Visiting our District Governor Elect's club -- Seneca Golden Corner

After a wonderful day supporting my home club's major annual fundraiser, Election Day BBQ, on Tuesday, November 8th, Kathy and I elected to drive to Seneca, SC and spend the night before meeting with the Seneca Rotary Club the following morning. Our hotel was next to the Seneca Family Restaurant where the club meets, so we had no problem being on time. We enjoyed great fellowship with President Steve Willis and the club's members. I was pleased to see District Governor Elect Kim Gramling and Assistant Governor Patrick Lee. We had a short lived panic when my presentation would not project, but quickly discovered that the wrong cable was connecting the computer and video projector. 

My presentation seemed to go well, and we finished on time after some great Happy Dollar comments and club announcements. The club actually met in the center of the restaurant, so I had an even greater audience of non-Rotarians sitting in the restaurant. As I was talking about the future of Rotary and my goals for the district, I could not help but wonder whether anyone in the restaurant hearing my talk might develop an interest in Rotary. Several club members told me about the difficult economic conditions in this area. I hope my visit today will stimulate growth in membership and Rotary Foundation support. 

I had the opportunity to recognize Paul Porter as the club's Notable Rotarian. Paul has been a club member with perfect attendance since1996. He has served as Club President and is a Paul Harris Fellow, Sustaining Member, and Paul Harris Society member. He has worked tirelessly in the area of member recruitment and retention.  Many of the current members remain in the club due to Mr. Porter’s diligence in this crucial area.

the club presented a donation to Volunteers in Medical Missions, and I was honored to be able to present this check to Kathy Cater, the Associate Director and Trip Coordinator that has worked with me for many years. 

This is an exceptionally busy week for me. I quickly left Seneca and returned to Greenwood (1.5 hour drive) for a hospital meeting and nursing home rounds. DGN Lorraine Angelino and PDG Isaac Shaffer met me at my office to drive to the District 7690 Foundation Banquet in Greensboro, NC (4 hour drive) where we met RI President Kalyan Banerjee, RI Director John Smarge, RI Director Elect Anne Matthews and about 800 other Rotarians and spouses. AG Jeff Updike connected with us in Concord, NC and was the first person dropped off on the return to Greenwood. We arrived back in Greenwood definitely ready for bed at 2 AM! My day starts tomorrow (Thursday) at 8:30 AM with a medical student interviewing for residency training.