NOTE UPDATED TIME: Rotary 5110 in Action Special Edition for Telethon

We should open by thanking all Rotarians for their service through these challenging, unchartered times of COVID-19. Making masks, delivering supplies, feeding health care workers, first responders and those highly susceptible at senior and retirement centers…the list goes on and on and is indicative of what Rotary is all about.

In gathering these heroic stories, Rotary International is looking for a collective home run with the production of the COVID-19 #RotaryResponds Livestream Telethon on Saturday, May 2nd, 8 a.m., Pacific time. We are pleased to invite you to participate in this one-hour Telethon to raise critical funds for disaster response. This Facebook Live event will be simulcast on the Rotary International Facebook page. The goal is to raise more than $1 million (the link is now live). Today, we want to provide you with key messages and graphics that you can use to share with your teams.

How can you participate:

1. Participate in the telethon on Facebook Live on 2 May at Rotary International‘s Facebook Page (facebook.com/rotary). The live stream will be simulcast in eight languages.

2. Share this event & spread the word through your social media channels.

3. Invite friends, family, and members of your community to watch and see first-hand what Rotary’s People of Action are doing to combat COVID-19.

4. Post on social media during the broadcast and on the day of the event using the hashtag #RotaryResponds.

5. Donate as an individual or as a club at http://on.rotary.org/drf

6. Encourage your Rotary District to donate District Designated Funds (DDF) at https://on.rotary.org/ddf-donate. (Note: DDF received between April 22 and May 3 will be considered part of the telethon fundraising total.)

Rotary’s 1.2 million members across the globe have taken swift action to respond to the COVID-19 pandemic. More than $3.4 million in Rotary Disaster Response Grants have already been put into action on the front lines to battle COVID-19. Additionally, millions more have been raised by our #PeopleofAction – they have responded quickly and are truly saving lives. Now, we need to do more and the need for additional funding is a priority.

Join this live event to hear stories of hope, inspiration and gratitude from Rotarians, Rotaractors and friends of Rotary from across the globe as they share what they are doing to help their communities. The telethon will also showcase how our polio eradication infrastructure is helping to combat COVID-19. Again, the broadcast will be live in all of Rotary’s official languages which, as you can imagine, is of the utmost importance to create a respectful and inclusive event. Given the amount of people we are expecting to participate, we want to do it right and make sure we have a best practice user experience.

Thank you for all of your assistance in creating awareness about this opportunity to do more Good in the World!