1/16: Mid year Club Assembly – Rotary Club of Charleston

January 16, 2024

Our first official meeting of 2024 and we’re off and running. Several of the Club Board Members and Committee Chairs gave updates on their respective areas, with lota of big plans for fun, fellowship and fundraising in the works. And big congrats to Karla Combes who was selected to be out next president-elect, taking the podium in the 2025-26 Rotary year. Read on for more info on upcoming events, projects and meetings to ring in the new year!

IN OTHER MEETING NEWS

- DJ Hampton gave the Invocation and led us in the pledge.
- Joe Maas welcomed all visiting Rotarians & guests.
- Health and Happiness was presented by President Cleave.
- President Cleave introduced our Mid-Year Club Assembly. President Cleave and our club’s Board of Directors reported to the membership on our Club’s goals; discussing their plans and activities for the next 6 months; and, soliciting members’ input and participation in these plans and achieving these goals in the upcoming months.

MORE IN THIS WEEK’S KEYWAY
January 23, 2024 | Issue 5113 President: Cleave Ham

UPCOMING EVENTS

1/23 – Steve Romano – FBI Hostage Negotiator
1/30 – Past Mayor John Tecklenburg
1/31 – Low Country Orphan Relief care kit packing (shifts): Sign up here
2/6 – Ben Towill – Rowing across the Atlantic
2/10 – Colonial Lake gardening (9-11am) Sign up here
2/13 – Casey Lavin, Bemok Hospitality
2/16 – Operation Home (9am – 1pm) 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 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.

Special Dietary Requests

If you have a special dietary request or need, be sure to let Carroll know in advance of a meeting. She will work with the staff at Hall’s to ensure that you are prepared a special plate that meets your restrictions. Please do not enter the kitchen area to make a last minute special request.

Red Badgers – New Member Session THIS Tuesday

The next New Member Orientation is scheduled for this Tuesday, January 23 at 11am, in the room where we meet for lunch each week. Past President & current Assistant District Governor Sandy Morckel will be presenting. This is a great opportunity to learn more about our club and how it fits into the global Rotary organization. And, it’s a great way for Red Badgers to make progress on their new member checklist to ultimately get a BLUE badge. If you can’t make it, the next New Member Orientation is scheduled for Tuesday, March 19, 2024.

Upcoming Community Service Opportunities

Thank you to all the Rotarian volunteers who participated in our Community Service projects last year. We had a great time, lots of fellowship, and most importantly, MADE CHANGE IN CHARLESTON!! Now we’re kicking off 2024 with three great projects. Pick your date, time or talent for one of these or join us for all three!! Sign up links are below:

January 31, Low Country Orphan Relief care kit packing

https://www.signupgenius.com/go/10C0945A4AA2AA7F5C52-47274926-lowcountry

February 10, Gardening at Colonial Lake

https://www.signupgenius.com/go/10C0945A4AA2AA7F5C52-47275359-garden

February 16, Operation Home

https://www.signupgenius.com/go/10C0945A4AA2AA7F5C52-47275596-operatio

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

It was wonderful to have Past President Paul Stoney back with us at Rotary this past Tuesday. Our thoughts and prayers continue to be with Robin Freer, who is continuing to recover at home.

Welcome to our newest member, Madison Hancock! Madison was sponsored and introduced by Hugh Lane. She will hold the classification of Banking/Mortgage. We are excited to have Madison join our Rotary family!

Congrats to Tammy Coghill and Dave Echols who were named one of “Charleston’s 50 Most Influential” by Charleston Business Magazine. Also, listed in the magazine’s “Hall of Fame” are two Past Presidents of our club – John Tecklenburg and Anita Zucker.

We are pleased to announce that the Board confirmed Robert Sullivan as the 2024-2025 President & elected Karla Combs as President-Elect for 2024-2025 (President 2025-2026). Robert and Karla will assume their new leadership roles with the club on July 1. We appreciate their dedication and desire to lead the club in the coming year!

The Board accepted resignations from Andy Brack and Elizabeth Lynn over the holidays. We will miss these Rotarians and wish them all the best!

Proposed New Members

The following membership candidates have submitted an application and signed letter of agreement to the Historic Rotary Club of Charleston:

Barnie Howell – sponsor: Clara Heinsohn/Robie Scott; classification: Non-Profit/Exec.

Stephen Moody – sponsor: Digit Matheny; classification: Real Estate

In the event you know Barnie or Stephen, please tell a member of the Board how she will serve the ideals of Rotary.

MEMBER SPOTLIGHT

Rotarian: Khanh Tran

JOINED: February 20, 2023

SPONSOR: Harry Staley

CLASSIFICATION: IT/Cyber Security

PROFESSION: Boeing/Technologists Aspiring through Servant Leadership (TASL)

Community Service Organizations, Current Activities or Activities/Volunteer Work in the Past: Low Country Autism Foundation, Society of Asian Scientists and Engineers Professional Charleston, and Technologists, Aspiring through Servant Leadership

SOMETHING UNIQUE ABOUT YOURSELF Grew up in the Bayou in Alabama. Family was in the seafood business with a shrimp boat. All of our boats start with Little Star. The most recent pontoon is named the Littlest Star because it is, so far, the smallest of the fleet.

Birthdays

1/27 – Past President & Honorary Member Conrad Zimmerman

WELLNESS TIP

Reflect and set intentions

Before diving into a new year, take a moment to reflect on the past year. What worked well for your health, and what could be improved? Identify the positive habits you want to maintain and set realistic goals for the upcoming year. Whether it is adopting a more active lifestyle, prioritizing sleep, or incorporating mindful practices, setting clear intentions will guide your journey toward a healthier you.

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 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: Cleave Ham

Executive secretary: Carroll Schweers, carrollschweers@gmail.com

Mailing address: Rotary Club of Charleston, P.O. Box 21029, Charleston, SC 29413-1029