Rotary International District 6780 Newsletter
Monday, March 17, 2008
Happy St. Patrick's Day! If you aren't wearing something green you just might be pinched! This holiday illustrates how a religious or secular observance in one culture can be enjoyed and adopted by other cultures. St. Patrick's Day is now observed all over the world, wherever the Irish have been or have sent their beer.

As Rotarians, we have the opportunity through attending International Conventions, sending and receiving Rotary Exchange Students, Ambassadorial Scholars, Group Study Exchange teams and our own travels to learn about celebrations around the world. To learn a little about Carnival Uruguayan style and the "murgas" in the picture on the left, check out Rebbecca Pittenger's blog. Rebbecca is in Montevideo for 12 months as an Ambassadorial Scholar from our district and the Hamilton Place club.

STILL MORE WORLD ROTARY DAY CELEBRATIONS

Saturday, February 23rd  was the 103rd birthday of Rotary International. All clubs were asked to conduct a service project in celebration of the event and to use the event to enhance the image of their club and Rotary in their communities.

Lamar Outdoor Advertising donated the use of ten billboard spaces. Public Relations Chair Townes Osborn (Knoxville) received a Public Image Grant from RI that paid for the printing of the billboard material and for 30-second announcements that ran on WUOT-FM during February. 

Following are more summaries of what clubs did to celebrate our birthday:

Smithville Provides Dictionaries

Members of the Smithville Club provided 250 dictionaries to the Dekalb County High School Freshman Academy. Club President George Oliver is shown giving the dictionaries to the students. The delivery had to be rescheduled from February 23 due to illness at the school and weather problems. The photo is reprinted from the Smithville Review.

KINGSTON GLOBE CLUB AWARD PRESENTATION

Mayor Presents Award to Club

On March 11, at the Kingston City Council meeting, Mayor Troy Beets presented a Globe Club Award to the Rotary Club of Kingston.  In addition to presenting the award, the mayor read a City of Kingston Proclamation declaring March 11 as "Rotary Club of Kingston Day" in which he urged all citizens to acknowledge the assistance and dedication of the members and how they benefit our communities. From the left in the photo are Bobby Davis, Teresa Ferguson, Club President Bill Mixon, Mayor Beets and Assistant Governor Ken Thoms. Davis and Ferguson are club members and Ferguson is a Councilwoman.

ROTARY FOUNDATION NEWS

Is Your Club a STAR This Year?

Congratulations to the 19 clubs in our district that became STAR Clubs by the end of February!!

The 19 clubs in order of per capita giving so far this year are:
 
1. Sparta - $324.32
2. Chattanooga - $231.50
3. Maryville - $222.90
4. Hamilton Place - $214.00
5. Farragut - $195.85
6. Fairfield Glade - $161.41
7. Tellico Lake - $157.08
8. Pigeon Forge - $152.34
9. Oak Ridge - $124.24
10. West Knoxville - $122.92
11. Smithville - $121.67
12. Grundy County - $121.05
13. Oak Ridge Breakfast - $117.17
14. Rogersville - $115.88
15. Sevierville Sunrise - $115.32
16. Bradley Sunrise - $115.08
17. Cleveland - $104.87
18. Shelbyville Breakfast - $103.77
19. Cookeville Breakfast - $100.42
 
Another seven clubs have contributed more than $80 per member and are within reach of STAR status. They are Tullahoma ($96.23), Lenoir City ($96.15), Kingston ($95.00), Knoxville ($92.52), Crossville ($92.39), Jefferson City ($90.83) and Gatlinburg ($88.27). In order to receive its STAR at the District Awards Luncheon, the Rotary Foundation must have received the funds in time to be accounted for in the March 31 report. I know all clubs will want to be there by the end of the year. Please don't wait!
 
$100 Million Challenge - Plans for 2007-2008

In response to the Gates Foundation's gift of $100M to complete the eradication of polio, the Rotary Foundation has pledged to raise $100M between December 1, 2007 and November 30, 2010. PRIVP and Incoming Trustee John Germ (Chattanooga) chairs this global fund raising effort. Any Rotarian and any Rotary club may participate in this challenge by making a donation to The Rotary Foundation and indicating on the Recognition Form that the contribution be designated to Polio Plus Partners, which will automatically include it in the $100M Challenge.
 
Such donations will be matched $.50:$1 from the Foundation's World Fund. But WAIT!! Your donations can be magnified even more! If a club is a STAR club by the end of June, individual and club donations to Polio Plus Partners will also be matched $.50:$1 from the District Designated Fund. Since the World Fund will match DDF donations at $.50:$1, the result is that a new donation of $1 will result in $2.25 going to the $100M Challenge. At least the first $40K in donations to the Challenge this Rotary year will receive the DDF match. Now, make sure your club is or is going to be a STAR club, then write that check!

HAVE A ROTARY QUESTION?
Is it permitted to display a Rotary emblem or sign at one's place of business?

I received this question today in an e-mail message from a Rotarian in our district. He had asked the question in his club, but had received no answer. In part, my answer was to refer him to the Manual of Procedure, the index of which has many references for the use of the "Rotary marks." Each club president and secretary has a copy. More importantly these days, the entire manual can be downloaded by anyone from the RI web site. I wanted this Rotarian to know what resources are available to him. He doesn't have to depend on an "expert" to tell him what the rules are. 
 
In part, my response was to refer him to a specific section, in which it is stated that Rotarians are not to use the Rotary wheel and marks on their business cards or letterhead and are "discouraged" from displaying the marks on the doors and windows of their places of business. On the other hand, we encourage all Rotarians to wear their Rotary pins regularly, not just to club meetings. So, there is a fine line between letting others know I'm proud of being a Rotarian and using that affiliation for business advantage.

IMPORTANT UPCOMING DATES

March 24: GSE Team from South Korea arrives (Nashville)
March 27: Deadline for conference rate at Music City Sheraton
March 27: Assistant Governors' Institute (Nashville)
March 28-29: Mid-South PETS (Nashville)
March 31: Next registration deadline for Los Angeles Convention
April 5: Certification due for Presidential Citation
April 5: Certification due for Governor's Club of Distinction
April 18-20: Multi-District Conference (Nashville)
April 21: GSE Teams to and from South Korea depart (Nashville)
May 1: Nominations due for District Leadership Academy
May 17: District Assembly (Cookeville)
June 14-19: International Convention (Los Angeles)

WHERE'S GOVERNOR ROBIN THIS WEEK?

Monday - Friday: Spring break for grandchildren

Rotary Shares

Do you have a question about Rotary? If so, please share it with me. It is likely that other Rotarians have the same question. I don't promise to have "the" answer. I do promise you a response.

DG Robin Textor
Rotary International District 6780
www.rotary6780.org