Mahase Bahadoorsingh
 |
Classification
Developer (Keller Williams Realty) , joined Rotary Club of Richmond April 4, 1986.
Rotary
Joined Rotary in 1979. Club President 2001-2002 and 2010-2011.
Rewarding experience with Rotary
Three generations in Rotary and still going strong. My father, brother and nephew.
To be a Rotarian in Trinidad was both a badge of honour and a member of an exclusive association.
When I was inducted 31 years ago, I was like any other new Rotarian of my time, not fully understanding what it was all about. And maybe I still don't. Even the evolution and transformation of Rotary was profound. From a Club with only Chiefs, a few foot soldiers, and no women, projects were often difficult to fulfill. Yet, support was raised over the years with a simple phone call. That was then. Over the decades I have been involved in many projects both small and large, local and international. All have been personally fulfilling but the ones that stood out to me were the smaller sized ones. There seems to always be more club involvement which turned out to be great fellowship events. However, then like now, raising funds for projects was always an issue.
A memory of my very first successful Rotary project which lasted almost fifteen years, was a simple BBQ. Initially, I was on a fund raising committee for years with the intention of raising $40,000 from local businesses. I became frustrated when we met year after year planning and talking and getting no where. Being the new "do it" generation, at twenty seven years old, I proposed a simple BBQ idea which was received with mixed reviews. I took charge of the idea and collectively, the Rotary Club sold three hundred tickets and made a tidy sum. This came not without it's challenges: In it's first year, one major problem came when a bucket of coleslaw delivered by a "soothsayer" went bad. He delivered it, said it was spoilt, and left for the beach with his family.
To be a Rotarian in Trinidad was both a badge of honour and a member of an exclusive association.
When I was inducted 31 years ago, I was like any other new Rotarian of my time, not fully understanding what it was all about. And maybe I still don't. Even the evolution and transformation of Rotary was profound. From a Club with only Chiefs, a few foot soldiers, and no women, projects were often difficult to fulfill. Yet, support was raised over the years with a simple phone call. That was then. Over the decades I have been involved in many projects both small and large, local and international. All have been personally fulfilling but the ones that stood out to me were the smaller sized ones. There seems to always be more club involvement which turned out to be great fellowship events. However, then like now, raising funds for projects was always an issue.
A memory of my very first successful Rotary project which lasted almost fifteen years, was a simple BBQ. Initially, I was on a fund raising committee for years with the intention of raising $40,000 from local businesses. I became frustrated when we met year after year planning and talking and getting no where. Being the new "do it" generation, at twenty seven years old, I proposed a simple BBQ idea which was received with mixed reviews. I took charge of the idea and collectively, the Rotary Club sold three hundred tickets and made a tidy sum. This came not without it's challenges: In it's first year, one major problem came when a bucket of coleslaw delivered by a "soothsayer" went bad. He delivered it, said it was spoilt, and left for the beach with his family.
Another potentially disastrous problem occurred when we gave the responsibility to one person to deliver the BBQ grilles to my office. We were all waiting in the scorching heat, with buckets of seasoned chicken ready to go on the grill. Our BBQ pick up time was noon and we had people lining up one hour before. With raw meat on our hands and hungry people in line, we went into panic mode. Every Rotarian who had a home BBQ and lived near-by rushed home to get it. These were coal BBQ's in those days, which each had to be lit, and took time to warm up. We were late in delivery time but eventually all went well and customers were happy, in true Rotarian form.
This first project was my introduction to the world of Rotary and I never looked back. The good that even the smallest project brought was fulfilment in itself. The result was money raised with almost ninety percent club involvement and great fellowship, albeit the usual "soothsayers" who were against the idea for years, their involvement half hearted and not true to the Rotarian ideals. For those who believed in the goals, success was sure to follow.
This first project was my introduction to the world of Rotary and I never looked back. The good that even the smallest project brought was fulfilment in itself. The result was money raised with almost ninety percent club involvement and great fellowship, albeit the usual "soothsayers" who were against the idea for years, their involvement half hearted and not true to the Rotarian ideals. For those who believed in the goals, success was sure to follow.