KC Rotaractor's Convention Report

Posted by Jerry Venters

on Aug 14, 2013

RI Convention: KC Rotaractor's Life Is Changed
By Derrick Idleburg, Jr.

(Editor's Note: The Kansas City Rotary Club and the Plaza Rotary Club contributed funds to help a member of the new Rotaract club, Rotaract KC, attend the Rotary International Convention in Lisbon, Portugal, in June. This is his report. To see pictures, go to the Club Website under Photo Albums.)

There and back again. My name is Derrick Idleburg Jr., and I had the privilege, honor, and opportunity to attend this year's Rotary International Conference in Lisbon, Portugal in June. I have to sincerely thank the Plaza Club and Club 13 for their support in helping make this trip possible as well as my Rotaract Club for nominating me for this opportunity. This was actually my first trip overseas, and I will never, ever forget it.

The Convention. I never expected to meet so many people to be so excited about giving back and making a difference. It definitely rubbed off on me. From hearing talks with Jane Goodall, Emmanual Jal, Craig Keilburger and participating in intriguing lectures, sessions and idea exchanges about how to really effect change, I was blown away. I’ll be honest with you. Prior to joining Rotaract and helping establish this club, I thought that Rotary was a club that established people with money joined to say they give back by providing their money, not their time or their sweat. Well, I was wrong. This conference helped completely change my perceptions of Rotary, and commit to it, and its betterment moving forward.

Timing is everything. The timing of this trip truly was perfect. About two days prior to taking the trip overseas, I was laid off from my employer.Devastating, right? Well, it depends on how you look at it. You have one of two choices when something happens -- you can respond or react.chose to respond. I’ll spare the details, but I was able to go on this trip with a completely clear, open mind and heart so that I could truly take in what the conference had to offer, along with what the beautiful country I was in had to offer. I definitely took it in every chance that I could. (At right: Derrick Idleburg, Jr., second from right, with new friends in Lisbon.)

Sometimes all you need is a good pair of shoes and a map. A nice pair of dress shoes never hurts as well. From the conference, I was able to gain some massive insights about myself, including rediscovering latent skills that I let go dormant as well as areas for improvement. I learned what Rotary, Rotaract, and Interact truly is and wondered why I hadn’t joined sooner! I made some great new friends that I will cherish, but most of all I got lost. Aside from literally getting lost in Portugal (I walked around every inch of that city I could when I had free time), I lost myself. The old version of myself. I returned someone renewed, refreshed and ready to really dive into what I really wanted. Ok, so maybe I didn’t need a map. I created my own blueprint. It isn’t without hiccups, but I love it more than what I was doing prior to this trip. I like to count June 19^th, 2013 as the first day of the rest of my life.