November is Rotary Foundation month. Now is a great time to make a donation or set up monthly Rotary Direct payments. There are several funds that you can donate to and which one you choose is up to you.

A portion of the Annual Fund donations come back in three years to the District for grants and PolioPlus donations go toward our eradication efforts. You can also give to Peace Centers and Disaster Funds. You can read more about the Rotary Foundation in the article below.

A message from Trustee Chair Ian H.S. Riseley

As we celebrate The Rotary Foundation, think of each Foundation project as a single tree that we plant. With each sapling of hope, health, and peace we plant through the Foundation, we make an investment in the future that will one day grow into something even greater.

Charity Navigator has given The Rotary Foundation its highest ranking for more than a decade. Why? Our overhead expense level is much lower than most similar organizations and, not only are we efficient stewards, but Rotary’s requirement of a community-needs assessment for global grants helps ensure the sustainability of our projects over the long term. And the Foundation is a charity you can trust because it is run by your fellow Rotarians.

Sadly, only about 38 percent of members actively support our own organization’s great charity. We can and should do better.

Each club is challenged to make a giving plan for our Rotary Foundation this year.

Imagine our impact — Rotary’s great forest of hope and peace will flourish! Please give today. Below is the link for online giving.

Growing Rotary in Southeastern Pennsylvania is fundamental to our success as an organization. We grow by inviting others into our clubs and by creating new clubs that appeal to specific communities or interests. We can also grow Rotary by engaging in meaningful service projects and then sharing our stories and accomplishments with others. In addition to helping people, service projects improve Rotary's public image, which can increase membership. Having more members means there are more volunteers to do more service and help more people. See how it's all interrelated?

With this in mind, the Governor's Line has resolved to create a new club in the District focused primarily on veterans and veterans' issues. They are asking Rotarians to spread the word and help veterans join this new club.

Between now and March, the District will be actively promoting and recruiting. Informational meetings will start in January so prospective Rotarians can talk about ways to assist veterans in our part of Pennsylvania. For more information, email parotaryvets@gmail.com.

After a pandemic-related break, District 7450 will be back to hosting the Rotary Youth Leadership Awards (RYLA) Conference in 2023! The event for high schoolers will take place February 3-5, 2023, at the Freedoms Foundation in historic Valley Forge, PA. Chantal Eadeh of the Upper Main Line Rotary will be chairing the event with Stacey Ballard and Brian Casey. The team is excited to announce leadership-focused programming including a powerhouse of speakers and program topics.

Friday Night
The weekend will kick off with the high-energy Rise Against Hunger project. It's a wonderful combination of team building, cheering, and best-friend making, all while wearing fashionable red hairnets! Oh, and the team will be assembling 10,000 meals!

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This year the District Nominating Committee, chaired by PDG Bonnie Korengel, will be selecting Rotarians for service positions at the District and International level.

An e-mail went out on November 14th calling for candidates for Governor of District 7450 for 2025-2026. The call for candidates will be open until January 13, 2023 and interviews will likely be scheduled for the end of January. This is an extremely important position. If you want to help influence the future of our District, please consider volunteering.

Emails will go out in January calling for candidates for the District 7450 Corporate Board and for Council of Legislation Representative. The district has three Members-At-Large that serve for three-year terms. This year's selection will be for the Member-At-Large for Super Area 3 that covers Areas 7, 8, and 9. The Council of Legislation Representative also has a three-year term. That position is generally filled by someone who has already served a full term as a District Governor.

For more information, contact PDG Bonnie Korengel.

Have you selected your Club President for the 2023-24 Rotary year? If not, please do so soon. Once you've selected next year's Club President, don't forget to enter them into DACdb!

It's almost time to register for MAPETS (Mid-Atlantic President-Elect Training Seminar) scheduled for February 23-25, 2023. DGE Renee is looking forward to working together to make it a valuable and fun event that will prepare Rotarians to lead in 2023-24!

We'd like to extend a warm welcome to all our new members who joined us in our District this past month.

Julia Alters Paoli-Malvern-Berwyn

Patricia Banks-Cabral West Chester

Danilo Carrera Lower Main Line

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By Paul Quintavalla

It is true that most businesses are owned by men. But the number of women entrepreneurs is rising. Here are a few stories of Rotary women who took different paths to growing their own businesses. What did they have in common? They took risks, worked hard and believed in themselves.

This issue profiles three successful women entrepreneurs in District 7450: Debi Friedmann, West Chester Passport; Andrea Fanfaire, Ardmore Rotary; and Tammy Duering, Longwood Rotary.

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