About the Venice-Nokomis Rotary
The Venice/Nokomis Rotary Club was born just after World War II to help bridge a gap between a military and civilian community. Venice, conceived in 1927 as a model city in the Florida boom, became a ghost town during the Depression. In 1943 an Army Air Base was built with a military population of 10,000. This bolstered the economy until the Army vacated in 1947, leaving a voting population of 142.
Then the Sarasota Rotary Club stepped in to organize the Venice club. The club was chartered by Rotary International on December 26, 1947, as club number 4347 in the growing worldwide organization. Today there are approximately 32,462 clubs worldwide.
Venice/Nokomis Rotarians quickly became a vital force for community improvement. Rotarians organized Boy Scout and Cub Scout troops, a Little League, a drive to build a welfare home for the aged, and helped build a teenage canteen, among many other contributions to the community.
Since then, the Venice/Nokomis Rotary has continued its leadership efforts in the community. The club played a key role in raising money for the Venice Community Center, and for the Venice High School Stadium. In 1976, the club sponsored the South Venice Rotary Club (Now Venice Sunrise Club), and for many years has sponsored a very active Interact Club at Venice High School.
In 1991, the first women were inducted into Venice/Nokomis Rotary. Today women constitute over twenty percent of the membership and are a vital component in the continuing success of the club. Internationally, our club has been active in sending and hosting study groups to and from foreign countries including Russia, England, France, Australia and Switzerland. In recent years, our club has sponsored two Rotary Ambassadorial Scholars for post-graduate study in Italy and Greece and Mexico.
Today, our Rotary Club concentrates its efforts in helping the youth of our community. Each year, through our fund-raising efforts, we provide grants to a number of local charities. In 2001, the Board of Directors voted to support a new counseling program to be housed at Venice High School. Our club accepted the challenge to be the lead continuous sponsor of the Rotary Futures Program. This program is intended for use by all members of our community interested in continuing their education. Our Annual Duck Pluck Fund Raiser supports the Rotary Futures Program. Our own Foundation, which gives college scholarships to deserving students, joined our club in supporting the Futures program during its formative years.
With a rich history of community involvement, the Venice/Nokomis Rotary Club continues on the move with more members and more projects to provide an even higher level of service to our neighbors in this area. Through the humanitarian projects of Rotary International, we are proud to play a part in the Rotary goal of peace and friendship throughout the world.
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Why Rotary???
Rotary develops character and brings out the best of the human spirit. It teaches people ethics, humanity, cultural awareness, people skills and the desire and ability to serve. Rotary creates a more positive environment for promoting world understanding and peace.
There are millions of men and women around the world who are Rotarians at heart but who have never joined because of one simple reason – they haven’t been asked. So now we're asking!
20 answers to the question Why Join Rotary?
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Friendship: In an increasingly complex world, Rotary provides one of the most basic human needs – the need for friends and fellowship.
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Business development: Rotary consists of a cross-section of every business community.
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Personal growth and development: Membership in Rotary continues one’s growth in human relations and personal development.
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Leadership development: Rotary is an organization of leaders and successful people. Serving in Rotary positions is like a college education in leadership.
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Citizenship in the community: The average Rotary club consists of the most active citizens of any community.
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Continuing education: Each week at Rotary there is a program designed to keep people informed as to what is going on in the world.
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Fun: Rotary provides fellowship, social activities and fun in service.
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Public speaking skills: Rotary develops confidence and skill in public communication.
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World citizenship: There are few places without a Rotary club, which means friends around the world. Assistance when travelling: Rotarians who travel can quickly find a doctor, lawyer, hotel, dentist, etc., through Rotary’s network.
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Entertainment: Rotary offers conferences, conventions, assemblies and institutes that provide entertainment in addition to Rotary information, education and service. Development of social skills: Every week, members have an opportunity to develop their people skills through Rotary activities.
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Family programs: Rotary provides one of the world’s largest Youth Exchange programs, opportunities for spouses and activities to assist family members in the development of values.
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Vocational skills: Every Rotarian is expected to contribute to the development of his or her vocation.
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Development of ethics: Rotarians practise The 4-Way Test, which governs one’s ethical standards. Rotarians are expected to be ethical in business and personal relationships.
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Cultural awareness: Virtually every country, culture, religion, race, creed, political persuasion, language, colour and ethnic identity is found in Rotary. Prestige: Rotary is the oldest and most prestigious service club in the world. Its ranks include people who influence policy.
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Nice People: Rotarians, above all, are nice people. They are important people who believe in the adage that while it is nice to be important, it is more important to be nice.
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Absence of Official Creed: Rotary has no secret rituals. It is an open society of people who believe in helping others.
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Opportunity to Serve: Rotary’s business is mankind and its product is service. This is perhaps the best reason for becoming a Rotarian – the chance to do something for somebody else while experiencing self-fulfillment in the process.
VNR in the News!
Events& Fundraisers
Ever wonder who's behind some of the most well known and longstanding Venice Community Events?? That's right, it's the Venice-Nokomis Rotary!
