46 years ago, former West foreign language teachers Nancy Pacha and Margaret Winkler first met at Northwest Junior High, where they shared an office space. Since then, they have been inseparable, with their relationship built around a shared passion for community service and the mission of Rotary International, a global volunteering organization that focuses on promoting peace and eradicating diseases.
“I’d love to say [meeting Pacha] was love at first sight, but that doesn’t seem appropriate. [It was] friendship at first sight,” Winkler said.
Pacha also acknowledges the longevity and strength of their bond.
“We’re like two peas in a pod; we’ve known each other for a long time and rely on one another like sisters. I feel a very familial attachment to Margie,” Pacha said. “I do have a sister, and I love her dearly, but she’s not in town. So, Margie is my surrogate sister.”
Both Pacha and Winkler are active members of the Rotary Club of Iowa City a.m., Iowa City’s local Rotary chapter that meets Tuesday mornings at seven. Pacha, who was first exposed to Rotary through her husband, has been affiliated with the program since 2000.
“I joined [Rotary] after going to the National Immunization Day in India with my husband. It was to administer polio vaccines to children because that was an initiative of Rotary,” Pacha said. “We visited a leper hospital; we went to orphanages, and we encountered all kinds of projects that were literacy or medical projects. I was very taken with what Rotary was doing.”
After Winkler retired in 2005, Pacha connected Winkler, who had volunteered at the local food pantry and through the Rockin’ Readers program, with Rotary a.m., which immediately felt like a good fit. Winkler emphasizes her strong friendships with fellow Rotarians as the highlight of her Rotary experience.
“[My favorite part] is the personal friendships that have come out of seeing people at seven o’clock in the morning willing [to volunteer],” Winkler said. “What winds up happening is that you find yourself gravitating toward them socially. I really feel that I have a base of solid friends in our Rotary chapter.”
For Pacha, the ability to work as a group to enact meaningful change locally and abroad is what defines her Rotary membership.
“One of the things I like about being a member of Rotary is that as an individual you only have so much power … you don’t feel super strong to accomplish something on your own. But as a group, you have a big vehicle that gives you a lot of power to actually make observable change,” Pacha said. “I couldn’t organize what we have done in Xicotepec; the things we’ve changed in that community over time are remarkable: water quality, literacy, building community resources, things one person couldn’t do.”
Outside of Rotary, Pacha and Winkler are advisors for 1440 Interact, West’s Rotary International-affiliated volunteering club that focuses on community outreach and service. Both find the contact with high school students to be one of the most gratifying parts of serving as 1440’s advisors.
“What I miss about teaching is the association with kids. It doesn’t matter what age the kids are, but the fact that 1440 tends to get really good kids who are engaged and fun to be around and fun to talk to has inspired me very much,” Winkler said.
Pacha also enjoys watching 1440 members grow over the course of their membership.
“Over a four-year period, you watch changes [in students]. You watch more and more involvement, more leadership activity; that’s a very wonderful thing to be able to witness,” Pacha said. “[1440] is the best [way] to work with all you wonderful young people. It keeps [Winkler and I] younger, I think, even though our hair is turning white.”
If interested in joining 1440 Interact, contact Zaira Ahmad at [email protected] or Kamakshee Kuchhal at [email protected].
