Rotary International District 6860 Newsletter May 2023
Saturday, May 20, 2023
By Carol Argo
Dear Rotarians,
This will be my last newsletter for the Rotary year. It has been a pleasure to have this opportunity to serve as Governor of District 6860, where we have 52 amazing clubs doing great things in their communities and beyond. I want to thank each of the clubs that I have visited this year for the warm hospitality extended to me. It has truly been a pleasure to get to know more Rotarians throughout the district and serve as your governor. I also wish to thank the district leadership that has provided support to our clubs. There are too many to list here, but the Assistant Governors/Assistant Governor Coordinator are key positions in supporting both the governor and the clubs. Thank you to all of the district leaders, committee chairs and members who have supported clubs and the district. It truly takes teamwork and leadership and Rotary District 6860 does this well.
Please take a few minutes to read through the following information. In April we celebrated the accomplishments of clubs and Rotarians for their service and leadership this year. We hosted two conferences – the Multi District Conference at Perdido Beach Resort and the 2023 International Peace Conference. I had the opportunity to continue to visit clubs throughout the district and look forward to continuing my visits throughout the month of June. Pay close attention to the reminders listed below and the deadline dates associated with each.
As we come to the end of the year, there are still opportunities for each of our clubs to be active – to do another service project, to induct new members into our clubs and engage them, and to give to The Rotary Foundation through either the Annual Fund, PolioPlus or both.
I am truly blessed to be a member of the Rotary Club of Shades Valley and thank the members for their support and encouragement, not only for this year, but from the day I joined the club in December 1996. I hope that each of you feels as I do that being a member of a Rotary club enriches your life, gives you an opportunity to serve, to lead, to connect and to have fun.
Regards,
Carol Argo
Governor
Rotary International Service Above Self Award
Congratulations to Past District Governor Mary Jean Sanspree, Rotary Club of Trussville Daybreak, who has been awarded the Rotary International Service Above Self Award for 2022-2023. This prestigious award is given to no more than 150 Rotarians world-wide each year. Mary Jean served as District Governor 2008-2009 and has been involved at the district level in many capacities including working with Foundation grants, chairing the district Interact Committee from 2009-2018 and organizing a district Interact Conference. She has been very involved in the steering committee for Boiling N Bragging which has raised in excess of $1.3 million dollars in support of Critical Care Transport of Children’s of Alabama. Mary Jean served as Council on Legislation Representative for 2018-2021. At the club level, Mary Jean was involved in establishing a joint club interest in assessing and serving needs of the people of Jamaica resulting in an award winning service project which spanned a period of five years, educated hundreds of visually impaired children and adults, and the delivery of over 150 “Braillers” for the Jamaican people.
Although retired from the University of Alabama at Birmingham, Mary Jean remains active through her vocational service on the Helen Keller Birthplace Foundation Board; Council for Exception Children – local, state, national and international officer and director roles, including international president; Shelby County Arts Council Board and President; Project Head Start of Alabama and the UAB School of Optometry-Dean’s Strategic Advisory Board, and is involved with the visual screening program in the Alabama Black Belt area. She is active with the United Methodist Church North Alabama Conference, Vestavia Hills United Methodist Church and Genesis Sunday School Class.
For those of us who know and love her, we recognize that she personifies the term “Servant Leader” as she has sought ways to help others by surrounding herself with like-minded, committed people. Her hallmark is “teamwork!”
2022-2023 District Conference Highlights
District 6860 joined with District 6880 at Perdido Beach Resort to celebrate clubs in both districts for their achievements this year. Our thanks to Mark Daniel Maloney and Gay Maloney for serving as keynote speakers during the conference. Clubs shared information on their district and global grant projects, and disaster relief efforts that are organized out of South Alabama. Past District Governor Brian Hall represented RI President Jennifer Jones and shared with us his “why” for joining Rotary and supporting the Rotary Foundation. We had a lot of fun with time to visit the swimming pool or beach, and an Oyster grill hosted by the Central Baldwin Sunset Rotary Club. Each evening we enjoyed hospitality organized by David Allgood and Sharon Hogg. Pat Cross and Sue Mitchell co-chaired our district awards program and we recognized individuals and clubs for their outstanding service this year. The conference ended with a beautiful service to remember those Rotarians and spouses/partners we lost over the past year. Denise Bates (spouse of President Larry Bates, RC of Alexander City) played the saxophone with accompaniment during the service, and Marcus Chatterton (President, Shades Valley Rotary) led us in the recognition of those no longer with us. Thank you to all who attended the conference, and especially to those who made the conference a great success.
            
Awards – Lots of Awards!
Thank you to PDG Pat Cross and PDG Sue Mitchell for co-chairing the district awards committee this year. Through their efforts we were able to get back to recognizing individuals and clubs for their outstanding achievements.
Citations were presented in the following areas:
RLI--
Recognize ALL RLI graduates from 2022-2023, 2021-2022, 2021-2020
ROTARY YOUTH LEADERSHIP AWARDS (RYLA)
Clubs who sponsored students to attend RYLA
INTERACT CLUB SPONSORS-
Recognize ALL Rotary Clubs who sponsor Interact Clubs
ROTARACT CLUB SPONSORS-
Recognize ALL Rotary Clubs who sponsor Rotaract Clubs
CLUB VISIONING-
Recognize ALL clubs who participated in Club Visioning
BOILING ‘N BRAGGING-
Recognize ALL clubs who provided financial support, participated in corn hole tournament or
volunteered at the event
DISTRICT CITATION FOR VIBRANT CLUBS-
Birmingham Sunrise
Decatur Daybreak
Greater Huntsville
Homewood
Madison
Rocket County
Trussville Daybreak
AVENUES OF SERVICE AWARDS-
CLUB SERVICE-
Small Club
3rd -Alabaster-Pelham
*2nd-Homewood
*2nd-Madison
1st -Trussville Daybreak
Large Club-
2nd Cullman
1st-Birmingham Sunrise
VOCATIONAL SERVICE-
Small Club-
3rd-Rocket County
2nd-Madison
1st -Homewood
Large Club-
3rd-Greater Huntsville
2nd-Cullman
1st-Birmingham Sunrise
COMMUNITY SERVICE-
Small Club-
3rd-Madison
2nd-Decatur Daybreak
1st-Homewood
Large Club-
3rd-Cullman
2nd-Birmingham Sunrise
1st-Greater Huntsville
INTERNATIONAL SERVICE-
Joint Project:
1st Small Club-Decatur Daybreak
1st Large Club-Decatur
Small Club-
3rd-Rocket County
2nd-Homewood
1st-Madison
Large Club-
2nd-Birmingham Sunrise
1st-Greater Huntsville
IMAGINE ROTARY AWARD-
Rotaract Club-
1st-RotaractClub of Birmingham
Small Club-
3rd-Rocket County
2nd-Trussville Daybreak
1st-Homewood
Large Club-
1st-Birmingham Sunrise
DISTRICT SERVICE AWARD-ROTARY FOUNDATION-
John Beard-Rotary Club of Shades Valley
Lori Moler-Rotary Club of Vestavia Hills sunrise
Holly Trawick-Rotary Club of Jasper
Ryan Stallings-Rotary Club of Tuscaloosa
INDIVIDUAL RECOGNITION AWARDS
District Outstanding Leadership – Tommie Goggans, RC of Calhoun County
Vocational Award – Rotarian – Deborah Bell Paseur, RC of Florence
Vocational Award – non Rotarian – Crystal Brown
Thomas L. Milford Jr. Service Above Self – William T. Ratliff III, RC of Birmingham
Important Reminders
| Report your club officers by 30 June |
Don’t forget to report your club’s officers in My Rotary by 30 June. This will ensure that your incoming officers have access to all the tools and resources they need to succeed. Make sure that your club membership is up to date too so that your club’s July 1 RI dues invoice is accurate.
In May, club and district leaders will receive an email survey. Please take a moment to respond and tell RI what you enjoy about your role, what challenges you’ve faced, and how Rotary International can further support future generations of Rotary leaders.
Other key dates include:
- 30 June Deadline for contributions to TRF Annual Fund and PolioPlus to be received by The Rotary Foundation for 2022-2023. If your club has been collecting contributions as a part of your dues make sure you submit those contributions. For multiple donors, use THIS FORM.
- 30 June: This is the last day to report in Rotary Club Central what goals you achieved toward the Rotary Citation for Rotary Clubs. Download a copy of the citation goals and instructions for Rotary clubs and learn more about the Rotary Citation. Note that separate forms and instructions are available for Rotaract and Interact clubs with a due date of 15 August.
- Deadline to submit district grant reports June 15
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2023 International Peace Conference – Imagine Peace. Build Peace.
 
Rotary International District 6860 in partnership with The Birmingham Civil Rights Institute and the Institute for Human Rights at the University of Alabama at Birmingham hosted the 2023 International Peace Conference in Birmingham, AL May 4-6, 2023. The Peace Conference brought together people from across our nation and the globe to highlight the pursuit of peace at all levels of society. The two-day conference brought together Rotarians and non-Rotarians and distinguished leaders in academia, government, public safety, religion, business, and community service to share ideas and propose solutions to some of society’s most complex challenges. Programs and approaches that are making a positive impact were highlighted, Conversations, panels and speakers focused on topics in the areas of (1) Individual Peace, (2) Peace in Homes and in Families, (3) Peace Education in Schools, (4) Promoting Peaceful Communities and Reducing Violence, (5) Addressing and Preventing Human Trafficking, (6) The Quest for Racial Equity and Justice, (6) Empowerment of Women and Girls, and (7) International Peace.
Several key Rotary leaders participated in the International Peace Conference including Past RI President Mark Maloney and Gay Maloney, RI President Jennifer Jones, and RI Director for Zones 30-31 Elizabeth Usovicz. We were honored to have this level of support and participation from Rotary International senior leadership.
An important part of the Peace Conference was the inclusion of a Peace Fellows Symposium on Thursday May 4 which brought together Rotarians and more than 30 graduates of The Rotary Foundation Peace Fellows Program to build new relationships and engage in ongoing relationships among Rotary Peace Fellows and Rotarians leading to mutual support and resources for their peacebuilding initiatives. The Peace Fellows Symposium was led by Jim Roxlo (Rotary District 6780) and Kathy Doherty, Peace Fellow graduate of Chulalongkorn University, Thailand.
The International Peace Conference was a huge success thanks to many people who worked for more than three years to make this a reality. The vision and framework were led by Will Ratliff and Carolyn Ratliff who put together an incredible team to form the steering committee. Will Ratliff (RC of Birmingham) chaired the group; Donna Smiley (RC of Bessemer) co-chaired the group.
Thanks to the many sponsors who supported the 2023 International Peace Conference, the volunteers, the presenters, moderators, speakers, aides, organizers, and attendees. Thank you to all of the Rotarians in District 6860 who stepped up in one of more of these ways to make the peace conference a success.
Operation Pollination Partnership
On April 19, 2023 Rotary International District 6860 signed off on a partnership with Rotary District 6880, Muscle Shoals National Heritage Area, and Alabama Black Belt National Heritage Area to support Operation Pollination. The partnership recognizes the critical importance of pollinator habitat both restored and maintained on public and private lands, particularly found within our geographic area. Through cooperation, collaboration and outreach resulting from this Pollinator Partnership, an interconnected mosaic of pollinator habitat may be developed to help restore and maintain populations of pollinator species throughout this region.
District Governor-Elect Mary Grave Evans represented District 6860 and District Governor Dell Goodwin represented District 6880 for the signing of the resolution. Past Rotary International Mark Maloney was among several other partners who signed off as a witnesses to the agreement. The signing of the resolution opens the way for Rotary clubs in our district to support Rotary’s 7th area of focus on the environment if they so choose, to engage in pollinator projects individually or in partnership with other organizations, to protect and enhance pollinator species and their habitat on public and private lands throughout our geographic area, and to provide education to those interested in increasing their knowledge of pollinators and improving pollinator habitat.
To learn more or join Operation Pollination: https://operationpollination.net/
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