set of marching orders to help guide our efforts in this coming Rotary year. I have no doubt that we will be able to look back at the end of this year and know that we have accomplished this goal.
Paul Arbo
President 2023-2024
Rotary Central, Cayman Islands
