Good afternoon Rotarians!  I hope you are having a Service Above Self kind of day!  This will be my last letter to you, so I thought I would begin with my 'call sign'.  The month of June brings us some excitement, with the recognition of John Peters having 50 years in our Club, a field trip to the Claremont Nursing and Rehabilitation Center, and the Roast Beef Dinner!

 

My goals for this Rotary year were rather straightforward; looking to increase membership, transition to Club Runner to improve communications and efficiency for future Club leaders, participate in Community service day, increase support to the Foundation and Polio Plus, and to continue the fellowship, fun, and vibrancy of our Club. 

 

The Club added 12 new members during the year, with hopefully another new member or two to come in June.  However, we lost 10 members due to Honorary status and job changes, so the goal of reaching 100 active members will most likely fall short. It appears that we are now 'over the bubble' of active members transitioning to honorary at this point which will allow for increased net gains in future membership. The 'Member Guest' days in the fall and spring were implemented to provide an easy platform for future growth of the Club.  There has been an effort to reach out in different ways in the community so that Rotary is a place to be SEEN (Serve, Educate, Empower, and Network), hoping that this will add excitement to potential members.

 

We transitioned the Club Runner beginning July 1 to facilitate communications within the Club, as well as setting the foundation for many other ways we can increase efficiencies of Club operations, from registration of community events, fundraising, billing, attendance, newsletters, website maintenance, and programming to just name a few.  It was expected that the District would eventually desire all clubs to be on Club Runner and that appears to be coming to fruition, so it was beneficial that we have already moved forward with this technology.

 

The Club has contributed almost 1,500 hours of voluntary community service during the year, and raised over $40,000 to help the local community, with another $10,000 to help with the Global projects in Kenya.  While our Foundation donations to date are 85% of the goal, the amount going to Polio Plus is quadruple what the Board projected for the year.  We secured a $5k District Grant to upgrade the Carlisle Area Family Life Center to better support pregnant women in the community, provided the YMCA with a new scoreboard, and completed an $85k Global Grant to help with water sanitation in Kilimambogo in conjunction with the Rotary Club of Thika.

 

Finally, the desire to continue the vibrancy of our Club was not a hard goal to achieve when considering our membership.  A few newsletters ago I wrote about how the community of Carlisle is unique.  After having the last year to be intricately involved in the 95 year old Rotary Club of Carlisle, it is clear to me that our Club is very unique.  The Club's history and tradition, as well as the diverse involvement in the community for a 100% volunteer organization is unique in its own merit, but what is even more special is our members.  Each week I have had the wonderful opportunity to get to know each of you in a different, yet connected way.  I observe the way our Club members truly enjoy Thursday meetings to catch up, share a few stories and a laugh over lunch, while being educated or entertained with a great program.  This is the heartbeat of our Club, and our pulse is strong and steady.

 

I have been honored to serve you this past year. I appreciate you and as always, thanks for all you do.