December 10, 2024

We welcomed Gabby Herrar and Mary Frances Page of the Southeastern Wildlife Expo (SEWE) to give us a preview of this extremely popular even that attracts visitors from all over the world to Charleston. And they offered Rotarians a unique opportunity to volunteer at this year’s event (Feb 14-16) and help raise money for Rotary at the same time. Read on for more information on how to volunteer. SEWE is fantastic multi-day, cross cultural event that offers something for everyone who has an interest in the outdoors, the environment, wildlife, art and many other interests.
Lots going on this Holiday Season in Rotary with volunteer opportunities, events and more great speakers. Check the Keyway from important meeting and events information.
To join an upcoming meeting by Zoom use this link and the passcode: Rotary

To view a recording for this week’s meeting go here Passcode: 3JA0090=
For more information on SEWE, go here
IN OTHER MEETING NEWS
- Paul Attaway gave the Invocation and led us in the pledge.
- Karla Combs welcomed and introduced our visiting Rotarians and guests.
- Health and Happiness was presented by President Robert.
- Past President Digit Matheny introduced our speakers, Gabby Herrara and Mary Francis Page, who discussed the upcoming Southeastern Wildlife Expo (SEWE) scheduled for February 13-16.
MORE IN THIS WEEK’S KEYWAY December 17, 2024 | Issue 5152 President: Robert Sullivan
UPCOMING EVENTS
- 12/17 – Annual Holiday Luncheon at Hall’s Chophouse, 12-1pm
- 12/19 – Holiday Party for Seniors @ Ansonborough House, 1pm
- 12/24 – NO MEETING – Happy Holidays!
- 12/31 – NO MEETING – Happy New Year!
- 1/7: TBD
NEWS BRIEFS
Holiday Schedule – NO MEETING THIS TUESDAY, 12/24 or 12/31
We will NOT meet on Tuesday, December 24 or December 31. We hope everyone enjoys this special time with family and friends. Our first meeting after the New Year will be Tuesday, January 7th.
Annual Holiday Luncheon at Hall’s – December 17 (RESERVATIONS CLOSED)
Our Annual Holiday Luncheon at Hall’s Chophouse (434 King St) is scheduled for Tuesday, December 17th at 12:00noon (doors open at 11:30am). We have reached the maximum number of attendees for this event, so reservations are now CLOSED. If you didn’t RSVP by the deadline and would now like to attend, please contact Carroll directly to be added to the waiting list. All guests are $40. Please be sure to bring CASH or a CHECK to the event. Due to the overwhelming number of attendees, we will not be able to run credit cards at the event.
Holiday Luncheon for Seniors at Ansonborough House
Volunteers are needed to help “celebrate the season” and spread holiday cheer to the seniors who live at the Ansonborough House, 71 Society Street. This is a long-standing tradition of our club and we want you to be a part of it. Volunteers should arrive at 12:30pm to set-up and decorate, serve a delicious buffet lunch at 1pm and get ready to distribute holiday cards with gift cards to Harris Teeter to the 80 seniors who call Ansonborough House home. We’ll have a special appearance by “Santa” and sing Christmas carols with the residents, accompanied by Past President John Tecklenburg on the piano. Be sure to wear your most festive holiday attire, including your favorite Santa hats or reindeer antlers! Also, be sure to stick around after our Holiday Luncheon at Hall’s Chophouse on 12/17 to help sign the Christmas Cards to the residents and stuff with the Harris Teeter gift cards. The more signatures and holiday messages, the merrier! Volunteers can sign up using the below link: https://www.signupgenius.com/go/10C0945A4AA2AA7F5C52-53684472-ansonborough
SEWE February 14 – 16, 2025 – Volunteers will be needed
Our club has been given the opportunity to work at SEWE 2025!!! In the spirit of the PGA project, but only 3 days, our club members will earn FUNDS FOR OUR CLUB and FREE ENTRY TO SEWE!!! Sign-Ups will come out soon with more details on positions such as merchandise sales, parking attendants, ticket takers, etc. We need ALL HANDS ON DECK as this could bring our club $20,000+ if we have strong participation within our club – family and friends are welcome as well!
To sign up for a job, go here
Bikes for Africa Volunteers Needed
The next collection day is January 19th. From 2-4pm, volunteers are needed at Murray-LaSaine Montessori School, 691 Riverland Drive, Charleston, to accept bikes and load onto vehicles for transport to the warehouse in North Charleston. And, from 3-6pm, volunteers will be needed to help with the breakdown of the bikes and loading into the container at the warehouse at CD Nutra, Piggly Wiggly Drive, #C, North Charleston. The link to sign up is below.
https://www.signupgenius.com/go/10C0945A4AA2AA7F5C52-53864139-bikes
Volunteer and Help Raise Funds for the RCCF
It’s College of Charleston Basketball season!! Our Club members have thee unique opportunity to not only attend the Cougar games but RAISE FUNDS FOR THE CLUB by volunteering at the game!! Positions will include ticket scanners, ID scanners, ushers and up to 7 of the positions can be filled by volunteers aged 16-17 for those community service credits through Rotary!! Parking is FREE at the St. Philip St Garage!!! Your shirt is provided and khaki pants complete the uniform. Complete details, dates and SIGN UP on the link below: https://www.signupgenius.com/go/10C0945A4AA2AA7F5C52-50046538-epifunraising
Be “Spotlighted” at a Meeting
The Rotary Club of Charleston will be highlighting a member of the club twice a month through June of 2025. Members who want to be spotlighted need to let me know of your interest and I will assign you a date. At the assigned meeting, you will have approximately 2 minutes to tell the Rotary Club membership about yourself. You can use visual aids and/or just talk about yourself. Please take advantage of this wonderful opportunity to “spotlight” you and your personal and professional achievements. Contact Julianne Farnsworth at [email protected] if interested or for more information.
Rotarians Against Human Trafficking (RAHT)
One of Rotary’s big initiatives this year is to combat human trafficking. It’s a prevalent, but also oftentimes unspoken issue. Past President Alissa Leitzow is the RAHT Ambassador for our club, so please reach out to her for more information on how to get involved. [email protected]
Rotary International 2024/2025 Theme: Create the Magic of Rotary

This year’s Rotary Presidential Theme is “The Magic of Rotary”. You will see the themed banner hanging on the podium every meeting. Rotary International President Stephanie Urchick encourages members to recognize and amplify the organization’s power to save lives. Clubs are encourage to celebrate the magic of Rotary that is created with every project completed, every dollar donated, and every new member of Rotary.
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, [email protected], or Rob Byko, [email protected]
MEMBER NEWS
It is with much sadness that we announce the passing of former long-time Rotarian Lorraine Perry. Lorraine resigned in 2020 after serving our club for over 31 years. She was an active and dedicated member of our club and participated in so many ways. She was a Board member, as well as a Committee Chair of multiple committees and projects. She also support Rotary International as a multiple PHF, a Rotary Benefactor and Bequest Society member. She loved Rotary and truly lived her life by our motto of “Service Above Self”. Lorraine will be missed by all.
President Robert had the pleasure of inducting two new members at our last meeting of 2024 this past Tuesday. Bryse Ranniello was introduced and sponsored by Leslie Fellabom. He will hold the classification of Realty/Commercial. Past President Sandy Morckel introduced and sponsor Sean Glavin, who joins us with the classification of Parking/Technology.
We welcome Bryse and Sean to our Rotary family! We are pleased to announce that Cody Callarman, Clara Heinsohn, Richard Kelly and Conner Spangler have all been elected to the 2025-2026 Board of Directors. Their 2-year term will begin on July 1, 2025, they will join President-Elect Karla Combs, Rob Byko, Karen Clark, Julianne Farnsworth, and Mike Sottak on the Board. We had a strong slate of candidates and sincerely appreciate all candidates’ willingness and desire to serve our club. Congratulations to all!
MEMBER SPOTLIGHT
Rotarian: Theresa Atkinson
New member Theresa Atkinson was our featured Member Spotlight speaker, and it was her birthday, too! She recently moved from Washington State to assume the role of CEO of Seagrove Recovery, a soon-to-open 41 bed adult inpatient substance abuse treatment facility in Mount Pleasant. Theresa also shared that she is a person in long term recovery (17 years!) from substance abuse and mental health issues. Her inspiring talk reminded us that many people suffer from similar issues, and we may not recognize them or their challenges. People who suffer are recovering and living their lives. Support from families, friends, colleagues and communities is critical. Recovery is different for everyone and she reminded us that we need to meet everyone where they are in their own recovery journey. Theresa’s openness and honesty, and willingness to help other with similar issues, has been impactful to others and she offers the benefit of experience to anyone whom she might be to help. Thank you for you inspiring talk, Theresa
Birthdays
- 12/21 – Rosalinda Loredo, Will Ralston, Harrison Boals
- 12/22 – Ed Sutton
WELLNESS TIP
Take time for yourself. Give yourself the gift of peace. If you need some downtime to recharge, declare a “me-treat” and do something that relaxes you. Try yoga, meditation or spending time in nature.
OTHER AREA ROTARY CLUBS
Mondays
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. https://www.cainhoyrotary.com
Wednesdays
Daniel Island: 7:30 a.m. Wednesday, Daniel Island Club, 600 Island Park Dr., Daniel Island
Mount Pleasant: 12:30 p.m., Wednesday, Mt Pleasant Presbyterian 302 Hibben St
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: Robert Sullivan
Executive secretary: Carroll Schweers, [email protected]
Mailing address: Rotary Club of Charleston, P.O. Box 21029, Charleston, SC 29413-1029
Copyright 2018, Rotary Club of Charleston. All rights reserved