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District 6900 News for March, 2020
 In January, DG Jim joined the Rotary Club of Vinings Cumberland as they presented $84,000 in grants to 17 local non-profits involved in helping children. The money was raised in their Vinings Downhill Race for Kids. |
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From Our District Governor
By Jim Squire During the first half of this Rotary year, First Lady Donna and I had an opportunity to visit all of your clubs. We were able to observe and enjoy the uniqueness of each club - from your personalities to your plans for fundraising, connecting with the community and having fun. In 2020, we have had the privilege of coming back to your clubs - often to help you celebrate your history, your fundraising successes, and the projects and contributions you are making to do good in the community and world.
This spring, we all have some special opportunities to celebrate. [more] |
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You're Invited!
By Anne Glenn Join Georgia Rotary Districts 6900, 6910 and 6920 in welcoming Rotary First Lady Gay Maloney and RI President Mark Maloney to Georgia on April 14, 2020. We will host a gala at Agnes Scott College, the First Lady's alma mater - in all of the splendor of spring. The event celebrates The Rotary Foundation and Agnes Scott College for the work both institutions have done to make a difference in the world. The evening includes a cocktail reception and dinner with Gay and Mark Maloney, and is open to any Georgia Rotarian. [more] |
 Your District 6900 Leadership Team - including your 2020-21 incoming Club Presidents and Assistant Governors, joined DGE Kirk Driskell to celebrate Leap Day at the annual Peach State PETS training seminar in Atlanta. Now we'd like you to join us in Columbus for our District Training Assembly on March 21 |
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District Training
By Kirk Driskell To ensure each Club has the proper tools to "DARE TO BE BETTER" in 2020-21, we invite all Club Membership Chairs, Foundation Chairs, Public Image Chairs, Club Secretaries, Club Treasurers, Club Officers and Directors – and interested club members - to register for the District 6900 Training Assembly at the Columbus Ironworks, located at 801 Front Avenue, Columbus, GA 31901 on Saturday, March 21. We will have meaningful and focused training for all who attend from each club. Registration is open to all Rotarians within the district. We will have breakfast at 8 am. The registration fee is $35 per person. The Assembly will begin at 9:00 am and end about 12:30 pm.
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District Conference 2020
By Blake McBurney District Governor Jim Squire invites Rotarians and guests to attend the 2020 Rotary District 6900 Conference on beautiful Jekyll Island, Georgia. There are many exciting programs and activities planned for the weekend. General Sessions and the House of Friendship will be held at the Jekyll Island Convention Center - and in addition to celebrating all our good work for this Rotary year, we'll be taking a look back at our major accomplishments for the decade!
So plan to attend the 2020 Rotary District 6900 Conference to engage and be inspired as you enjoy good food and connecting with your fellow Rotarians. (Note: We are full steam ahead but monitoring the situation related to Coronavirus.) [more] |
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Interact News
By Barb Henigin We look forward to welcoming about 100 leaders of our District's many Interact clubs to this year's Interact Leadership Conference on Saturday, March 28 from 9:30 am to 3:30 pm at Camp Viola in LaGrange, Georgia. Clubs have been invited to bring up to 4 members and the March 7 sign-up deadline is fast approaching. Adult leaders can register their students at https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/SFHW9XY [more] |
 Newly approved Global Grant Scholar Basil “Alex” McIntosh, sponsored by the Rotary Club of Buckhead, will pursue a Masters in Public Health at the Imperial College of London. |
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The Rotary Foundation
By Cheryl Greenway My how time flies. We are already through the first eight months of our current Rotary year. Now is the time to review where we are to make sure we are on track for our goals.
District Grants
Every club has received and cashed their district grant check. By this time your project should be complete or close to it. Have you entered your receipts and finalized your grant report? If you are handling grants for your club, log into our District Website today and begin working on or wrapping up your report. To be eligible for a 2020-2021 district grant, the spending report for the 2019-2020 district grant must be completed and accepted by the District by March 31, 2020. [more] |
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From Our Global Grant Scholar
By Kathy Brandt KING'S COLLEGE LONDON CRISIS SIMULATION & MIGRATION
I participated in the two-day King's College London (KCL) Crisis Simulation event which brought together students from universities all over the U.K., and countries all over the world. During the event, I was a delegate representing Canada, playing the role of General … [more] |
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Chaplain's Corner
By Mark Barbour Ready or not…Sunday, March 8, 2020, will mess with your mind, body, and soul. Yep. It’s that time of year again! Time for “Daylight Savings Time!” And, as most of us know, “Daylight Savings Time” is failing victim to the zeal of the “paralysis of analysis.” Is “Daylight Savings Time” beneficial? Good question. So in the same zealous analytical zestfulness shall we apply the ‘celebrated’ touted “benefits” of “Daylight Savings Time” to our living life as Rotarians. Shall we? Let’s!
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 Lynn Clarke presents an incentive check to President Sandra Morris of the Carrollton Rotary Club with our student Caroline Gransbo |
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GRSP Update
By Lynn Clarke As GRSP gets closer to its 75th
year anniversary, we stop to think about our program and what makes it
great. We’ve said that host families are the heart of our program, but
the trustees are the brains and, like many host families, have the pulse of our GRSP
students. This month, read about the hard work and commitment of your District 6900 GRSP trustees, help us celebrate the support of 16 clubs receiving rebate checks in recognition of their support of the GRSP Endowment, and learn more about what the $7 per Rotarian cost to support the GRSP office covers and how it will be collected in 2020-21. [more] |
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From a GRSP Alumnus
By Lynn Clarke Four words to summarize my experience? Knowledge, experience and line dance.
The day I left Sweden l ordered at a cute little sushi bar during my layover at Heathrow airport. The sushi chef looked at me and said: "You look tired. Where are you going?". "Georgia" I replied. He looked at me and smiled. "Vacation in South of Europe! What a nice little trip!' If he only knew. That feeling of a short two-week vacation has very little to do with that feeling of 42 weeks abroad. I have been through the best feelings of euphoria when meeting the coolest host family, or seeing the amazing mountain tops of north Georgia or getting to know the wonderful Rotarians of Americus - but also the worst feelings of leaving people behind and having to give space to this new lifestyle as a traveler.
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Membership
By Dave Schwickerath How does a Rotary Club of 35-40 members grow to a point where it led membership efforts in the 2018-19 Rotary Year and expects to end this year with a net growth of +25? Rotary Club of North Cobb President Dave Schwickerath shares the club's strategy for membership development and retention. [more] |
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Club News
By Clark Savage On Saturday, February 8 at 7:30 am, when we started setting up the Rotary Club of Alpharetta’s second Annual Polar Bear Plunge, the air was cold and dry. At 9:00 am, the first tiny snowflakes began tumbling past my face. The weather forecast that morning called for a light dusting in the North Georgia mountains without accumulation. After 30 years in Atlanta, I’ve learned that a light dusting is forecaster code for a snow apocalypse or at least blizzard conditions.
By 10:00 am, with over 30 Jumpers ready to take the plunge for charity, we had over two inches of snow with more fat, moist flakes falling. What proceeded to unfold was a Polar Bear Plunge of epic dimensions. Notable Jumpers included Alpharetta Mayor Jim Gilvin, District 6900 Governor-Elect Kirk Driskell, Club President Will Daniel, and Alpharetta’s favorite K9 Team, Sargent Mark Tappan and Mattis.
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Rotary Youth Exchange
By Mike Parks For the second year in a row, our District 6900 Rotary Youth Exchange scholarship program team has been recognized for operational excellence by the Rotary North American Youth Exchange Network (NAYEN). There are more than 250 Rotary Youth Exchange certified districts in North America. Only a handful of those disricts are recognized each year for being the best of the best. The annual Rotary NAYEN Achievement Awards recognize those districts whose programs distinguish themselves by meeting or exceeding all Rotary International, US Department of State, and NAYEN requirements for student safety and program excellence in youth exchange. [more] |
 Teri Taylor Hamrick, Judith Bennett, Aileen Conteh, Reda Rowell, Karen Sullivan, and Michelle Hamilton |
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Club News
By Ron Swofford In February, members of the Rotary Club of Lake Spivey/Clayton County and friends wait at the Atlanta International Airport to board their flight to India where they will join with members of the Rotary Club of Chennai for a mutual celebration of the two clubs participation in Rotary International for the past 60 years. Rotary International … [more] |
 Marion Lessington, Kyra Solomon and Necole Gibbs, new Atlanta West End Rotarians and financial specialists |
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Club News
By Judith Fuller The
Rotary Club of Atlanta West End put together an exciting new program with the
Interact Club at Booker T. Washington High School. Seeing the need for
financial literacy, Rotarian CJ Stewart conceived of a financial literacy
event for the teachers, parents and students of Washington High and the
surrounding community. Then CJ tapped some of the club’s newest members in financial services profession who have a desire to help their
community by sharing their real-world knowledge and expertise.
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Club News
By Clay Neely At a recent meeting of the Rotary Club of Newnan, Princeton Williams, senior outreach program manager for the Federal Reserve Bank of Atlanta gave the group insights into how the Federal Reserve works and answered a number of member questions. During the meeting, Vern Wilburn, a civil engineer with Maldino and Wilburn, was also inducted as the club … [more] |
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Club News
By Dale Covington Marietta Rotary President Chris Bethel asked President-Elect Mary Ansley
Southerland to organize the club's Valentine's Day social . Mary
Ansley’s forté is doing events. Tapping into the theme “Spreading More Love,”
she also roped in members of the Rotary Clubs of
North Cobb and South Cobb also the Kiwanis Club of Marietta for a huge
Valentine’s gala and dance on Tuesday, February 11 at the Marietta
Educational Garden Center. There was live music by Melanie Dobbins and the Jazz
Jones Legacy. Folks raved over the good will present in this diverse fellowship
of Cobb County’s service-minded leaders.
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Club News
By Ross Henderson Vinings Cumberland Past President Ross Henderson participated in the Reading Across America day on Friday February 28 by reading to a fifth grade class and the first grade class shown here at an elementary school in the Vinings, Georgia area. Other Vinings Cumberland Rotarians who read to students were Rotarian President Donna … [more] |
 DeKalb County Sheriff Melody Maddox, Arabia Mountain High students Solomon Gaiters, Lauryn Strong, Kylie Jones; Grayson High student Moses Craine; Kalaeya Redding of Arabia Mountain; and Janiah Richardson of Connections Academy |
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Club News
By Ceasar Gaiters The Community Interact Club of South DeKalb has earned the Rotary International’s Platinum Award for community service and leadership, the highest citation an Interact Club can receive. The 12-member student club is the first in the Southeast region—from Philadelphia to the Caribbean Islands—to receive the Platinum Award. There are over 500 Interact clubs in Zone 33/34 (Southeast region).
“We worked really hard to stay on task and we are very proud of the work we put in,” said Solomon Gaiters, a senior at DeKalb County’s Arabia Mountain High School who helped grow the club from six members to 11.
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