Week 31, January 30-February 5, 2011

Wow! If you missed the Mid-year Assembly on Saturday, January 29th, you missed a great program! We had a wonderful turnout and I believe those who attended were not disappointed in the program. I want to thank PDG Carol Burdette, our District Trainer, for putting together a well-paced, informative and inspiring program. Of course, the event would not have occurred at all were it not for the diligent efforts of our District Administrator, Pam Weaver. My thanks go out, also, to District Four-Way-Test chair, Linda Gallicchio, for bringing us Al Mathis (Herb Taylor's Grandson) to speak to us on the history of the Four Way Test. His inspiring message reminded some of us of an old-fashioned revival meeting. Never before has the Four Way Test been so exciting! A huge thank you goes to PDG Myles Golden for his presentation on Branding the Rotary Product. Russ Allen, a member of the Rotary Club of Greenville helped us to perfect our "Elevator Speech" when folks inquire about Rotary. I do not want to leave out our other wonderful speakers. A big "Thank You!" goes out to PDG Rich Waugh; Jackie McGuire of The Rotary Foundaion; PDG Bruce Baker; Betty Parker Ellis, District Public Relations Chair; Andy Stevens, District Rotaract Chair; AG Ed Irick for not only speaking but acting as the official timekeeper; Brad Majors, District Conference; and Paul Kumler, International Convention. If you missed this event, you missed a great time to "chip away at your Rotary stone," to network with your fellow Rotarians from across the state and to enjoy being a Rotarian! A final huge "Thank You! goes to Terry Weaver who spent hours of his personal time putting the program together. The PowerPoints ran flawlessly! The audio and visual presentations were exceptional. Terry made us all look good!
Don't forget to register for our next event, The Voice of Haiti, on March 14th at Lander on the Square. This will be our final Foundation Event of the year. Those of you who attended the October event were inspired and proud to be a Rotarian. The March event promises to be equally inspiring. It is also time to register for District Conference in May. Go to the Calendar tab on the district website and register for the event and follow the link to secure your housing. On Saturday, Paul Kumler announced that we have 18 spaces available for the Train Trip to New Orleans. We need to fill those seats so that we are able to keep our private car to New Orleans. Register on the District website.