The Rotary Minute is a quick one-minute story that features the work and impact of Rotary in our community and world!
I know last week I said we’d be doing Rotary Minutes on the 7 areas of Focus for Rotary International. And we still plan on doing these Rotary Minutes. But I decided to pivot in honor of the anniversary of a historic event in history that happened 53 years ago yesterday. You see, July 20th, 1969 isn’t just a proud day for Americans, it’s also a proud day for Rotary and all of mankind. 53 years ago yesterday, Neil Armstrong put his foot on the moon and said, “One small step for a man, one giant leap for mankind.”
It’s a proud day for Rotary because Neil Armstrong is also the first Rotarian to walk on the moon. Neil Armstrong was a member of the Rotary Club of Wapakoneta, Ohio. There are other famous Rotarian astronauts, including Frank Borman, the commander of Apollo 8, who was commander of the first mission to fly around the moon and one of the first three people in human history to see the dark side of the moon. Frank Borman, who is still alive today at age 94, is a member of the Rotary Club of Space Center, Houston. So when you look up at the moon tonight, smile and know that you, as a Rotarian, share something in common with famous astronauts that have seen the moon up close!
And that, my fellow Club #21 members, is today’s Rotary Minute!
Frank Borman's autograph courtesy of Rotarian Joe Bruce