On Friday, August 21, we were elated to have District Governor Gary Newton visit our weekly meeting. Accompanied by his wife Debbie, Gary first met with the board to go over Rotary International goals and announce the Group Study Exchange (GSE) program. Both Gary and Debbie were proud of the strong community service projects we are participating in, our commitment to reaching our financial goals and our upcoming involvement within the community.
After the board meeting, Gary and Debbie joined us for lunch and a grant presentation to BGSU STEM in the Park. To conclude our program, Gary provided us with a speech on his journey to Rotary. It took Gary three invites before he finally decided to join Rotary, thanks to a persistent friend. From there, Gary was a member of Rotary but not the most active member, until he was asked to be on a committee. This engagement really got the ball rolling for Gary and eventually led to him becoming President of his club. After a relocation, Gary joined the club in St. Mary's, Ohio, where he eventually became President again. His involvement in the Club activities, as well as the District activities and meetings, eventually led him to the position of District Governor.
It was wonderful to spend time with Gary and Debbie and to receive such positive feedback on how our Club is doing with our goals!
Susan Rees, Transplant Director for the Alliance for Paired Donations, has been proposed for membership by Kevin Rantanen and approved by the Board of Directors. Ms. Rees’ proposed classification will be Non-Profit Organization. Barring an objection in writing from a member submitted to the club secretary by Friday, September 18, Ms. Rees will be inducted into membership upon payment of dues and attendance at a new member orientation session.
It's hard to believe that we are already thinking about the Harrison Rally Day Festival. We are, once again, hosting a booth and participating in the parade. There will be a need for volunteers for both the booth and parade.
The rotary booth needs to be set up between 8:30-9:00 AM and we need volunteers to take care of the booth from 10:00 – 4:00. We usually need at least two people in the booth in 2 hour increments. We also need volunteers at 4:00 to help take down the booth and tent.
For the float we would need people at 9:00 Am to help set up, decorate and walk in the parade.
