ROTARY DISTRICT 5300 NEWS
HIGHLIGHTING THE WORLD OF ROTARY, DISTRICT ACTIVITIES, CLUB EVENTS, AND THE PEOPLE THAT
MAKE IT ALL HAPPEN
LEE MOTHERSHEAD, DISTRICT GOVERNOR
Rotarians in 5300 ended April with golf and fun in the Palm Springs sunshine, then opened May with a gala salute to our district governor, Lee Mothershead, and to ourselves.
The 1999 District Conference, next-to-last of the millennium, was a smashing success – hope you were there! Along with all the festivities, sports, and fellowship was the proud recognition of so many good accomplishments by our clubs. Of course, it’s the clubs that give the service, not districts. Our annual conferences celebrate successes in all our communities. This year, the clubs were responsible for a splendid collection of 121 QUALITY ROTARY PROJECTS!
So many Quality Projects were submitted, District Governor Lee ran out of banners. The 90 banners were stretched out to cover all clubs, though some of the higher-achieving clubs received fewer banners than programs. But all were winners!
In alphabetical order, not in any order of accomplishment, here’s the list for 1998-1999. Look through the list, and if some projects seem of interest for your own community, get in touch with the sponsoring club for more details. As Governor Lee has been preaching all year, there’s no need to reinvent the wheel – Rotary Clubs should share the procedures of projects, so service can stretch to reach other areas. Write, phone, fax, e-mail, whatever you wish, but find out which of these programs might benefit your city.
QUALITY ROTARY PROGRAMS FOR 1998-1999
ALHAMBRA - Club Teams, Reverse Selection Drawing, Silent Auction,Seniors and Kids Holiday Party
ALTADENA - Membership Drive, Adopt-A-School, Bicycle Safety, Flag Program, Junior Achievement, RYLA Activities, Veteran’s Day Tree, Tijuana Orphans to Ball Game, Foundation Giving, International Junior Achievement, PCC Student Awards, 4-Way Test, Interact, Middle School Awards, Vocational Visits, Washington School, Career Day
ARCADIA - Camp Trask Revisited, Club Survey, Love Boat – The Next Generation, Monday Night Madness, Sports Night, Valentine’s Sweetheart Winemaker’s Dinner, Operation Santa Claus, Teacher of the Month
BOULDER CITY - Board of Directors’ Meeting, Club Bulletins, Fundraising Cruise, Honorary Rotarians, Non-Normal Meeting Place,Press Exposure, Separating Funds, Teacher Grants, Salvation Army Angel Tree, Senior Center, Tutoring of At-Risk Children, Pkune (India) Blood Bank, Craft Talks
DIAMOND BAR - Day at the Races, Holiday Party, Blood Drive, Christmas Angel Tree, Christmas Baskets, Christmas Adopt-a-Family, Concerts in the Park, RYLA 1999, Paul Harris Fellows, Romanian Children’s Relief
DUARTE - Weekly Program Schedule, Nigerian Water Well, Literacy and Numeracy Tutorial
GLENDORA - Oscar Party
INDUSTRY HILLS - Socialize with Service, Turkey Basket Bonanza
LAS VEGAS SOUTHWEST - Honorariums, Volunteers at Sporting Events
LA VERNE - Fruit Basket Sale and Food Box Giveaway
MONROVIA - Recognizing Past Presidents and Former Members
MONTEBELLO - Vocational Education Scholarships
ONTARIO - Annual Fish Fry, Hanger Party, Christmas Bell Ringing, Children’s Fund, Christmas Tree Delivery, Menorahs, Dinner and Play, School Supplies to Mexicali, Student Government Day, Student Vocational Day, Students of the Month
PASADENA SUNRISE - Christmas Party, Easter Egg Hunt, Student Recognition Dinner, RYLA, Meals for Homeless, 4-Way Speech Contest, Literacy, Teacher Mini-Grants
RANCHO CUCAMONGA SUNRIZE - Progressive Dinner, Target Gift Spree, City Employees Recognition, Rotary Scholar Sponsorship
SAN MARINO - Career Connection, Student of the Month (SMHS), Student of the Year (Southwestern Academy), 100% Paul Harris Foundation Sustaining Members
SIERRA MADRE - Community Based Interact, Rotary Trivia Education
SOUTH EL MONTE - Silent Auction and Mixer
VICTORVILLE - Golf Tournament, Computerized Club, Past President’s Dinner, Mavericks’ Night, Pre-Induction Orientation, Off-Site Meetings, River Trip, Web Site, Bone Marrow, GSE Team, Interact at Excelsior, Encinitas Orphanage Support, International Day, Benny Strong Music Awards, Read to Me, STAR Awards, Mini Grants
WALNUT VALLEY - Holiday Party, Youth Sport Camp and Golf Tournament, Development of Website, Recognition of Non-Rotarians
WEST COVINA - Hollywood Celebrity Wedding Fund Raiser, Thanksgiving Baskets, Hands Across the Border, Red Ribbon Rally
WEST COVINA SUNRISE - Golf Tournament, Holiday Baskets, July 4th Ice Cream Vending, Red Ribbon Rally, Rotary Read
DUARTE applied for, and was awarded, a SIGNIFICANT ACHIEVEMENT AWARD from Rotary International’s President Lacy for Duarte’s efforts in Community Service. Hearty congratulations, Duarte Rotarians!
ROTARIAN OF THE YEAR AWARDS Rotarians in general are exceptional people, donating an extraordinary amount of time, money, and energy to the world community. But it’s great to honor some special Rotarians who put just a bit more into a year than usual. Not every club has a Rotarian of the Year each year. It’s a hard-earned honor. The following were recognized at the district conference, with our appreciation for their many efforts:Alhambra - Christine Montan
Altadena - Dewey Merrill
Arcadia - Phyllis Tomkins
Boulder City - Ann McLean
El Monte - David Sandell
Las Vegas Southwest - Fred Fukumoto
Montebello - Barbara Risher-Welch
Monterey Park - Ron Henrick
Pasadena - Edwin (Ed) Hearst
Pasadena - Greg Jones
Sierra Madre - Dr. Deborah Smith
South El Monte - Bill Burlingham
Walnut Valley - Al Flores
Congratulations to each of these Rotary leaders for their successes in helping us all "Follow our Rotary Dream" with District Governor Lee Mothershead this year.
WANT RECOGNITION NEXT YEAR?
Next year’s awards chairs, take a lesson from this year. Be cognizant of deadlines, forms, signatures – and the procedures. We had a few problems – we don’t want to embarrass any club, but read these stories and don’t make the same mistakes. One club put together their board meeting agenda, various notes, and programs from several years back - then mailed everything to Rotary International in Evanston. Everything came back late in April, with a puzzled note from our RI service person, Frank Stryczek. These are district awards, and RI has no interest in them. Another club sent the Presidential Citation without having it signed by the District Governor, in spite of the fact it clearly says "mandatory" to have that signature. This club included the Quality Rotary Program forms in its mailing to Evanston.
More than a third of the awards were submitted after the deadline. So, awards chairs – educate yourself as soon as you get the job, and submit the forms to the right office before the deadlines!
A NOTE REGARDING PRESIDENTIAL CITATIONS: There must have been an extraordinary number of these citations submitted to Rotary International this year. As of the end of April, only two from our District have been returned by RI. As soon as the other citations come to the District, Governor Lee will get them to the proper clubs.
LET’S GO FISHING – DISTRICT 5300’s DEEP-SEA TRIP
Leave Tuesday night, September 21st - return Thursday evening, September 23rd - on the INDIAN with 19 other Rotarians on the District’s special DEEP SEA FISHING TRIP. The boat is special, with comfortable cabins, an entertainment center, 15 knot cruising speed, great food, and the latest electronics to catch in Mexican waters. The price is very special also: $240 includes boat, bunk, and all meals. Only problem: space is limited to 20, and it’s ‘first pay, first go!’ Dr. Dan Young is putting it all together for Rotarian fishermen. Call him at (909) 981-2560, fax (909) 981-2560, or e-mail DrDanY@aol.com - but hurry, as checks must be in by May 10.GOVERNOR’S MESSAGE
The District Conference is over, but we still have two months to go! When the Alhambra club had its 75th Anniversary Dinner last month, I sat with RI’s incoming director Sam Greene. He shared with me his awareness that District 5300 is an unusually good district. I’ve heard from other sources in Rotary that RI looks to the seven Southern California/Southern Nevada Districts for innovation and excellence. From what I’ve seen, the only reason we don’t have even more Quality Rotary Programs is that clubs consider much they do to be too mundane and ordinary to merit special notice. What’s USUAL for 5300 is UNUSUAL for many districts. What’s unusual here is innovative and exciting by much of the Rotary world. PETS, our training program for incoming club presidents, started here and is now throughout the Rotary world. Mini Grants and Santa Clothes began here. Our youth leadership program, RYLA, is considered by many to be the finest in the world. Three observers came to Idyllwild this March because they’d heard our RYLA was best, and flew in to see it. The sheer volume of matching grants and cooperative work done in this District this year is amazing. Other governors are astounded to learn how much our SHARE funds amount to. These funds, if you don’t remember from my speech, are determined by club support to the Rotary Foundation three years earlier. We get 60% of the amount given to use for matching grants and other international projects. Other districts feel good about a couple of matching grant projects. We funded over $50,000 worth this year, including a school bus, a fire engine, an ambulance, furniture for schools, wearables, a well in Africa, sewing machines for India, and the list goes on. All this is in addition to the amazing amount of energy and funding our clubs focus on our own communities.But we still have two months to go! This means your own Rotary Foundation donations need to go to RI soon to be counted for our SHARE in 2001-2002. I did not hold a district fund raiser this year, as many Rotarians told me they felt they were ‘double dipped’ by the district. I agree. Districts are not fund-raising entities, and don’t belong in the fund-raising business. A district may help smaller clubs to put on a funding drive, as I did with the Young Americans.
So, please rev up your Foundation fundraising for a final push. As of February, the last accounting, we were considerably behind our goal of $400,000. Remember, just 35 cents a day does it! Also remember, please, the need never goes away. Even though you may have achieved your own Paul Harris Fellowship, think about honoring someone else in your family with a pin and certificate. When the PHF program started, the thousand dollars would buy a mid-size car. Today, $1000 just about covers a radiator for some cars. We know the value of the Rotary Foundation, and the PolioPlus goal is close. Do help!
Finish up on your projects. With red tape being what it is, projects take a bit longer than they used to, so be innovative! Have a club assembly with strategic planning for two- and three-year projects. Get your president-elect and the elect-elect to buy in on the project. This doesn’t have to be a commitment of your treasury for the next five years, but it might be a specified amount agreed to by the club as a whole, with a little wiggle room built in to allow for changing prices. Remember, to get projects going in third-world countries takes a couple of years.
You might also want to plan something long-term for your own community. One club in our district would love to build a shelter for abused women and children. This is a long-term project where no international matching grants are available, but the project might bring a commitment from all members. Thanks in large part to Arcadia Rotary, the Boy Scout camp in Trask Canyon has wonderful improvements. Their wonderful new kitchen and auditorium were budgeted and carried out over many years. Don’t be afraid to commit to more than a year, so long as your project has the support of the entire club.
Lee Mothershead
NOTE A NEW MEETING LOCATION for Covina Sunrise: Tuesdays, 7:45 am at Casa Moreno, 118 North Citrus, right in downtown Covina ... VICTORVILLE’S 7th MEMORIAL GOLF TOURNAMENT will be Monday, June 14, 1999, at Spring Valley Lake Country Club. Proceeds benefit local academic grants. The $75 cost includes green fees, cart, contests, trophies, pictures, and lunch.