Roy Townsend - Washtenaw Road Commission Proposal 1
Roy is the Managing Director for the Washtenaw Road Commission. He has been at the Road Commission for 27 years. He oversees all operations, financial and engineering activities. He meets with local elected officials to discuss road funding options and look for ways to improve the revenue stream for activities at the Road Commission. He spent 3 years in the California Department of Transportation as a Civil Engineer. And alao has worked for the Michigan Department of Transportation. He has a Master's in Public Administration from EMU and a BS Civil Engineering from MSU.
One might think a man living with polio in an iron lung would know about Rotary. But it wasn't until Paul Alexander had a business meeting with a member in Duncanville, Texas, earlier this year that he learned Rotary fights to eradicate the very disease that left him almost completely paralyzed.
"I was completely blown away by the idea. For all these years, I didn't know the work they were doing," says Alexander, a practicing attorney in Dallas. "It's such a perfect fit for me."
To eradicate polio in India, Rotary members displayed impressive coordination and commitment. So it should come as no surprise that Rotary members in Chennai, Tamil Nadu, were able to mobilize more than 40,000 people to create the world's largest human national flag. The tribute to the polio eradication effort qualified as a Guinness World Records-breaking achievement.
"What impressed me most was that all of Rotary was represented: Rotaractors, Interactors, and Rotarians," says RI President Gary C.K. Huang, who participated in the event along with his wife, Corinna, and other Rotary senior leaders. "They brought their classmates, friends, and co-workers. I think that says a lot about how important it is to the people that India is polio free."
The Rotary Foundation has continued its steady growth, moving up 35 spots to 85th in The Chronicle of Philanthropy's annual ranking of the top 400 nonprofit organizations in the United States. The ranking is based on monetary contributions from private sources and reflects the increasing generosity of those who support Rotary's mission.