In 2007 I went to the slums of Tijuana with the Rancho Bernardo (CA) Sunrise Rotary Club. A group of 50 of us went to build a house in a day, and it was the most AMAZING experience...one that changed my life, the lives of my family members, and the lives of the family that suddenly had a roof over their heads.
Traveling home that evening, I found myself on the Mexican side of the border at the top of a hill. There I saw (to my right) the Mexican mountainside with hundreds of homes seemingly stuffed into every crack and crevice. Having just spent a day in a community like this, where the homes were only reachable by walking up a staircase built from old tires and soda cases, I could easily envision the flea-bitten mongrels running around the houses and the piles of trash outside the non-existent windows.
To my left was the corrugated steel of the border fence, a great swath of green on the US side of the border, and...in the distance...the Emerald City of San Diego.
In an instant I got it! I suddenly realized why someone would risk EVERYTHING to get from the Mexican side of that border...with its crowding, hunger, and squalor...to the American side and the promise it held. This moment changed my way of looking at the world, and no amount of politics or potential personal gain was ever going to change my view that those of us who have owe it to those who have less to try and help them in whatever way we can.
Like me, you probably have a pretty good life. Sure, you'd like more money in the bank or more time with the family. We all always want more of something, and don't always appreciate that things are better than we are willing to admit.
But I learned that day that whether or not you're a member of Rotary International, you can help heal the world.
So here's your chance.
The Rancho Beernardo Festival (October 28, 2017, 2-5pm, Webb Park, Rancho Bernardo) is our biggest (and only) fundraiser each year, and it's become the only IPA festival of its kind. Now in its 6th year, we're offering an opportunity for a wide range of sponsorships, with something suitable for every kind of business, organization, and budget. Individual sponsorships are also suitable and welcomed.
Last year we raised $80,000 from the most glorious day, serving hundreds of people 50 different types of beer and some great food, and this year's effort will be larger still (including a bunch of non-IPA beers and non-alcoholic drinks for those so inclined). I'm already planning my sponsorship, and urge you to do the same.
Why am I sponsoring this effort? Because I know I'm going to make a difference. I recognize that every dollar raised goes to improving the community around me. And I understand that Rotary International has 1,200,000+ people just like me around the globe, all of whom have dedicated their lives to Service Above Self. It's an organization that sets aside religion, politics, race, gender, and personal bias, making it possible to work together and solve problems bigger than any one of us.
Be a part of the solution and help groups like the YMCA, Ed Brown Senior Center, Project Mercy and Team Red, White and Blue. Visit us at www.ranchobeernardofestival.com for more information, to be a sponsor, and to have your own Rotary Moment.
Oh, and don't forget to buy your tickets for the big event (there's a limited number available), and be sure to join us at one of our meetings on Tuesday mornings from 7-8:30 at the Rancho Bernardo Country Club on Greens East Road.
We're a fun bunch - I guarantee you'll see it as the best 90 minutes you'll invest all week.
Do it today. Change a life tomorrow.