PRESIDENTIAL THOUGHTS
 
Greetings Rotary Passport Club Member!
 
RECAP OF MEMBERSHIP MIXER ON MONDAY – What a fabulous meeting we had this past Monday, hosted by the Rotary Club of Fair Oaks.  Over 110 people were in attendance and our group of 46 meshed well with their welcoming membership.
 
The night featured things typical of Rotary Club meetings (Pledge of Allegiance, Thought of the Day, Happy Bucks, Fines, Announcements, etc), including the induction of 12 new Rotary Passport Members.
 
MEMBER                   CLASSIFICATION                 SPONSOR
Eddie Alvarado            Public Utilities                        Connie Correia
Andrew Avalos            Real Estate/Insurance             Ann Wittich
Dwight Chambers        Entrepreneur                           JoAnne Tanner
Gregory Dixon            Automotive Management        Janice Gage
Michael Dockery         Travel                                      Mike Reinero
Darrin Guttman            Nonprofit Fundraising            Mike Reinero
Jamee Horning             Nonprofit Executive               Christie Harrison
David Kenitzer             Banking Technology              Mike Reinero
Stephanie Mearse         Wealth Management              Marlow Simonetto
Nancy Milton                Mediation                              Bill Wittich
James Simmons            Retired Engineer                    Ed Trujillo
David Sobon                 Entrepreneur                          Dwight Chambers
 
We will also be installed four new officers:
David Kenitzer – Public Image Director
Christie Harrison – Club Administration Director
Dwight Chambers – President-Elect
JoAnne Tanner – Vice President (in addition to her current Service Director position, JoAnne will be serving as president in the 2017-2018 Rotary Year)
 
If you missed the meeting, you also missed a fantastic speech (pre-recorded at the 2015 Rotary International Conference in Sao Paulo, Brazil) by former Costa Rican president, Oscar Arias.  Mr. Arias spoke about convincing his country to invest in education and infrastructure instead of war and defense, creating significant turn around for a country once stricken with poverty and illiteracy.
 
Big thanks go to Joe Schiemer, Ray Ward and current Fair Oaks Club President, Pete Schroeder and all the Fair Oaks members and kitchen crew for making us feel welcome!
 
PASSPORT CLUB WINS POLIO PLUS CHALLENGE! – The Fair Oaks Club challenged us to a Polio Plus Contribution contest.  Although their members came up with $500 in contributions to fight polio, the Passport Club surpassed that number by more than two times, giving $1,038 to the cause and retaining bragging rights (at least until next year). Not bad for a new club facing off against a club that is currently #2 in the District in overall Polio Plus contributions with over $2,200.
 
CRAB FEED SEASON IN ROTARY – One of the most popular ways for Rotary Clubs to raise money in District 5180 is by having a Crab Feed.  Although this year may be challenging with much of the crab “crop” not “ready for prime time”, Clubs are still going to give it a go.  The Rotary Club of Fair Oaks will host their Annual Crab Feed on February 20, 2016.  You can find tickets by searching their respective websites.  You can also find opportunities to help them put on the event and serve by looking at our Upcoming Events Calendar.
 
SERVICE PROJECTS – See The Upcoming Events Calendar – Our Service Director, JoAnne Tanner, has tirelessly filled our Upcoming Events Calendar with every event she can lay her hands on.  If you are feeling that need to reach out and help a local Rotary club with an upcoming service project, check it out! 
 
TURN IN – Service Reports for January (or the Year to Date) – Please continue to turn in these reports as soon as you have hours.  I am extremely proud of our club, having over a quarter of its members already at their 40 hours for the year.
 
That’s all for now. Enjoy the rest of your week!
 
Yours in Rotary,
 
President Mike