Youth Programs - Interact

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Rotary District 5000 2010 Interact Convention February 26-28, 2010 at the Ala Moana Hotel "Youth, The Future of Rotary"   On February 26-28, 2010, District 5000 Interact celebrated another great year in the accomplishments of our "Youth, the Future of Rotary" at the 2010 Interact Convention held at the Ala Moana Hotel. Over 100 conventioneers - Interactors, Faculty Advisors, Youth Exchange students, and Rotarians devoted a weekend to culminate this year's Rotary spirit demonstrated by the Interact clubs of Hawaii and to share Rotary.   THE THEME The theme "Youth, The Future of Rotary" was emphasized throughout the convention; the Networking  Challenge - to cultivate life long Rotary friendships; the Convention Packet included: Information on Interact, Hawaii Rotary Youth Foundation, Rotary Youth Exchange, Ambassadorial Scholarships, Rotaract, Rotary Centers for International Studies in peace and conflict resolution, Calendar of Rotary Events: March Literacy Month, Peacemaker Video Contest, Walk to End Polio, Rotary at Work Day, D5000's 4-Way Test Contest; the speakers were Rotarians; and Interactors were told their Interact experience gave them a head start to be a great generation of Rotarians because of their Rotary Spirit, demonstration of Service Above Self, and living the 4-Way Test.   THE CONVENTION EVENTS Interact clubs from the islands of Hawaii, Kauai, Maui and Oahu converged on Friday evening at Sacred Hearts Academy to meet and greet each other at the opening "Mixer." Kapolei Interact Club roused the crowd with "mixer festivities" and the convention fun began!   Check-in at the hotel followed and Interactors were given their convention packet that included a welcome letter from District Governor Lisa Foster in which she expressed, "It is an honor to recognize the great work you are doing!  Let us celebrate, serve and continue to make a difference, because the Future of Rotary is in our Hands!" Regretfully, she was unable to attend due to conflicting District activities. A welcome letter from Mayor Mufi Hannemann commended the Interactors on their focus of community and international. He wrote, "On behalf of the people of the City and County of Honolulu, I extend best wishes for an enjoyable and memorable gathering for an organization that focuses on Service Above Self."  The Interactors were given a Networking Challenge by "Auntie Donna" McLaughlin, District Interact Chair; those who exchanged  names/email addresses would qualify to win a prize at the end of the convention.   Early Saturday morning a service project and lunch meeting at the Honolulu Zoo was planned. But like all of Hawaii, we were faced with the Tsunami Watch. A tsunami was not on the agenda, however because of it, this convention will long be remembered! The emergency arrangements began at 2:30 AM with Past District Governor/Youth Services Chair Claude Thompson awakened to give permission for an Interact student to be released to a concerned parent. So began the day of "emergency preparedness" for the convention committee. The Ala Moana Hotel is about 100 feet from the evacuation zone, and the hotel's emergency plans are to move guests to the 6th floor and higher.  The students were on the 7th & 9th floors. Many of the Oahu attendees returned home, and the remaining Interactors spent the day watching the TV news in anticipation and bonding with fellow Interactors and advisors. Much credit should be given to the faculty advisors and Interactors who showed great patience, alertness and cooperation as we prepared for the worst and hoped for the best. Faculty Advisors and Rotarians met periodically to review plans and meals. The Ala Moana Hotel opened the Pakele Lounge in the lobby for us to gather for lunch...then back to our rooms.   The "tsunami watch all clear" was music to our ears! The Oahu Interactors quickly returned to the hotel. At 3 PM, with the tsunami a memory, the activities began at Rumours. A House of Friendship featured club Scrap Books and Interactors worked on their strategy to win the "Networking Challenge."  The first speaker was Jesse James (Honolulu) and he presented winning videos of the Peacemaker Video Contest on the high tech screens. The second speaker was the vivacious Pam Chambers (Honolulu) on "What Everyone Needs to Know About Business Etiquette." Before heading to the Foundation Fundraiser, making cameo appearances were Ernie Anderson (Pearl Harbor) and his wife Pat, and Dave and Mary Ann Berry (Ala Moana). The Rumours Party followed with dancing and dining simultaneously. Interactors filled the dance floor most of the evening having a Rotary blast! During the party, Rotarians PDG Roy (Waikiki) and Gloria King (Kahala Sunrise) judged the award essays and scrapbooks, they too attended the Foundation Fundraiser; staying the duration as judges were Judy Heller (Pearl Harbor), Jeannie Shaw (Kapolei) and Roosevelt Faculty Advisor Dayna Kaneshiro. Rotarian Chaperones included Tom Gross (Youth Exchange Chair of Poipu Beach) and his wife Mary, and convention committee - Claude & Leila Thompson, John & Donna McLaughlin.   The Sunday Brunch Meeting began with the Pledge of Allegiance by Jess Hinton (King Kekaulike) and Convention Inspirational Thoughts by Carlie Belmodis (Campbell), Kacie Kunioka-Volz (Kapaa Youth Exchange), and Janis Swen (Island Pacific Academy). Followed by introduction of Rotarians:  Past Rotary International President 2005-06 & Trustee Chair Elect of the Rotary Foundation Carl-Wilhelm Stenhammar & his wife Monica, Past District Governors Linda Coble, Claude Thompson, & Roz Cooper; District Youth Exchange Chair Leila Thompson, District Interact Chair Donna McLaughlin, President Toni Normand (Diamond Head), Vice President John McLaughlin (Pearl Harbor), and Roger Dunn (Waikiki). Speakers were Linda Coble, "Service Clubs Rock Kids Voting in 2010," Youth Exchange Alumni Keifer Harrington, Ambassadorial Scholar Alumni & Rotaract Roger Dunn and PRIP Carl-Wilhelm Stenhammar.   Youth Exchange Alumni Keifer Harrington introduced the exchange students who gave greetings in their home language. He also announced District 5000's next year's out-bound youth exchange students and their exchange country: Hannah Fuqua, France; Brandi Badua-Robinson, Germany; Kacie Kunioka-Volz, Japan.   PRIP Carl-Wilhelm Stenhammer expressed his congratulations and support for the Interact & Youth Exchange Programs and the fine contributions the attendees are making in service to the community and the environment. He has always been a strong supporter of the youth and has held all RI positions involving Youth Exchange. He expressed, "if all 17 year olds experienced youth exchange, we would have peace in the world." He noticed that our "Networking Challenge" winners were females; and commented, while Rotary is now predominantly male, this competition is indicative of the future of Rotary in which women will have a much greater percentage.  In reference to Roger Dunn's experience as an Ambassadorial Scholar/Rotaract in Taiwan, he commended the projects focused on the environment, and added his wife Monica has always strongly supported environmental issues especially water.   INTERACT AWARDS The 2010 Interact Awards were presented by PRIP Carl-Wilhelm & Monica Stenhammar: District 5000 Interact Citation:  Kealakehe Interact Club Interact Community Service: Kapolei Interact Club Interact International Service:  Kealakehe Interact Club Scrap Book:  Kealakehe Interact Club Interact Rotary Advisor: Donna McLaughlin, Aiea & Radford Interact Clubs Interact Faculty Advisor: Kathleen Worden, Radford Interact Club Interact Club of the Year:  Kealakehe Interact Club of Kailua-Kona, Hawaii   CLUBS PARTICIPATING Interact Clubs Hawaii - Kealakehe, St. Joseph Kauai -Kapaa Maui - Baldwin, King Kekaulike Oahu - Aiea, Campbell, Farrington, Hawaii Baptist Academy, Iolani, Island Pacific Academy, Kaiser, Kapolei, La Pietra, Mid-Pacific Institute, Mililani, Nanakuli, Radford, Roosevelt, Sacred Hearts Academy, Waipahu Sponsoring Rotary Clubs Ala Moana, Diamond Head, Hanalei Bay, Hawaii Kai, Honolulu, Honolulu Sunrise, Honolulu Sunset, Kahala Sunrise, Kapaa, Kapolei, Kapolei Sunset, Kona, Maui, Mililani Sunrise, Pearl Harbor, Poipu Beach, South Hilo, Upcountry Maui, Waikiki, Wailuku, West Kauai, West Pearl Harbor, Windward Oahu   MAHALO Special mahalo to:  Sacred Hearts Academy for hosting the Friday Mixer; Past District Governor Ayman El-Dakhakhni's VIP Transportation for providing convention transportation; Rotary Clubs of Kahala Sunrise, Pearl Harbor & Waikiki for sponsoring Friday Mixer refreshments; PDG Roz Cooper for hosting RRIP Carl-Wilhelm & Monica Stenhammar.   ON THE HORIZON The 2011 Interact Convention is already in the works. All President-Elects & Interact Chairs are encouraged to include Interact and the Interact Convention in their year plan!  Rotary Volunteers make a big difference in Interact meetings, projects and their convention.  There's something for every club, even those that do not sponsor an Interact club! Want to be involved? JUST SAY YES, THE FUTURE OF ROTARY IS IN YOUR HANDS! Please contact District Interact Chair Donna McLaughlin at mclaughlj003@hawaii.rr.com.

Interact Video Contest that ends Sept 15, 2009 All Interact club and sponsor Rotary club members are eligible to enter.

Simply create a video, three minutes or less, about what Interact means to you. Join the 2009 Interact Video Contest group, and follow the instructions to upload and submit your video. Then complete the entry form , and e-mail it to RI. (Entrants under 18 years of age will need to indicate parental consent on the form.)   The deadline for submitting a video is 15 September.   Entries will be judged by a panel of Interact staff. The grand-prize-winning video will be featured in the November issue of Interactive to coincide with World Interact Week. Two first-place videos will be featured on YouTube . Winning videos may be used in other RI publications.   All Interact club and sponsor Rotary club members are eligible to enter.   Videos can be of any style -- fiction, documentary, animated, experimental, or live action -- and must be in English or have English subtitles. They must be at least 30 seconds long but no longer than three minutes. Read the complete contest rules.   "The contest is a great way for Interactors to showcase the great work that they do locally as well as internationally, and to show the world how Interact impacts their lives and those around them," says Annahita Ghaboussi, RI Youth Activities coordinator. "Interactors are a young, energetic, and technologically advanced group who will have fun making these videos. We are confident they will prove their creativity while expressing what Interact means to them."   So grab your camera and start filming today. Show the world what Interact means to you! For more information about Interact in your area, contact your local Rotary club or your District 5000 Interact chair, Donna McLaughlin.

 

 ABOUT INTERACT

Interact is Rotary International's service club for young people ages 14-18. Interact clubs are sponsored by individual Rotary clubs, which provide support and guidance, but Interact clubs are self-governing and self-supporting.

Club membership varies greatly. Clubs can be single-gender or mixed, as well as large and small. The membership base can be drawn from the student body of a single school or from two or more schools from the same community.

Each year, Interact clubs complete at least two community service projects, one of which furthers international understanding and goodwill. Through projects, Interactors develop a network of friendships with local and overseas clubs. And, in the process, Interactors develop leadership skills and learn the value of hard work.

As one of the most significant and fastest-growing programs of Rotary service, with more than 8,600 Interact clubs in some 110 countries and geographical areas, Interact has become a worldwide phenomenon.

Interactors also often spearhead the formation of Rotaract clubs and participate in Rotary Youth Leadership Awards (RYLA). Interactors also often go on to become Youth Exchange students or Ambassadorial Scholars.