President's Article - July 2011
I want to begin my presidency with the words “thank you”. Words that are never said as much as they should be, but words I think about all the time in my experience with Rotary.
First, thank you for the honor of being your president. I, like you, have no idea how this happened. My wife is still shocked that this kind act was actually the result of some election and that you did not change your mind. When I come to lunch (and look at our roster) and see all the CEO’s, Executive Directors and leaders in our community, I am always blown away that you would let me touch any aspect of this club, let alone lead it.
Second, thank you for the honor of being associated with all of the great work you do. I feel so privileged to be associated with the great people in this club and all that they accomplish. To touch so many people is truly the gift of life and that is what I treasure the most about Rotary. Whether it is the 1,700 children and families we will serve at our camp this year, raising $2,000,000 for our capital campaign, ending Polio or reading to underprivileged children, I am always blown away at how much we do with so few people.
Lastly and most importantly, thank you for the honor of being your friend. I truly value and treasure the relationships I have formed at this club over the last several years. My mom has told me for over forty years that she never thought I would be able to keep one friend, let alone 116. Take that Mom!
So with those thoughts in mind, I should probably share my two very simple goals as President with you: 1) for us to developer deeper relationships with each other and 2) for us to bring more great people and possible relationships (members) to our club. if the measure of a person is his/her friends/relationships (and it is), I am truly a wealthy individual and I want all of you to feel wealthy too, and that is why I have started a program called “My Life”.
Every few weeks three Rotarians are going to share with us what matters most to them in their family, profession and philanthropy. They will share with us what defines them, what they are most proud of and what they dream about doing next. We had our first installment at Tuesday’s meeting as delivered by John Reyes, Lance Chima and Bill Manby, three of our most active members. If you missed it, you really missed the heart of Rotary and hearing from three great men. I actually teared during John’s talk. I sincerely hope you won’t miss the next one, it is July 26th, and perhaps even bring a guest. If I was not a Rotarian and I attended that meeting I can assure I would be one today.
All my best and have a Happy fourth!
By the way, you probably figured out by now that the picture you see associated with this article is not me, it’s my kids and my purpose on earth. Please meet Alex (my oldest) and Nikki (my youngest).
Looking forward to seeing you soon!
I truly hope you will help me accomplish both. We all have such a great story to tell and all we have to do is tell it. Try it you might be surprised at how compelling your story truly is.
Yours in Rotary,
Mark Krohn
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