Last Week our speaker was George Like, Director of the Schools and Hospital Office of USAID. The American Universities in Cairo, Beirut, and other locations, as well as hospitals, such as Hadassah Hospital in Jerusalem, all receive assistance through funding. The history of USAID dates back to the Marshall Plan, at the end of WWII. The Marshall Plan eventually morphed into USAID, which now provides foreign aid throughout the world. The aid is generally focused on furthering US foreign policy objectives. The US and its citizens also provide significant private aid through many organizations and foundations such as Rotary. As Americans we have a moral obligation to help others improve their standards of living. Foreign aid last year was .007 of the total US budget, which is $21.8 billion of the $2.7 trillion budget. This aid includes military aid as well as humanitarian aid. The funds go primarily to Iraq, Israel, Egypt, Jordan, Afghanistan, Pakistan, Peru, and Columbia.

Last Week Katrina Ruminski, from the National Rifle Association’s Institute for Legislative Action, spoke about the NRA. The NRA was founded in 1871 by two civil war veterans, to promote civilian marksmanship. Currently with four million members, it represents the consumer, not gun manufacturers, though sometimes their interests may co-inside.

The NRA has a large lobbying component, but its real goal remains education. There are 62,000 trainers to teach fire arm safety. Ms. Ruminski discussed a number of issues with the club, including the 2nd amendment, the recent Supreme Court Case which found DC’s gun ban to be unconstitutional, and the reality of federal gun regulations in light of gun ownership being a constitutional right. Ms. Runinksi reminded everyone that the NRA headquarters is in nearby Fairfax, just off interstate 66, with a free public museum, showing the history of guns, and a state of the art driving range that is used by the FBI, military and the general public.

The GSE program is an exchange of young professional members from around the world. This exchange is a part of the Rotary goal to promote world peace through the exchange of ideas and the understanding of other cultures. District 1600 includes Rotterdam and The Hague, which are the second and third largest cities in the Netherlands, following Amsterdam. The four GSE members lived with host families, gave presentations to several Rotary Clubs, and visited vocational sites related to their respective professions.

Last Week Peter Kyle, spoke about the World Bank and its role in health, water and education. WB now has 184 member companies and its primary goal is to reduce poverty by promoting sustainable economic development. The goal is to cut poverty in half by 2015. In Africa poverty is rising, getting worse with the energy crisis affecting food supplies. At thirty percent of its budget, a major effort is financing infrastructure projects; roads, bridges, telecommunications. 7% of its budget is involved in health efforts. HIV/AIDS is top priority, as well as fighting malaria, avian flu and developing vaccines. 8% of the WB budget goes to education, where they are especially active in literacy and education of women. About 9% goes towards financing water, sanitation & flood prevention projects. WB always finances programs through governments, but they need more hands-on effort, to see that programs reach those who really need the help. Rotary can be a great partner in this with Rotary clubs and their local-level resources.

Last Week Kurt Chesko from the HALO Trust spoke to us about the work of this non-profit NGO that specializes in the removal of land mines and munitions from war theatres around the world.  The organization is composed of over 8,000 volunteers and recently celebrated their 20^th anniversary.

Working primary in Afghanistan, Cambodia, and Angola, the volunteers go through a laborious process of de-mining large land areas that globally result in over hundreds of annual landmine accidents.   These accidents have resulted in more than 300,000 maimed landmine survivors worldwide and up to 20,000 deaths and maimed victims each year.

Halo is supported by large donor governments (USA, Netherlands, UK, EU,& Japan).  They also are partnered with Rotary International and work with approximately 18 Rotary Clubs now involved in Cambodian de-mining operations.  Lead by Rotary District 5030, the Seattle club pledged $50,000 to this effort.