Since 2018, Rotary Club Bonn International has been committed to helping orphans and vulnerable children in Malawi, which has a population of over 17 million. The cookbook initiative was started under RCBI President Paul Desanker’s term of 2019-20 as a means to raise funds to further support this cause. “Investing in the youth during their critical formation years is the only way to ensure lasting progress and sustainability in society,” he reflected. “The numerous young people growing up in families disrupted by the health problems of the last two decades have been affected in ways we can only imagine. It is our duty to do what we can to help, no matter how small.

”Recipes without Borders: Best Loved Family Recipes from Around the World was specially designed to highlight the international nature of the Bonn Club whose members’ rich and diverse histories and ethnicities span the world. RCBI members are very proud to share their different cultures and heritage through favourite recipes. Some have been passed down from generation to generation and bring with them fond memories of the author’s childhood.

The Club is honoured to have a message from the Mayor of Bonn, Mr. Ashok Sridharan, preface the cookbook, in which he said, “Anyone who has visited another Rotary club at home or abroad will have experienced the unbiased, open welcome that Rotary friends show one another. An expression of this openness is the cookbook that the Rotary Club Bonn International has compiled”.

“A lovely feature about this cookbook is that each recipe is not only accompanied by a photo, but also a personal story about the dish,” said Mr. Helmut Rassfeld, the 2019-20 District Governor of Rotary District 1810, in his foreword to the cookbook. “This gives the cookbook a warmer, welcoming and homely feeling that will make users feel a closer connection with the authors of the recipes.

”Both gentlemen graciously contributed some of their favourite family recipes. “As a young club, RCBI is committed to focusing on youth in different parts of the world through continuing support to various youth initiatives, whether they are in our own backyard here in Bonn or in the broader global community where Rotary is active,” reaffirmed President Colin Duerkop.

Rotarian Rosana Desanker and Rotarian Constantin von Kleinsorgen coordinated the production of Recipes without Borders: Best Loved Family Recipes from Around the World. Generously illustrated with many original photographs of Bonn and its environs as well as the respective dishes; the cookbook will make a wonderful souvenir of the city and a perfect gift for visitors to Bonn and loved ones faraway.

Net proceeds from the sale of this cookbook will go to the St. Mary's Rehabilitation Center in Chezi, Malawi. The Center is run by nuns of the Congregation of Missionaries of Mary Mediatrix.

Copies of the cookbook may be obtained by contacting Rotarian Rosana Desanker, Secretary, at rdesanker@yahoo.com.

Rotary Club Bonn International, the first international and only English-speaking Rotary Club in Bonn, is the sixth English-speaking Rotary Club in Germany. Since it was chartered on 19 February 2016, the Club has formed part of the international community in Bonn. Current members come from 15 countries, and hold positions with organisations such as Deutsche Post DHL, Deutsche Telekom and United Nations agencies, among others.