Calendar of Events

August 4, 2015

Lunch is served at Noon, Meeting begins at 12:30 pm




 Meet Andy Kidd - Episcopal HS Athletic Director

Andy Kidd serves as the Athletic Director for Episcopal High School of Jacksonville.  His duties include overseeing 61 middle school, junior varsity and varsity men’s and women’s teams in 16  sports as well as the physical education program.  In this role he directs 115 coaches and administrative personnel and recruited and hired all new athletic department employees.

Before his selection to take over direction of the athletics program in July 2012, he served for nine years in the ESJ Advancement (Fund-Raising) Office, including a year as Director of the Advancement in the 2011-2012 school year.  Over these years, he was fully involved in alumni relations, the Episcopal Annual Fund, major fund-raisers and capital campaigns before serving as Director of Development from 2009 to 2011, and ultimately the entire Advancement program. Before being elevated to the A.D. position, he served as assistant coach for the football and men’s soccer teams, head coach of the junior varsity football team and from 2007 through 2012 as head coach of the mens’s varsity soccer team.

 From 1999 to 2003, he attended Furman University, earning a B.A. in business administration and earning four varsity letters as a member of the Furman men’s soccer team (co-captain 2002).   From 1993 to 1999, he attended Episcopal, earning 11 varsity letters in football, soccer and baseball and being voted the JASPer Award as Publix Top Male Student Athlete of the Year for Northeast Florida in 1999.  He was recently recognized by the Jacksonville Business Journal as a 40 under 40 top performer in Jacksonville.





A bit about our new member - Jacqueline Rudloff

Jacqueline recently celebrated her ten year anniversary with husband Josh. 
They have a Maltese dog named Cotton and some cats (as she says "numbers aren't important--I'm a failed foster parent--but I'm married so I am not qualified to be a crazy cat lady!").
She and Josh went to Bangkok in 2012 for her year as president of the Arlington Rotary Club, which was an amazing trip. They have a comic book series--and believe laughter is a necessary component for each day. We're so glad your with us!



July 28th Speaker - Shari Duval with K9s For Warriors





Important Club News ---- Tayla will be here soon!

Please join the Gentry family and PP Vicki-lynne in welcoming Tayla Maturo,  our 2015-2016 RYE student as she arrives in the USA on Sunday August 9  @ 6 p.m.  Jacksonville International Airport



Candid Lunch Shots...Don't Miss Out!


Some of our newest members getting to know each other


Enjoying Lunch and conversation with fellow members


 Our Club in Action!
Patrick Victor Updating the Club on International Water projects


  
 
Donation Check presented to Builders Care, this year's beneficiary of the Alhambra event

An Important Message From Pres David  

Dear Members of the Rotary Club of South Jacksonville,
There have been some developments brought about by the Board’s recent decision to approve the new Satellite membership concept. Recently you were all notified by mail regarding changes to our Club’s by-laws which were drafted and approved by the Board.   
The new by-law allows for the Satellite membership classification and the letter indicated a date for a full club vote to be held at the luncheon on August 11th.  However the Club’s leadership became aware that these changes may not have gone far enough in ensuring that the new Satellite members met adequate criteria for membership in Rotary. 

Several long-time members voiced concerns and made some very valuable and helpful comments, all of which led us to reconvene the Membership Committee and revisit these rules. The result, I am very proud to tell you, are some subtle yet very impactful changes that I believe will address these concerns and allow us to move forward with this new membership concept.

Plans are underway to immediately present these changes to your Board for a vote and if approved, to proceed to a full Club vote. However, time constraints have necessitated that we push back the Club vote originally scheduled for August 11th to the August 18th luncheon…a delay of one week. Please make note of this change and plan to attend on the 18th to have your vote count.

This new Satellite classification concept is very exciting and one we hope will allow us to capture otherwise lost candidates who have graduated from Rotaract but not yet reached full Rotary membership criteria, as well as other upcoming leaders in our community. An enormous amount of effort went into the formation of the infrastructure for this concept and while it would have been fantastic to capture the ideals we were after the first time, it just wasn’t very realistic. Many voices were heard and the input was incredible… the result is one we feel confident you will all be proud of.

Being part of this process and watching it play out over the last several days has been a very humbling and prideful experience for me personally. The outpouring of respect and adoration for Rotary in general and our Club in particular has been inspirational and makes me enormously proud to be your President. Please feel free to contact me personally with any questions.

Rotarianly,
David Bissell



Our Governor's Message:

Week 4 Rotary Minute


Have you heard the exciting news, Nigeria has passed one year with no new cases of the wild poliovirus! This is the longest the country has ever gone without a case of polio and a critical step on the path toward a polio-free Africa.

Plan to attend the August 15th Be a Gift to the World training seminar to hear the personal story of Ramesh Ferris, a 35 year old Polio Survivor who resides in Whitehorse, Yukon Canada. He has shared Rotary’s End Polio Now message with countless heads of state and other world leaders including: Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II, Ban Ki Moon, Margaret Chan, Bill Gates, Archbishop Desmond Tutu, &  Neil Young. Ramesh has traveled throughout Canada, India, USA, Puerto Rico, Australia, South Africa, France, Denmark, Pakistan, Afghanistan, Portugal, and Switzerland, all to convince more people to support the end of polio! He has spoken to delegates at the United Nations Headquarters in New York City and many Rotarians at various Zone Institutes and District Conferences.

The seminar will be held at the Thrasher-Horne Center in Orange Park starting at 8:00am.  The cost of the seminar per Rotarian is $35.  Your registration includes a continental breakfast served from 7:00am-8:00am and a fabulous Italian meal for lunch. To register, just tell your club president you plan to attend.

I have personally heard Ramesh Ferris share his story and you will be impacted by his message. Thank you each for your continued service and I look forward to seeing you at the seminar!

UPCOMING EVENTS:
Morning of August 1st: D6970 Rotary Leadership Institute (RLI) Saturday, August 1st in Palm Coast, Florida. Make last minute registrations at www.RLItraining.org/.

Evening of August 1st: Come help us welcome home 23 Rotary Youth Exchange students after a year of living abroad. Reservations are available on the www.ryeflorida.org website under About RYE Florida... click on District 6970.

For more on these and all other events in District 6970, please go to www.rotary6970.org. 
Yours in service to Rotary,
Fel
Fred “Fel” Lee
District Governor 2015-2016

Rotary International District 6970


July 28, 2015

Lunch is served at Noon, Meeting begins at 12:30 pm


Meet Shari Duval Founder and President of K9s For Warriors

Shari Duval, a resident of Ponte Vedra Beach, founded K9s For Warriors in May 2011. The program pairs rescued service dogs with veterans suffering from Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder in a bid to help the veterans return to civilian life.I am the President for K9s For Warriors. We save warriors and rescue dogs. Some are veterans, some are active duty, and all are heroes and have served in the military. Our warriors all suffer from post-traumatic stress (PTSD) or traumatic brain injury (TBI), a deadly disorder.

I worked as a volunteer for veterans charities here in Jacksonville, Florida and watched the amazing work they do to empower our returning military veterans. I saw firsthand the number of warriors returning home with an invisible disorder, post-traumatic stress, it inspired me and my family to look for ways to aid these deserving heroes.

My son, a veteran K9 police officer, worked as a contractor for the Department of the Army as a bomb dog handler. He served two tours in Iraq and returned home with PTSD. This really hit home to our family. After two years of research on canine assistance for PTSD we decided the best way we could help these deserving warriors was to start a non-profit organization to train and give service canines to assist our warriors’ efforts to return to civilian life with dignity and independence.

Service canines, properly trained, are a profound alternative for recovery from PTSD and TBI. We have been honored to serve these brave men and women that have given this country so much. There is no charge for our service it is our duty, honor and privilege. For three weeks our warriors live at our facility where they train and learn to re-enter civilian life again. We are a small charity doing huge work, and making a difference. Our men and women of our military fought for our tomorrows, we fight for theirs.



Club Happenings:

July 21th Speaker -  Representative Charles McBurney Jr.   
  Meet one of our newest members:
                                        

A bit about our new member Marcus Haile


Marcus was born in Bryan, Texas, grew up in Gainesville and moved to Jacksonville in 1992. He received a Bachelor’s Degree in Communications and Master’s Degree in Public Administration from the University of North Florida. His entire career has been involved with fundraising for nonprofit organizations and currently serves as the Chief Development Officer for the Cathedral Arts Project. The Nonprofit Center of Northeast Florida also includes him as a Community Coach on fundraising to advise other local organizations.  


He is married to Jill Haile, who is a librarian with the City of Jacksonville, and they will be celebrating their 19th anniversary this November. They have one daughter, Meghan, who is 10 years old. 

Other things Marcus is involved in include taking up golf, and he especially likes walking the course. He and his daughter recently tried paddle boarding, which they both see doing more of. They all attend Congregation Ahavath Chesed, and enjoy family vacations to Blue Ridge, Georgia and Coco Beach. 


Candid Lunch Shots...Don't Miss Out!


Enjoying Lunch and conversation with fellow members

 Our Club in Action!
  




PP Robert Harris vacationing with his family in Jackson Hole, WY











PP Harris attends a Rotary meeting at the Wort hotel in Jackson Hole, WY during a recent family vacation!






PP Jay Plotkin is out and about once again.  This time he is attending the national Gingerbread House Competition at the Grove Park Inn.
Our Governor's Message:

Week 3. Rotary Minute
July 24th marks another important milestone in our fight to eradicate Polio from our world as Nigeria will surpass the one year mark with no new wild poliovirus type 1 cases!!!  My hope is the milestone will once again inspire each of you to continue our fight to eradicate this disease.

But, if you still need some inspiration then plan to attend our Be a Gift to the World training seminar. Our keynote speaker is a Polio Survivor who has shared Rotary’s End Polio Now message with countless heads of state and other world leaders. The seminar will be held on August 15th at the Thrasher-Horne Center in Orange Park starting at 8:00am.  The cost of the seminar per Rotarian is $35.  Your registration includes a continental breakfast served from 7:00am-8:00am and a fabulous Italian meal for lunch.

This year we have more interactive breakouts to engage you as a Rotarian such as
-    Exchange ideas with PDG George Robertson-Burnett, grand master of Florida satellite      clubs, on how Satellite Clubs, e-Clubs, and other new formats are allowing Rotary to adapt. 
-    Interact with Pepper Pettit, Membership Co-Chair District 6910, to see how his club grew from 28 members to 70 members, with numerous ideas that will work in your own club.
-    Join in a Rotary Alumni forum with Rotary Alums (currently not Rotarians), Rotarians, and Rotaractors about the best ways to engage Alums in Rotary.
-    Learn the District Grant Management Process
-    Discuss with District Webmaster Howard Kelley what to do about Abandoned, Neglected & Abused Club Websites.
-    Participate in a “teaching lab” with District’s Rotaractors as they develop the Rotaract Website.

To register, send District Executive Secretary Patti Chapman an email at RotaryExecSec@aol.com or call her at 904-994-7355. For DACdb users, you can register online via the calendar function.

SNAP ROTARY
Share your Rotary pride on Instagram with a simple photo and you can win a $25 Outback gift card and more! Start tagging your snaps with #Rotary6970 now!

UPCOMING EVENTS:
Morning of August 1st: This is a final reminder that this Wednesday, July 22, is the cutoff date to register for the upcoming D6970 Rotary Leadership Institute (RLI) that will be held on Saturday, August 1st in Palm Coast, Florida. This RLI session will offer Parts 1, 2, 3, along with a special Graduate Class. See our District website for registration instructions.

Evening of August 1st: Don’t miss your opportunity to hear from the students themselves about the impact RYE has made after a year of living abroad. Reservations are available on the www.ryeflorida.org website under About RYE Florida... click on District 6970.

UPCOMING EVENTS:
Morning of August 1st: Rotary Leadership Institute (RLI) will take place at the Daytona State College Palm Coast Campus. Registration is open for all Rotarians for Parts 1, 2, 3 and a Graduate Class. See our District website for registration instructions.
Evening of August 1st: Rotary Youth Exchange (RYE) “Welcome Home Dinner”.  Hear from the high school students themselves about the impact RYE has had on their lives after a year of study and living in another country. Reservations are available on the www.ryeflorida.org website under About RYE Florida... click on District 6970.

August 15th: Be a Gift to the World seminar at the Thrasher-Horne Center in Orange Park.  For more on these and all other events in District 6970, please go to www.rotary6970.org.

Yours in service to Rotary,
  Fel
 Fred “Fel” Lee
District Governor 2015-2016
Rotary International District 6970