The Palestinian doctor who lost three of his daughters and a niece in the Gaza war and went on to become a Nobel Peace Prize nominee will speak in Thunder Bay, Ont., tonight at the Rotary Club's annual District 5580 conference at the Valhalla Inn.
Dr. Izzeldin Abuelaish, who authored the book I Shall Not Hate: A Gaza Doctor's Journey on the Road to Peace and Human Dignity, will deliver a keynote address titled "Transcending Hatred with Courage and Hope."
Thunder Bay is hosting the district conference for the first time since 2005.
Around 300 delegates are attending from approximately 66 Rotary Clubs, which are spread across North Dakota, northern Minnesota, Wisconsin and northwestern Ontario.
"For Rotary and our district, it is the penultimate meeting," said Wayne Robinson, the chair of the local organizing committee and the president of the Lakehead Rotary Club.
Building bridges
"It's at the end of the Rotary year, which ends at the end of June, so ... we get together and exchange ideas, and we have guest speakers from different parts of the world, and we just extend some goodwill and friendship."
The theme of this year's conference is "Building Bridges," a reference to the "outlaw bridge" the clubs had built across the Pigeon River more than 100 years ago to facilitate transportation between Canada and the United States at a time when government would not invest in the infrastructure.
Other speakers at the event include polio survivor Ann Lee Hussey, who now works to eradicate the disease worldwide, and Northwestern Health Unit planning and evaluation specialist Emma McDonald, who has been involved in the Rotary Club since the age of nine.
Staying relevant
"One of the big discussions at any conference is how do we maintain our relevance," Robinson added. "We discuss how we can go about changing, how we can go about attracting new members, but I think of all of the service clubs Rotary is probably one of the longest-lasting ones."
To that end, some breakout sessions at this year's conference focus on public image, attracting and engaging members, and Facebook analytics.
Another session will explore getting funding from Rotary International to help Indigenous communities on both sides of the border.
Conference activities began Thursday with executive meetings and an evening ice breaker.
It wraps up Saturday night with a gala banquet.