I recently had the honor of being accepted into the Minnetonka Rotary and I'm pretty excited.  Over the last several years I've really started to feel the desire to do more and give more back to the community, both locally and at large, and after looking at several service organizations was very impressed with Rotary International as well as the Minnetonka Rotary club in particular.

Rotary itself is an international organization that spans the globe and is focused on a concept of Service Above Self.  From the website:

The Object of Rotary is to encourage and foster the ideal of service as a basis of worthy enterprise and, in particular, to encourage and foster:

FIRST. The development of acquaintance as an opportunity for service;

SECOND. High ethical standards in business and professions; the recognition of the worthiness of all useful occupations; and the dignifying of each Rotarian's occupation as an opportunity to serve society;

THIRD. The application of the ideal of service in each Rotarian's personal, business, and community life;

FOURTH. The advancement of international understanding, goodwill, and peace through a world fellowship of business and professional persons united in the ideal of service.

Being able to participate in both local and global efforts focused on improving lives as well as grow my personal connection and attachment to my local area is something that really appeals to me.  The focus on service, ethics, and advancement in all aspects of life (personal, professional, etc.) is also something that I'm happy about.  It's easy to look at service (or charity) as something occasional that you do from a distant (i.e. write a check), but cultivating and growing the habit of service across all aspects of your daily life seems a more noble goal...

Again, from the Rotay website:

Rotary's Mission: The mission of Rotary International is to provide service to others, promote integrity, and advance world understanding, goodwill, and peace through its fellowship of business, professional, and community leaders.

I like the mission.