We are emerging from a long winter into spring at last. Spring always makes me think of new beginnings. So it seems appropriate that April is Maternal and Child Health Month on the Rotary calendar. This is such an important area of focus for us as Rotarians. We are so blessed to have the resources we have to obtain good healthcare for mothers and children. There are so many areas in our world where this is not the case. When we give to The Rotary Foundation, we are helping to fund projects around this important cause. Please consider making your annual donation to the Foundation soon if you haven’t yet done so.
I had the pleasure this month of visiting the Sauk Valley Rotoract Club where we had a great discussion about what being a good leader means. I also had the honor of installing the new officers at the newly formed Rockford Rotoract Club at the University of Illinois College of Medicine. They are a community-based Rotoract club. It is very exciting to meet these young people and know that the future of Rotary looks bright in their hands. I have also been able to attend a handful of Interact Clubs and am even more encouraged about our future seeing the work these young people are doing.
The District Conference is fast approaching and our team is excited about what we have to offer. This is a reminder to book your room at the De Soto House in Galena if you haven’t already. There is also a block of rooms at the Country Inn and Suites in Galena. Conference registration is now open on the district website. The conference will kick off with a talk on The Rotary Foundation at 4:00 on Friday followed by cocktail hour and dinner. At dinner we will have the Murder and Mayhem in a Mining Town performers to entertain us. Saturday morning we will have our literacy breakfast with awards and a special speaker. We have several presentations Saturday morning highlighting people who have done international projects from our own district. Lunch revolves around Youth Exchange with students doing a flag presentation and former Youth Exchange Student Arthur Dantas from Brazil as a special speaker. The Generals of Galena will present to us after lunch. Then the afternoon is free to do whatever activity you choose. See the registration form for these.
Saturday evening we will have former ambassadorial scholar Adam Leemans speaking. We are also honored to have as a Presidential Representative PDG Kim Waters from Atlanta with her husband, RI Director David Stovall, who will be with us the entire weekend.
I am looking forward to seeing you at the District Conference. What a fun way to celebrate our year of Being the Inspiration!
DG Kathy