Welcome to the Rotary District 7040 Website. The website is a work in progress. I hope it will help you create an appreciation of our unique district. You can also use the website to learn more about Rotary International and its many programs. Click on the YouTube icon or the news from Rotary links to learn more about Rotary’s programs.  The district map can help you to identify clubs in your area. Rotarians wishing to do a makeup can also identify clubs to visit.

Our district is unique in that it has 66 clubs in the Canada and the United States.  The Canadian clubs are located in Eastern Ontario and Western Quebec. We are pleased to have Iqaluit which is located in the .Far North of Canada as part of our District. The eastern Ontario Clubs extend from Deep River in the North to Napanee in the West. Ottawa is the largest center in the area. Quebec clubs extend from Mont Tremblant in the North to East of Montreal. The American clubs are located in Northern New York State as far south as the Adirondacks. Lake Placid and the Olympic Village are part of our District.  We are a multi-lingual district. English is the dominant language in Ontario and New York . French is most prevalent in Quebec.
   
Montreal is home for the 2010 International Rotary Convention to be held in June. Rotarians from our district will welcome upwards of 20 000 to visit the city and participate in the convention.
   
Rotary was founded by Paul Harris in 1905 in Chicago. Today, there are 32 000 Rotary clubs in 200 plus countries and territories. Membership has grown to over 1.2 million Rotarians who are linked by a common bond of “Service Above Self”. The goal of Rotary is to promote Peace and World understanding through its educational, cultural and humanitarian programs. Peace Fellowships and Ambassadorial Scholarships are the foundation of its educational and cultural programs. Humanitarian efforts focus on health, hunger, water and literacy grants as a means of developing sustainability.
   
Programs for youth play an important role in Rotary’s aim to create better understanding among nations  and develop leadership skills to help others. Youth exchange allows young people to live in another country for a year to experience cultural diversity. Interact and Rotaract involve young people working together to assist others. The Rotary Youth Leadership Award (RYLA) is a program designed to develop young people develop leadership and high ethical standards. A Group Study Exchange group of young professionals will travel to District 3131 in India to share professional and cultural experiences. A group from India will visit many of our clubs to share what life is like in their country.
   
Since 1985, Rotary has lead the drive to eliminate polio from the planet earth. Many other countries and groups have joined in the effort and the number of polio cases each year is down by 99%!

John Kenny, Rotary International president for 2009-2010 chose as his theme, “The Future of Rotary is in your hands”. He is asking Rotarians to increase their efforts in order to eliminate polio. He is asking Rotarians to increase their efforts to improve the quality of life for people in all countries.
   
At the District level, a major goal this year will be to identify volunteers to support the Montreal 2010 International Convention; to identify Rotarians to serve as ambassadors as we welcome Rotarians to our district.
   
We will continue to enhance this website so that it provides users with the information and resources they need. We will strengthen the links to committees and human resources available within the District..
   
I encourage all of you to come to Montreal next June to be part of a worldwide celebration of Rotary, a celebration of Rotary becoming an International organization when it started its first club outside of the USA in Winnipeg, Manitoba! Hope to see you there!

Arnold Lawrence
District Governor 2009-2010
Rotary International
District 7040