New Name, Same Mission: Service Above Self
By Liliann Albelbaisi
For the past 30 years, the Dallas North Rotary Club has been there, helping the community.
Members built the club’s reputation decades ago by volunteering as greeters at Ski Fest, a trade show at Dallas Market Hall. Doing so helped raise $30,000 that went to the city of Dallas for the Marcus Annex Senior Center.
The center’s still there, but the club’s membership has dwindled. It no longer has the 30-plus people needed to take on events of that stature.
But members like Susan Cowley, who’s been with the club since the beginning, are seeking a turnaround and are doing so with a new name: Preston Hollow Rotary Club.
They hope to reach more people by having a name that “implies status” and relates better to the neighborhoods around them, Cowley said. “Only one of the current members actually lives in Preston Hollow.”
According to rotary.org, “Rotary is a global network of 1.2 million neighbors, friends, leaders, and problem-solvers who see a world where people unite and take action to create lasting change – across the globe, in our communities, and in ourselves.”
The greater Dallas area has about 2,700-plus Rotarians across 63 clubs.
The club will continue to sponsor many programs.
Casa Del Lago provides English instruction to moms, who have a different first language, while their children are in school.
The club also partners with El Bueno Pastures, a predominantly Hispanic church.
The club is also working on a web series in hopes of raising awareness about people with autism from the high to low functioning. The focus is on the older children and allowing parents to share with others on how to help their older autistic children, members said.
