President's Letter ~ Mark Irvin The last three months have been a whirlwind. So much is happening in October that I elected to hold off on the first quarter report to members until both our Centennial Celebration and the Tucson Classics Car Show were, pun intended, in the rear-view mirror.
July 7th kicked off our first luncheon meeting of the new 2021-22 administration. It coincided with our move back downtown after a 39-year absence. The newly remodeled Tucson Convention Center is our new home, a move fitting of our 100 years of “Service Above Self” and returning to where it all started – DOWNTOWN.
Although we are not out of the woods yet, we are back to meeting in person. We still maintain many protocols we learned in the past and have brought on others as we do our best to keep everyone as safe as possible. After seeing President Bob wrestle with pandemic related issues during the last 3 months of his administration, we saw these concerns continue during the first 9 or 10 months of President Jen’s time at the helm. Both were uniquely qualified to get us over those humps and helped set the stage going forward. Thanks to both for their amazing leadership.
Hopefully, with safeguards in place we will be able to continue to meet in person. We will also continue with our broadcasts on YouTube for those unable to attend but wanting to keep in touch. My hope is we can enjoy this year, and next, by doing a hybrid meeting – both in person and virtual.
The Keynote Speakers at our luncheons have been drawn from the “Tucson Treasures” well. We have had some incredible keynote speakers so far this year. This includes the likes of Randy Rogers (Tucson Association of Realtors); Colonel Joseph Turnham (DMAFB); Adia Barnes (UA Women’s Basketball); Bishop Gerald Kicanas (Catholic Cathedral); Kathy Prather (Pima Co JTED); David Yetman (The Desert Speaks & Inside the America’s); Fletcher McCusker (Rio Nuevo); Rotary District Governor “Hank” Huisking (District 5500); Bonnie Schock (Fox Theatre); Zach Yentzer (Tucson Young Professionals); Lisa Bates & Diana Madaras (Tucson Wildlife Center); Joni Condit (Tucson Classics Car Show); and General Ted Maxwell (Southern Arizona Leadership Council). An all-star lineup.
Please note that all these meetings are recorded and able to view both live or later on our Rotary YouTube Channel if you missed it. This provides a great opportunity for us to stay connected and is also a great sales tool for folks who just want to know more about Rotary.
Our Centennial Celebration at the Tucson Convention Center on Saturday, September 25th was a big success. It was attended by just shy of 200 folks. Although it will be a few weeks until final numbers are out, it appears $28,900 was made in the live auction and $35,000 in the on-line auction, so netting out fees, roughly $60,000 was raised in these two auctions. Also, close to $19,000 was made with our Centennial insert with the Arizona Daily Star. It will all go toward not just keeping, but exceeding, our $250,000 commitment to Pima County JTED.
Our 15th annual Tucson Classics Car Show was held on Saturday, October 16th at The Gregory School. Over 400 cars were in the mix, and it is estimated that over 25,000 people attended.
Outside of our commitment to JTED, our biggest goal this year is to grow our Club. Yes, we lost a few members when we moved downtown but all of them stayed engaged in Rotary and have joined other Clubs that were more convenient for them. Despite this, our Club grew during the 1st quarter, and we now stand at 250 members with 15 of them being community leaders we have tagged as our Centennial Honorary Members. These folks provide incredible connectivity for us.
Another membership goal is to increase the percentage of women in our Club. We are tickled to report that during July we increased from 28% to 29% women in our Club. This will be a continual trend with Past President Jen heading up the recruitment of women and Board Member Steve Pickering focusing on women as well as recruiting younger members and those who are a better reflection of the demographics in our community.
The next President’s quarterly report will showcase the results of the Tucson Classics Car Show, the Ride to End Polio and provide an update on the Boys and Girls Clubs DEK Hockey Rink Landscape project.
Hard to believe that Thanksgiving is only a month away. Looking back and forward, we have much to be thankful about this year.
