Rotary District 7730

RYLA

We now have 92 participants registered for the RYLA Conference on January 26 – 28 at the Trinity Center, Pine Knoll Shores, NC. I believe this is a record number for RYLA in our District. Thank you, District RYLA Chair Keith King; and thank you, Rotary clubs, for your support of RYLA!

Rotary Against Drugs (RAD) Speech Contest

The District Finals for the Rotary Against Drugs Speech Contest (RAD) is scheduled for Sunday, February 25, at James Sprunt Community College in Kenansville. High School students of all ages and grades are eligible. For those Rotary clubs that want to participate in RAD, the time to start recruiting students and organizing area-wide contests is now! Thank you, District RAD Chair Bill Goodwin, for your service to our young people.

CART

Assistant Governor Brian Garrett will serve as CART Chair for the remainder of this Rotary year. Brian replaces PDG Milt Iossi who recently moved to Salisbury, NC. Thank you, Assistant Governor Brian, for Leading the Way!

Rotary International’s Eastern States Student Exchange Program (ESSEX)

Our Youth Exchange program needs to achieve Certification from Rotary International. This is the only way that we can continue to have an active Youth Exchange program in our district. DGE Wilson Ray has established that the best way to achieve this is to join ESSEX or Rotary International’s Eastern States Student Exchange Program. To join ESSEX, we need a two-thirds majority of our Rotary clubs to ratify the decision. As of this moment, we need one more club! Presidents, if you contact DGE Wilson now, your Rotary club will be the one that turns the corner for us and that ensures the continuation of Youth Exchange in our district. To those leaders who have responded, thank you for supporting this important milestone. If you have not done so already, we’d like to hear from you.

PETS (President Elect Training Seminar)

Presidents, the early registration deadline for your president-elect to attend PETS is January 20th! Mail-in registration needs to be postmarked Jan. 20 so that the fee doesn’t increase and so a room at the Sheraton Greensboro Four Seasons is guaranteed.

This year’s speakers at the PETS on March 15-17, 2007, are Past RI President Frank Devlyn, Past RI President Jim Lacy, Rotary Foundation Trustee Ron Burton, and a very funny Rotarian – Glen Ward.

Presidents, the early registration deadline for your president-elect to attend PETS is January 20th! Mail-in registration needs to be postmarked Jan. 20 so that the fee doesn’t increase and so a room at the Sheraton Greensboro Four Seasons is guaranteed.

The registration form can be found here.
or you can register online here.

District Conference, May 3-6, Holiday Inn Sunspree, Wrightsville Beach

The January edition of the District Newsletter, ROTARY LEADER, just came out a few days ago. In it, we gave you a lot of information about our upcoming District Conference in May 3-6. As you know, there is no registration fee and lunch is no charge for those Rotarians who register by April 3rd. We’d like to see a large turn-out for this very exciting and fun event. Rotary leaders, please circulate the newsletter to those who may not have gotten it on-line and encourage your fellow Rotarians to attend. Surf’s Up! Serving Rotary! See you there!

District Calendar

RYLA, 1/26 – 1/28, starts 2pm, Trinity Center, Pine Knoll Shores, NC

Council of Governors Meeting, Sunday, 2/4, 2:30 pm, Holiday Inn Express, Wallace, NC

Rotary Day at Boys & Girls Home, rededication of Rotary Cottage, Sunday, 2/11, 10:45 am

Benefit for Boys & Girls Home, Ocean Ridge Singers, Saturday, 2/24, 7:30pm, Odell Williamson Auditorium, Brunswick Community College, Supply, NC

RAD Speech Contest, 2/25, 1:30pm, James Sprunt Community College, Kenansville, NC

Rotary Foundation Thought of the Week

Brought to you each week by PDG Bevin Wall, District Rotary Foundation Chair; and reproduced courtesy of www.rotary.org

This week’s Rotary Foundation Thought is about using District Simplified Grants to help communities in need.

In the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina, many Rotarians are interested in developing projects to alleviate the suffering and hardship of individuals in the affected communities. Many of the needed items, such as basic necessities and medical care, can be provided through a District Simplified Grant (DSG). District Simplified Grants (DSG) are one means by which Rotary districts can support short-term, humanitarian projects that benefit local or international communities. DSG funds can be used for disaster relief efforts as long as Rotarians clearly identify the proposed grant-funded expenditures and there is active Rotarian participation in the project. Clubs interested in receiving DSG funds must contact their district leadership.

Let’s learn more about our own district’s projects and how to get involved.

For more information on giving or program participation, contact PDG Bevin Wall District 7730 Rotary Foundation Chair at Bevin@RLI33.org.

Lead the Way!