Who we are locally

Where in the world are we?

District 9920 is a geographic area covering a half of Auckland, New Zealand and the seven Pacific nations of American Samoa, Cook Islands, Fiji, French Polynesia, Kiribati, Samoa and Tonga. This is the largest maritime district in Rotary and this unique Pacific influence provides Rotarians with wide ranging and interesting service opportunities. In this area there are 59 Rotary & Rotaract clubs of which a third are in the Pacific countries.

What are we known for?

Our islands with golden beaches and our anchor in Auckland NZ are a tourist mecca. Our District sees the first sun of the new day, so guess that leaves everyone else catching up.

Our district played its part in supporting a number of well known national organisations that Rotary helped start and today stand on their own merits. Many clubs still have that close relationship today. A few to mention are:

Cure Kids, Ronald McDonald House, Outward Bound, Defensive Driving, National Kidney Foundation, Riding for the Disabled, Asthma Society and The Crippled

Children’s Society.

Our peoples and Rotary Clubs are very welcoming.

Amongst our better known members, we’ve had Rotary

International President Bill Boyd, and Everest conqueror, Sir Edmund Hillary.

We Are Multi Cultural

English is predominantly used, and widely spread in most islands, but so too are native languages within our seven countries. Plus within our Auckland based clubs, we have seen great membership growth from clubs that have a multi cultural membership and/or are based around a common cultural/language membership cohort. These clubs thrive often because english is not their first language, but because it is the common cultural connection which brings them together.

Multiculturalism also leads to significant diversity in activities and projects. Some of our best club fundraisers are based around international celebrations. Diwali is a great example of how one cultural celebration draws in many to share the experience and these also then become great fundraisers.

United in a common cause

Whilst our mixing pot of members, of different cultures, different countries, different skills and experience are unique to our Clubs and District, we do so under a common umbrella that Rotary has given the world. This opportunity through Rotary to serve our communities, local and international, is what sets Rotary apart from other organisations.

We each have our own reasons to give back to our communities. I like to call these the benefits of Rotary. These are the personal rewards that we feel from being able to share our time, skills, contacts and experiences to plan for, or respond to a need not otherwise catered for in our communities. Whether we do this at local scale with our own clubs or at a global scale like the End Polio campaign, each $1 raised or each hour given makes a difference to the recipient of our efforts.

An invite to find out more

If you have got this far reading  If you want to know more about the benefits of being a Rotarian, then let me help you and put you in touch with some Rotary Clubs near you. Each club has its own unique identity under the Rotary umbrella and there is bound to be a club that matches well with you. Contact Rotary District 9920 Membership Chair Mike: mike.jaggs@gmail.com