1/6: Connor O’Rourke, First Tee

January 6, 2025

Connor O’Rourke of First Tee gave us an update on this great organization, which is the beneficiary of a grant from our club, that helps kids learn all about the joys of golf. It’s a sport that can be enjoyed for life, and teaches a wide range of skills that can be used on and off the course.

Happy New Year to everyone! Lots in store for 2026.  Check out the Keyway for upcoming events and schedules.  Lots of fun stuff going on in the Club, including  an important Discover Rotary event all the clubs in our region are hosting on February 3

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

To see a recording of this week’s meeting  go here

Passcode: e%%60%g#

 

IN OTHER MEETING NEWS

• Cody Callarman gave the Invocation and led us in the pledge.  
• Brooke Manheimer welcomed our visiting Rotarians and guests.   
• Past President Robert Sullivan introduced Conor O’Rourke of First Tee, who shared information on the organization.

 

• MORE IN THIS WEEK’S KEYWAY 

January 13, 2026  |  Issue 5188| President:  Karla Combs

UPCOMING EVENTS

• 1/13 – Nieta Wiese, Charleston Sister Cities Int’l / 11am Board Mtg
• 1/20 – Steve Slifer, Economist / MEETING LOCATION: HIGH COTTON
• 1/27 – TBD / 11am Book Group
• 1/28 – Blood Drive: 10-3 Charleston PD
• 2/3 – NO MEETING
• 2/3: – Discover Rotary (North Charleston Marriott, 5:30PM) Sign up here
• 2/5 – Monthly Social: Elliotborough Mini Bar
• 2/10 – Faith Rivers, Coastal Conservation League / 11am Board Mtg.
• 2/17 – Mayor William Cogswell / 11am New Member Orientation
• 2/18 – Rotary Leadership Institute: Daniel Island – Sign up here

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 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 and sign in at the Membership Table. 

Discover Rotary event: February 3

In early 2026, our District Membership team, in conjunction with local clubs, has organized five in-person events called Discover Rotary, which are meant to promote Rotary and educate prospective members about the benefits of joining our organization. These educational, networking-style seminars, open to the general public, provide an overview of Rotary International’s structure, mission, and achievements, as well as the benefits of joining a local community club.

The first of these will be held on Tuesday, February 3, at the North Charleston Marriott (5:30-7:30 PM) and will be hosted by all 12 clubs in the Charleston region. District Governor Sandy Morckel will serve as MC for this event. The sign-up link is here: https://www.eventbrite.com/e/discover-rotary-greater-charleston-area-tickets-1978912404272?aff=oddtdtcreator

This is an excellent opportunity to showcase all the great work Rotary does and to encourage service-minded, community-oriented individuals who live and work near you to join us.

Other event dates scheduled so far include (all events to be held in early evening hours):

• February 24, Myrtle Beach Area Clubs (Riptydz, Myrtle Beach)
• March 19, Hilton Head Area Clubs (Rotary Community Center, Bluffton)
• March 24, Columbia Area Clubs (Residence Inn, West Columbia)
• TBD, Florence Area Clubs (tbd)

The success of these events depends on the support of every local club. We strongly encourage you to conduct a proactive promotion to attract prospects from your personal and professional networks to our Discover Rotary events.  Invite anyone you think would be a great Rotarian!

 

Rotary Leadership Institute: Feb 18

Ready to enhance your leadership skills and deepen your Rotary knowledge? Join us at the Rotary Leadership Institute (RLI) event on Wednesday, February 18, 2026,  Daniel Island, SC, You will learn valuable skills with other Rotarians and will be able to make a bigger impact on your club and community.

RLI helps Rotarians learn about Rotary and develop leadership skills. Courses are engaging, topical, interactive, and geared toward busy business and professional people who want to become more effective leaders in their vocations and clubs.

Each course tackles essential topics, from Rotary basics to complex global initiatives. Whether you’re a new member seeking orientation, a rising leader building your skill set, or an experienced Rotarian aiming for higher impact, there’s a valuable part for you.

Benefits abound:

• Deepen your Rotary knowledge: Discover the breadth and depth of Rotary’s worldwide impact—past, present, and future.
• Master leadership skills: Hone your communication, teamwork, and problem-solving abilities, valuable in Rotary and beyond.
• Energize your club: Bring back fresh ideas, strategies, and enthusiasm to benefit your fellow Rotarians.
• Expand your network: Connect with inspiring Rotarians across the district and zone, building lasting friendships and collaborations.

Part 1, Part 2, and Part 3 RLI sessions will be offered during the event on February 18, 2026. Each part is a prerequisite for the next. The event will be held at the Daniel Island Club, 600 Island Park Dr., Daniel Island SC. Doors open at 7:00 am, and classes begin at 7:30 am and concludes at 1:30 pm. The registration fee is $95.

Join us for a great opportunity to meet new people and learn about Rotary!

Learn more about RLI:

https://www.midatlanticrli.org

Registration link:

https://dacdb.com/Register4/index.cfm?EventID=77880012

Questions? Contact Jerry Kozel at [email protected].

 

Zoom Volunteers Needed

We are in need of some additional folks to help out with the Zoom/AV duties at our weekly meetings. As you know, Zoom is a great platform to allow members to participate in meetings even if they can make it IRL (that’s in “in real life” for anyone over the age of 25). And we are a bit shorthanded at the moment

It doesn’t require any more skills than what you’ve probably developed using Zoom in other aspects of your working or personal life, and the club provides all the gear need, including a PC. The current Zoom team of Mike, Marion and Mark M will help train you.

If you can pitch in about once a month to support this important aspect of our weekly meetings, please contact [email protected] or see me at a meeting.

Member Spotlight

Member Spotlight provides you with the opportunity to share your background, work and hobbies with our membership.  It’s a great way for other members to learn more about you. You can be a long-time club member or a new member to participate. 

Please review the available slots below and sign up to secure your spot. 

https://www.signupgenius.com/go/10C0945A4AA2AA7F5C52-60923410-member

 

Calling All New Members – New Member Orientation on 2/17

Our club is hosting a new member orientation on Tuesday, February 17 from 11am to 12pm at Halls Signature Events (upstairs)! It’ll be a wonderful opportunity to learn more regarding club structure, committees, and values. The orientation is a requirement on the Blue Badge Checklist. All newly inducted members should plan to attend, if they haven’t already attended a session. This meeting truly gives you all the tools to optimize your involvement in the club. 

2026 District Conference – Charleston

Registration for the 2026 District Conference to be held March 20 – 22, 2026 at the North Charleston Marriott is now open. Inspiring speakers, opportunities for networking, recognition of clubs and individuals making a difference in their communities. Registration fee of $275 until March 10, 2026. Covers Friday lunch kickoff, Friday night Dinner and Dancing, Breakfast buffet Saturday and Sunday morning and Saturday night Dinner with Flag Ceremony.
Register on DACdb at https://www.dacdb.com/index.html?EventID=77882590. 

 

Support the College of Charleston LIFE Program

Our Board has elected to fund and match up to $15,000 for a scholarship to a local Charleston student to attend the College of Charleston LIFE program that we learned a lot about during last week’s meeting.  If you were unable to attend, I highly encourage you to watch the recording to see the amazing details about the program and the outstanding  

Continue to Support Polio and By Becoming a Polio Plus Society Member All Rotarians are encouraged to continue to support Rotary International’s efforts to take action and end Polio for good. You can support our efforts to end Polio by becoming a Polio Plus Society member by donating $100 through this link https://raise.rotary.org/Sandy-Morckel/fundraiser987.

Club Seeking Outbound Exchange Student for 2026/2027 School Year

Our club is currently accepting applications to sponsor a local high school student for an outbound exchange for the 2026/2027 school year. The Rotary International Youth Exchange Program offers teenage high school students ages 15-19 an opportunity to make new friends, learn new ways of living, open themselves up to different ideas, a new culture, traditions, experiences, and to adapt and gain fresh perspectives while attending high school in another country and living with 2- 3 host families arranged through the local Rotary Club. Typically, the exchanges offer the same benefits to host families. The parents of sponsored outbound students for the exchange program will need to be one of the hosts for the Charleston Rotary Club’s sponsored inbound students (for 3-6 months), while their children are overseas on their exchanges. 

• The students selected for sponsorship will go overseas in August 2026, for the 2026/2027 school year, attend high school and will be hosted by 2 to 3 families and the local Rotary Club in the host country.
• The Charleston area family of the sponsored student will need to be one of the hosts for our sponsored inbound student that will arrive in August 2026.

 CCSD currently supports this program and is accepting inbound international exchange students at various Charleston County high schools for the 2025/2026 school year and has done so for many years. The following is a website link for additional link formation: Rotary International Youth / Student Exchange Information: Youth Exchanges | Rotary International . Interested students and families will need to complete an application, engage in an interview process, and attend online and in-person training before the exchange year begins in August 2026.  

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. 

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!! 

“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. 

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

It is with much sadness that we announce the passing of fellow Rotarian Ittriss Jenkins on January 2. Itriss had been a member of our Rotary club for 4 years and was a big part of our Rotary family and community. He was very much loved by our membership and will be missed by us all. Please keep his family in your thoughts and prayers. 

 

 

Welcome to the first new member of 2026 …. Matt Pearlman!  Matt was introduced and sponsored by Michael Smith and joined us under the classification of Attorney/Business Consultant.  We are excited to have Matt join our Rotary family!

 

With much regret, the following resignations have been accepted: Theresa Adkison, Duncan Grant, Zac Jones, Deb Mauk, Conner Spangler, Kathleen Stevens and Dave Ziegler. We will miss all these Rotarians and wish them the best.      

Proposed New Member:

The following membership candidate has applied and signed letter of agreement to the Historic Rotary Club of Charleston: George Ramsay – sponsor:  Kerby Teller; classification: Finance/Wealth Advisor In the event you know George, please tell a member of the Board how he/she will serve the ideas of Rotary.

MEMBER SPOTLIGHT: Riana Brennan

New Rotarian Riana gave us an introduction to herself.  A native of Santa Cruz, Calif. and a junior chess champion and accomplished volley ball player (she played at CoC), she grew up in a Rotary family and had the ideals of service embedded in her early on. After college, she started  a home care business and later sold it to a company where she still works, providing premium home based medical care . She enjoys outdoor activities, travel and contributing to community service, particularly through Rotary that has been a common thread in her life.

Birthdays

Birthdays

• 1/3 – Lynn Burnett
• 1/4 – Zach Serrins & Drew Faw
• 1/8 – Cameron Johnson
• 1/12 – John Bleecker
• 1/14 – Karen Clark
• 1/17 – Khan Tran
• 1/19 – Anita Zucker & Elliott Williams

WELLNESS TIP

 

Keep Moving.

Not only can exercise help release endorphins that can help boost our mood and beat the winter blues, but exercise can also boost our immune system. Some fun winter activities, like a walk or hike, can be a lovely way to get blood pumped, while spending some time outdoors. Other activities include skiing, ice-skating, snowboarding, or snowshoeing. Even a park, a museum, or the zoo can be a fun way to get active. 

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: Karla Combs

Executive secretary: Carroll Schweers, [email protected]