The Rotarian, One Rotary Understanding How Another Culture Thinks
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Mongol Rally adventurers get ready to have their passports checked at the Uzbekistan -.' border. For more, see page 30. .- contents VOU88 NO.11 IN FOCUS Planes, trains, automobiles, and how I found 30 myself running in a Mongolian marathon Here's a plan: Get an old car, start up the engine in England, and drive in a rally to Mongolia. Don't forget to raise money for charity and meet interesting people. Story and photography by Scott Brills FEATURES Day breaks for Alzheimer's families 48 Rotarians develop a program for patients and caregivers. Photography by Monika Lozinska-Lee Text by Eve Neiger The sound of virtue 52 Short-term ethical behavior may feel good in the moment, but will it matter? By Joe Queenan Illustration by Guy Billout Rotary stories 56 Radical politics disrupted his childhood, then Rotary helped shape his future. By Jason Grotto Illustration by Josh Cochran GLOBAL OUTLOOK Disaster relief and recovery 59 Quick response is important, but recovery is critical. DEPARTMENTS COLUMNS 6 Letters President's message 11 Up front Rotarian efforts in post-earthquake Haiti • Rotarian mountaineer Royal Robbins 4 Contributors page • Haiti earthquake recovery 23 Culture • Tackling polio with the Language is more Jacksonville Jaguars than vocabulary 21 Calendar 27 Technology High-tech etiquette 69 Insider • Outreach to youth 72 Crossword • Rotary coordinators 80 Facts of the matter • Health camp in New Delhi Mothers • Resource guide: Rota ry basics ON THE COVER Running through the Gobi. (Photography courtesy of Scott Brills) fotarian® CONTRIBUTORS Editor in chief • JOHN REZEK Creative director DEBORAH LAWRENCE Senior editor, features BARBARA NELLIS Senior editor, departments JENNY LLAKMANI Deputy senior editor JANICE S. CHAMBERS When Senior Editor Jenny Llakmani read about Rotarian Associate editor scan BRILLS' plan to participate in the Mongol Rally with DIANA SCHOBERG his friend Collin Otto, she was intrigued. Brills, who is Production manager MARC DUKES technology chair for District 6380 (Ontario, Canada; Production artist Michigan, USA), intended to blog about the adventure JOE CANE and raise money for charity. He did both. It was quite a Art assistant EVE NEIGER trip, but maybe not his only one: He's considering a jour Copy editor ney from the Arctic Circle to Tierra del Fuego, Argentina. SHANNON KELLY Research editor MARK DURAN Staff photographers ALYC E HENSON MONIKA LOZINSKA-LEE Graphic designer JOSH COCHRAN was honored in February International editor by the Society of Illustrators for his Sleepwalker illustra JOSEPH DERR tion from the book Medical Marvels. Cochran was also Senior regional magazine coordinator CANDY ISAAC lauded as one of Print magazine's 20 Under 30 New Division coordinator Visual Artists in 2009. His work has appeared in the New CYN T HIA EDBROOKE York Times Book Review and Texas Monthly. His illustra Circulation manager MAY LI tion of Chesa Boudin for "Road Scholar" accompanies this Advertising representatives month's installment of Rotary Stories by Jason Grotto. JAMES G. ELLIOTT COMPANY New York lIyssa Somer, 135 E. 55th St. 5th Floor, New York, NY 10022; phone 212-588-9200 ext. 1328; fax 212-588- 9201; e-mail [email protected] Eastern Reina Miller, 135 East 55th Street, 5th Floor, New York, NY 10022, phone 212-588-9200 ext. 1321, fax KATHERINE RUSSELL RICH'S 212-588-9201 ; e-mail [email protected] In June, book Dreaming in Hindi: Western Kim McGraw, 626 Wilshire Blvd. Ste. 500, Los An Coming Awake in Another Language will be published in geles, CA 90017 ; phone 213-596-7215; fax 213-624-0997; e-mail [email protected] paperback. Her first book, The Red Devil, a cancer memoir, Midwest/South Central Joe Wholley, 134 N. LaSalle St. , was published in 2002. 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This is the May 2010 issue, volu me 188, num ber 11, of The Rotarian (l SS N0035-838Xl, Publication number: USPS 548-8 l0, .. Fo e U S PLANES TRAIN AUTOM BILES, AND HOWl FOUND MYSELF RUNNING IN AMONGOLIAN LAST SUMMER, A YOUNG ROTARIAN from Michigan, USA,set out to drive a 2001 Chevy Metro with 140,000 miles on it from England to Mongolia. The Mongol Rally - equal parts charity fundraiser and lunatic odyssey - was dreamed up by two bored Englishmen and held for the first time in 2004 with six cars. In 2009, more than 400 teams took part. Ralliers can choose their own route from England to the Mongolian capital of Ulaanbaatar, but their cars must have an engine no larger than 1.2 liters - and no GPS. Getting lost is more or less the point. (The cars that make it to Mongolia are donated to charity.) "You are supposed to be on an adventure, not in a nursery class, so if the sky does fall on your head, prop it up with a windscreen wiper and carry on;' the rally website reads. "If you're worried, stay at home:' It was a siren call that Scott Brills couldn't resist. Brills, a member of the Rotary Club of West Bloomfield, and his friend Collin Otto took the team name Hardly Working and raised $1,650 for Mercy Corps Mongo lia, one of the rally's official charities. Brills, then 26, and Otto, 25, then 30 THE ROT A R I A N I MAY 20 1 0 MAY 2010 I THE ROTARIAN 31 collected an additional $7,000 the Netherlands on our way to the Sedlec Ossuary, a.k.a. to help build and outfit a kin Munich, Germany. There, we the bone church - everything dergarten in Mongolia, a joint met up with our friends Jar in the chapel, from the altar to project of Btills' club and the rett and Kristi, who were com the chandelier, is made of Rotary Club of Bayanzurkh ing with us to the rally's second human bones - then continued 100 in Ulaanbaatar. official launch at Klenova Castle on to Budapest. It all began on a racetrack in the Czech Republic. in England. After taking the "scenic route" 24 July through eastern Germany and We entered Romania as the sun 18 July the Czech Republic (thanks, was rising over the hills and trav Heading out of the 2009 Mon Google Maps), we arrived at eled through the villages of the gol Rally launch party at the the campsite by mid-afternoon. Carpathian Mountains, sharing Goodwood Motor Circuit, The Czech-Out Party went on the road with horse-drawn carts. we got lost immediately. After until 4:30 a.m., but we crashed After 20 hours with little sleep driving around in circles with around 2 a.m., surrounded by or food, we arrived at the Mol Rubik's Cube, another Ameri those who apparently didn't dovan border. It was only a mile can team, we found our way to need to rest at all. from there to the Ukrainian bor the docks at Dover and were The next day, we detoured der, but to get through Moldova the last car allowed on the ferry. north to Prague, where we par we needed a carte verde, which is (Rubik's Cube missed it by took in a few rounds at a beer basically car insurance. Luckily, about a minute.) Ninety min garden overlooking the city. In this was available for purchase utes later, we were driving off the morning, after saying good just up the road.