Governor's Message - January 18, 2016

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Governor's Message: A Great Welcome in Plymouth!
 
By Jim Fusco
 
Last week was a great one, starting with six members of the District Conference Committee traveling to Plymouth to attend the noon meeting of the Rotary Club of Plymouth. What a great welcome we had! After the meeting, we met with their Board of Directors to let them know that District 7910 will be holding our District Conference in their town. The trip ended with the Patriots defeating the Kansas City Chiefs on Saturday in an NFL divisional playoff game.
 
Between those two great events, we had a District Public Relations Committee meeting to commence planning on the Social Media Seminar on March 31. We also held a Foundation Scholarship Committee meeting to create a plan to promote the Morley Scholarship and the Peace Fellow Scholarships in our district.
 
One thing I want to mention is that Ralph Hammond has resigned as chair of the District Grants Subcommittee. If you have any Foundation questions, please contact Roy Balfour, who chairs the District Foundation Committee, at romart@aol.com. On the front page of this newsletter, at the top of the right-hand column, read my article titled "District Positions: Grants Subcommittee."
 
While January is rapidly flying by, much has been accomplished. Although there were no major district or club events for me to attend last week, it was truly a week of meetings as we continued our planning for the District Conference on May 20 through 22 in Plymouth. In addition, we spent time working a plan to promote the Peace Fellow Scholarship and the Morley Scholarship. These great programs are free and we want all clubs in the district to know about them. In the Committee Reports section of this week’s newsletter, I am repeating Peace Fellow Chair Terry Roberts’ article on the Peace Scholarship.
 
Last Thursday, I had the honor of attending the Rotary Club of Concord luncheon meeting to present a certificate of appreciation to Bob McWalter, recognizing him for 50 years of Rotary service. And last Friday, I attended the Holiday Party for the Rotary Club of Montachusett Area.
 
I am looking forward to this week as great things are happening. District Governors Elect Pat and Skip Doyle are in San Diego for the Rotary International Assembly and they have assured me that they will let me know when the 2016-2017 Rotary Theme is announced so we can broadcast it to our membership. Today is Martin Luther King Jr. Day, which means many of you have a day off, so enjoy your free time. I will continue to meet with both Karin Gaffney, chair of the District Conference Committee and district governor nominee elect, as well as with the conference subcommittees as we ramp up the planning for May 20, 21 and 22. On Tuesday, my wife, Fitchburg Rotarian Karen Fusco, and I will attend the Rotarian Wine Appreciation Fellowship Dinner at Heritage of Sherborn. On Wednesday, I will attend the District Foundation Committee meeting on Wednesday Feb. 20 and on Friday, I have a meeting with Satya Mitra, chair of the District Membership Committee, to start planning for a membership event for later this year with the help of a $15,000 Membership Grant from RI.
 
Reminders
 
RI Semi-Annual Dues: You should have received your semi-annual dues invoice from Rotary International. These bills are based upon the membership numbers that were listed for your club as of January 1 and the amounts billed are fixed and cannot be adjusted. These membership numbers are the same ones that will be used for your District 7910 bills. These amounts are fixed and can’t be adjusted so please pay the amount shown to RI ASAP. If for some reason your club did not receive an RI invoice, please contact me ASAP.
 
District Semi-Annual Dues: District Treasurer Lee Ouellette is preparing your district invoices and they will be e-mailed to your club president, club secretary and club executive secretary. If you do not receive your invoices by this Friday, let me know. Remember that you need to pay both RI and district dues semi-annually. The district dues are also based upon your membership figures shown as of January 1 and should be e-mailed to you this week. They are due upon receipt and the amount due cannot be adjusted. If you don’t receive your district invoice by this Friday, please contact me ASAP.
 
Club-Planning Worksheet: By now, you should be tired of me reminding you about the club-planning worksheet. (Click here to download it in Excel format.) But I want to remind you again because it is so important to me that all the clubs are using this tool. Reminder: Use this worksheet as a tool to guide you to a successful year and appoint a “champion” – preferably, your club’s president elect - to monitor and report progress to your club’s board of directors and membership on a monthly basis.
 
State of The District: In the December 21/28 issue of the newsletter, I provided part one of my “State of the District Report,” and part two ran in the January 4 issue. Please read them and see what you have accomplished in the first six months. There is, as the saying goes, “so much to do and so little time to do it.” I just want to remind you that if you have a club event, a club meeting, a presentation or a new member induction and you would like me to attend, just ask.
 
District Conference 2016 in Plymouth It is hard to imagine, but your annual District Conference to celebrate your Rotary year is only 122 days away and registration is open. To register, click here. Please check out the fun in the informative "Plymouth Rocks" video that Assistant Governor Richard Simon has produced to promote our District Conference. To watch, click here or on image at left.
 
District Banners: All of you have seen our district PR banners being displayed at club and district events. To reserve one of those banners, contact Laura Spear, who chairs our district's Public Image Committee, at laura@spear.net.
 
Rotaract Advisor Training Seminar: I feel that training is extremely important. With this in mind, we will be holding a Rotaract Advisor Training Seminar on Monday, February 8 from 5:30 to 8:30 p.m. at Framingham State University. For additional details, which are being arranged by District Rotaract Chair Carl Gomes of the Rotary Club of Nashoba Valley, click here.
 
Thank you for being part of a great organization and for being a Gift to the World.
 
We will have a great year! 
 
Jim Fusco, 2015-2016 governor of District 7910, may be reached at jim.fusco2@gmail.com.