International Assembly 2018

Kim and I arrived in San Diego on 13 January, and immediately become busy in activities and preparing for the Governors Elects’ arrival today.

The staff of Rotary International do a very comprehensive job of planning and organizing this event.  The average attendee is so absorbed in the energy of the event that it’s rarely noticed.  A couple of examples include the practice sessions the day before each event.  Below, we are practicing the introduction of the Boards and Partners which will happen tomorrow morning.

Starting the day with practice for tomorrow’s Board of Directors’ introduction.

The ‘backstage’ area is as advanced and enormous as any Broadway production, and I’ve found it 

interesting in that Kim and I were backstage several times at the International Convention as well, 

that most of these people are ‘mild-mannered’ staff by day, but during these Rotary worldwide events, they take on the mantra of what they really enjoy as an avocation.  We are very fortunate to have the quality of staff of over 700 individuals around the globe who work at the Secretariat.

Backstage, note all of the equipment in the background.

The Governors Elect are arriving today and some of them have actually been in Southern California for a day or so, experiencing the area before the start of the Assembly.

DGE George & Lannette from Western Virginia enjoying the sites.

After lunch, the Rotary Board of the Directors and the Rotary Foundation held a joint meeting, covering several topics, such as Disaster Response, Regional Leaders, and Strategic Planning.

About as real as it gets...

The Boards of Directors and Trustees, staff, and invited guests total 80 people.

The head table during the joint meeting.

Director Elect Jeffrey Cadorette receiving Level II Major Donor recognition from Chairman Paul.

DGE April, and Jeff Clark.

DGE Frank Jalik.

PDG Brian, one of the Assembly Trainers who will be facilitating classes with the Governors Elect all week.

The Opening Session of the International Session began with an awesome African Drum performance, with lots of audience participation.  

And then the moments we have all long awaited, the Presidential Theme for 2018-19!

Rotary International Theme for 2018-19

President Elect Barry Rassin gave a wonderful and inspiring address, introducing the President’s Theme for 2018-19, and asked us to "LEAP" to action!

Past Director Julia Phelps, RIDE Jeffry, and me.

Kim & Peter Kyle from Zone 33.

Selfie with DGE Patrick.

Fellow Rotarians from Zones 33/34 at breakfast.

President Elect Barry & Esther at the Cultural Exchange expo.

PDG Haresh Ramchandani addressing the Assembly with vigor.

Rotary's Vision Statement

Kim leading a roundtable discussion with Governor Partners from India and Australia.

Always great to visit with our dear friend, Past Rotary President Raja Saboo from Chandigarh in India.

A long and action packed week which seemed to literally fly by our vision.  Team building and forging new relationships as well, the Rotary International Assembly of 2018 is now history, and our +500 Governors Elect from around the world are headed home to "Be the Inspiration" as the new Governors of their respective districts on 1 July.

It's beginning to get Very Real...

 After over a year of planning and preparation, the time is almost here for Kim Waters and me... 

My own personal Road to Rotary now spans over half my life, some 33 years, and I am so grateful to the many friends I’ve made all over this planet.  I think that we've done some good for our fellow man over the past three plus decades. And... Kim Waters and I are a Rotary couple. Kim joined Rotary in 2008, became her club's president in 2010-11, and served as our District's Governor in 2016-17. We both are very passionate about Rotary and Our Rotary Foundation.

We have been very fortunate to serve in many roles, and this newest role as a member of the Rotary International Board of Directors in 2018-20 will be, we're sure, a wonderful journey for Kim and me. With over 1.2 million members worldwide, Rotary has over 500 districts which are then combined into 34 Zones. The 34 Zones are then paired in twos to create 17 slots which are filled on the board by a member from one of the two paired zones. The President & President Elect of Rotary International also serve as members, creating a Board of Directors consisting of 19 members from around the world. Directors serve for two years, and their successor is from the other paired zone, creating equality of representation over each four year period. 

While members of the Board represent all Rotarians, the individual Directors work more closely with the District Governors in their ‘home’ zones. Kim and I have, we believe, already built a wonderful relationship with the Class of Governors in Zones 33 & 34, and we are looking very forward to working closely with them and their successors in each of their respective years.  Technology, such as the free group messaging app called WhatsApp, has brought this group of governors together with frequent real time discussions about items which affect their planning, and ultimate success, in their year. 

It is our intent to blog regularly in this upcoming capacity, to further the communication between the Board Room and the feet on the ground Rotarians whom Kim and I represent, not only in our home zones, consisting of the Southeastern United States, the Caribbean and the northeast coast of South America, but also fellow Rotarians around the world. 

We hope you’ll join us in our journey, through this blog, as we seek to Do Good in the World. 

_______________________________

It's beginning to 'Get Real.' There has been a flood of emails and text threads as the Governor Elect prepare to make the trip to San Diego on this weekend for their week of training. And from the perspective of a Director Elect, this trip to the International Assembly will be my fourth. First, as a Governor Elect in 1994. Second, as a member of the Training Cadre in 2004. Third, as a Governor's Partner for Kim's year as Governor of North Georgia USA in 2016. Now, in 2018, as a soon to be Director of Rotary International.

The Flag Ceremony with all of the countries of Rotary represented is unbelievable.

The Grand Hyatt in San Deigo, host hotel for the International Assembly.

Kim's photo at International Assembly two years ago, complete with badge and Governor's Official Jacket.

Each of the prior trips had its own flavor and type of excitement, but this year, it's especially exciting.  That's for obvious reasons of course, but especially because Kim and I have already developed what we think are pretty special relationships with the 29 soon-to-be governors of Zones 33 & 34.  They're an awesome class of governors.  A lot like their predecessors, but in their own very positive ways, an extremely special group of women and men.  Also, it's a truly rate event for us in that we'll be serving during the year in which Barry & First Lady Esther Rassin from Nassau, Bahamas, friends of over 20 years, will serve as the President of Rotary International.  If that's not blessing enough, our second year on the Board of Directors, Mark & First Lady Gay Maloney from Decatur, Alabama, will serve as the President of Rotary International.  This friendship also dates back over 20 years in Rotary.  What a humbling, and truly great blessing and opportunity.

We're sure that it will be an awesome adventure next week, as we watch the incoming class of Governor worldwide make their final preparations for their year at the helm of their respective districts.

Stay tuned!   And be sure to subscribe for email notifications of subsequent blog posts at the top right of the blog page!