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Sakuji Tanaka, a member of the Rotary Club of Yashio, Saitama,
Japan, was elected president of Rotary International for 2012-13 by
delegates during the fourth plenary session at the 2011 RI
Convention in New Orleans.
"It is my honor to accept the nomination to serve as president of
Rotary International," said Tanaka. "Since I joined Rotary, I have
embraced every new challenge of Rotary service. To me, challenge
is a very important word. It inspires us. It also helps us to be
and to do our best. It allows us to bring out our fullest
potential."
Tanaka encouraged Rotarians to help Rotary reach its potential by
finishing the job of polio eradication and using the organization's
strengths to enhance its ability to "do good in the world."
He said Rotarians share a responsibility to make Rotary clubs
stronger by attracting quality members and ensuring that every club
meeting is productive and meaningful. He also called upon clubs to
make an action plan to bring in younger members.
"We need to stop talking about this. Instead, why don't we just do
it!" he said.
Tanaka also took a moment to thank Rotarians for the outpouring of
assistance after the earthquake and tsunami that struck his country
in March. "People around the world, particularly Rotarians, offered
help to rebuild the communities that were lost. Only with the
knowledge that we are not alone, can we work together for the long
healing process after such tragedy."
For 32 years, Tanaka was president of Tanaka Company Ltd., a
wholesale firm that went public in 1995 and later merged with other
leading wholesalers in Japan. Currently, he serves as vice president
of the Yashio City Chamber of Commerce and adviser to Arata Co.
Ltd., an animal feed and pet food wholesaler. He also chaired the
National Household Papers Distribution Association of Japan for
eight years. Tanaka studied business at Nihon Management Daigakuin
and Tokyo Management Daigakuin.
A past trustee of The Rotary Foundation, Tanaka chaired the 2009
Birmingham Convention Committee. His other service to Rotary
includes RI director, regional Rotary Foundation coordinator,
district governor, and member of the Polio Eradication Advocacy Task
Force, the Permanent Fund Committee for Japan, and the Future Vision
Committee.
Tanaka established an endowed Rotary Peace Fellowship, and he and
his wife, Kyoko, are Paul Harris Fellows, Benefactors of the
Permanent Fund, and Major Donors.
He is a recipient of RI’s Service Above Self Award and The Rotary
Foundation’s Distinguished Service Award.
The Rotarians who will serve as RI directors in 2012-14 were also
elected: Ann-Britt Åsebol, of the Rotary Club of Falun-Kopparvågen,
Sweden; John B. Boag, of the Rotary Club of Tamworth North, New
South Wales, Australia; Jean-Marc Chateigner, of the Rotary Club of
Cholet, Maine-et-Loire, France; Takeshi Matsumiya, of the Rotary
Club of Chigasaki-Shonan, Kanagawa, Japan; Anne L. Matthews, of the
Rotary Club of Columbia East, South Carolina, USA; Gideon Peiper, of
the Rotary Club of Ramat Hasharon, Israel; Andy Smallwood, of the
Rotary Club of Gulfway-Hobby Airport (Houston), Texas, USA; and Bryn
Styles, of the Rotary Club of Barrie-Huronia, Ontario, Canada. |
Tanaka
elected RI president for 2012-13