LAST YEAR. WHEN JON BURSAW INSTALLED ME AS YOUR CLUB PRESIDENT, HE
CHARGED ME TO "FOLLOW MY ROTARY DREAM" THE SAME CHARGE THAT THOUSANDS OF
OTHER ROTARY CLUB PRESIDENTS RECEIVED FROM THEIR DISTRICT GOVERNORS
AROUND THE WORLD. I HAD A FAIRLY SIMPLE DREAM----MY DREAM WAS TO EMPOWER
ALL OF YOU TO FOLLOW YOUR ROTARY DREAMS--AND I WANTED TO MOVE THE CLUB
FROM RELYING ON ONE OR TWO MAJOR FUNDRAISERS AND THE AWARDING OF
SCHOLARSHIPS TO A CLUB WHERE ALL FOUR AVENUES OF SERVICE WOULD CONTRIBUTE
TO THE COMMUMTY TO THE BEST OF THEIR ABILITY.
AFTER I HAD GONE TO THE P.E.T.S. CONFERENCE IN MARCH IT BECAME CLEAR
TO ME HOW TO DO THIS----I ONLY HAD TO RELY ON OUR MEMBERS (FOR ANY ROTARY
CLUB IS ONLY AS GOOD AS ITS MEMBERSHIP). BUT THE REAL KEY TO GETTING
EVERYONE INVOLVED WAS IN GETTING ORGANIZED EARLY ON. BY JULY 1 WE HAD OUR
GOALS AND OBJECTIVES ESTABLISHED AND COMMUNICATED TO THE BOARDAND TO THE
MEMBERSHIP. EVERYONE KNEW WHERE WE WERE GOINGAND WHAT WE HAD TO DO TO GET
THERE.
THE BOARD OF DIRECTORS BOUGHT INTO THIS APPROACH WHOLEHEARTEDLY AND ENTHIUSIASTICALLY----PEPPERING ME WITH DREAMS AND OBJECTIVES OF THEIR OWN. SOME OF THE OBJECTIVES WERE EXTREMELY AMBITIOUS WHILE OTHERS WERE LESS SO, BUT YET STILL EXTREMELY IMPORTANT TO THE LIFEBLOOD OF THE CLUB.
FUNDRAISING: BEFORE WE KNEW IT WE WERE OFF TO THE RACES: ON THE FUNDRAISING SIDE, WE HAD OUR FIRST SEPTEMBERFEST CARNIVAL FOR THE BENEFIT OF THE YOUTH OF ANDOVER AND NORTH ANDOVER. THIS WAS A TREMENDOUS EFFORT BY MANY ROTARIANS AND INTERACT KIDS, AND WAS ORGANIZED AND LED BY BILL BUCK. THE EVENT RAISED AN AMAZING $17,000----TIIE SINGLE LARGEST FUND RAISER THE CLUB HAD EVER HAD. SEVERAL WEEKS AGO, WE HAD ANOTHER"FIRST TIME OUT OF TUE BOX" FUNDRALSER---THE REVERSE RAFFLE WHICH TURNED OUT TO BE NOT JUST A GREAT FUNDRALSERS (OVER $9700 RAISED) BUT A GREAT CLUB SERVICE EVENT. IT WAS A GREAT NIGHT OUT!!!
TREASURY/ACCOUNTING: AT THE DISTRICT CONFERENCE THIS SPRING, ONE OF THE GROUP PRESENTERS ASKED WHO AMONG THE 44 CLUBS IN THE DISTRICT HAD A BUDGET. JOHN COLBERT, OUR CLUB TREASURER, RAISED HIS HAND AND ACKNOWLEDGED THAT WE DID. HE THEN WENT ON TO SAY THAT HE COULD TRACK REVENUES AND EXPENDITURES ON AN ACCRUAL BASIS AS WELL AS A CASH BASIS. JOHN, WITH THE HELP OF PAUL BROWN, PUT TOGETHER A BUDGET AND AN ACCRUAL ACCOUNTING SYSTEM FOR OUR CLUB----PROBABLY THE FIRST ONE THE DISTRICT HAS SEEN.
INVESTMENTS: THIS HAS BEEN A BANNER YEAR FOR INVESTMENTS, AS THE CLUB HAS HAD A 29% RATE OF RETURN ON ITS INVESTMENT/LONG TERM ACCOUNT. ADDITIONALLY, JOHN TOGETHER WITH THE SKILLS AND ADVICE OF DAVE DRINON, PUT TOGETHER AN INVESTMENT STRATEGY WHICH HAS HELPED THE CLUB ATTAIN SUCH A GREAT RATE OF RETURN, YET MIMINIZE OUR DOWNSIDE EXPOSURE.
COMMUNITY SERVICE: ON THE COMMUNITY SERVICE SIDE LED BY DAVID SOLLARS, IT WAS AS IF A MIRACLE HAD OCCURRED, COLLECTIONS BASKETS WERE PLACED AT SITES AROUND BOTH TOWNS TO COLLECT BOOKS, TOYS, CLOTHING----BUT ALL RELATED TO A THEME-- BACK TO SCHOOL, THANKSGIVING, THE HOLIDAYS. MOTHERS DAY AND THE LIKE. FOOD PANTRIES WERE VISITED WITH FOODSTUFFS. OVER 1500 BOOKS WERE COLLECTED AND DONATED TO NEEDY ORGANIZATIONS. THE DRIVING FORCE BEHIND THIS EFFORT WAS PRIMARILY THE WORK OF A COUPLE OF OTHER ROTARY DREAMERS--- DIANA AND ALEX KIESEL. WE PARTICIPATED IN THE FEINSTEIN CHALLENGE TO ELIMINATE WORLD HUNGER AND WERE ONE OF 1144 CLUBS TO DO SO IN THE UNITED STATES. AND OF COURSE, WE'LL GET TO THIS IN A MINUTE, COMMUNITY SERVICE WAS RESPONSIBLE FOR BUILDING AND DEVELOPING THE INTERACT CLUB THAT WE ARE NOW SO PROUD OF.
WE PUT TOGETHER A FRIENDSHIP DISPLAY FOR THE DISTRICT CONFERENCE FIRST ANNUAL FRIENDSHIP ROOM AND WON FIRST PLACE FOR BEST DISPLAY.
WITH THE LEADERSHIP AND CARE OF PATTI MULLIN, SUBMITTED A CHILDREN'S OPPORTUNITY GRANT APPLICATION SO THAT DENTAL SERVICES COULD BE PROVIDED TO NEEDY INNER CITY CHILDREN. THERE WERE SO MANY OF THESE SUBMITTED THIS YEAR THAT R.I. HAD TO PUT A MORATORIUM ON GRANTING THE REQUESTS. THIS APPLICATION WILL BE SUBMITTED AGAIN THIS YEAR.
CLUB SERVICE: AT THE SAME TIME THAT THESE ACTIVITIES WERE TAKING PLACE, THE CLUB SERVICE COMMITTEE, ABLY LED BY JOE CASEY, WAS OUT AT THE "KNOW YOUR TOWN FAIR" PARTICIPATING WITH OTHER ORGANIZATIONS IN TOWN IN ORDER THAT OUR CLUB BECOME BETTER KNOWN. THE CLUB SERVICE COMMITTEE ALSO PUT TOGETHER A TERRIFIC HOLIDAY PARTY AT THE LANAM CLUB AND PROVIDED ENTERTAINMENT IN THE FORM OF "AFTER EIGHT" AN ACAPPELLO GROUP LED BY PETER CARUSO II.
VOCATIONAL SERVICE: THE VOCATIONAL SERVICE COMMITTEE, UNDER THE LEADERSHIP OF SUSAN BIG, PUT TOGETHER A RESUME WRITING SKILLS WORKSHOP FOR HIGH SCHOOL JUNIORS AND SENIORS SO THAT THEY COULD IMPROVE THEIR COLLEGE APPLICATIONS. A DIRECT RESULT OF THAT EFFORT WAS THAT ONE OF THE SEMINAR ATTENDEES WAS ABLE TO GET INTO HER FIRST CHOICE OF COLLEGE. IN ADDITION, THE VOCATIONAL SERVICES COMMITTEE WAS BEGINNING THE PROCESS OF PARTNERING WITH THE ANDOVER SERVICE CLUB IN ITS MENTORING PROGRAM AND WORKING WITH NORTH ANDOVER HIGH SCHOOL IN ITS CAREER DAY ACTIVITIES AND PROVIDED SPEAKERS FOR THAT EVENT.
SCHOLARSHIPS AND CAMPERSHIPS: THROUGH THE LEADERSHIP OF JOHN LEEMAN AND SUSAN BIG, WE WILL BE AWARDING AT LEAST 3 SCHOLARHIPS TO DESERVING HIGH SCHOOL SENIORS THIS YEAR AND A BUNCH OF CAMPERSHIPS. THIS IS THE FIRST TIME WE WILL HAVE GIVEN OUT CAMPERSHIPS, AND THE IDEA IS THAT THOSE CHILDREN IN NEED BETWEEN THE AGES OF 5 AND 12 WILL BE ABLE TO SPEND SOME PART OF THEIR SUMMER IN A CAMP SETTING RATHER THAN WANDERING THE STREETS OF ANDOVER OR NORTH ANDOVER.
CITIZENS WHO CARE: ONCE AGAIN, MARK SPENCER IN HIS TIRELESS EFFORTS, HAS PUT TOGETHER A GROUP OF TEN OUTSTANDING CITIZENS OF ANDOVER AND NORTH ANDOVER UNDER THE BANNER OF "CITIZENS WHO CARE" THE DISPLAY OF THESE CITIZENS CAN BE SEEN AT THE MEMORIAL HALL LIBRARY AND WILL BE ROTATED TO 12 DIFFERENT LOCATIONS THROUGHOUT THE COURSE OF THE YEAR.
NEWSLETTER AND WEBSITE: ONE DAY A FEW MONTHS AGO, DAVID LINDSAY CAME UP TO ME AND SAID "MY DREAM IS TO DEVELOP AN ANDOVER ROTARY CLUB WEBSITE". AS PART OF VOCATIONAL SERVICE, HE AND SUSAN BIG AND JAY CURLEY HAD BEEN DISCUSSING THIS FOR SOME WEEKS. I ASKED HIM HOW MUCH IT WOULD COST----AND HE SAID "NOTHING". THE SITE WAS TO BE FREE AND HE WOULD DO THE PROGRAMMING OF THE SITE HIMSELF. HOW CAN YOU REFUSE AN OFFERLIKE THAT? IN ANY EVENT, THE ANDOVER ROTARY CLUB WEBSITE IS UPAND RUNNING AND IS DOING OUR CLUB PROUD IN THE DISTRICT. AND OF COURSE, WE HAVE THE NEWSLETTER WHICH IS NOW BEING SENT VIA E-MAIL TO OVER 50% OF THE CLUB. EVERYWHERE WE GO IN THE DISTRICT, PEOPLE TALK ABOUT OUR NEWSLETTER AND IT IS THROUGH THE EFFORTS OF JOAN JOHNSON AND DAVID LINDSAY THAT IT HAS BEEN SO SUCCESSFUL. THEY HAVE SET A HIGH STANDARD AND HAVE RAISED THE BAR IN NEWSLETTER WRITING.
INTERACT: AND OF COURSE, WE HAD INTERACT LED IN THE BEGINNING BY DAVID SOLLARS BUT TAKEN OVER BY CHARLENE RICCI. ITS HARD TO EVEN ENUMERATE ALL THAT THE INTERACT KIDS WERE ABLE TO ACCOMPLISH, BUT HERE IS JUST A PARTIAL LIST:
INTERNATIONAL: ON THE INTERNATIONAL SIDE, UNDER THE LEADERSHIP OF DONNA-LEE RUBIN, WE CONTINUED THE PROGRAMS THATSHE HAD INITIATED IN THE PHILLIPINES---WE SUPPLIED CLOTH SO THAT UNIFORMS COULD BE MADE FOR 300 SCHOOL CHILDREN WHO OTHERWISE WOULD NOT HAVE BEEN ABLE TO AFFORD THEM; THREE SCHOLARSHIPS WERE PROVIDED SO THAT WORTHY HIGH SCHOOL STUDENTS COULD GO ON TO ATTEND COLLEGE; FUNDS WERE DONATED TO EQUIP A NEONATAL UNIT SO THAT NEWBORN CHILDREN COULD BE BETTER TAKEN CARE OF IN THEIR FIRST MOMENTS OF LIFE.
ROTARY FOUNDATION: AGAIN, WITH THE ABLE ASSISTANCE AND LEADERSHIP OF DONNA LEE RUBIN AND DIANA KIESEL. OUR PRESENCE IN THE ROTARY INTERNATIONAL FRONT BALLOONED. DURING THE YEAR WE WILL HAVE GIVEN OUT 4 PAUL HARRIS FELLOWS; OBTAINED 24 NEW SUSTAINING MEMBERS TO THE FOUNDATION A ONE THOUSAND DOLLAR COMMITMENT TO SUPPORT THE ROTARY FOUNDATION. OBTAINED 10 NEW BENEFACTORS TO THE ROTARY FOUNDATION---ROTARIANS WHO HAVE PLEDGED AT LEAST $1000 DOLLARS TO THE FOUNDATION EITHER THROUGH THEIR WILLS, TRUSTS. OR LIFE INSURANCE.
GROUP STUDY EXCHANGE: WE HOSTED A GROUP STUDY EXCHANGE TEAM FROM SCOTLAND CONSISTING OF 5 TEAM MEMBERS. INCLUDED IN THE HOSTING WAS A TOUR OF POINTS OF INTEREST IN ANDOVER AND THE MERRIMACK VALLEY COORDINATED BY BILL BUCK, JOHN COLBERT AND JIM SUTTON.
ON THE FLIP SIDE, DONNA LEE AND SUSAN BIG ORGANIZED A BREAKFAST MEETING SO THAT OUR CLUB COULD LEARN WHAT THE DISTRICT GSE TEAM'S EXPERIENCE WAS IN SCOTLAND.
AMBASSADORIAL SCHOLAR: WE SPONSORED AND NOMINATED A LOCAL STUDENT FOR AN AMBASSADORIAL SCHOLARHIP SO THAT HE COULD PURSUE HIS DREAMS. ALTHOUGH HE DID NOT OBTAIN THE SCHOLARHIP, HE DID MAKE THE FINALS AND WAS CONSIDERED TO BE A BACKUP IF ONE OF THOSE SELECTED HAD TO DROP OUT OR OTHERWISE COULD NOT ATTEND.
OTHER INTERNATIONAL: HELD A RAFFLE SO THAT ANOTHER ROTARY DREAMER COULD FULFILL HIS DREAM OF HELPING DISFIGURED CHILDREN IN COLUMBIA. OUR RAFFLE HELPED TO PROVIDE THE TRANSPORTATION COSTS OF ANY OPERATING ROOM NURSE FOR DR. CHATSON'S TEAM.
WORLD UNDERSTANDING AND PEACE DINNER: 23 ROTARIANS ATTENDED THE WORLD UNDERSTANDING AND PEACE DINNER AT THE BURLINGTON MARRIOTT.
DISTRICT ASSEMBLY: THIS SPRING, 17 ROTARIANS ATTENDED THEDISTRICT ASSEMBLY AT THE ROLLING GREEN. WE SUPPLIED 4 SERGEANTS AT ARMS FOR THE DISTRICT FOR THAT EVENT. ALL ROTARIANS WHO ATTENDED WENT TO ROTARY UNIVERSITY.
PUBLIC RELATIONS: FINALLY, THROUGH THE EFFORTS OF JIM SUTTON WE WERE ABLE TO GET SOME RECOGNITION IN THE LOCAL PRESS FOR ALL THAT WE HAD BEEN DOING AS A CLUB THIS YEAR.
NEW ADDITIONS AT DISTRICT LEVEL: IN ADDITION TO ALL OF THE ABOVE, THE
CLUB IS VERY PROUD TO HAVE THREE OF ITS MEMBERS WORKING AT THE DISTRICT
LEVEL OVER THE NEXT YEAR OR THREE: PAUL BROWN CONTINUES ON AS DISTRICT
TREASURER. PETER CARUSO WILL BE THE ASSISTANT DISTRICT GOVERNOR AND WILL
HELP GOVERNOR CHRIS FRASER IMPLEMENT THE DISTRICT LEADERSHIP PLAN; AND
DONNA LEE RUBIN WILL BE OUR DISTRICT GOVERNOR IN THE YEAR 2001-2002.
WHEW. WHY DON'T WE GIVE OURSELVES A ROUND OF
APPLAUSE FOR A HELL OF A YEAR!!!!!
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