Humans of Cal Rotaract Spring 2022

"I think my favorite memory as an officer was the Trivia night event I ran as fellowship in Spring 2020 before COVID hit. My co-chair and I put a lot of time in to set up our platform, survey families for trivia topics, and in general make it a fun time. The planning paid off with a smoothly run event, which I enjoyed and which we got a lot of good feedback for!"
What made you want to be an officer/ exec?
"I wanted to be an exec because of how much I enjoyed both my officer terms, which made me eager to continue from more behind the scenes! I loved the 24-hour twitch stream, virtual CBRS stayover, and committee meetings I had the chance to work with alongside my fellow officers, and I really wanted to help set a foundation for future officers to continue to carry out such cool projects."

What was one of the most valuable things you learned as an officer/exec? 
"I learned that preparation and being passionate for whatever you plan will always surpass experience or skill. A lot of my greatest successes in event planning, meetings, and other projects has always resulted from a thought out schedule and preparation for possible situations which could arise."

Any tips or advice for future/current officers or members?
"If you’re a member, don’t hesitate to get involved with anything in Rotaract! All of our committees and officers love to meet new people, and getting involved in whatever forms of service or fellowship interest you will definitely create lasting memories."

"If you’re an officer, go for that project which you want to set up! The opportunity to try new things is what makes being an officer in this club so fun, and we as execs are here to support whatever awesome ideas our officers have."

Why did you join Rotaract? 
"I joined Rotaract because I wanted to make a tangible difference in our community and our world during my time at Cal. I also wanted the opportunity to work alongside my fellow classmates and under the direction of community service mentors."

What is your favorite memory/aspect of Rotaract?
"My favorite aspect of Rotaract is the diversity of opportunities to serve different communities. I also enjoy being surrounded by a community that is service driven and wants to make an impact."

What skills have you gained from Rotaract? 
"I have gained better communication skills as well as an understanding from the ground up how community organizations work. I have gained better collaboration skills as I have worked alongside my classmates."

Why did you join Rotaract? 
"I was in Interact in high school, so I knew of Rotaract, but to be completely honest, I wasn't planning on joining when I came to Cal. I wanted to try something different, and there were a lot of different clubs I tried to join that first semester. All of them were fine (no shade, I swear!!), but I just didn't feel like I was able to connect with anyone. I'm not great at initiating conversations, especially in new spaces, so I spent most of my first meetings standing in the corner by myself. I was ready to give up, and recruitment season was about to end, when I walked by Rotaract tabling on Sproul, and found out they had a general meeting that night, so I decided to go. I showed up an hour early and was sitting in the hallway around the corner, when the person who was tabling from earlier that day noticed me and said hi (remembering my name too???). As more people came in, I eventually got up and walked over to the crowd of people, doing my normal stand by the wall and watch. Not too long after, someone came over and introduced themselves, then brought me into conversations with other people. Everyone seemed really nice and genuine, and the more I went to, the more I saw just how much these people cared. I don't necessarily think Rotaract is super special because of its service aspect. There's dozens of service orgs on campus, and so many opportunities to find and do service on your own. What makes Rotaract special is the people. It's a community you can't find anywhere else. I joined Rotaract because I wanted a community, and I'm so very grateful for the one that I found that encouraged me to stay."

What is your favorite memory/aspect of Rotaract?
"Not to be cliche, but it's so hard to choose one!! Beyond the people/community (because I already wrote my love letter to you all in the previous question), my favorite aspect of Rotaract was always the mini-spur of the moment socials. My first semester, we would all go get boba together before or after a meeting, and after a lot of events we'd go get lunch together. Online, that changed a little, but groups of us would still hang back and play Among Us or just talk until 3am. Even now, (since I've become the old person and I'm the one walking people home,) we'll sometimes just sit and talk for a bit, and I feel like it's in those moments that a lot of the genuine friend-building happens. I like those little bits of time during the week where we all just spend some free time together."

What skills have you gained from Rotaract? 
"There's a lot I can choose from. Event planning; time management; communication; general people skills; all the ones that look good on resumes. But I think the one that I've learned the most and plan to take with me is self-advocacy. It's super easy to fall into the mindset that other people come first. You're here because you want to take care of other people, because you want to help other people, and because you want to be a good person. It's taken me awhile to learn that those aren't mutually exclusive from taking care of yourself. Being in Rotaract has taught me a lot about finding my own boundaries, whether those boundaries be for my mental health or my professional self. As one of my favorite people always used to say: service above self, but a healthy self above all else."