Welcome District Governor S. Anne Walker!

September 9th, 2008: The District Governor of District 7770, S. Anne Walker, says she loves to drive and she loves to talk. It follows naturally that she was happy to come to Charleston to speak to our club — and, of course, we were happy to host her! Ms. Walker was born right here in Charleston and described many fond memories she has of the area. Her travels as District Governor have taken her around the region, but she loves coming back here to visit.

Ms. Walker vivaciously gave us a pep-talk about recruiting new members to Rotary and keeping alive the spirit of fellowship and membership. Her husband once caught her “selling” Rotary to a near stranger and accused her of constantly recruiting. As she described that story to us, she proudly said that she is, indeed, always recruiting. She encouraged us to take recruiting more seriously.

She wisely told us that a Rotary club should be thought of like a business. Advertising is a good way to attract new “clients”. She recently visited a club in Myrtle Beach that has made pamphlets to distribute so that people can get to know their club. Ms. Walker described a fun way to remember our commitment to recruitment, in this anagram that spells “R-O-T-A-R-Y”: “R” and “O”: reach out, “T”: take by the hand, “A”: asking people, “R”: retention, “Y”: you, as in all of us club members.

More information about our district, 7770, can be found at the website: http://www.rotary7770.org/. District 7770 is comprised of the 25 eastern counties of South Carolina. There are more than 78 Rotary clubs in our district. There are more than 5,000 Rotarians in our District. We thank Ms. Walker for her visit to our club and for all of her work and dedication.

Submitted by Jackie Grau, Keyway Committee