Theme: Show Rotary Cares

1997-98 was the “Fun Year’ for District 5100 and our club. Our focus was on fellowship and membership while we carried out the RI theme “Show Rotary Cares” through our many club, community, vocational and international service projects.

Several purely fellowship meetings were held in addition to numerous events, firesides, and a great year-end dinner/dessert with Gerry Frank. Twenty-seven new members were formally inducted into our club, adding new energy and youth. Participation was encouraged, with committees being listed in the roster and attendance increasing. Ten new Paul Harris fellows were inducted, 16 new sustainers begun, and $12,700 raised for the RI Foundation. In addition, our Salem Rotary Foundation grew to almost $100,000 and used only interest earned for the first time to benefit eight youth organizations with $4,350.

Cooperative work with the other Salem Rotary clubs continued with our second $20,000 payment toward the Children’s Playground at Riverfront Park, the Rotary Workplace Food Drive, The Dictionary Project for all 4th graders in Marion and Polk counties, the golf tournament, the “community build” of the A.G. Gilbert Discovery Village, and the establishment of the Creekside Rotary Club. Other significant community projects included playground equipment for the Family Building Blocks program, improved playground equipment for Lake Ladish School, support for Reading is Fundamental in five schools, tree planting at Leslie School, and the first annual Ducky Derby, which supported the A.C. Gilbert Children’s Museum.

Finally, the year will also be remembered for the strategic planning effort to set guidelines for future good works projects, the complete revision of our classification system, the setting and review of club goals by mid-July with our first ever Assistant District Governor, a new record of $7,370 to the Salem Rotary Foundation from bellringers, the induction of five new members in one meeting, and another RI Presidential Citation. Indeed, it was a “fun year” in which we “showed that Rotary cares…”