MESSAGE FROM DISTRICT GOVERNOR VANCE LEWIS FOR, 2013

DG’S MESSAGE FOR JANUARY 2013

Happy New Year! First, let me take this opportunity on behalf of both myself and my partner Monica, to wish you all a very peaceful, healthy and Happy New Year.

We have reached the halfway point in the Rotary Calendar. I would suggest that all clubs review their Club Planning Guides to see how many of your goals have been achieved. Let us also review our progress in increasing the Rotary awareness during the first 6 months of the 2012-2013 Rotary year, and what more can be done in the next 6 months. This will ensure that we can reflect positively at the end of the year, with pride, on our accomplishments during the Rotary year.

Currently, Monica and I have visited 81 of the 82 clubs in the District and like you, I feel this is a great time to reflect on and take stock of the last few challenges we have to complete before turning over our gavels and chains of office. And in the same spirit, join me in congratulating all our incoming club leaders and officers duly appointed. DGE Jeremy and Michelle along with 531 other DGE’s head off to San Diego this month to attend the International Assembly. This and every year in January is the final training for the DGEs prior to them taking office on July 1^st. It is a fantastic opportunity to mix with senior Rotarians from around the world to learn about Rotary and to share ideas. We wish Jeremy and Michelle a safe and enjoyable trip and look forward to them coming back full of knowledge and enthusiasm for the year ahead.

Some of our District’s accomplishment year-to-date are:

· Chartering of new Rotary Community Corps and Rotaract clubs

· Completion of travel by one of our 2 outbound GSE team.

· Our 3 Ambassadorial Scholars are well underway with their studies

· Increased giving to the Foundation Rotarians in the District

· Increased our membership across the District

It has been a fascinating and at times awesome but humbling experience to see our great District at work. Everywhere we have traveled we have felt the warmth of your hospitality. We have seen many of the very valuable projects in which you are engaged in and I can say I am truly impressed.

Looking forward, January is “Rotary Awareness” month. Having seen many of your activities, it is clear Rotary is very much alive in our District. But how many people outside of Rotary know what we do? What is the public’s perception of Rotary? Can we improve our efforts in making people aware of what Rotary actually does and our achievements? How many people know of the significance of Rotary’s involvement in the eradication of polio? Sometimes we are reluctant to tell our story of Rotary’s work in our local and global communities.

Communication is a wonderful tool and we should use it to the fullest extent to tell the world just what a great organization we are. And we should also talk about our personal Rotary moment. These are things that help to increase awareness of Rotary around our communities.

Rotarians, let us pause and reflect; some 3 years ago, on January 12^th a terrible earthquake destroyed many lives in Haiti. Rotary was there in the beginning doing what we do to change lives for the better. Today, this story is no longer front page news for mainstream media, but we as an organization – Rotary, is still in Haiti! We continue to build wells to provide clean and safe water; we build latrines for sanitation and schools for education, all with the aim of changing peoples’ lives for the better.

This is what we do as Rotarians - and we should be proud to tell our stories as we recommit to our motto of Service Above Self and as we continue our Rotary journey. Let’s continue to move onwards and upwards as we build Peace Through Service.