The Rotary movement was founded on February 23, 1905. Paul Harris, a young lawyer from Chicago, gathered three friends to explore one of his ideas.
Dr. NP Nikolaev, a Sofia lawyer, publicist, and politician, signed the protocol for the foundation of the first Rotary club in Bulgaria on April 22, 1933, together with Dr. Nedkov, Petko Boyadjiev, Eng. Kadiiski, writer Veliko Hristov, and 16 other enthusiasts.
Today, 118 years later, representatives of RC Puldin, RC Filipopol and RC Plovdiv International met in the Rotary Park in Trakia (Plovdiv) to celebrate this.
FEBRUARY 23 – Rotary and World Understanding and Peace Day fills us with pride to be members of such an old and prestigious organization, we are happy with the great things it has done to build a better and peaceful world. The wars in Ukraine, Syria and Afghanistan show that our peacekeeping mission is becoming more and more important! This is an occasion for reckoning not only before us, but also before the society we serve.
What should we say to the people around us?
They need to hear about Paul Harris and his story of creating Rotary.
They should know that the organization is tolerant of political, racial, ethnic, religious and other differences among people.
They should know that Rotary is now the largest private, non-governmental organization
an organization of leaders from various professions, that Rotary in 1942 was a founding member of UNESCO, and since 1947 has been at the heart of the creation and with advisor status in the United Nations.
They should know that Rotarians included Neil Armstrong, Winston Churchill, Thur Heyerdahl, Franz Lehar, Edmund Hillary, Walt Disney, John Kennedy and hundreds of thousands of dedicated members united by the spirit of friendship and selfless service.
They should know that since 1985, Rotary has invested more than $3.6 billion to eradicate polio worldwide, the largest private sector support for a global health initiative. Major partners in this project are the World Health Organization, UNICEF and the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Over two billion children have been immunized against polio in these 35 years.
They should know that the challenge of Bill Gates, one of the most successful people on earth, and his donation to the PolioPlus program at the end of last year announced the final stage of the complete eradication of polio.
People should know that in 1991 Bulgaria returned to Rotary thanks to the memory left by our pioneers led by the first Bulgarian Rotarian Sabo Nikolov, the memory of the eight Rotary clubs from 1933 to 1941 and the independent district we had in 1940
They should know that now in Bulgaria there are 90 Rotary clubs in all major cities, and half of them have created Rotaract and Interact formations of young leaders. With this capacity, in 2007, Bulgaria deservedly received the status of an independent District 2482. Bulgarian Rotarians became a guarantor of peace in the Balkans. In this complex and historically burdened region with its problems, large joint projects are implemented, friendship and trust is built between Rotarians as an example to politicians and diplomats.
By building our Rotary Home, we SHARE the ideas and essence of ROTARY so we can MAKE OUR DREAMS COME TRUE. We realized that the FUTURE OF ROTARY IS IN OUR HANDS if we STRENGTHEN THE COMMUNITIES we live in and BRING THE CONTINENTS TOGETHER. Thus, KNOWING OURSELVES, we have loved men and will KEEP THE PEACE. Now, when we CHANGE LIVES WITH ROTARY, we LIGHT the way and become a GIFT TO THE WORLD, because ROTARY SERVES HUMANITY. In this service, we MAKE THE DIFFERENCE and our INSPIRATION is justified because ROTARY CONNECTS THE WORLD. Let’s not forget that ROTARY OPENS OPPORTUNITIES and SERVE TO CHANGE PEOPLE’S LIVES. Let’s PRESENT ROTARY on this solemn day for us!!!
We must emphasize the words of Paul Harris that the only way to prove our love for others is by serving them. And what does it mean to serve society? It is both a responsibility and an opportunity. This is one small part of the magic called Rotary.
Happy holiday!
PDG Nasko Nachev
February 2023