Club Presidential/Board Transition
July 9, 2013: It was a big day for our club as we said farewell to our wonderful President, Tom Clymer and installed our new President and Board. Tom gave a tearful goodbye as he will not only be leaving his position as President, but he and his wife, Alma, will be leaving Charleston to be nearer to their new grandchild. Tom paid special thanks to many members. He also paid special tribute to members Tom Brown and Tommy Taylor and the Education, Membership, and Program Committees. Tom noted that we gained 21 new members during his tenure. He also gave great praise to the wizard behind the whole operation, Carroll Schweers. Carroll’s role was acclaimed by all during a standing ovation. Some of the many major accomplishments during Tom’s tenure include $12k in grant money being awarded to 13 organizations through RCCF and $24k being raised at the yearly Gala. The Education Committee also coordinated the donation of 213 jackets to keep children warm during winter at James Simmons Elementary School.
This was followed by the installation of our new President, John Tecklenberg, and his new Board. John was sworn into his new position by Kyra Morris, Assistant District Governor. His new Board will consist of Digit Matheny, President-Elect; Leon deBrux, Treasurer; Alissa Collins, Secretary; Patterson Smith, Immediate Past President; Herb McGuire, Sergeant-At-Arms; Board members Catherine Jones, Kathy Jones, Don Oswalt, Steve Coe, Dan Ravenel, Michael Saboe, Paul Stoney; and Carroll Schweers, Executive Secretary.
Once sworn in, John’s first duty was to present outgoing President with the highly coveted Past President Pin and Gavel. John then chose to share with us his recent trip to the Rotary International yearly meeting held this year in Lisbon, Portugal. We got a visual tour of his trip thanks to John’s new camera. He and his wife, Sandy, also ventured into Spain during the trip. They didn’t let the language barrier stop them from meeting many interesting people along the way. Of course, it wasn’t all sight seeing. They did attend the Rotary International Meeting and got to visit many interesting booths and exhibits along with Kyra Morris and the other 30k attendees. It all makes one tempted to attend next year’s meeting in Sydney Australia. Finally, John shared with us the vision of the new International Rotary President, Ron Burton, to Engage Rotary and Change Lives.
Submitted by Doug Holmes, Keyway Committee