At the same time, the “Heroes Games” organized in Ukraine since 2015 were held for the first time in Lithuania in Palanga, with 25 Ukrainian soldiers and war veterans who suffered severe war injuries and amputations participating. Over the weekend, the “Rotary Action Summit” conference also took place, training future Rotary district governors, and one of the event’s guests and speakers was Rotary International President Yinka Babalola from Nigeria.
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Since 2002, the “Rotariada” has grown over a quarter of a century from a small meeting of a few clubs into the largest Rotary community event in Lithuania. Today, about 80 clubs participate, and according to the organizers, the total number of participants this year exceeded 2,000.
“First of all, we must thank the creators and initiators of the ‘Rotariada’ idea. The idea to bring together a few clubs, socialize, play sports games, and have a good time grew into an event awaited annually by dozens of clubs. This year, together with the ‘Rotary Action Summit,’ we welcomed more than 2,000 participants – Lithuania has never seen such a Rotary community gathering,” says Andrius Barniškis, Governor of Lithuania Rotary District 1462.
He emphasized that the majority of the event team consists of volunteers who work on organizing the “Rotariada” throughout the year.
This year’s “Rotariada” also became an important international Rotary community meeting. Rotary International President Yinka Babalola visited Palanga. According to A. Barniškis, this is only the second visit of a Rotary International president to Lithuania in the history of restored Rotary activities.
“This visit increases Lithuania’s recognition throughout the global Rotary community. It is important to us that the guest saw how we in Lithuania know how to spend time playing sports and doing good deeds together, raising funds for those in need. The Rotary International president admired Rotary Lithuania’s activities. It is the only growing district in the region, so he is happy to have come and seen it with his own eyes,” says A. Barniškis.
Christine Buering, organizer of the “Rotary Action Summit” from Germany, says that the “Rotariada” model developed over 25 years could be applied in other countries around the world.
“Rotariada has created a new way to experience Rotary fellowship. It is wonderful to see so many engaged young people. I believe that the event model developed over the past 25 years can be replicated in other parts of the world. I hope that next year clubs from all the countries represented at the ‘Rotary Action Summit’ will participate in the competitions,” says Christine Buering.
This year at “Rotariada,” Rotary International President Y. Babalola also carried out an important mission – inaugurating the Palanga Interact and Panevėžys Rotaract club “Futurum.” Interestingly, he himself started his Rotary journey in a Rotaract club. The president emphasized how important it is to create youth clubs and that Lithuania is an excellent example of this.
Sports – not just for victories
Over the weekend, “Rotariada” participants competed in various sports – from basketball, tennis, and beach volleyball to golf, pétanque, and chess. One of the events was sitting volleyball – a Paralympic sport that the Rotarians themselves tried.
The Rotary community has had a partnership with the Lithuanian Paralympic Committee for many years. This year, during “Rotariada,” the Rotary district donated 15,000 euros to the Paralympic Committee, and over the past six years, more than 100,000 euros have been donated in total. These funds are used for Lithuanian Paralympic sports, athlete development and training, and to involve more youth with disabilities in sports.
“We are happy about the long-standing friendship with the Rotarians. Their support is very significant for the entire Paralympic movement,” says Mindaugas Bilius, President of the Lithuanian Paralympic Committee.
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According to him, “Rotariada” is a sports and physical activity event that Lithuanian society generally lacks.
“In Lithuania, society is not very physically active – about 30–35% of people are physically active. Meanwhile, in Scandinavian countries, about 80–85% of the population is physically active. So in this area, we are still significantly behind. We are very pleased that Rotarians not only play sports themselves but also involve people with disabilities. For several years now, Paralympic events have been included in the ‘Rotariada’ competition program. This weekend, the inclusion of sitting volleyball in the program allowed Rotarians to experience firsthand the challenges faced by people with disabilities when playing sports,” says M. Bilius.
According to him, such events are important for changing societal attitudes.
“Participation in the ‘Heroes Games’ also shows friendship and unity – that the whole society is together. It does not matter whether a person is blind, missing an arm, or moves in a wheelchair – we are all together,” says M. Bilius.
From support for sports to the fight against polio
One of the “Rotariada” events was the Palanga city charity run and walk “Rotary End Polio” held on September 5. It was open to everyone, and the funds raised were donated to the global Rotary initiative “End Polio Now,” which aims to eradicate polio completely.
The symbolic start of the 5 km distance took place at 10:24 a.m., reminding of World Polio Day celebrated on October 24.
Meanwhile, 25 Ukrainian soldiers and war veterans who suffered severe war injuries and amputations participated in the “Heroes Games” in Palanga. The games organized in Ukraine since 2015 were held in Lithuania for the first time.
A. Barniškis emphasizes that Rotary has paid much attention to humanitarian and social aid since the first days of Russia’s war against Ukraine.
“Rotary strictly does not provide militaristic aid. Our main focus is social and community assistance to people affected by the war in Ukraine. Soldiers are also people who need support, encouragement, and opportunities for rehabilitation. Since the beginning of the war, the Rotary district has donated more than 2 million euros to Ukraine,” he says.
The anniversary “Rotariada” theme – friendship
This year’s theme of the Lithuanian Rotary district governor is friendship. According to A. Barniškis, the choice was driven by the desire to pay more attention to live communication in the age of technology and fast life.
“Technology somewhat distances and, you could say, cools us down. We wanted this year to be more about unity and live communication. People return from such events full of good emotions and warm communication. I think that is very much lacking in today’s life,” says A. Barniškis.
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