Rotary Voices
Episodes
A Membership Success Story: How This Georgia Club Keeps Growing
09 Apr 2026
Contributed by Lukas
The Rotary Club of Roswell, Georgia, which is celebrating its 75th anniversary, is growing rapidly. In this episode, Tom Gump, chair of the Rotary Int...
Dr. Marc Schulz: Lessons from the World’s Longest Happiness Study
01 Apr 2026
Contributed by Lukas
Dr. Marc Schulz and his co-author Dr. Robert Waldinger lead the Harvard Study of Adult Development: ongoing research into the psychosocial predictors ...
David LaMotte: Harmony in Action
11 Mar 2026
Contributed by Lukas
David LaMotte is a songwriter, speaker, author, and activist who has performed over 3,500 concerts and released 13 albums. LaMotte was a Rotary Peace ...
A Bride Too Soon
02 Mar 2026
Contributed by Lukas
The survivor of an abusive arranged marriage, Fraidy Reiss wants to ensure that other girls never suffer the same ordeal. In 2011, Reiss founded Uncha...
Rashmi Rustagi: A Ray of Light
28 Jan 2026
Contributed by Lukas
Growing up in Lucknow, India, Rashmi Rustagi was a member of Rotaract and acted in radio plays for pocket money. After moving to the Bay Area in the U...
Inside the Campaign to Eradicate Polio
09 Jan 2026
Contributed by Lukas
In 2026, many Western governments have pulled back funding and reduced their commitments to the United Nations. And later this month, the United State...
50 Years: Personal Stories from Rotary Youth Exchange
23 Dec 2025
Contributed by Lukas
The Rotary Youth Exchange program has been promoting international understanding for 50 years. The program, which enables young people to live and stu...
You've Got A Friend
03 Dec 2025
Contributed by Lukas
In response to a “friendship recession,” Rotary members are finding ways to make connections they cherish, starting in their own clubs. This story...
The Autumn Ghost: A Medical Breakthrough in Polio’s Wake
12 Nov 2025
Contributed by Lukas
In 1952, Copenhagen’s Blegdam Hospital was overwhelmed by polio patients. Under immense pressure and surrounded by loss, two doctors were faced with...
Organ Donation: The Gift of Life
27 Oct 2025
Contributed by Lukas
“Fear comes from unanswered questions.” After donating one of his kidneys to his brother, Anil Srivatsa has become a devoted advocate for the lif...
Personalize Your Retirement Plan
30 Sep 2025
Contributed by Lukas
In recent months, the global stock markets have steadied following trade wars and rising inflation. But if you’re retired, or planning to retire, yo...
The Strength of Stories: Rotary Ambassador Kat Graham
03 Sep 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Kat Graham is an actress, singer, dancer, and producer who has built a career around telling stories. Graham serves as a Rotary Celebrity Ambassador a...
Polio Eradication Is ‘Our Moonshot’
20 Aug 2025
Contributed by Lukas
NPR’s Scott Simon recently sat down with Mike McGovern, the chair of Rotary’s International PolioPlus Committee, and John Hewko, Rotary’s genera...
Welcome In: How To Enhance Club Culture
16 Jul 2025
Contributed by Lukas
July marks the beginning of a new Rotary year — a moment for members and incoming leaders to reflect and find ways to grow their Rotary clubs and st...
Songs in the Key of Rotary with Jeff Jimerson
13 Jun 2025
Contributed by Lukas
For 35 years, Jeff Jimerson has been singing the U.S. national anthem before Pittsburgh Penguins hockey games. When the visiting team is from Canada, ...
Generosity Amid Uncertainty: Giving in a Volatile Market
30 May 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Over the past few months, volatile markets around the world have sent many investors on an emotional roller coaster. In this episode, Rotarian and fin...
Safe Passage: Rotarians Fight Sex Trafficking
16 May 2025
Contributed by Lukas
In July 2024, dozens of gunshots pierced the quiet Seattle night. Sex traffickers jockeying for turf fired 30 shots on Aurora Avenue North, two blocks...
The Liberation of Julie Mulligan
22 Apr 2025
Contributed by Lukas
16 years have passed since John Mulligan received a phone call from northern Nigeria to his home in Drayton Valley, a small town nestled between two r...
The Final Push: A Polio Survivor's Story
02 Apr 2025
Contributed by Lukas
In September of 2023, the Gates Foundation partnered with the Moth – an award-winning storytelling nonprofit organization – to host an event in Ne...
Where No TikToker Has Gone Before
21 Mar 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Rotarian and astronaut Samantha Cristoforetti dreamed of space travel since she was a kid. Now, she’s sharing the cosmic awe with her fellow earthli...
Chicago Chefs Cook Makes Impact Through Food
05 Mar 2025
Contributed by Lukas
For Supper with Sylvia, veteran journalist Sylvia Perez teams up with Rotary Voices, speaking with chefs Tony Priolo and Sarah Stegner about their ext...
The Backyard Bird Chronicles with Amy Tan
11 Feb 2025
Contributed by Lukas
An accomplished writer of fiction (The Joy Luck Club and five other novels), memoirs, and children’s books, Tan came late to serious birding. That i...
The Downtown Ducks with Richard Repp
21 Jan 2025
Contributed by Lukas
In 2008, a loan officer in Spokane, Washington garnered international attention after helping a mama mallard and her ducklings down from a ledge outsi...
Espresso in a War Zone
07 Jan 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Adventure or misadventure, NPR's Scott Simon finds enlightenment in a life of travels. Simon narrates his story that originally ran in the December 20...
Reasons to be Cheerful with David Byrne
09 Dec 2024
Contributed by Lukas
NPR’s Scott Simon sat down with David Byrne five years after the legendary musician, artist and former Talking Heads frontman launched a nonprofit o...
Grammy-Winning Rotary Ambassador Gaby Moreno
27 Nov 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Chicago news anchor Sylvia Perez sits down with Gaby Moreno, a Grammy award-winning singer, songwriter, and producer to discuss her upbringing, career...
Still Standing: Part 2
11 Nov 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Last episode, Hannah Shaw took us through Hatay Province in southeastern Turkey, which sustained severe damages in the 2023 earthquakes. In part two, ...
Still Standing: Part 1
11 Nov 2024
Contributed by Lukas
On 6 February 2023, two earthquakes struck Turkey and Syria – the deadliest to hit the region in 80 years. That morning, Rotary regional leaders in ...
Polio Update: Together, We End Polio
24 Oct 2024
Contributed by Lukas
In July of this year, poliovirus was detected in environmental samples from the Gaza Strip. In August, a 10-month-old boy became the first confirmed c...
Seeds of Hope
11 Oct 2024
Contributed by Lukas
In a 2021 Farm Bureau Poll, 92 percent of farmers and farmworkers felt comfortable talking with a friend or family member about mental health, an incr...
Chasing Polio with Jean-Marc Giboux
26 Sep 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Jean-Marc Giboux is a Chicago-based photojournalist who spent 18 years traveling across 17 countries to document the effects of polio and the wide-ran...
USAID’s Dr. Atul Gawande on Global Health
16 Sep 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Dr. Atul Gawande is the assistant administrator of Global Health at the U.S. Agency for International Development. But Dr. Gawande’s leadership in p...
Music as Medicine
20 Aug 2024
Contributed by Lukas
More and more, scientists, doctors and caretakers of dementia patients are finding that music is medicine. For a decade, Music Mends Minds has helped ...
Art Smith: A Little Food Goes a Long Way
08 Aug 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Chef Art Smith is an iconic American restaurateur, philanthropist, and cookbook author. He's cooked for Barack and Michelle Obama, among other world l...
From Ideas to Impact, Global Citizen's Michael Sheldrick
23 Jul 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Since the first Global Citizen Festival in 2012, countless influential artists, business leaders, and politicians have graced the event's stage. Globa...
Stephanie Urchick: The Playmaker
09 Jul 2024
Contributed by Lukas
As an avid sports fan, President Stephanie Urchick is well-positioned to light the lamp, clear the bases, and split the uprights. Whatever the sports ...
Labor of Love
01 Jul 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Supported by a Rotary Programs of Scale award, an initiative in Nigeria seeks to remedy the country's high instances of maternal death. Rotary magazin...
From Farm to Pantry
13 Jun 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Harvest Against Hunger rescues a staggering amount of produce from Washington's farm fields and fruit trees to nourish hungry families. But it never w...
Greetings from Singapore
26 May 2024
Contributed by Lukas
A recap of the latest news, events, acts of service, and milestones in the Rotary community. The 2024 Rotary International Convention in Singapore has...
Life Line: Preventing Suicide
21 May 2024
Contributed by Lukas
In 2015, Lori Crider lost her nephew to suicide. During a long, and ongoing, journey of grief, she met Shirley Weddle: a fellow loss survivor. In 2021...
Dr. Peter Salk on Immunizations and His Father’s Legacy
24 Apr 2024
Contributed by Lukas
On April 12, 1955, Dr. Thomas Francis, Jr. announced to the world that Dr. Jonas Salk’s polio vaccine was safe, effective, and potent. This medical ...
World Immunization Week Kicks Off
23 Apr 2024
Contributed by Lukas
A recap of the latest news, events, acts of service, and milestones in the Rotary community. This is a key week on the Rotary calendar in the fight a...
Hope in Grief
09 Apr 2024
Contributed by Lukas
With suicides rising in the U.S., Rotary members who’ve lost loved ones are determined to prevent more deaths. Their first step — talking. After h...
Rotary’s First First Gentleman: Nick Krayacich
19 Mar 2024
Contributed by Lukas
On July 1, 2022, Jennifer Jones became Rotary’s first female president – which left her husband, Nick Krayacich, in a unique, challenging, and at ...
How the CART Fund is Fueling Alzheimer’s Research
05 Mar 2024
Contributed by Lukas
South Carolina Rotarian Roger Ackerman watched his mother-in-law slowly lose herself to Alzheimer's over two decades. Over lunch one day in 1995, Acke...
Two Years of War: The Battle for Ukraine’s Identity
19 Feb 2024
Contributed by Lukas
February 24, 2024 marks the two-year anniversary of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. Russia still occupies 18 percent of the country. In light of this ...
First Response to the Opioid Crisis
08 Feb 2024
Contributed by Lukas
“The more people that are prepared to deal with an event, the safer everybody is going to be.” Elizabeth Hewitt shares alarming statistics on opio...
The Magic of Rotary: A Town Hall with Stephanie Urchick
22 Jan 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Since joining Rotary in 1991, President-elect Stephanie Urchick has served the organization in many roles, including as a director, Foundation trustee...
Santa, the Rotarian
21 Dec 2023
Contributed by Lukas
There has long been suspicion that Santa Claus is a Rotarian. Believe it or not, Rotary magazine has tried to track down Santa for some time! In this ...
The Culinary Paradise of Singapore
10 Dec 2023
Contributed by Lukas
“’To the people, food is heaven,’ says an ancient Chinese adage. If there is a food heaven on Earth, I’m convinced that I have found a colorfu...
The Business of Giving
27 Nov 2023
Contributed by Lukas
For Derrick Kinney, money is not a stressor, but a tool to help others. He believes that by seeing money as empowering, you can motivate yourself to m...
The Value of Vigilance
16 Nov 2023
Contributed by Lukas
“This expanded wastewater surveillance network around the globe has a vast potential for the future.” Rotary senior staff writer Diana Schoberg ex...
Polio Update: Closing In on Zero
24 Oct 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Wild poliovirus is circulating in Pakistan and Afghanistan. Last year, the variant poliovirus was detected in a few previously polio-free places – a...
The Flight To End Polio
07 Oct 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Four years ago, Iowa Rotarian Peter Teahen was enchanted by the idea of flying around the world. He called upon Rotarian John Ockenfels to join him. T...
Shape-Shifting Singapore
15 Sep 2023
Contributed by Lukas
“You think you know Singapore? Think again.” Rotary editor Wen Huang explores an always-changing Singapore ahead of the 2024 Rotary International ...
Better Together: The Benefits of Membership
01 Sep 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Community organizations like Rotary provide the perfect opportunity to help others and better ourselves. But in an era of overwhelming responsibility ...
Solving the Alzheimer's Puzzle
18 Jul 2023
Contributed by Lukas
As scientists rush to develop powerful and meaningful new treatments for Alzheimer's disease, which affects millions of people globally, a group of Ro...
Ethos Into Action
03 Jul 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Gordon McInally, the 2023-24 Rotary International president, has been on a lifelong journey of helping and caring for others, one that took root durin...
Why Should We Care About Russia’s War Against Ukraine?
14 Jun 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Ivo Daalder, president of the Chicago Council on Global Affairs, and John Hewko, CEO of Rotary International and The Rotary Foundation spoke at a live...
A Debt to the Dead
26 May 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Last fall, Chris Kolenda set out on his Fallen Hero Honor Ride, covering 1,700 miles on his bicycle to visit the gravesites of the six paratroopers wh...
Rick Bayless' Culinary Diplomacy
15 May 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Food does more than fuel our bodies; it can nourish our souls and give us a glimpse into other cultures. In this episode of Rotary magazine's...
The Secret Marathon
17 Apr 2023
Contributed by Lukas
The 2016 film The Secret Marathon tells the story of the perseverance of female runners in Afghanistan, a country where women regularly face discrimin...
The Trailblazers
20 Mar 2023
Contributed by Lukas
March is Women's History Month, a time to celebrate and reflect on the contributions women have made to society. In this episode of Rotary magazine's ...
Life During Wartime
02 Mar 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Last fall, as the first anniversary of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine approached, Rotary magazine’s Wen Huang traveled to Europe to see this humanit...
The Battle for Ukraine’s Identity
07 Feb 2023
Contributed by Lukas
As the war in Ukraine reaches the one-year mark, Russia’s continued attacks have caused death and devastation, and created millions of refugees. In ...
Lessons From Dr. Loneliness
30 Jan 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Well before the COVID-19 pandemic, a University of Chicago professor already was studying loneliness, which he considered a hidden epidemic. His lifew...
Connection Is a Cure
05 Jan 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Exacerbated by COVID-19 pandemic seclusion, loneliness has become a global public health crisis, but Rotary clubs, experts, and governments are tackli...
A Mission To Eliminate Malaria
15 Dec 2022
Contributed by Lukas
The recipient of Rotary's first $2 million Programs of Scale grant, Partners for a Malaria-Free Zambia, is working to eliminate the disease, including...
A Community Cure
01 Dec 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Partners for a Malaria-Free Zambia, the recipient of Rotary’s first Programs of Scale award, is confronting a worldwide malady at the local level by...
A Path Forward From PTSD
11 Nov 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Trauma, whether from the horrors of war or the loss of a loved one, can feel insurmountable to those experiencing it. In this episode, our podcast tea...
Home From War
03 Nov 2022
Contributed by Lukas
An Iraq veteran works through his trauma — and adopts a mission to help others, in this audio version of a story in the November 2022 issue of Rotar...
Outsmarting Polio
19 Oct 2022
Contributed by Lukas
The poliovirus is detected in New York and London. A new polio vaccine offers hope to prevent variant polio outbreaks. In advance of World Polio Day, ...
A New Weapon Against Polio
29 Sep 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Rotary Magazine Presents: A modified polio vaccine, nOPV2, is offering new hope in the fight to eradicate polio. Broadcast Journalist Linda Yu narrate...
The Next Act
23 Aug 2022
Contributed by Lukas
With his play, Visions, Rotary member Lo Bue has turned his addiction into art and provided new roles for former addicts. Story by Steve Almond. Narra...
Water Is Life
23 Aug 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Alongside Rotary and the nonprofit DigDeep, the Navajo are bringing a vital commodity to their ancestral homeland. Story by Geoffrey Johnson. Narrated...
Peace Through a Bowl of Tea
22 Jul 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Genshitsu Sen is former grand master of the Urasenke tea tradition and a member of the Rotary Club of Kyoto, Japan. Sen's father introduced him to Rot...
Storyteller in Chief
28 Jun 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Jennifer Jones, Rotary International’s 2022-23 president and the first female president, is the perfect leader to spread the word about the good Rot...
Melodies and Memories
01 Jun 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Music, it turns out, is medicine for the mind. In this story for the May 2022 issue of Rotary magazine, Kate Silver explores the good things music doe...
White Rhinos and Black Mambas
18 May 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Can an all-female anti-poaching unit stop wildlife crime in an African game preserve — without guns? The following story, narrated by award-winning ...
Strength in Times of Crisis in Ukraine
04 May 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Past and current conflicts have had a significant impact on Rotary in Ukraine — which has only made members there more resolute. The following story...