November 18, 2009 - The Danville and Harrodsburg Rotary Clubs teamed up to raise almost $14,000 for Camp Horsin' Around.  The clubs invited Michael Angelo Caruso to speak on "Giving Remarkable Customer Service."  As a fellow Rotarian, Michael is willing to do this for clubs around the country at no cost other than his travel.  Country music star, Eddie Montgomery, was very generous in allowing Rotary to use his new restaurant, Eddie Montgomery's Steakhouse, as the venue.   Eddie and his wife, Tracy, also donated all of the food for the event!   On the Friday before the event, would-be buyers actually had to be turned away because the restaurant reached its' maximum seating capacity (277).  Afterwards, the reviews were fabulous!  Attendees loved the speaker, the food and the restaurant.  This was such a positive event - it was great to raise so much money for a worthy cause and it was great PR for Rotary.

The cause, Camp Horsin' Around (CHA), serves children from throughout Kentucky and surrounding states with illnesses including cancer, diabetes, asthma, sickle cell anemia, kidney disease, AIDs, and heart ailments.  CHA will offer a family camping center as well as support services for families.  And, through collaborations with the University of Kentucky's Children's Hospital and Hospice of the Bluegrass, the camp will offer special programs for children with obesity issues, for those who have lost a loved one to terminal illness and for siblings of ill children.

The new date for the annual Rotaract-Interact District Conference is set for Saturday, January 23, 2010 at the John J. Audubon State Park in Henderson, KY

If your Rotary Club sponsors a Rotaract or Interact Club, or if you would like to learn more about either of these fantastic programs, then this announcement is for you. 

Please encourage your Interact and Rotaract members to attend, as well as those Rotarians who are involved with these programs.

Speech Contest Packets have been sent to each club president.  This year's theme, "The Future of Rotary is in Your Hands," is our topic.  Packets and Starter information (Rotary Basics) can be viewed or downloaded from the district website.

Clubs should be promoting the contest in the high schools within their service area.  Let's try to have 60% or more clubs participation this year.  If your club is holding a contest, please have you speech contest chair contact District Speech Contest Coordinator Stan Klausing at stanklausing@bellsouth.net to provide name, address, e-mail and phone contact information.

Our next drawing for a Paul Harris Fellowship will occur just after the first of the year.  Be sure to submit your stubs so everyone will be included in the drawing.  All funds are send to The Rotary Foundation to support the many worthy local and international programs. 

January is Rotary Awareness Month, and a perfect time to ensure that your community knows about the good works of Rotary.

Public relations efforts are vital to Rotary's continued growth and service. Creating a positive image for Rotary is the responsibility of every Rotarian, both locally and globally.

Effective PR campaigns build positive, strong relationships with their audiences. But promoting Rotary's work in the best possible way and sharing your stories effectively with the public and the media are not easy tasks.

The President Elect Training Seminar (PETS) is designed to provide essential and current information to incoming club presidents in order to prepare them to have an effective and successful year. Presidents-elect will have the opportunity to hear addresses by top Rotary leaders and motivational speakers, attend small group discussion sessions and roundtables on various topics lead by knowledgeable and experienced discussion leaders, and network and exchange ideas with presidents-elect from six Rotary districts.

Attendance at PETS is MANDATORY for every club president-elect per the Rotary International Standard Club Constitution, Article 9, Section 5 (c).

Registration for Rotary Mid-South PETS is now open.  The registration deadline is March 1, 2010.  Make your reservation early to ensure a place in the hotel.  Its fills up fast!

Registration and other information is available online at www.midsouthpets.org.

Please update your records with the following information:

• The phone number for Tracie Deaton, Executive Secretary of the Paducah club, is (270) 442-3418.
• The Paducah Club holds its meetings in the Carson Center.
• David Payne is now the president of the Daviess County Club.  His email address is davidpayne@kycourts.net.
• The e-mail address for Tim Asher, president of the Elizabethtown Club, is tasher515@comcast.net.