9/9: Coach Chris Mack, College of Charleston Basketball

September 9, 2025

A high energy meeting with Coach Chris Mack, the head basketball coach at the College of Charleston. Coach Mack talked about the changing landscape of college basketball and how it has impacted his recruiting and team building for the Cougars. In this age of payment for players and NIL money, being a ‘no football’ school allows the CoC to focus their resources and build a top caliber basketball program. Although the game has changed, he sticks to his core philosophy which has made him a successful coach with more than 300 wins in the NCAA. He is committed to recruiting players of high integrity and character, and guides his team with his TRUE philosophy: Toughness, Resilience, Unity and Energy. Coach Mack is enthusiastic about the talent and character of this year’s team and has high expectations for a successful season.

Lots of great stuff going on in the Club and in the community and a couple of service opportunities coming up. Don’t forget our August Social on September 24 at Bay Street Biergarten. Check the Keyway for more info.

To join an upcoming meeting by Zoom use this link and the passcode: Rotary.

To see the video of this week’s meeting, go here

Passcode: 1SW4!em2

IN OTHER MEETING NEWS

Denise Kaufman gave the Invocation and led us in the pledge.
Steve Morse welcomed our visiting Rotarians and guests.
Tyler Jones introduced our speaker, Coach Chris Mack, who discussed College of Charleston Basketball

MORE IN THIS WEEK’S KEYWAY

September 16, 2025 | Issue 5176| President: Karla Combs

UPCOMING EVENTS

9/16 – Dr. Benard, Operation Footprint
9/20: Service Project: Star Gospel Mission (9am-12:30) Sign up
9/23 – Chris Crolley, Coastal Expeditions (11am Book Club)
9/24 – September Social; Bat Street Biergarten: 5:30PM
9/30 – College of Charleston LIFE Program (11:15 am New Member Orientation)

NEWS BRIEFS Reminder … Guest RSVP by 5pm on Monday

If you are planning to bring a guest to Rotary, it is important that you let Carroll know by no later than Monday at 5pm. There is some preparation that needs to be done for all guests prior to the meeting. Guest fee is $30 paid at the door. First-time prospective members are free.

Children’s Book Donations Being Accepted during September

Our Rotary Club is partnering with the Charleston Library Society (“CLS”) for their new Book Drop Program. For the month of September, our Club will be accepting donations of new and gently used books for children aged 0-5. We will be accepting donations at our regular Tuesday meetings for the remainder of the month. The CLS Book Drop Program is aimed at enhancing early literacy opportunities for children who may not have access to age-appropriate books. The CLS Book Drop Program will be placing these books in Mini Free Libraries throughout the Charleston area that are designated as literacy deserts by community partners.

Fall Fix-Up Day @ Star Gospel Mission

Please join us in volunteering with Star Gospel Mission on Saturday, September 20, 2025 from 9:00AM – 12:30PM for their Fall Fix Up Day. We will be assisting with cleaning and painting apartments, landscaping needs, and the cleaning of their large transport van. Please find the SignUpGenius link below to RSVP – we are seeking fifteen (15) Rotary volunteers. SignUp: Link: https://www.signupgenius.com/go/10C0945A4AA2AA7F5C52-58516400-star

Club Service Team Needs Meeting Day Volunteers

We are always looking for Greeters, Invocation & Pledge presenters, as well as volunteers to introduce our visiting Rotarians & guests at weekly meetings. Please contact Club Service Chairman, Sgt. Cody Callerman at [email protected] if you would like to volunteer at a weekly meeting.

OneWorld Health Recognized as an RCCF International Grant Recipient

Our club was pleased to recognize OneWorld Health this past Tuesday as a 2024/2025 RCCF International Grant recipient. Missie Parker attended on behalf of the organization and thanked our club for our support. Our club’s donation will help expand access to critical diagnostic services by equipping two OneWorld Health facilities in Uganda with advanced laboratory equipment—a Complete Blood Count (CBC) machine for Kijunjubwa Kitara Medical Centre and an immunoassay machine for Kyegegwa Diagnostic and Imaging Centre—improving diagnostic speed, accuracy, and patient outcomes for underserved communities.

Chess Club Needs Volunteers

Be A Mentor is a Charleston-based non-profit that partners caring adults with local youth to build supportive, one-on-one relationships that inspire growth, confidence and brighter futures. Through this program, Rotarian Cody Callerman has started a youth chess club to help students develop critical thinking, patience and a sense of community. Please contact Cody Callerman at [email protected] if you would like to be on our club’s Chess Team!!

New Member Orientation – Sept. 30th

The next new member orientation session is scheduled for Tuesday, September 30th at 11am. All new members who have not attended a previous session are encouraged to attend. This is a wonderful opportunity to learn more about our club, our Rotary District and Rotary International. It is also a requirement on the New Member Check List.

“Birthday” Blue Bucket Donations

President Karla plans to announce all monthly member birthdays at the first meeting of every month. Blue Buckets will for the first meeting of the month will be “Birthday” buckets and all donated contributions the first meeting, unless otherwise announced, will go to support BabyBLOOMS, which is a program at the Ronald McDonald House Charleston. This new program offers support and resources designed to strengthen and assist families as they journey from the hospital to home. Through weekly learning and activity sessions, BabyBLOOMS seeks to enhance the parenting experience using evidenced-based practices, while creating an opportunity to enrich bonding, infant care, and development. On the other Tuesdays of the month during July and August, Blue Bucket donations will go to the Kerrville, Texas Rotary to support flood disaster relief in their area.

July – December Dues 2025 Past Due

July-December 2025 dues invoices have been distributed via email and are now considered PAST DUE. Past due statements were emailed this past week to all those who haven’t made a payment. Payment is due promptly and partial payments are accepted. Please note that payments can easily be made 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.

Be “Spotlighted” at a Meeting

The Rotary Club of Charleston will continue to highlight members twice a month. Members who are interested in being spotlighted should let Julianne Farnsworth know of your interest and she will assign you a date. 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 2025/2026 Theme: Unite for Good

The 2025-26 presidential message, announced at the 2025 Rotary International Assembly in February, will remain Unite for Good, which calls on Rotary members to be a force for unity in a world increasingly divided by politics, geography, and ideology. Through service projects, Rotary brings together people of every background — across races, religions, and professions — in a shared mission to do good in their communities.

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: New Instagram Account

We now have anew Instagram account! Please follow us on @charlestonrotaryclub. Thanks To Charlie Jablon for setting this up. Continue to follow us on Facebook and LinkedIn, too. 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] Charlie Jablon [email protected], and Jason Noble, jnoble @primefinancial.com

MEMBER NEWS

Resignation With much regret, the Board accepted the resignation of long-time Rotarian Robin Freer. We appreciate his many contributions to our club and will miss having him as a member.

Proposed New Member The following membership candidate has submitted an application and signed letter of agreement to the Historic Rotary Club of Charleston:

Jimmy Hyams – sponsor: Michael Smith; classification: Banking/Community Development

Nicholas Pavia (“Nick”) – sponsor: Michael Smith; classification: Wealth Mgmt.

In the event you know Jimmy or Nick, please tell a member of the Board how he will serve the ideas of Rotary.

MEMBER SPOTLIGHT Rotarian Owen Clary, who has 50 years of service under his belt (including 49 with perfect attendance) gave us a colorful account of his life’s journey. While he has a razor sharp memory, it doesn’t hurt that he’s been journaling every day of his life since he was 13, accumulating hundreds of notebooks that contain his thoughts and observations throughout his well traveled adventures. Owen, whose family has been in South Carolina for more than 300 years, dating back to their migration as Huguenots from France (where there is a town that bears the family name), shared a number of anecdotes and learnings that we can all benefit from. Thank you for your remarkable service Rotarian Owen, and for the entertaining talk. Birthdays Birthdays

9/19 – Lewis Edge
9/22 – Past President David Burt

WELLNESS TIP Get enough vitamin D As the days become shorter, try to get outside in the sunlight for 15 minutes per day to get your fill.

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 1^st & 3^rd 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