* * Heading to Bolivia!

As you may deduce from the headline above, I had a pretty exciting day yesterday.

I have been a member of Rotary International for four years.  Rotary is one of the oldest and best respected service organizations in the world.  Rotary sponsors any number of international goodwill programs.  One of them is called Group Study Exchange, or GSE.

Our Rotary District stretches from Winchester to Kingsport and from Danville to Norton.  Our district will sponsor two “outbound” groups on trips next spring, one to Tasmania and the other to Bolivia. 

The trips are five to six weeks long.  Team members are young people, ages 25 to 40, non-Rotarians, who are established in career positions.  The group leader is a Rotarian, over the age of 45, who is responsible for keeping the group cohesive and focused on diplomacy, cultural exchange, and goodwill.  The host countries provide food, lodging, and meaningful occupational experiences for each team member. 

I had thrown my name in the hat for consideration for team leader of one of these two trips.  The pool of applicants for the leadership position was exceptionally impressive, including people with vastly more international experience and business success than me.  We met yesterday in Roanoke and were interviewed by a dozen longstanding Rotary members in a “tell us about your life and why you deserve this appointment” setting.

I was shocked to get a call last evening from the committee head telling me that I had been selected for the Bolivia trip!  I wish I could tell you what I said that impressed this committee enough to be selected.  This is an honor of a lifetime.

Needless to say, I am still in a bit of shock.  I know little more about Bolivia than that it is a land-locked nation in South America, that its capitol city La Paz has the highest elevation of any national capitol in the world, that the national language is Spanish, and that Butch and Sundance met their demise there. 

And, I know nothing more of the Spanish language than the ability to order a beer.  My immediate task is to find a Spanish tutor and begin an extensive and intensive program to learn as much of the language as possible before our departure in the spring.

If you live in our Rotary District and are between the ages of 25 and 40 and are interested in applying, please let me know.  Rotary international pays virtually all expenses and this would surely be a trip of a lifetime for anyone.

Despedida!