Contributed photo/Nate BodenstabHOULTON — On Dec. 28, 2015 Franki White shared with the Houlton Rotary Club her experience with Rotaract. While White was a student at the University of Maine in Orono she joined Rotaract, a Rotary Club designed specifically for college age youngsters aged 17 to 30.
White had been involved with the Houlton Rotary Club while she was in high school. She joined her father Scott White, a Rotarian, on a trip to the Dominican Republic with other Rotarians where the group installed water filters in impoverished communities. She was the youngest member of the team and she enjoyed the one on one contact with the children in the villages.
White gave a powerpoint presentation and spoke of the purpose of the organization Rotaract. Opportunities are provided for young men and women to enhance the knowledge and skill sets that will encourage personal development to address the physical and social needs of their communities and promote better relations between all people worldwide. A framework of cooperation, friendship and service is constructed.
Rotaract’s goals are to develop professional and leadership skills, to help youth gain respect for the rights of others through ethical standards and knowing the dignity of all useful occupations, to provide the opportunities for young people to address the needs and concerns of community and the greater world, to be able to work with sponsoring Rotary clubs and to motivate young people to eventually become members of Rotary clubs worldwide.
Some areas that Rotaract has been involved with are helping with the Smile Train, working with residents at the Ronald McDonald House and feeding students during exams. The Houlton Rotary Club was impressed with Franki’s maturity and kindness and this could be attributed to learning to give back to her community at an early age, following the Rotary’s Service Above Self moto.
