At the Thursday June 26th meeting of the Hickory Rotary Club, outgoing club President Suzanne Trollan announced that Hickory Rotary club received two awards at the recent Rotary District 7670 conference, held in Greenville, SC, June 20-22. District 7670 is comprised of 51 clubs stretching across 22 counties in Western North Carolina.
Hickory Rotary club was awarded a Rotary Presidential Citation, which is earned based on criteria determined by the President of Rotary International. The award recognizes individual Rotary clubs for an array of achievements that promote Rotary membership growth, enhances charitable service through the Rotary Foundation, and strengthens Rotary’s network domestically and internationally. Individual Rotary clubs that qualify for the Presidential Citation contribute to Rotary’s strategic goals and multiply the impact of their good work through the network of more than 34,000 Rotary clubs worldwide.
Hickory Rotary was also awarded a District Governor’s Distinguished Club Citation which recognizes individual clubs for annual achievements in club service, membership services, vocational service, community service, Rotary Foundation support, international service, and youth service.
Following the awards ceremony, outgoing club President Suzanne Trollan passed the gavel to incoming Club President David Moore who was inducted by District 7670 Assistant Governor, Jack McCaskill. Also inducted were President-Elect Mark Seaman, Treasurer Bob Conklin, and Secretary Leslie Ferrell-Middleton. The new officers will serve with the club’s Board of Directors: Michael Blackburn, Bruce Bumbarger, Deborah Frendak, Cliff Goddard, Linda Lutz, Mark Teague, and Mary Texer. Dan Kirby will continue to serve in the assistant treasurer’s role and Jan Bohmuller will act as assistant secretary. Trollan will continue serving the Board in the past president’s role.
Also recognized were outgoing club Treasurer Lynn Loehr, outgoing Secretary Rusty Isenhour, and outgoing Director John Bates.
In adherence to Rotary’s motto of “Service Above Self,” the club’s primary service avenue this year will again be education. Over the years, Hickory Rotary has designated fundraising activities to reward and recognize Hickory City School teachers, provide college scholarships for deserving Hickory High School graduates, support Hickory Museum of Art’s annual Paul Whitener student art show, as well as participating in a tutoring program at Southwest Elementary.
Entering its sixth year the club’s popular annual fundraiser, Rotarian Idol, has allowed the club to be a major financial supporter of Imagination Library, administered locally by the Catawba County Partnership for Children, a local non-profit agency that works to ensure that children in our county begin school healthy and prepared for success. Children enrolled in Imagination Library are mailed a free, age-appropriate book each month until they turn 5 years old.
In addition, Hickory Rotary engages in a number of other community service projects that benefit local citizens in need, such as Christmas bell ringing for the Salvation Army, working with Catawba County Hospice to provide food and gifts at Christmas, supporting Community Blood Center of the Carolinas’ annual blood drives and financial support for several local non-profits.
