October 2024

My dear fellow Rotarians,

I hope everyone is doing as well as can be expected as we all continue to navigate the recovery process from Hurricane Helene in our own District and in our sister District, 7670. We know that recovery is going to be a protracted process, likely covering years before there is some return to normalcy. Of course, it’s not just the loss of property and economic hardships our friends and fellow Rotarians must face in the months and years to come, but it’s also the loss of so much on a personal level. Our Rotarians and friends in District 7670 and even some in our own District will need our support in many ways, including physically and emotionally.

I have had the opportunity to visit about 34 clubs of the 53 in our District as of today, and many of you have heard me talk about the Action Plan (our Strategy) that Rotary International wants us to employ as we go about the work of Rotary. There are four components of our Action Plan:

• Increasing our Impact
• Expanding our Reach
• Enhance Participant Engagement
• Increasing our Ability to Adapt

Nothing has challenged our ability to adapt like the destruction caused by Helene. Plans have been disrupted across multiple levels as we all find ourselves asking the same question: how can we help?

First of all, I’ll share with everyone that our District has committed to raising $100,000 to help with longer term needs for western North Carolina. This includes our own District 7680 and District 7670. We know Ashe and Alleghany Counties in 7680 suffered some extensive damage and we will do our very best to support them in recovery. We will do the same for the devasted communities of District 7670. We are hopeful that District 7680 Rotarians will step up to our challenge of contributing to the Zone 33-34 Platform where the District will match every dollar up to $50,000 for this fund. As a reminder, if your intention is for your donation to be used for Western Carolina, please designate this on your check memo line or in the space for credit card donations. Please check out the District website for the latest information: https://rotary7680.org/

I also wanted everyone to know that we applied for a Rotary Foundation disaster grant in the amount of $25,000 and that was approved. We will use that grant for my instant needs as articulated by clubs in our impacted communities. 

In addition, I wanted everyone to know that the logistics folks in 7670 are asking that we don’t send food, water, and most other supplies. They are good with money coming in at this point but in need of volunteers. There are many different needs for people in their communities and they are in the process of determining what those needs are.

Please check this page frequently for updates.

DG Kevin Kendrick

Partnering with Catawba Riverkeeper results in 7300 pounds of trash removed!

We had an excellent turnout for the Catawba Riverkeeper event on 10/5, in spite of the fact that many locations were closed due to the fallout from Helene,

Rotarians from around District 7680, converged on certain parts of the Catawba River which actually runs through nine of the 14 counties in our District. This project has been planned since the “Community Action for Fresh Water” Initiative was announced in January of this year. This initiative between Rotary International and the United Nations’ Environment Program, aims to protect and restore local waterways and falls squarely within our focus area of protecting and sustaining our environment.

I participated with a gaggle of Rotarians from around the greater Charlotte area today, including Kim Brattain from the Rotary Club of Charlotte, Marty McInerney from the Rotary Club of Matthews, Jerry Overcash of the Charlotte International Rotary Club, Choice Gray of the Charlotte Queen City Impact Club, Amarja ChhWbb and Ashley Thiel of the Charlotte Dilworth Club and several others including soon-to-be member Tim Suh! Thank you ALL for your service to the community, to the District, and indeed, to the world.

Here’s what the Catawba Riverkeeper said on their Instagram account:

“Wow! We are SO impressed by all of the incredible volunteers who spent their Saturday morning supporting their community and cleaning up our waterways at Riversweep! In just three hours, these amazing folks removed 7,336.28 pounds of trash! This year was not just a trash cleanup, though, as some volunteers spent time clearing debris and shoveling sediment left by Helene. ⁠
⁠
Every year we are blown away by the can-do attitudes and hard work exhibited by everyone who participates, and this year was no different. Thank you, thank you, thank you to everyone who braved the muck and mud of Riversweep, and to the many people who worked behind the scenes to make this event possible!⁠
⁠
We appreciate everyone’s patience as we made last-minute changes in response to the storm, and we look forward to hosting the Riversweep sites that had to be postponed when it is safe to do so. Keep an eye out for our upcoming cleanups so you can get involved in the work of preserving, protecting, and restoring the waters of our river basin.“

As you all know, October 24^th is World Polio Day and clubs around the District have celebrated and recognized it by engaging with their city and county leaders to officially recognize it as well! While we won’t be able to share all of them, here are a few examples of how Rotarians in our District have stepped up and created awareness around polio and Rotary’s efforts to eradicate it. In a time when vaccine hesitancy is very real, we must do all we can to promote how diseases can be prevented when we work together as communities. Although we can take comfort in knowing that only two countries and a few cases stand between us and a polio-free world, evolving situations on the ground in Afghanistan, help to inform us that in many ways, the hardest part of this work is in front of us. That’s why creating awareness of polio and the dreadful implications of this disease is such a priority for clubs and districts around the world.

Rotarians from the Rotary Club of Charlotte, receiving the Joint Proclamation from the City and the County.

We have a few of the proclamations obtained from clubs highlighted below:

Joint Proclamation issued by Vi Lyles, Mayor of the City of Charlotte and George Dunlap, Chair of the Mecklenburg County Board of Directors.

Proclamation issued by the Gaston County Board of Commissioners 

Proclamation issued by the Town of Weddington, NC

Proclamation issued by the town of Waxhaw.

At a Glance: 2024-25 District Grants 

District-wide Service Projects

District 7680 will be conducting two district-wide service projects in order to create impact within the District and garner maximum media interest. These are projects that impact our entire District and as such, lend themselves to participation from many clubs. We hope to create awareness about Rotary and our causes and attract potential members while making an impact in the areas of focus associated with these causes.

Please see the following two projects and consider helping us grow our impact as we share the gift of Rotary with others!

Alexander County: Title I Schools – Alexander County Schools District

Alleghany County: Title I / Title I Schools (alleghany.k12.nc.us)

Anson County: Title l Schools – ANSON COUNTY SCHOOLS (ansonschools.org)

Ashe County: Federal Programs / Title I (schoolwires.net)

Cabarrus County: Cabarrus County Schools – Title l Overview

Cleveland County: CCS Title I – Title I Schools (google.com)

Gaston County: Title l Schools 2023-2024 on GCS Letterhead.pdf (gaston.k12.nc.us)

Iredell County: Title 1 Contacts – Iredell-Statesville School District (issnc.org)

Mecklenburg County: Federal Programs / Title I Schools (cmsk12.org)

Richmond County: Federal Programs • Departments – RICHMOND COUNTY SCHOOLS

Rowan County: Federal Programs / Title 1 (rssed.org)

Stanly County: Title I Program Information 2023-2024.pdf – Google Drive

Union County: Federal Programs / Federal Programs (ucps.k12.nc.us)

Wilkes County: WCS Title 1 Schools – Title I – Wilkes County Schools

Healing from Trauma

Romy Cawood, PhD, Charlotte Dilworth South End Rotary Club

 Americans’ understanding of trauma has grown over time and with the pandemic our understanding developed a few steps more.  But there is so much to know about trauma, some of which is counter-intuitive.

When people think about the term trauma, they often think about big or obviously frightening experiences, but experiences that may appear inconsequential to some people can cause trauma.  A helpful definition of trauma is: experiencing a threatening situation that overwhelms a person’s coping resources.  A threatening experience on its own does not necessarily lead to trauma.

Traumatic experience can look many different ways.  It could involve a single episode, like a car accident, or could involve a series of situations, like a history of childhood neglect.  It could occur at any age.  It could be relational, or non-relational.  But no matter what the particulars, or how disturbing the symptoms are, there are several key elements to the process of healing.

The first is understanding why the post-traumatic symptoms are there.  In my practice I have found that providing information about what is happening in the brain and body is very helpful to people dealing with trauma, and sometimes this alone helps reduce their distress.  Another is to develop more flexibility in accessing traumatic material, both bringing it out and setting it aside.  Developing this skill helps restore a sense of control.  Another key tool is to have a reliable practice to ground the self in a calm state.  Professional trauma treatment builds systematically on the brain and body’s natural abilities to heal.

If you, or someone you know is living with unhealed trauma, here are some things to know:

1  Post-traumatic symptoms are “normal,” in that they are indicative of an unhealed experience.

2. Some people heal without professional help.

3. Professional treatments for trauma often involve both the brain and the body, whether through dialogue, accessing memory, imagination, or through physical movement.

4.  Sleep is instrumental to healing from trauma.  Getting good quality sleep is worth the effort!

5.  It is never too late to address an unhealed trauma.

For more resources on healing from trauma:

9 Signs We Are Healing From Trauma:  A look at the most common ways survivors recognize healing and growth.

https://www.psychologytoday.com/us/blog/invisible-bruises/202302/9-signs-we-are-healing-from-trauma

Resources on trauma and healing, including a guide inspired by ‘The Color Purple’

https://www.apa.org/topics/trauma/healing-guide

How to cope with traumatic stress

https://www.apa.org/topics/trauma/stress

Trauma and Recovery

Judith Herman, MD

The Body Keeps the Score:  Brain, Mind, and Body in the Healing of Trauma

Bessel A van der Kolk, MD

Foundation Matters – Monthly Bite-sized Webinar

Third Thursday each month at 6 pm – 6:45 pm Eastern Time. Join virtually at https://us02web.zoom.us/j/85767045645?pwd=Gc3KmgTKdV63aIarbDYnuEBZY8vizZ.1

Personal tragedy turns a polio vaccine refusal into a vaccine advocate

For Lalgul, a father in Afghanistan, refusing the polio vaccine for his children resulted in his one-year-old son contracting polio. The child’s right leg became permanently paralyzed. Lalgul tells the story of his son’s challenges and how coming face-to-face with polio has made Lalgul a vaccination advocate in his village. Click here to continue reading.

A Proclamation for World Polio Day! Can we Spread It?

We are giving a HUGE shout-out to the Rotary Club of Charlotte for their initiative to have a Proclamation issued by the Mecklenburg County Board of Commissioners, recognizing October 24, 2024, as World Polio Day.

The idea was conceived by Immediate Past President Edwin Peacock and then advocated for by current President, Kim Brattain. Kim assembled a team of awesome club members to get this done, including Tish Atkins, Laura Meier, Virginia Owen, Donna Dunlap and Christine Cipriano. Here’s the verbiage they developed for the Proclamation:

Proclamation
World Polio Day
Mecklenburg County, North Carolina
October 24, 2024

Whereas, World Polio Day is observed annually on October 24th to commemorate the birth of Jonas Salk, who led the first team to develop a vaccine against poliomyelitis; and

Whereas, the global effort to eradicate polio has been one of the most successful public health initiatives, reducing polio cases by over 99% since 1988; and

Whereas, Rotary International, the World Health Organization, the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, UNICEF, and the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation have led the Global Polio Eradication Initiative; and

Whereas, polio is a highly infectious disease that can cause paralysis and sometimes even death, primarily affecting children under the age of five; and

Whereas, thanks to extensive vaccination efforts, polio is now endemic in only two countries, Afghanistan and Pakistan, but it remains a threat until it is eradicated everywhere; and

Whereas, the eradication of polio will prevent an estimated 10 million cases of paralysis in children over the next 40 years and will save over $40 billion in healthcare costs, particularly in low-income countries; and

Whereas, continued vigilance and immunization are essential to ensure that polio does not return to polio-free countries; and

Whereas, the residents of Mecklenburg County are encouraged to support polio eradication efforts and raise awareness about the importance of vaccination; and

Whereas, the commitment to eradicating polio is a testament to what can be achieved when communities, governments, and organizations around the world work together towards a common goal; and

Whereas, on this World Polio Day, we honor the dedication and efforts of healthcare workers, volunteers, and organizations who strive to eliminate this disease and improve global health.

Now, Therefore, Be It Resolved, that the Mecklenburg Board of County Commissioners hereby proclaims October 24, 2024, as World Polio Day in Mecklenburg County and urges all residents to recognize the importance of continued support and efforts to eradicate polio globally.

Signed this 24th day of October, 2024,

Now, here’s my ask of club Presidents: Can we replicate this in each of our 14 counties within District 7680? It would be great if every Board of County Commissioners could issue a similar Proclamation, recognizing October 24^th as World Polio Day! Let’s make this happen and do something truly exceptional to honor our work in eradicating polio!

The Paul Harris Society

Update: As you may recall, PDG David Hare issued a challenge to Rotarians, requesting that we attain 50 new Paul Harris Society members by 50. (For those not aware, The Paul Harris Society recognizes Rotary members and friends of The Rotary Foundation who elect to contribute $1,000 or more each year to the Annual Fund-SHARE, the Annual Fund-World Fund, the PolioPlus Fund,  the Disaster Response Fund, and several other opportunities. PHS members make up only about 9% of all Rotarians but account for over 25% of all monies contributed to the Annual Fund.)

He posed this challenge as an homage to Jenny Kendrick, late wife of current DG Kevin. That was an aggressive goal, given that at that time, we only had 168 PHS members in District 7680. PDG David’s goal was to reach 218 by the end of the Rotary year in 2025. We are happy to report that as of date, PDG David has added 60 new PHS members to our rolls, for a total of 228 PHS members for our District! Thank you PDG David for your incredible effort in growing this program and in honoring Jenny!

David still says, “Let’s make the memory of Jenny even more special and grow her legacy!

Contact PDG David Hare – District PHS Coordinator ([email protected]) for more details or go to www.rotary.org/paulharrissociety, scroll down and click “Join.”

When I was five my dad, Kemp Michael, took me to the first Mt. Holly Rotary Christmas Party for underprivileged kids.  The year was 1982 and he was the president of the club.  There were about 25 kids there and we had a ball.  We got to eat as many hotdogs and hamburgers as we could possibly shove into our mouths.  I won the eating contest that year with 5 hotdogs and 2 hamburgers.  I was about to pop.

It was a great party on that cold dark night in December.  It was warm and festive inside and all of the kids had a great time.  After we ate we sang Christmas carols and then Santa himself showed up and handed out presents to all the kids.  My dad had explained this was a party for these kids and I would get to open my presents on Christmas morning.  I did not mind that I wasn’t getting a present that night until I saw one of the kids open my Christmas present!

I asked for an Armatron Robotic Arm for Christmas that year and I had peaked through a fold in the wrapping paper at home just the day before and knew for sure my Armatron was safely tucked away under our Christmas tree.  I was a bit concerned when that boy opened my present with the same wrapping paper but I didn’t say anything and tried to be happy for him.  Apparently one of the Rotarians could not make it to the party and therefore one child did not have a gift.  My dad discovered this problem halfway through dinner and ran home and grabbed my gift.  This caused a bit of stress that year for me as I was uncertain as to what to expect come Christmas morning.  But never fear, Santa came through for me and brought me my Armatron!  It all worked out!

Now, 42 years later I organize this annual Christmas party with a glad heart and fond memories of all the years we have touched the hearts of these wonderful kids in our community!  There is nothing like bringing a smile to a child’s face at Christmas and I want to thank my dad for this great tradition and all the kids he has touched through this wonderful event that he still attends with me each year.  He celebrated 50 years in Rotary this year and I am so very proud of him!

Rotarian Erika Hudson and members of the Charlotte South Park Club are looking for your support as they provide support to Montclaire Elementary School in Charlotte, a Title 1 school.

One thing you can do is support their Greater Enrichment Program, which has served more than 10,000 at-risk-elementary aged children since 1975. Students are given academic, cultural and social instruction in a safe and loving environment. Additional learning opportunities are offered to students and families through GEP’s partnerships with more than 20 community organizations. GEP is a licensed after-school program that operates at three sites in Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools.

THANK YOU to Rotarian Don Seitz – RC of Cabarrus County (D7680) – for sharing about #TheCARTFund during his recent vacation in the Pacific Northwest & Canada. He raised more than $1000 to help us #EndALZ & then some of his fellow club members MATCHED some of the District 5050 club donations!!

Pictured are left to right: DG Kevin Kendrick, Charter member and CART Fund chairman Steve Morris, Club president Woody Hathaway, Don Seitz, and Club member Alan Goodman. Both Steve and Alan matched the $544 in donations made by Canadian Rotarians!

10 tips to inspire partners to work with you on a service initiative

We know that amazing things happen when we work together. And successful partnerships are key to allowing Rotary to increase our impact. But how do you persuade others to support your meaningful service initiative?

In a recent webinar, Rotary members and partners shared 10 tips on how to identify and secure partners:

1. Commit to bold ideas.
   Find ambitious approaches that address the underlying cause of an issue. Sustainable solutions will pique the interest of those outside Rotary who care about solving the same problem. Share those ideas with potential partners. Panelists suggested that the challenge often isn’t money as much as a failure to inspire partners with our solutions. Bold ideas that will create lasting, positive change will motivate partners to work with us.
2. Develop your idea with Rotary expertise and project tools.
   As you develop (or later implement) your bold idea, remember that you don’t have to do it alone. Leverage the expertise that exists in Rotary and use project tools such as:
   • Your district resource network, which includes members of The Rotary Foundation Cadre of Technical Advisers and of Rotary Action Groups
   • The Conducting Community Assessment handbook
3. Prove your concept.
   Start with a small project and local donors and collect data that shows your approach is effective. With this proof, you can develop solutions to serve more people and attract larger donors. Involve your government and emphasize how the project will help members in specific communities. Panelists suggested this mindset: “We’ll do this even if you don’t give us funding — but if you do, we’ll make this impact much faster.”
4. Use your Rotary network to identify potential partners.
   Attend district and club-led events, interclub assemblies, the Rotary International Convention, project fairs, and other activities. Participate in programs like Rotary Action Groups and Rotary Fellowships that bring people together through shared professional and personal interests. Feel confident contacting members around the world. Just by saying, “I am part of Rotary,” you can build relationships. You can also ask members whether other professional networks or organizations they’re part of might be excited about your bold solution.
5. Keep building your network outside Rotary.
   Look beyond Rotary. Who else in your community is working to address similar issues? Connect with them! Seek introductions to people in your professional and social networks who care about the communities your project or program will serve. As you work with trusted partners, ask who else they collaborate with. This helps you build your network of potential partners. Approach financial commitments the same way: When you have one initial commitment or match, use that to approach other partners.
6. Identify potential partners whose goals align with yours.
   Find out what local governments and communities say their needs are and notice which groups are doing meaningful work and have programs that implement solutions. Learn about their goals and determine if they align with your own. Partners who share goals are more motivated to find ways to work together, combining their strengths to overcome weaknesses and integrating big ideas into a more efficient, effective solution.
7. Emphasize that Rotary is “local” around the world.
   Rotary’s impact is based on collective action. Tell potential partners that collaborating with Rotary means having the ability to activate our “local” global presence and commitment to service. Our network of people engaged in making a difference and experienced in convening diverse local leaders means that partners can work with people who are committed to and capable of implementing sustainable, community-led solutions.
8. Remember that potential partners are looking for good ideas.
   Companies, family foundations, government agencies, and other potential partners are seeking opportunities to use their financial resources to do good in the world. They are looking for solutions that would make their investment worthwhile. Rotary members can offer them bold ideas with well-planned, locally led programs they can be part of. Invite them to join you in creating lasting, positive change.
9. Consider rejection as an opportunity.
   Don’t be discouraged if potential partners say no. Ask for feedback! Provide more information to clarify any misunderstandings. They might prefer a different scope, approach, or target area than you planned on. Consider whether you can adjust your proposal to incorporate their interests while working toward the goals you have in common or if you can connect them with another Rotary group that’s more aligned with them.
10. Accept that building a partnership requires time.
    Partnerships are built over time and by maintaining relationships. Panelists shared how they solidified the trust necessary for long-term commitments: starting with unfunded collaborations, working on smaller projects with less funding, and staying in contact through project updates or holiday greetings. It may take more time than you expected to build the relationship, but the trust and understanding that develop makes the partnership more likely to be successful. By using these tips, you can engage potential partners and build lasting collaborations that create positive change in your communities.