Rotary brings together three powerful forces: Local Clubs, Rotary International and the Rotary Foundation—together, we turn compassion into action and create lasting change—locally and globally.
The heart of Rotary are our local clubs, comprised of dedicated members who share the ideals of service, friendship, diversity, integrity and leadership.
Missoula Downtown Rotary is empowered to meet local needs—to organize projects, build partnerships and raise money.
Rotary International
- Members of local clubs created what became Rotary International to coordinate their standards, communications and actions to ensure continuity of service throughout the growing community of Rotarians around the globe.
- There are 40 Rotary clubs in Montana. They are serviced by Rotary District 5390, which is one of 540 Districts throughout the world.
Rotary is nonprofit, nonpartisan and nonsectarian
Rotary Foundation
The Foundation provides direction and support to local Rotarians for seven areas of focus that reflect the priorities of local clubs around the globe. The Foundation is a 501(c)3 nonprofit.
Rotary Foundation areas of focus
Promoting peace: Rotary encourages conversations to foster understanding within and across cultures. We train adults and young leaders to prevent and mediate conflict and help refugees who have fled dangerous areas.
Fighting disease: We educate and equip communities to stop the spread of life-threatening diseases like polio, HIV/AIDS, and malaria. We improve and expand access to low-cost and free health care in developing areas.
Providing clean water: We support local solutions to bring clean water, sanitation, and hygiene to more people every day. We don’t just build wells and walk away. We share our expertise with community leaders and educators to make sure our projects succeed long-term.
Improving maternal & child health: Nearly 6 million children under the age of five die each year because of malnutrition, poor health care, and inadequate sanitation. We expand access to quality care, so mothers and their children can live and grow stronger.
Supporting education: More than 775 million people over the age of 15 are illiterate. Our goal is to strengthen the capacity of communities to support basic education and literacy, reduce gender disparity in education, and increase adult literacy.
Growing local economies: We carry out service projects that enhance economic and community development and create opportunities for decent and productive work for young and old. We also strengthen local entrepreneurs and community leaders, particularly women, in impoverished communities.
Protecting the environment: We take action to find innovative solutions and develop sustainable service projects to strengthen our local ecosystems and our planet.