June 25, 2024
Our annual Transition Social event happened this week and we said thank you to our outgoing President Cleave Ham for his fantastic year of leadership and fun. And we welcomed new president Robert Sullivan. Our own District Governor elect Sandy Morckel did the honors in swearing in Robert, as well as our new board for 2024-25.
We also honored our Bill Hall Rotarian of the Year – Karla Combs (now President-Elect Karla!) who provided tireless service throughout the year as chair of the community service committee and now heading up fundraising – and hitting the ground running with the FUN-raising programs!
A special thank you to Carrol Schweers, our dedicated club secretary who celebrated her 25th anniversary in this role with Rotary – Carroll was hired when she was 9 months pregnant so always remembers how many years she has been with Rotary. Thanks for all you do Carroll!
No meeting this week as we break for the Fourth of July. Enjoy. And don’t forget the Skyline Social & Fundraiser on July 10 – more info below.
IN OTHER MEETING NEWS
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- Marion Platt gave the Invocation and led us in the pledge.
- President Cleave welcomed all members and their guests.
- President Cleave opened the brief meeting and gave a recap of the year – recognizing the 2023/2024 Board and Carroll Schweers for her 25 years of service to our club as Executive Secretary.
- Three new members were inducted. Past President and Assistant DG Sandy Morckel introduced and installed the incoming President Robert Sullivan and the 2024/2025 Board.
- Robert closed out the meeting as President.
MORE IN THIS WEEK’S KEYWAY
July 2, 2024 | Issue 5133 President: Robert Sullivan
UPCOMING EVENTS
- 7/2 – No Meeting – Happy Fourth of July
- 7/9 – Club Assembly
- 7/10 – “Skyline Social” and RCCF Fundraising Event, “Cheers with a view, and FUN’-raisin’ too”; MPS Architecture firm, Morrison Yard, 850 Morrison Dr., Suite 600, 5:00-7:30 pm. More info here
- 7/16 – Matt Martin, Federal Reserve
- 7/23 – Margaret Seidler
- 7/30 – TBD
NEWS BRIEFS
No Meeting on Tuesday, July 2 – Happy July 4th!
The club will NOT meet for lunch on Tuesday, July 2. We hope that you will have a safe and happy Fourth of July week and enjoy the time off to celebrate with family and friends.
Bill Hall Rotarian of the Year Award to Karla Combs
The Bill Hall Rotarian of the Year Award is presented at our annual Transition Meeting, in memory and honor of Bill Hall, who was a vital member of this Rotary Club. Mr. Hall was the founder of the Hall’s Restaurant group and a long time dedicated Rotarian for over 34 years. He truly lived his life by our motto of “Service Above Self”.
This year’s recipient has been a member of our club since 2020 and was a Rotarian in North Carolina for 12 years. She is a currently serving on our Board as Community Service Chair and President-Elect Nominee. She has brought her energy and enthusiasm for serving our community to the Community Service area! Under her leadership this year, over 77 members participated in 23 service projects throughout our community. She has also is leading the charge on Fun-Raising. She continuously finds ways to enhance our club, its fundraising and administration. This year’s recipient is Karla Combs. Karla, congratulations! We couldn’t do it without you!
Thanks to Outgoing Board Members
A BIG thank you to our outgoing Board Members! Amy Page, Michael Smith and Dan West have all served 2 awesome years as Board members. Past President Paul Stoney, who has served our club twice as a Board Member and twice as President, also steps off the Board. We have accomplished a lot during their term and appreciate their dedication and commitment to making our club “even better”!
July – December 2024 Dues Invoices Emailed
July-December 2024 dues invoices have been distributed via email. All members should have received an invoice. If you didn’t receive, please contact Carroll. Payment is due promptly within 30 days. Please note that payments can be paid on-line by either credit card or bank transfer. Members just simply need to click on the “pay now” button on their invoice. If you prefer to pay by check, please mail to PO Box 21029, Charleston, SC 29413.
SKYLINE SOCIAL & FUNDRAISER FOR RCCF – Cheers with a View and “FUN-raising Too!
We hope you will bring a guest (or two) and join us on Wednesday, July 10th from 5:00-7:30pm at Morrison Yard, 850 Morrison Dr., Suite 600 as we kick start our year with a fundraiser. This special event is being hosted by our fellow Rotarian, Katherine DeMoura, at McMillan Pazdan Smith Architecture at Morrison Yard and promises to be an evening of fun and fellowship with your fellow Rotarians and guests, while enjoying an incredible view of Charleston and raising funds for the great works of our Club via the RCCF. 100% of the funds raised by this event will support community impact activities and philanthropy by RCCF.
There are several ways that you can get involved and support this event and the RCCF:
- Become a “Charleston Champion” – multiple RCCF sponsor levels (e.g., Gold-$500, Silver-$250, and Bronze-$100 levels);
- Donate an item(s) or service of value which would be attractive to our participants as part of raffle and game prizes, possibly a silent auction
- Attend the event, bring a guest(s), and participate in these “FUN-raising” activities
For more information, how to donate, donation forms, etc., please click on the Fundraising and Giving page on our website.
Please RSVP to attend using this link: https://www.signupgenius.com/go/10C0945A4AA2AA7F5C52-50107563-skyline
The Ultimate Rotary Make-up Meeting
As part of our Skyline Fundraiser we are offering Rotarians a chance to win a dream vacation to the Caribbean, and even attend a local Rotary Meeting.
There are 52 chances to win a 5-night stay at the award-winning Sands Resort on world famous Grace Bay Beach in the Turks & Caicos Islands. $100 per entry and we limit the number to the first 52 contest players!
It’s super easy to enter. Simply go to our payment site via this link or QR Code below and enter “Turks” in the form on the site. Make your payment of $100 using PayPal, Venmo or credit card. And start packing your bathing suit. But hurry – only 52 entries will be sold!
The lucky winner will be drawn at our Skyline Social & Fundraising event on July 10.
All funds go to the Rotary Club of Charleston Fund which are 100% used to support community service/non-profit organizations in the Lowcountry.
More info here
Volunteering = FUN-Raising Project
The Rotary Club of Charleston has partnered with EPI to assist in staffing for our first ever, year-long FUN-Raising Project!! This is a great opportunity to attend fun events, support our local sports teams, AND raise funds for our club to facilitate all the wonderful grants we have seen presented in the last few weeks. The volunteer opportunities for the next couple of months are now posted. Check back often has there will be more opportunities available as the CofC basketball schedule is coordinated with EPI. Please contact Karla Combs with any questions, sign up below:
https://www.signupgenius.com/go/10C0945A4AA2AA7F5C52-50046538-epifunraising
Support The CART Fund
It is easy for club members to make individual contributions and support The CART Fund electronically. The CART Fund has new portal www.mycartfund.org, which you can easily access. As a Rotarian and a DACdb user, you automatically have an account already set-up in your name. Your user name and password are the same as it is for the DACdb.
Our Club is on Social Media
Members are encouraged to follow all of our social media channels and share posts with their followers too! We also need members to send us picture of anything they do that relates to Rotary – service projects, meetings, events, etc. We would love to keep our accounts full of smiling Rotarians! Photos can be send to Mike Sottak, mikesottak@gmail.com, or Rob Byko, rob@bykorealty.com
MEMBER NEWS
We were excited to welcome 2 new members and one former member into our Rotary family at Tuesday night’s social – Heidi Finniff, David Osborne and Michael Pruitt. We will learn a little more about these members when their sponsors formally introduce them to the club in the coming weeks.
Proposed New Members
The following membership candidates have submitted an application and signed letter of agreement to the Historic Rotary Club of Charleston:
Paul Attaway – sponsor: Steve Dopp; classification: Author/TourGuide
Benjamin Vazquez – sponsor: Jennifer Flanagin; classification: Construction
Jason Noble – sponsor: Paul Stoney; classification: Financial Advisor
In the event you know Paul, Benjamin or Jason, please tell a member of the Board how he will serve the ideas of Rotary.
MEMBER SPOTLIGHT
Rotarian: Christopher G. Olson 
JOINED: June, 2022
SPONSOR: Patterson Smith, Harry Staley
CLASSIFICATION: Franchise Owner, Fast Food
PROFESSION: Franchise owner
Community Service Organizations, Current Activities or Activities/Volunteer Work in the Past: YMCA, Clemson SC; Elder at Fort Hill Presbyterian Church, Clemson SC
SOMETHING UNIQUE ABOUT YOURSELF: I am a retired lawyer, former county court Solicitor, father of 2, grandfather of 3, husband of one.
Birthdays
- 7/2 – Past President Sandy Morckel
- 7/3 – Chappy McKay
- 7/4 – Hugh Lane
- 7/7 – Chip Wyatt
- 7/11 – Megan Fink
- 7/13 – Heidi Finniff
- 7/14 – Bill Nettles
- 7/15 – Stephen Moody
WELLNESS TIP
Wear Some Earplugs
The sounds of summer—such as fireworks and marching bands—can definitely damage your hearing. In fact, fireworks have a sound decibel of 150, and ear protection is recommended for decibels above 85.
OTHER AREA ROTARY CLUBS
Mondays
https://www.cainhoyrotary.com/
Summerville – Oakbrook: 7:30 a.m., Monday, Westcott County Club, 5000 Wescott Club Drive, North Charleston
North Charleston: 12:30 p.m., Monday, Hilton Garden Inn, 5265 International Blvd, North Charleston, SC
Summerville Evening: 5:30 p.m., Monday, Montreux Bar and Grill, 127 W. Richardson Ave., Summerville
Tuesdays
Charleston: 12:30 p.m., Tuesday, Hall’s Signature Events, 5 Faber, Charleston
Goose Creek: 12:45 m. Tuesday, Gilligan’s, 219 St. James Ave., Goose Creek
Cainhoy: 6PM, on the first and third Tuesday of the month, King’s Cross Church, of Clement Ferry Road
Wednesdays
Daniel Island: 7:30 a.m. Wednesday, Daniel Island Club, 600 Island Park Dr., Daniel Island
Mount Pleasant: 12:30 p.m., Wednesday, Hibben Methodist Church, 690 Coleman Blvd., Mount Pleasant
Summerville: 1pm-2pm on 1st & 3rd Wednesday. Hilton Garden Inn-Homewood Suite/Lowcountry Conference Center, 406 Sigma Drive
Thursdays
North Charleston Breakfast: 7:30 a.m. Thursday, Marriott Hotel, 4770 Goer Drive, North Charleston.
Moncks Corner: 12:30 p.m., Thursday, Gilligan’s Restaurant, Moncks Corner
St. Andrews (West Ashley): 12:30 p.m., Thursday, Bessinger’s BBQ, 1602 Savannah Highway, Charleston.
Fridays
Charleston Breakfast: 7:30AM Hall’s Signature Events, 5 Faber, Charleston
SOCIAL MEDIA
Our Rotary club actively uses social media — and we encourage you to interact 
with us through social media.
We’re on Facebook. Take a look at our page and be sure to “like us”.
We’re on Twitter. You can follow us @chasrotaryclub.
We’re on Instagram. You can follow us @ChasRotaryClub.
ABOUT THE KEYWAY
The Keyway has been published weekly as a newsletter for the Rotary Club of Charleston for more than 90 years.
President: Cleave Ham
Executive secretary: Carroll Schweers, carrollschweers@gmail.com
Mailing address: Rotary Club of Charleston, P.O. Box 21029, Charleston, SC 29413-1029
Copyright 2018, Rotary Club of Charleston. All rights reserved