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We were excited to be joined once again by Rotarians Sheri Major, who was back after a grueling tax season, and Gil Barnes, who was back after a not-so-grueling winter in sunny Florida.
Tim reported out on activities from the May Board Meeting:
From our Treasurer, our Club account is in good shape, with not a lot of activity, although funds are starting to come in for the golf tournament. As far as the Foundation account, investments are down roughly 13% as the market is not so great at the moment, however we are reminded that we are playing the long game and should not be overly concerned. Tim, Jeff, and Frank will be meeting to put together a proposed budget for next year.
Gil provided a recap of the Spring Community Grant cycle detailing $65K in requests received by the Club. The Grant committee met on Monday and provided a recommendation to the Board which approved $13,676 in funding along with a multi-year commitment to a local organization which will total $25,000 over 5 years. Organizations will be notified about awards later this week.
The Membership Committee will be meeting on May 12th at 4 pm at Ed's house. The topics planned for discussion are recruitment, retention, and membership guidelines.
The Scholarship Committee is beginning to receive applications. Tim reminded the Club that we are growing our scholarship giving which has increased from $1,000 to $1,500/year and from 4 to 6 scholarships awarded annually. He also reminded the Club that unlike most scholarships, the Chariho Rotary Scholarships follow students for all 4 years of their undergraduate education.
Frank is continuing to work with the URI Master Gardeners on the Courtyard. We may do a service project in advance of a planned ceremony at the school to memorialize the library in memory of Barry Ricci.
The Little Libraries project moves forward with Interact. The Club has purchased 10 little libraries which the students will be painting. Each of the 4 elementary schools has agreed to receive a library and we are currently looking for locations for the other 6.
Plans for the golf tournament on June 10th are coming together. The tournament is now SOLD OUT with all 144 golfer spots filled. Rotarians are encouraged to follow up with their assigned sponsors and raffle items. Rotarians can also bring in their contributions to the liquor and wine baskets at any upcoming meeting. Finally, there will be a Million Dollar Meal at Ed's house to stuff golf bags on June 7th.
Other upcoming dates of note:
May 31st: Community Giving Night
July 12th: Directors and Officers Installation & Interact Installation Night
July 26th: Scholarship Night