April 16, 2025 • 24 mins
What happens when a shy high schooler steps outside their comfort zone and discovers a world of leadership, service, and lifelong friendships? Eddie's remarkable journey from reluctant ROTC student to passionate Rotarian exemplifies the transformative power of Rotary's youth programs.
Eddie's story begins with hesitation. Already busy with ROTC commitments, he initially questioned whether to attend a weekend leadership camp called Ryla in the mountains. That pivotal decision changed everything. Despite having leadership training through ROTC, Eddie found that Ryla provided something uniquely powerful—an environment that pushed him beyond social barriers and self-imposed limitations. The discussion groups, talent shows, and particularly the "culture walk" activity fundamentally shifted his perspective on empathy and understanding.
The connections Eddie formed proved equally valuable. Charlie, a dedicated Rotarian who recognized Eddie's potential, immediately recruited him to Interact after Ryla. This began a seamless progression through Rotary's programs—from Interact to Rotaract to becoming a full Rotarian with the Moreno Valley Sunset Club. Now balancing his Rotary service with a career at Costco, Eddie remains passionate about returning as a Discussion Group Leader to inspire new generations of students just as he was inspired.
Eddie's journey reminds us that stepping outside our comfort zones often leads to unexpected growth and opportunities. His message to young people is simple but powerful: "Don't be afraid to serve your community in any way you can. Try your best to make a difference, even if it's something small." Ready to be inspired? Subscribe to Community Heroes of Hope on your favorite podcast platform and discover how ordinary people are creating extraordinary change through service.
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Episode Transcript
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Speaker 1 (00:00):
Hello and welcome to the Community.
Heroes of Hope, a podcast wherewe shine a light on the
remarkable individuals andprojects in Rotary District 5330
that bring hope and change toour local and global communities
.
I am Judy Zelfikar, yourco-host and the current District
Governor of Rotary District5330.
Speaker 2 (00:20):
And I'm Niren McLean, the Rotary District
Governor-Elect, and I'm NirenMcLean, the Rotary District
Governor-Elect.
Together, we're diving deepinto the heart of the community
service, showcasing the impactof dedication and collaboration
in addressing some of the mostpressing challenges our
communities face.
Speaker 1 (00:35):
Each episode, we'll tell stories of incredible
people making a difference,innovating solutions and
inspiring others to take action.
Speaker 2 (00:43):
We'll also be giving you a behind-the-scenes look at
the projects that aretransforming their lives, and
we'll discuss how you, too, canget involved, contribute and be
part of the positive change.
Whether you're a seasonedRotarian or just looking to give
back, this podcast is for you.
Speaker 1 (01:00):
So join us as we explore the journeys, challenges
and successes of people likeyou who have stepped up to make
a difference.
Let's celebrate the spirit ofcommunity and the power of hope
together.
Speaker 2 (01:13):
Don't forget to subscribe to the Community
Heroes of Hope on your favoritepodcast platform.
Stay with us on this journey ofinspiration and let's spread
the message of hope further thanever.
Speaker 1 (01:24):
Thank you for tuning in.
Let's get started Well.
District Governor-elect Niren,you're about ready to start your
year.
This is an amazing journey thatyou've been through so far in
preparing to be a districtgovernor.
Speaker 2 (01:40):
It has been, and one of the parts of the journey is I
visit clubs and meet people.
I've had the opportunity tomeet Eddie some time ago, and
actually I think I first met himwhen he was just coming out of
high school and was a greatinteractor, and so I'm eager to
hear more about his journey now.
Speaker 1 (02:01):
Awesome, Well, Eddie, welcome to the District 5330
podcast.
Thank you for joining us today.
Can you introduce yourself andtell us a little bit about where
you are today?
Speaker 3 (02:14):
Yeah, definitely.
Thank you for having me guys.
I appreciate it.
It's always good to come onthese type of spaces to come
talk about my experience.
It's cool, you know.
Come on these type of spaces tocome talk about my experience,
it's cool, you know, absolutely,yeah, so, um, so my name is
eddie, my name is, my full nameis aguardo.
Uh, I started interact um, myjunior of high school, um, I
(02:39):
wasn't prior to that, I wasn'tin interact.
I was.
I was in ROTC and someone hadapproached me about this thing
called Ryla and immediately Iwas like okay, what is this?
What are we doing here?
I figured you're in ROTC.
(02:59):
It's a leadership thing.
I feel like you could benefitfrom it.
You might want to check it out.
And I thought you know, I don'tknow, I'm already.
I can have my hands tied already.
You know, with all these things, do I?
Speaker 1 (03:13):
really want to go up to the mountain and camp you
know they said it's a weekendthing.
Speaker 3 (03:19):
You know you gotta go , you're gonna be in the
mountains, it's gonna be fun.
You know why not.
You know, check it out, I'llapply.
You know they told me oh well,you can't just go, you have to
apply first.
You know you have to go throughan interview.
I said, okay, I'll check it out.
I mean, worst case scenario,it's a no.
And you know, just go about myday right no harm, no foul yeah
(03:39):
yeah, and so, um, I uh, I had.
I went to the interview I metwith at the time.
Was, you know then, interact ornot?
I shouldn't say interactorsroad actors and road tarians,
actually from the Marina ValleySunset Club, the club I'm now a
part of.
Now, you know, I met Charlievery briefly, but I didn't know
(04:04):
him at that time.
You know I met Charlie verybriefly, but I didn't know him
at that time.
Speaker 2 (04:12):
You know, he was just some.
You know, to me he was justthis crazy dude you know big on
Inter-Ride, big on Rotary.
Speaker 3 (04:13):
I said, oh okay, you know, because I don't know if
you guys know this, but Charliewent to the same high school as
I did.
Speaker 1 (04:20):
Yeah, he's very passionate about that school,
that's for sure.
Speaker 3 (04:24):
Yeah, so we both went to high school.
Uh, that's a fun fact.
He grew up on the in the sameneighborhood.
I did way back in the day okayuh, and then he also was in rtc.
So, you know, we kind of we kindof clicked on that early on,
which which I thought was prettycool, right, and I said, oh
(04:45):
well, you know what, maybe youknow, our journey seems cool.
You know, we'll check this out.
And yeah, I mean, the interviewwent super smooth.
I ended up getting accepted and, boom, ryla was a hit man I
loved it.
Speaker 1 (05:04):
What was your favorite part about Ryla?
Speaker 3 (05:07):
Oh man, oh sheesh, that's a tough one.
That's a tough one, I think,for me personally, my attitudes,
it'd probably be my group, youknow.
The theme of that year wascountries, you know.
I can't exactly remember whatthe actual theme was, but it was
(05:28):
centered around countries, youknow, and my group was Japan.
You know, and Andy, I'm sureyou guys know Andy.
Speaker 1 (05:38):
Andy Brakebill.
Yeah, was he your discussiongroup leader.
Speaker 3 (05:42):
Yeah, that's right, he was my DGL man.
Super cool guy, man, Super coolguy, man, Super cool guy.
I miss that dude man.
Yeah, it's just.
You know those people that Igot to experience with, they
were super friendly.
Yeah, at first I didn't knowthem.
It was kind of weird at first.
(06:03):
I didn't know them, it was kindof weird at first.
But, man, within a couple hoursit's like all these weird
emotions, you feel thatanxiousness, it just goes away.
You know, you don't feel it.
Speaker 2 (06:16):
You feel like everyone there is family, you
know, Yep.
So, Eddie, let me ask you ifyou can put a finger on it, what
would you say that attending,since you already were in ROTC
and you already were inleadership positions, what would
you say that Ryla did for you?
Speaker 3 (06:38):
Looking back now you can say that Ryla had an impact
on you as much as ROTC helped mewith leadership and really
speaking up and being vocalabout certain things.
It wasn't until I had gone toRILA that really gave me that
extra push, you know, to reallygo out and just go for things,
(07:00):
just go out and do it Right.
One of the things that Iremember at Ryla that I was kind
of iffy about was I wasn't sureif I wanted to fully, you know,
immerse myself in thisexperience at first, because I
was just, you know, growing up.
I was always kind of like a shykid, you know.
I mean, don't get me wrong, Ilike to.
(07:22):
I would talk to certain people,but more or less, you know, I
tried to keep it to myself.
And you know, when you're putin this environment like Ryla,
where it's like you can't dothat, you know you can't you
really can't.
I mean, everyone's coming up toyou, hey, where, where are you
from?
Hey, what club are you with?
(07:46):
Hey, like I haven't noticed youdo this.
What what's up?
You know it's, it's uh, you'rekind of forced to, you know,
just go out and you know, makefriends, you know, be more, more
social, you know.
And so when it came down to it,I don't know if you guys
remember the talent show- ohyeah talent show so much fun.
Yeah, the no talent talent show.
(08:17):
Right, right, right right.
So I remember watching allthese kids, man that you know
doing the talent show and Ithink to's like, yeah, you know
what, maybe you can do it.
You know, maybe you can.
Even if you feel like you can't, you can just give it a shot.
You know who cares what peoplethink, you know.
Speaker 1 (08:35):
I think that's probably the best thing about
Ryla.
What I've heard from yourselfand other students is that it
brought them out of their shelland realized that you know
there's other people first ofall that are having challenges
just like you, that you maybedidn't realize that they were
there having those challengesand and that that you can come
out of your shell, you can bewhoever you want to be and
(08:55):
you're not limited by thecircumstance that you might live
in or some things that may havehad in the past.
That you can choose to beresilient, you can choose to
come out and make a differenceand be who you want to be.
Speaker 3 (09:09):
You're not limited by those other things resonates
with me the most is the uh, theculture walk.
Oh yeah, and and the reason whyI say that it's because you
know everyone has their days.
You know they're good and baddays, you know every now.
(09:31):
And then you know certainpeople might get on their nerves
or whatever, and you think, ohman, I just want to.
You know you'll say somethingcrazy that you don't really mean
, but that culture walk, itreally put things into
perspective for me that, hey,you know what, maybe it's not,
maybe it's not okay to, you know, judge others.
(09:52):
You know, because we don'treally know, at the end of the
day, what people are goingthrough.
Right, everybody, everybody'ssituation is different,
everybody's going through thingsand at the end of the day, the
best thing to do is just tryyour best to be kind, you know,
because that goes a long way.
Speaker 1 (10:08):
Yep absolutely.
So after you left Ryla, did youjoin Interact that year or did
you wait till you got into yoursenior year?
What was the rest of thatjourney.
Speaker 3 (10:21):
Immediately, immediately.
Once I came down that hill, uh,charlie went out looking for me
personally.
He was like I need this kid man, I need to put him in interact.
And he sure did.
Man.
He found me.
That man, that dude, wentthrough the ends of the earth to
you know, look for me.
Speaker 1 (10:38):
That's awesome you know.
Speaker 3 (10:40):
And he immediately he's like let me introduce you
to the Interact advisor.
This is the Interact president.
Get situated, this is going tobe your new home.
I said OK, cool, cool, cool,cool, cool.
And you know, that was where itall started.
From that point on, it was justboom, what's next?
What's next?
You know what are we going todo.
Speaker 1 (11:02):
So, speaking of what was next, I mean, you're now out
of high school, correct?
Speaker 2 (11:07):
Yeah, and so what happened?
Speaker 1 (11:08):
what happened after your Interact high school
journey.
What did?
Speaker 3 (11:29):
where did you go to next?
Literally that following year.
Big salute, big shout out to,to the marina valley rotary club
because literally that cashprize that I won was able to
sponsor my uh, my varsity jacketoh, that's awesome.
So I was super, super thankfulfor that, Super thankful when I
(11:55):
had graduated high school.
Immediately I was going toenroll at Cal State, San
Bernardino, and join the RotorRat Club there.
But I noticed that, you know,being a commuter coming from
Reno Valley going to SanBernardino, it's really tough
sometimes to make those meetings, you know.
Speaker 1 (12:05):
Right.
Speaker 3 (12:06):
And so, charlie, at the time he was doing, he was
starting up the Merino ValleyWorld Rite Club here, which at
the time they were doing atMerino Valley College.
But you know, because therewasn't a lot of members there,
you know, it wasn't reallygaining traction.
He had this idea where it'slike you know what, if we just
open it up, you know, becausethey were very limited to what
(12:29):
they could do there.
Everything had to go throughschool.
You know a whole lot ofpaperwork, the words, you know,
and he was just like you knowwhat.
I feel like we could get moreattendance, we get'd get more
members, more reach, and wecould do more stuff if we just
did it at my shop, at his shop.
Speaker 1 (12:48):
Right.
Speaker 3 (12:49):
And so that's what we did, man.
We ended up, you know,basically starting up the
Rotorite Club here in MarianaValley from the ground up you
know those that were already init at Mariana Valley College,
you know and then we were ableto get some students from Cal
State, san Bernardino, some fromUCR.
I know we stole some from UCR.
I feel bad to say that, butit's not stealing.
Speaker 1 (13:13):
You're all working on the same stuff.
Yeah, you know.
Speaker 3 (13:16):
But yeah, we, yeah, we grabbed a few.
We grabbed a few and um, it wascool, man, it was really nice.
It was, you know, we were doingstuff in the community.
We were meeting up, we weredoing social.
My favorite thing was doing thesocials.
I loved going out after themeeting to go get food, when it
was just tacos or something,just catching up with these guys
(13:37):
, because you know, as much asit's fun and it feels good to
give back to the community Ithink it's every now and then
it's really nice just to youknow, kind of get together, see
what everyone's up to you knowand really get that sense of I
don't know camaraderie.
Speaker 1 (13:55):
I guess I would say maybe, yeah, the community, you
know that's been proven time andtime again that people join
Rotary because they want to dothe service, but they stay in
Rotary because of thefriendships that they developed
in the process.
And so it's a very, veryimportant part of our service
organization.
Speaker 2 (14:11):
Absolutely so.
Let me ask you is that MorenoValley Rotaract?
Is that still going strong, orwhat's the status of it?
Speaker 3 (14:22):
Well, you know, I'll be honest with you, I haven't,
since I graduated college, I'vebeen kind of, you know, trying
to focus more on Rotary.
So I haven't really, you know,kept up with what's going on
with the Rotaract Club, but asfar as I'm concerned, I'm pretty
sure they're still going strong.
You know, it's kind of trickywith Rotaract because it's you
(14:45):
know you're, it's not likeInteract, where you know you're
you're confined to the spaces ofthe school, right as a high
school, you're allowed to, youknow, be more broader with your
community service.
But then the problem comes inand it's like, hey, well, I have
school, you know I havemidterms, you know, now we're
working, I have school, you knowI have midterms, you know, now
(15:05):
we're working.
I have a job, you know, I have aboyfriend, I have a girlfriend,
you know, and, um, all thesecommitments, you know, sometimes
, man, it gets tricky, it getsreally tricky.
So it's trying to find thebalance.
It's really that's, that's, Ithink that's the most difficult
part really with any Rotary club.
Speaker 2 (15:27):
So what are you doing now?
Speaker 3 (15:28):
I know you're part of the Rotary club, yeah, now I'm
just focused with the Rotaryclub, with the main Rotary club,
with the Myrna Valley Sunset.
Speaker 2 (15:39):
Are you doing anything in particular for them,
any particular departments?
Are you working with youth?
Are you working withinternational service, or are
you just kind of getting yourfeet wet and checking things out
and seeing where you can help?
Speaker 3 (15:55):
I'd say in the moment , I'm really just.
You know, whatever the clubneeds help with, I try my best
to, you know, help them out.
If we're doing certain events,like we just got done doing the
spaghetti dinner at the SeniorCenter a couple months ago, so
that was really fun, we alwaysdo that every year, it's a
really good event.
(16:15):
You know, what I want to getback into is being a DGL, you
know.
So I guess that would fallunder the youth services, right
with Charlie.
Speaker 1 (16:25):
Yep, are you coming up to Ryla this year?
Speaker 3 (16:28):
Not this year, you know, unfortunately.
My only issue is just that myjob they get real picky, you
know, with allocating vacationand when can you take vacation.
So for me that's always thetricky part.
You know, how can I get aroundthat?
But I've been talking toCharlie man, I really want to
(16:49):
get back to it, because being aDGL as much as going to Ryla as
a Rylarian was fun, man, being aDGL, that's where it's at,
that's where you really uh, youget, you really get a lot of
fulfillment for sure.
Speaker 2 (17:05):
And you, you have the experience that you can really
share with other kids who, again, they go up there thinking that
it's just them.
Nobody understands them, nobodyknows where they're coming from
and the shoes that they walk in, and you can say, hey, been
there, done that.
Let me tell you what's on theother side.
And you know you can be anexample to so many kids who
(17:25):
think they're lost and bythemselves, and so you can
really have an impact.
And that's what I love aboutyou You've always been dynamic.
I remember the first time I metyou at Charlie's Shop and you
were just.
You were on the ball man.
You were moving like a bus side, helping him do things and
getting stuff organized.
And every time I've gone to theInteract banquets at the end of
(17:49):
the year, you've been involved.
You've been there.
So kudos to you on yourinvolvement.
I'm glad that.
Ryla and Interact and Rotaract,and now Rotary has had an impact
on your life and you haven'tlet go, and that is so important
.
A lot of times we lose kids.
We send them to Pride, we sendthem to Ryla.
They're part of Interact.
(18:10):
They go off to collegesomewhere else and forget about
Rotaract and then go off to acareer in another state or
another city and then theybecome, you know, they run into
Rotary 30 years later and you'venever let go.
You've been Rotarian all theway through from Ryla and so
that is awesome, both atestament to you as well as to
(18:31):
Charlie, quite frankly, for notletting you slip away.
Speaker 1 (18:36):
And there's so many opportunities within Rotary.
I mean, you just got started.
We just got off a podcast witha vocational training team
member.
That's an opportunity for you.
That's literally an opportunityto go to another country and
experience another district andlearn more about it.
Partnerships, and and uh, zoneInstitute.
(19:02):
I mean there's just so manythings that you have available
to you.
I know I didn't become aRotarian until well into my
thirties and I really wish Iwould have had that opportunity.
Uh, you know, in high schooland coming through and after
high school.
So the world is bright, myfriend.
You have so many things to lookforward to.
Speaker 3 (19:17):
Oh, definitely, thank you.
Yeah, and I mean it's so crazy.
I say that because that'sthat's literally what I told my
kids, you know, when I was a DTLI said look, you know, you guys
are juniors right now in highschool.
Pretty soon you guys are goingto be seniors and right after
that you guys are going to enterthe world.
And you know, before you knowit it's you know, you guys are
(19:40):
adults too.
You guys are going to be, youknow, in the same boat.
I am, you know.
Now the question is what are youguys going to do?
What are you guys going to dowith this?
What are you guys going to getwith this experience, right?
So I told them, you know, I'mnot expecting you guys to.
You know, go out and joinRotary, if that's, if you feel
(20:02):
like that's not for you.
But I hope that if there's onething I leave with you guys,
it's you know, don't be afraidto go out there, serve your
community in any way you can.
You know, try your best to makea difference, whether that be,
you know, picking up the trash,you know, or just something
small.
Really, you know, and I reallyI think about these kids all the
(20:22):
time, because I still followthem on social media and I see
them.
You know, now these kids arepractically most of them they're
graduating college already.
Speaker 1 (20:31):
It's amazing how fast those days go.
It's crazy, it's crazy.
Speaker 3 (20:35):
Yeah, these kids are about to graduate college and
they're about to enter.
You enter.
Some of them have alreadyentered the workforce.
Some have joined the military.
You know, it's just, it's crazy.
To me it's mind boggling really.
Speaker 2 (21:00):
Well, eddie, that actually brings another
opportunity to be able to reachout to people who've come
through our youth services inPride, ryla, interact, rotaract,
et cetera and reach out to themand try to bring them not bring
them back to Rotary, butre-engage them with Rotary and
(21:21):
to bring them back to the familyand let them help out in any
way they now feel as they'vematured and gone into the career
you know, you're I believe thatyou're at Costco, right?
Speaker 3 (21:37):
Yeah, okay.
Speaker 2 (21:38):
So you know, just think of somebody else wants to
get involved in Costco and starta career and you can say, hey,
you know what?
I can mentor you, let me showyou how it is, let me tell you
who to talk to and do a numberof different things.
So I'll reach out to you aboutthat.
But there's so much that youcan bring, and you've done so
much at your young age as welland within Rotary, which is
truly amazing.
Speaker 3 (21:59):
Yeah, no, thank you.
I mean, it's definitely been anexperience, it's been a journey
, I mean starting from Rylerianto alumni DGL, right, I mean the
whole thing.
I really look back sometimesand I think, wow, man, what a
time, what a time.
You know, just the other day Iwas thinking about Neil man.
Rest in peace, Neil.
(22:21):
Oh, I know.
Neil doing yep, you know, thatguy was a character man.
He was so much fun, man, somuch fun, you know.
Shout out to Michelle as well.
Miss Michelle, I hope she'sdoing well too.
Speaker 1 (22:37):
Well, we appreciate you taking time out of your day,
eddie, to join us and tell us alittle bit about your Rotary
journey.
I look forward to watching youcontinue this journey and really
engage and interact with otherRotarians in our district.
Thank you for everything you doand thank you for your
dedication to Rotary overall.
Speaker 2 (22:58):
Absolutely, absolutely.
Thank you guys for having me toRotary overall, absolutely,
absolutely.
Speaker 3 (23:00):
Thank you guys for having me on.
I truly appreciate it.
I mean, this is amazing.
I love any chance I get to dothese little things.
I always jump at them, you know, because, as you guys know,
this is what I studied incollege.
So I was, I graduated as a commmajor, so this is literally
what I did for years, you know.
Speaker 1 (23:20):
Well, I'm sure you will be asked more now that we
have you on our radar.
Speaker 2 (23:24):
So be careful what you ask for.
But I'm excited about it andjust keep in mind.
Speaker 1 (23:30):
The podcast can be located on district5330.org we
have a button on there forpodcasts, but you can also get
it on your Apple podcast or anyother podcast service that you
currently use, and please spreadthe word.
Let everybody else know, andI'm sure we will be talking to
you soon in one form or another,because we'd love to have you
(23:51):
helping us out at the districtlevel.
To share this enthusiasm andpassion that you have for Rotary
Sounds good.
Let's do it.
Let's do it All right.
Thanks, eddie.
Have a good day.
Speaker 2 (24:01):
Have a good afternoon you too.
Speaker 1 (24:03):
So that wraps up this episode of Heroes of Hope.
We are so happy that we have anaudience out there listening.
We want you to subscribe, shareand tell your friends about the
Rotary community Heroes of Hope, because that's how we get the
word out about the impact we'rehaving in this world.
Hello and welcome to the Community.
Heroes of Hope, a podcast wherewe shine a light on the
remarkable individuals andprojects in Rotary District 5330
that bring hope and change toour local and global communities
.
I am Judy Zelfikar, yourco-host and the current District
Governor of Rotary District5330.
Speaker 2 (00:20):
And I'm Niren McLean, the Rotary District
Governor-Elect, and I'm NirenMcLean, the Rotary District
Governor-Elect.
Together, we're diving deepinto the heart of the community
service, showcasing the impactof dedication and collaboration
in addressing some of the mostpressing challenges our
communities face.
Speaker 1 (00:35):
Each episode, we'll tell stories of incredible
people making a difference,innovating solutions and
inspiring others to take action.
Speaker 2 (00:43):
We'll also be giving you a behind-the-scenes look at
the projects that aretransforming their lives, and
we'll discuss how you, too, canget involved, contribute and be
part of the positive change.
Whether you're a seasonedRotarian or just looking to give
back, this podcast is for you.
Speaker 1 (01:00):
So join us as we explore the journeys, challenges
and successes of people likeyou who have stepped up to make
a difference.
Let's celebrate the spirit ofcommunity and the power of hope
together.
Speaker 2 (01:13):
Don't forget to subscribe to the Community
Heroes of Hope on your favoritepodcast platform.
Stay with us on this journey ofinspiration and let's spread
the message of hope further thanever.
Speaker 1 (01:24):
Thank you for tuning in.
Let's get started Well.
District Governor-elect Niren,you're about ready to start your
year.
This is an amazing journey thatyou've been through so far in
preparing to be a districtgovernor.
Speaker 2 (01:40):
It has been, and one of the parts of the journey is I
visit clubs and meet people.
I've had the opportunity tomeet Eddie some time ago, and
actually I think I first met himwhen he was just coming out of
high school and was a greatinteractor, and so I'm eager to
hear more about his journey now.
Speaker 1 (02:01):
Awesome, Well, Eddie, welcome to the District 5330
podcast.
Thank you for joining us today.
Can you introduce yourself andtell us a little bit about where
you are today?
Speaker 3 (02:14):
Yeah, definitely.
Thank you for having me guys.
I appreciate it.
It's always good to come onthese type of spaces to come
talk about my experience.
It's cool, you know.
Come on these type of spaces tocome talk about my experience,
it's cool, you know, absolutely,yeah, so, um, so my name is
eddie, my name is, my full nameis aguardo.
Uh, I started interact um, myjunior of high school, um, I
(02:39):
wasn't prior to that, I wasn'tin interact.
I was.
I was in ROTC and someone hadapproached me about this thing
called Ryla and immediately Iwas like okay, what is this?
What are we doing here?
I figured you're in ROTC.
(02:59):
It's a leadership thing.
I feel like you could benefitfrom it.
You might want to check it out.
And I thought you know, I don'tknow, I'm already.
I can have my hands tied already.
You know, with all these things, do I?
Speaker 1 (03:13):
really want to go up to the mountain and camp you
know they said it's a weekendthing.
Speaker 3 (03:19):
You know you gotta go , you're gonna be in the
mountains, it's gonna be fun.
You know why not.
You know, check it out, I'llapply.
You know they told me oh well,you can't just go, you have to
apply first.
You know you have to go throughan interview.
I said, okay, I'll check it out.
I mean, worst case scenario,it's a no.
And you know, just go about myday right no harm, no foul yeah
(03:39):
yeah, and so, um, I uh, I had.
I went to the interview I metwith at the time.
Was, you know then, interact ornot?
I shouldn't say interactorsroad actors and road tarians,
actually from the Marina ValleySunset Club, the club I'm now a
part of.
Now, you know, I met Charlievery briefly, but I didn't know
(04:04):
him at that time.
You know I met Charlie verybriefly, but I didn't know him
at that time.
Speaker 2 (04:12):
You know, he was just some.
You know, to me he was justthis crazy dude you know big on
Inter-Ride, big on Rotary.
Speaker 3 (04:13):
I said, oh okay, you know, because I don't know if
you guys know this, but Charliewent to the same high school as
I did.
Speaker 1 (04:20):
Yeah, he's very passionate about that school,
that's for sure.
Speaker 3 (04:24):
Yeah, so we both went to high school.
Uh, that's a fun fact.
He grew up on the in the sameneighborhood.
I did way back in the day okayuh, and then he also was in rtc.
So, you know, we kind of we kindof clicked on that early on,
which which I thought was prettycool, right, and I said, oh
(04:45):
well, you know what, maybe youknow, our journey seems cool.
You know, we'll check this out.
And yeah, I mean, the interviewwent super smooth.
I ended up getting accepted and, boom, ryla was a hit man I
loved it.
Speaker 1 (05:04):
What was your favorite part about Ryla?
Speaker 3 (05:07):
Oh man, oh sheesh, that's a tough one.
That's a tough one, I think,for me personally, my attitudes,
it'd probably be my group, youknow.
The theme of that year wascountries, you know.
I can't exactly remember whatthe actual theme was, but it was
(05:28):
centered around countries, youknow, and my group was Japan.
You know, and Andy, I'm sureyou guys know Andy.
Speaker 1 (05:38):
Andy Brakebill.
Yeah, was he your discussiongroup leader.
Speaker 3 (05:42):
Yeah, that's right, he was my DGL man.
Super cool guy, man, Super coolguy, man, Super cool guy.
I miss that dude man.
Yeah, it's just.
You know those people that Igot to experience with, they
were super friendly.
Yeah, at first I didn't knowthem.
It was kind of weird at first.
(06:03):
I didn't know them, it was kindof weird at first.
But, man, within a couple hoursit's like all these weird
emotions, you feel thatanxiousness, it just goes away.
You know, you don't feel it.
Speaker 2 (06:16):
You feel like everyone there is family, you
know, Yep.
So, Eddie, let me ask you ifyou can put a finger on it, what
would you say that attending,since you already were in ROTC
and you already were inleadership positions, what would
you say that Ryla did for you?
Speaker 3 (06:38):
Looking back now you can say that Ryla had an impact
on you as much as ROTC helped mewith leadership and really
speaking up and being vocalabout certain things.
It wasn't until I had gone toRILA that really gave me that
extra push, you know, to reallygo out and just go for things,
(07:00):
just go out and do it Right.
One of the things that Iremember at Ryla that I was kind
of iffy about was I wasn't sureif I wanted to fully, you know,
immerse myself in thisexperience at first, because I
was just, you know, growing up.
I was always kind of like a shykid, you know.
I mean, don't get me wrong, Ilike to.
(07:22):
I would talk to certain people,but more or less, you know, I
tried to keep it to myself.
And you know, when you're putin this environment like Ryla,
where it's like you can't dothat, you know you can't you
really can't.
I mean, everyone's coming up toyou, hey, where, where are you
from?
Hey, what club are you with?
(07:46):
Hey, like I haven't noticed youdo this.
What what's up?
You know it's, it's uh, you'rekind of forced to, you know,
just go out and you know, makefriends, you know, be more, more
social, you know.
And so when it came down to it,I don't know if you guys
remember the talent show- ohyeah talent show so much fun.
Yeah, the no talent talent show.
(08:17):
Right, right, right right.
So I remember watching allthese kids, man that you know
doing the talent show and Ithink to's like, yeah, you know
what, maybe you can do it.
You know, maybe you can.
Even if you feel like you can't, you can just give it a shot.
You know who cares what peoplethink, you know.
Speaker 1 (08:35):
I think that's probably the best thing about
Ryla.
What I've heard from yourselfand other students is that it
brought them out of their shelland realized that you know
there's other people first ofall that are having challenges
just like you, that you maybedidn't realize that they were
there having those challengesand and that that you can come
out of your shell, you can bewhoever you want to be and
(08:55):
you're not limited by thecircumstance that you might live
in or some things that may havehad in the past.
That you can choose to beresilient, you can choose to
come out and make a differenceand be who you want to be.
Speaker 3 (09:09):
You're not limited by those other things resonates
with me the most is the uh, theculture walk.
Oh yeah, and and the reason whyI say that it's because you
know everyone has their days.
You know they're good and baddays, you know every now.
(09:31):
And then you know certainpeople might get on their nerves
or whatever, and you think, ohman, I just want to.
You know you'll say somethingcrazy that you don't really mean
, but that culture walk, itreally put things into
perspective for me that, hey,you know what, maybe it's not,
maybe it's not okay to, you know, judge others.
(09:52):
You know, because we don'treally know, at the end of the
day, what people are goingthrough.
Right, everybody, everybody'ssituation is different,
everybody's going through thingsand at the end of the day, the
best thing to do is just tryyour best to be kind, you know,
because that goes a long way.
Speaker 1 (10:08):
Yep absolutely.
So after you left Ryla, did youjoin Interact that year or did
you wait till you got into yoursenior year?
What was the rest of thatjourney.
Speaker 3 (10:21):
Immediately, immediately.
Once I came down that hill, uh,charlie went out looking for me
personally.
He was like I need this kid man, I need to put him in interact.
And he sure did.
Man.
He found me.
That man, that dude, wentthrough the ends of the earth to
you know, look for me.
Speaker 1 (10:38):
That's awesome you know.
Speaker 3 (10:40):
And he immediately he's like let me introduce you
to the Interact advisor.
This is the Interact president.
Get situated, this is going tobe your new home.
I said OK, cool, cool, cool,cool, cool.
And you know, that was where itall started.
From that point on, it was justboom, what's next?
What's next?
You know what are we going todo.
Speaker 1 (11:02):
So, speaking of what was next, I mean, you're now out
of high school, correct?
Speaker 2 (11:07):
Yeah, and so what happened?
Speaker 1 (11:08):
what happened after your Interact high school
journey.
What did?
Speaker 3 (11:29):
where did you go to next?
Literally that following year.
Big salute, big shout out to,to the marina valley rotary club
because literally that cashprize that I won was able to
sponsor my uh, my varsity jacketoh, that's awesome.
So I was super, super thankfulfor that, Super thankful when I
(11:55):
had graduated high school.
Immediately I was going toenroll at Cal State, San
Bernardino, and join the RotorRat Club there.
But I noticed that, you know,being a commuter coming from
Reno Valley going to SanBernardino, it's really tough
sometimes to make those meetings, you know.
Speaker 1 (12:05):
Right.
Speaker 3 (12:06):
And so, charlie, at the time he was doing, he was
starting up the Merino ValleyWorld Rite Club here, which at
the time they were doing atMerino Valley College.
But you know, because therewasn't a lot of members there,
you know, it wasn't reallygaining traction.
He had this idea where it'slike you know what, if we just
open it up, you know, becausethey were very limited to what
(12:29):
they could do there.
Everything had to go throughschool.
You know a whole lot ofpaperwork, the words, you know,
and he was just like you knowwhat.
I feel like we could get moreattendance, we get'd get more
members, more reach, and wecould do more stuff if we just
did it at my shop, at his shop.
Speaker 1 (12:48):
Right.
Speaker 3 (12:49):
And so that's what we did, man.
We ended up, you know,basically starting up the
Rotorite Club here in MarianaValley from the ground up you
know those that were already init at Mariana Valley College,
you know and then we were ableto get some students from Cal
State, san Bernardino, some fromUCR.
I know we stole some from UCR.
I feel bad to say that, butit's not stealing.
Speaker 1 (13:13):
You're all working on the same stuff.
Yeah, you know.
Speaker 3 (13:16):
But yeah, we, yeah, we grabbed a few.
We grabbed a few and um, it wascool, man, it was really nice.
It was, you know, we were doingstuff in the community.
We were meeting up, we weredoing social.
My favorite thing was doing thesocials.
I loved going out after themeeting to go get food, when it
was just tacos or something,just catching up with these guys
(13:37):
, because you know, as much asit's fun and it feels good to
give back to the community Ithink it's every now and then
it's really nice just to youknow, kind of get together, see
what everyone's up to you knowand really get that sense of I
don't know camaraderie.
Speaker 1 (13:55):
I guess I would say maybe, yeah, the community, you
know that's been proven time andtime again that people join
Rotary because they want to dothe service, but they stay in
Rotary because of thefriendships that they developed
in the process.
And so it's a very, veryimportant part of our service
organization.
Speaker 2 (14:11):
Absolutely so.
Let me ask you is that MorenoValley Rotaract?
Is that still going strong, orwhat's the status of it?
Speaker 3 (14:22):
Well, you know, I'll be honest with you, I haven't,
since I graduated college, I'vebeen kind of, you know, trying
to focus more on Rotary.
So I haven't really, you know,kept up with what's going on
with the Rotaract Club, but asfar as I'm concerned, I'm pretty
sure they're still going strong.
You know, it's kind of trickywith Rotaract because it's you
(14:45):
know you're, it's not likeInteract, where you know you're
you're confined to the spaces ofthe school, right as a high
school, you're allowed to, youknow, be more broader with your
community service.
But then the problem comes inand it's like, hey, well, I have
school, you know I havemidterms, you know, now we're
working, I have school, you knowI have midterms, you know, now
(15:05):
we're working.
I have a job, you know, I have aboyfriend, I have a girlfriend,
you know, and, um, all thesecommitments, you know, sometimes
, man, it gets tricky, it getsreally tricky.
So it's trying to find thebalance.
It's really that's, that's, Ithink that's the most difficult
part really with any Rotary club.
Speaker 2 (15:27):
So what are you doing now?
Speaker 3 (15:28):
I know you're part of the Rotary club, yeah, now I'm
just focused with the Rotaryclub, with the main Rotary club,
with the Myrna Valley Sunset.
Speaker 2 (15:39):
Are you doing anything in particular for them,
any particular departments?
Are you working with youth?
Are you working withinternational service, or are
you just kind of getting yourfeet wet and checking things out
and seeing where you can help?
Speaker 3 (15:55):
I'd say in the moment , I'm really just.
You know, whatever the clubneeds help with, I try my best
to, you know, help them out.
If we're doing certain events,like we just got done doing the
spaghetti dinner at the SeniorCenter a couple months ago, so
that was really fun, we alwaysdo that every year, it's a
really good event.
(16:15):
You know, what I want to getback into is being a DGL, you
know.
So I guess that would fallunder the youth services, right
with Charlie.
Speaker 1 (16:25):
Yep, are you coming up to Ryla this year?
Speaker 3 (16:28):
Not this year, you know, unfortunately.
My only issue is just that myjob they get real picky, you
know, with allocating vacationand when can you take vacation.
So for me that's always thetricky part.
You know, how can I get aroundthat?
But I've been talking toCharlie man, I really want to
(16:49):
get back to it, because being aDGL as much as going to Ryla as
a Rylarian was fun, man, being aDGL, that's where it's at,
that's where you really uh, youget, you really get a lot of
fulfillment for sure.
Speaker 2 (17:05):
And you, you have the experience that you can really
share with other kids who, again, they go up there thinking that
it's just them.
Nobody understands them, nobodyknows where they're coming from
and the shoes that they walk in, and you can say, hey, been
there, done that.
Let me tell you what's on theother side.
And you know you can be anexample to so many kids who
(17:25):
think they're lost and bythemselves, and so you can
really have an impact.
And that's what I love aboutyou You've always been dynamic.
I remember the first time I metyou at Charlie's Shop and you
were just.
You were on the ball man.
You were moving like a bus side, helping him do things and
getting stuff organized.
And every time I've gone to theInteract banquets at the end of
(17:49):
the year, you've been involved.
You've been there.
So kudos to you on yourinvolvement.
I'm glad that.
Ryla and Interact and Rotaract,and now Rotary has had an impact
on your life and you haven'tlet go, and that is so important
.
A lot of times we lose kids.
We send them to Pride, we sendthem to Ryla.
They're part of Interact.
(18:10):
They go off to collegesomewhere else and forget about
Rotaract and then go off to acareer in another state or
another city and then theybecome, you know, they run into
Rotary 30 years later and you'venever let go.
You've been Rotarian all theway through from Ryla and so
that is awesome, both atestament to you as well as to
(18:31):
Charlie, quite frankly, for notletting you slip away.
Speaker 1 (18:36):
And there's so many opportunities within Rotary.
I mean, you just got started.
We just got off a podcast witha vocational training team
member.
That's an opportunity for you.
That's literally an opportunityto go to another country and
experience another district andlearn more about it.
Partnerships, and and uh, zoneInstitute.
(19:02):
I mean there's just so manythings that you have available
to you.
I know I didn't become aRotarian until well into my
thirties and I really wish Iwould have had that opportunity.
Uh, you know, in high schooland coming through and after
high school.
So the world is bright, myfriend.
You have so many things to lookforward to.
Speaker 3 (19:17):
Oh, definitely, thank you.
Yeah, and I mean it's so crazy.
I say that because that'sthat's literally what I told my
kids, you know, when I was a DTLI said look, you know, you guys
are juniors right now in highschool.
Pretty soon you guys are goingto be seniors and right after
that you guys are going to enterthe world.
And you know, before you knowit it's you know, you guys are
(19:40):
adults too.
You guys are going to be, youknow, in the same boat.
I am, you know.
Now the question is what are youguys going to do?
What are you guys going to dowith this?
What are you guys going to getwith this experience, right?
So I told them, you know, I'mnot expecting you guys to.
You know, go out and joinRotary, if that's, if you feel
(20:02):
like that's not for you.
But I hope that if there's onething I leave with you guys,
it's you know, don't be afraidto go out there, serve your
community in any way you can.
You know, try your best to makea difference, whether that be,
you know, picking up the trash,you know, or just something
small.
Really, you know, and I reallyI think about these kids all the
(20:22):
time, because I still followthem on social media and I see
them.
You know, now these kids arepractically most of them they're
graduating college already.
Speaker 1 (20:31):
It's amazing how fast those days go.
It's crazy, it's crazy.
Speaker 3 (20:35):
Yeah, these kids are about to graduate college and
they're about to enter.
You enter.
Some of them have alreadyentered the workforce.
Some have joined the military.
You know, it's just, it's crazy.
To me it's mind boggling really.
Speaker 2 (21:00):
Well, eddie, that actually brings another
opportunity to be able to reachout to people who've come
through our youth services inPride, ryla, interact, rotaract,
et cetera and reach out to themand try to bring them not bring
them back to Rotary, butre-engage them with Rotary and
(21:21):
to bring them back to the familyand let them help out in any
way they now feel as they'vematured and gone into the career
you know, you're I believe thatyou're at Costco, right?
Speaker 3 (21:37):
Yeah, okay.
Speaker 2 (21:38):
So you know, just think of somebody else wants to
get involved in Costco and starta career and you can say, hey,
you know what?
I can mentor you, let me showyou how it is, let me tell you
who to talk to and do a numberof different things.
So I'll reach out to you aboutthat.
But there's so much that youcan bring, and you've done so
much at your young age as welland within Rotary, which is
truly amazing.
Speaker 3 (21:59):
Yeah, no, thank you.
I mean, it's definitely been anexperience, it's been a journey
, I mean starting from Rylerianto alumni DGL, right, I mean the
whole thing.
I really look back sometimesand I think, wow, man, what a
time, what a time.
You know, just the other day Iwas thinking about Neil man.
Rest in peace, Neil.
(22:21):
Oh, I know.
Neil doing yep, you know, thatguy was a character man.
He was so much fun, man, somuch fun, you know.
Shout out to Michelle as well.
Miss Michelle, I hope she'sdoing well too.
Speaker 1 (22:37):
Well, we appreciate you taking time out of your day,
eddie, to join us and tell us alittle bit about your Rotary
journey.
I look forward to watching youcontinue this journey and really
engage and interact with otherRotarians in our district.
Thank you for everything you doand thank you for your
dedication to Rotary overall.
Speaker 2 (22:58):
Absolutely, absolutely.
Thank you guys for having me toRotary overall, absolutely,
absolutely.
Speaker 3 (23:00):
Thank you guys for having me on.
I truly appreciate it.
I mean, this is amazing.
I love any chance I get to dothese little things.
I always jump at them, you know, because, as you guys know,
this is what I studied incollege.
So I was, I graduated as a commmajor, so this is literally
what I did for years, you know.
Speaker 1 (23:20):
Well, I'm sure you will be asked more now that we
have you on our radar.
Speaker 2 (23:24):
So be careful what you ask for.
But I'm excited about it andjust keep in mind.
Speaker 1 (23:30):
The podcast can be located on district5330.org we
have a button on there forpodcasts, but you can also get
it on your Apple podcast or anyother podcast service that you
currently use, and please spreadthe word.
Let everybody else know, andI'm sure we will be talking to
you soon in one form or another,because we'd love to have you
(23:51):
helping us out at the districtlevel.
To share this enthusiasm andpassion that you have for Rotary
Sounds good.
Let's do it.
Let's do it All right.
Thanks, eddie.
Have a good day.
Speaker 2 (24:01):
Have a good afternoon you too.
Speaker 1 (24:03):
So that wraps up this episode of Heroes of Hope.
We are so happy that we have anaudience out there listening.
We want you to subscribe, shareand tell your friends about the
Rotary community Heroes of Hope, because that's how we get the
word out about the impact we'rehaving in this world.
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