Rotarians Providing International Volunteer Opportunities to Everyone
MEETING FOR THE WEEK OF May 25, 2026
This Meeting at a Glance:
Program: Rotarians Providing International Volunteer Opportunities to Everyone
Speaker: Wayne McRann
Is this your first time visiting us? If so, welcome to our weekly online meeting! To complete our meeting, please continue reading from here to the bottom of this page. Each Monday, our week’s meeting is posted early in the morning, U.S. Pacific Time. These meetings are designed so that you can read and watch what we post anytime during the week. The entire meeting takes about 60 minutes to complete, with the video conference recording of the program being the bulk of the time. Note that you can easily read this meeting with your favorite device, so feel free to take our meeting on the go with you. Please also complete the attendance form at the bottom and leave a comment. Enjoy!
To properly attend this meeting, please:
Read and watch the content below in its entirety.
Complete the attendance survey.
Everyone is encouraged to leave a comment in the Disqus section at the bottom of the page.
Greetings Members, Rotarians, Friends and Guests:
Want to Learn More About Us? - Who We Are, What We Do, Why We Do It
Want to become a Rotarian? - Join us in helping to make the world a better place!
Thanks for joining our weekly meeting!
Ringing the Rotary Bell to start our eClub Meeting
Ben Schumaker - Member
WEEKLY FUNNY WITH SHAGS
We believe laughter is an important part of life, and we should all make time to laugh a little. This segment of our meeting is meant to tickle you just enough. These funnies are curated by member Steven "Shags" Shagrin!
How can you tell which end of a worm is the head?
Tickle it in the middle, see which end laughs.
Inspiration
Malaria is one of the world's greatest killers. Hundreds of thousands of people die from the diease each year, mostly in sub-Saharan Africa. The human and economic loss is profound and tragic. In this video from Gates Notes, you'll learn about work happening in Tanzania to turn the tide against malaria.
LEARN SOMETHING NEW
How Do Mirrors Work?
Apart from the obvious -- you look into them to see yourself.
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PROGRAM: Rotarians Providing International Volunteer Opportunities to Everyone
SPEAKER: Wayne McRann
We bring you a new program every week on innovation, entrepreneurship, and education and how they contribute to service to others.
Having had the life-changing Rotary experience of volunteering in the developing world, a group of Rotarians from the Rotary Club of Kamloops Daybreak established a charitable organization to introduce others to volunteering internationally. Developing World Connections was formed in 2004 and conducted their first volunteer trips in Sri Lanka after the Dec 25, 2004, Indian Ocean tsunami.
The valuable experience of serving as an RI evaluator and monitor provided the knowledge to ensure the projects undertaken were sustainable and of greatest benefit to the host partner communities. Roughly 25 project communities have been served in Africa, Asia, and South and Central America, and projects range from education programs, to irrigation systems, school renovation or construction, entrepreneurial programs, and provision of eco-stoves. Assistance to women and girls is always a high priority, and to date, well over 3000 volunteers have served with Developing World Connections.
Our speaker, Wayne McRann, is a 37-year member of the Rotary Club of Kamloops Daybreak in Central British Columbia, Canada. While club president in 1998-1999, Wayne introduced his club to their first international service project in Guatemala, where over three years, they rebuilt a jungle village destroyed by Hurricane Mitch. For this, their club received District 5060's first Health, Hunger and Humanity Grant, and Wayne received RI's Service Above Self Award. Wayne was the District's Community Service Chair for three years, then the International Chair for three years, during which time he represented the District on the Canadian Rotary Committee for International Development. Wayne was appointed to RI's Cadre of Evaluators and Monitors and E&M'd 72 projects in Africa and South America.
Having seen the benefit of international service to fellow Rotarians, and having had the experience as a RI evaluator/monitor, Wayne determined he wished to offer this life-changing experience to non-Rotarians who seldom would have the same opportunity. After gathering together a group of Rotarians who would eventually become board members, Developing World Connections was formed in 2004, and became actively involved in international volunteer efforts after the Indian Ocean tsunami. Wayne asked his daughter to run his business, and then dedicated the next ten years to introducing over 2000 volunteers from within and without Rotary to volunteering in the developing world. Wayne retired in 2015 and stays closely connected to Developing World Connections.
Members and guests, please welcome Wayne McRann!
To learn more, go to:
https://developingworldconnections.org/
To learn more about the Rotary eClub of Silicon Valley, go to:
http://rotary.cool
Our Three Podcast Series
Our main program speakers are available as podcasts in addition to YouTube videos! Each week, they are available on Spotify and Apple Podcasts, as well as many other platforms.
Our weekly podcast is now called:
Inspiring People - Stories of Innovation and Service
Inspiring Solutions for a Better World
Our original podcast, featuring some of the best of our previous speakers, is still available on Spotify and Apple Podcasts, and many other platforms.
Inspiring Women: Celebrating Trailblazers
Our newest podcast celebrates trailblazing women. It is available on Spotify and Apple Podcasts, and many other platforms.
UPCOMING PROGRAM RECORDING SCHEDULE
All of our guest speakers and programs are recorded live online over Zoom video conference. We welcome members and guests to join us in one of these upcoming recordings. Recordings are approximately 30 minutes long and are subject to change without notice.
Our online video conference room link for these recordings is always http://zoom.siliconvalleyrotary.com/. You are welcome to join us! Please note the timezone listed for all recordings is US Pacific Time (San Francisco, California, USA).
If you can’t join the live recording, please send your questions for an upcoming speaker to programs@siliconvalleyrotary.com.
THE ATTENDANCE SURVEY
Thanks for reading and watching this week’s meeting. You have two last things to do before you’re done.
We have a very short attendance survey below for you to fill out to record your attendance.
Visiting Rotarians, this is how you can get an email receipt to pass along to your club’s secretary as proof that you’ve attended our meeting if you need it for makeup.
Non-Rotarian Guests, we would love to see who is dropping by our meetings! This part is optional for you. If you think you may want to join our eClub at some point in the future, we would strongly recommend you fill out the attendance form as it will improve your chances of success for your membership application.
For all members and guests — we strongly recommend and ask that you leave a comment in our comments area below. Tell us how you enjoyed the program. Ask this week’s speaker any questions you might have. Or just stop by and say hello and tell us where you’re from!
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