WHAT IS ROTASHIP?

Rotaship Rotaship was established in 1998-99 by District 7255 (formerly 7250) and the Rotary Club of JFK International Airport to ship goods to Honduras and Nicaragua as a result of Hurricane Mitch which had devastated the areas. Eileen Gentilcore, then the District Governor at that time, had made this a District project and had requested JFK to assist.

Operation Mitch (as it was called) was the proving grounds by which Rudy Auslander and Dennis Klainberg of the JFK Rotary Club decided there was a need for a program to help Rotary Clubs worldwide to ship relief supplies, medical, education, and other types of goods to Rotary Clubs throughout the world.

Rotaship was founded on the principle of shipping from a Rotary Club to a Rotary Club anywhere there is a Rotary Club or at points of entry where local Rotary Clubs can monitor the receipt of shipments directly. In many regions of the world, it is known that only 50% to 60% of shipments of relief goods reach the intended users. One reason is the high rate of pilferage at these ports and local relief agencies working in consort with third parties in the pilfering of these shipments.

We use the expertise of Rotarians engaged in the shipping business and/or contacts Rotarians have of people and companies engaged in the transportation business. At JFK, Rotarians use their contacts to negotiate special rates and handling. For example, a recent shipment of computers by air to Uganda resulted in a 50% savings on air freight. Through our contacts with the airlines, we were able to negotiate a special rate. Freight Forwarders such as Berklay Air Freight provide the expertise in preparing the export documents, providing warehousing and liaison with steamship companies at no cost.

In addition, we have established contacts with many Rotarians engaged in the shipping industry throughout the world and at many airports and seaports which we draw on from time to time. These contacts have been very helpful in assisting Rotaship. Some of the projects that we have worked on have been shipments of medical supplies, books, and relief supplies to the Philippines, Argentina, India, Iraq, Israel, Uruguay, Turkey (earthquake relief supplies), and Jordan.

We receive numerous calls and emails from Rotary Clubs throughout the world asking for information on shipping goods. There are a number of ways that funding to pay for these shipments can be obtained. Eileen Gentilcore has been very helpful to obtain grants through the Rotary Foundation. Other sources are through direct contributions to pay for shipping or for clubs sponsoring these programs to pay these shipping costs. Under Rotaship we constantly shop for the best rates we can find. Unlike going to a freight forwarder who would charge you the applicable published rates.

An example of one of our projects: We shipped relief supplies to the Cayman Islands and facilitated the process of shipping a 40-foot sea container of relief supplies to Haiti. This was with the help of Eddie Marc-Charles of the South East Queens Club who was in Haiti and was on hand for the arrival of these relief supplies in Haiti.

In conclusion, the goal is for us to develop a network of Airport and Seaport based Rotary Clubs, and a resource list of Rotarians who are engaged in the shipping industry to become part of a network for logistics support for our Rotary Clubs worldwide.

If you are interested in becoming one of our contacts, or if you need assistance from us, please contact us.