Happy New Year 5610 Rotarians!

As we prepare to embark on the second half of our Rotary year, I'm sure that many of us are in the process of writing down and starting to implement our new year's resolutions and goals.  I've always believed that goals seemed a lot more achievable and less daunting than resolutions. In either case, I think that it is good to have a plan in place to make one's life better, healthier and happier by implementing and sticking to new goals!  As most of you know, we also set goals early in our Rotary year, and now is a great time to step back and review our progress towards achieving our goals. I know that many of you have set membership goals, and I also know that many of you are well on your way to meeting or surpassing your membership goal!  If you and your club fall into that category, Congratulations and Great job!  If  you aren't there yet, the good news is that the year is only half way through, and there's plenty of time to still meet and surpass your original goal. District Membership Chair Carmen Hansen is a great resource for ideas on kickstarting and firing up your membership plan!  

I'm so pleased and excited to announce that the charter application for our newest Rotaract Club has been submitted to Rotary International.  Much appreciation and kudos to Tahiry, the Northern Black Hills Club, and District Chair Carmen for doing the heavy lifting to get STURGIS ROTARACT to this point!  I know that they are planning a meet and greet in the very near future...be sure to give them a shout out and wish them a rousing Rotary welcome when you have the opportunity!  The new club already has it's first project planned and with our support, I'm confident that it will be a huge success!  There are also at least three other clubs in the formative stages, and I applaud everyone for all the hard work that goes in to getting new clubs started.  As we all know, it's a long and arduous process to get to the point of charter, and then the work begins!  Be sure to thank your club leadership for their commitment to keep your club strong and productive.  It is you, the local member, and local club leaders that are the foundation and the strength of our great organization...be sure to thank your club president and board members at your next meeting for the good work they do!  

Plans for the upcoming State Foundation Raffle are well underway.  Project Chairs Stacey Kutil and Mark Barry are doing everything they can to make this year's raffle a huge success!  A large part of foundation giving comes from the the net proceeds generated by the Raffle, so be sure to buy and sell as many tickets as possible for this very important project.

This year's PETS will be held in Mitchell, April 7-9,  and it promises to be a  great way for our new presidents-elect to start their journey in Rotary leadership.  DGE John and District Trainer Kay Norton have worked for the past several months to make this event a great experience for our new leaders!  The spring District Assembly and Foundation Raffle drawing will be held during the PETS assembly as well, and all local members are welcome to attend.  

There are so many powerful and exciting projects underway across our District and I'm so very proud of every committed Rotarian that is making these projects and growth a reality!  Let's all do whatever we can to make our district the best it can be....reach out to a friend, neighbor, or business associate to share Rotary, start the project you've kicked around since last year, and give often and generously to our Rotary Foundation!  Thank you all for sharing your time, talents and treasures so generously with Rotary.  

Service above self in Rotary,