Talking with Six More District 7570 Rotary Clubs

Over the past four days, I have spoken with six additional District 7570 Rotary Clubs.

On Monday, I was pleased to present events from my Ambassadorial Scholar year to Rotarians from the Rotary Club of Johnson City-Evening.  Below I am presenting a banner with Club President Preston McKee.

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On Tuesday, I spoke with the Rotary Club of Johnson City.  This Club is always a treat as it's one of the largest in the entire district and also the second oldest chartered club in the area.  I was happy to formally exchange a banner with President Mitch Meredith below.  (I also used this opportunity to wear my Rotary in London neck tie...click the picture and zoom in.  The tie was a present from London Rotarians, and I think it's a nifty map of central London.)

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I spent Wednesday in Kingsport, speaking to two other Rotary Clubs.  In the morning, I spoke with Rotarians from the Rotary Club of Kingsport Sunrise, and at noon, I gave a presentation to the Rotary Club of Kingsport.  Below I am sharing a moment with the Kingsport Sunrise President Connie Salyer.

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Today I spoke to two final clubs.  First, this morning, I went to the Bristol Public Library and spoke with the Rotary Club of Bristol Morning.  Below Club President-Elect Alex Andersen and I exchange banners.

For lunch, I travelled to Kingsport once again and spoke with Rotarians from the Rotary Club of Kingsport-Downtown.  Below, I am presenting a banner to President Lesa Phillips while President-Elect John Pridemore looks on.

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All in all, it has been a great pleasure to speak to 20 Rotary Clubs from District 7570 over the past few weeks.  I have enjoyed thanking these Rotarians who, through their generous contributions, have afforded me the opportunity to study public health in London, England.

THANK YOU!

Commissioned as a U.S. Navy Officer

Yesterday, as you can tell from the picture above, I was commissioned as an O-1 (or the most junior officer) in the United States Navy. In this role, I will serve as an Ensign in the Navy Reserve while attending medical school. Following medical school and residency, I will spend four years serving as a Navy physician.

After entertaining some other medical school funding options, I am proud to say that this arrangement will allow me to remain debt-free (even in the positive with my officer salary) throughout medical school. In addition I take pleasure in following in both my father's and uncle's footsteps into the Armed Services, and serving as a Naval Officer.

The Navy will present excellent post-grad medical training as well as exciting career options including flight surgery. Furthermore, I am very interested in preventive medicine and public health, two fields I see as vitally important to not only Navy Medicine but the future of American health care.

BTW, the dress whites are pretty nice I will admit (especially once I serve and get some medals/service bars)...though my formal commitment won't occur until a few years down the year.

God Bless America!

In Virginia for the Week -- Day 5

I awoke this morning for my final day with Virginia Rotary Clubs.  Following the past two days with hectic, but productive, schedules, we chose to sleep in today.  After waking up around 9 AM, Janet fixed a nice light breakfast of fresh fruits, cereals, and biscuits. 

I then packed up my items and Jim, Janet & I headed to Amelia's Pizzeria to spend time with the Rotary Club of Christiansburg.  This meeting was my last meeting of the week, and it was my first to have a pizza buffet at a Rotary meeting...a terrific way to conclude the week.  Below I am exchanging banners with Club President Paul Murphy.

Following the meeting, I said my good-byes to Jim and Janet, who were an excellent host couple for this week.  Below is a great picture of the Johnsons and I.

This week has also helped to shape two future ideas concerning the Ambassadorial Scholarship program in Rotary District 7570.  

(1)  The dinner at the Johnson home on Wednesday evening brought together some Scholarship Alumni, and this will help to foster collaborative ideas to strengthen alumni support of present and future Scholars from District 7570.

(2)  The format used by myself this week to connect with District 7570 Rotarians can be hopefully implemented across the district to spread the "welcome home" messages from future district scholars.

In Virginia for the Week -- Day 4

After the great dinner last night with Rotary friends, Jim, Janet, and I went to bed early because this morning we drove for close to two hours to my ninth Rotary presentation for the week.  I was pleased to speak with Rotarians from the Rotary Club of Smith Mountain Lake.  Smith Mountain Lake is a great area in Virginia, and I knew this area well because during college, Wake Forest University students would often use this area to host conferences and leadership retreats.  Below Club President Steve Miller and I share a moment in front of my club banner tri-fold.

Later, Jim, Janet, and I attend Jim's home club, the Rotary Club of Blacksburg.  I had a great time presenting to the Blacksburg Rotarians.  Below I am pictured with Club President Bob Hoover.

Later during the evening, I spoke with the Rotary Club of Roanoke which coincidentally met in the Hotel Roanoke right across the street from the O. Winston Link Museum which I visited on Tuesday.  In addition to taking a photograph (below) with Club President Larry Ptaschek, I was pleased that Jim helped to capture this Scholar Talk on digital camera video.  Although it's not the best in quality, the message has been recorded for you.  I hope it's enjoyable.  Take a few moments to give a listen by clicking here.  (The last little bit of the talk is found here.)

 

In Virginia for the Week -- Day 3

This morning, Janet and I had breakfast with Rotarians when I spoke with the Rotary Club of Montgomery County.  Below is a picture of Club President Lee Talbot and I.

For lunch, Jim and I attend the Rotary Club of Floyd.  As I found out, Floyd is a very interesting small town with an eclectic population...quite a nice treat.  Below I am shaking hands with Club President Ed Terry in front of my "Rotary...the world over!" poster, a staple backdrop for my Rotary presentations throughout the district.

There were no Rotary Clubs which met on Wednesday evening in the entire District 7570 (remember this is prime church time).  it was no problem though, because Assistant Governor Janet planned a nice evening meal and presentation at her home for around 28 Rotary participants.  We hosted District Governors (those past, present, and future) and their spouses, Rotary Scholarship Alumni and their families, and other Rotarians.  It was a nice evening of Rotary fellowship, and it greatly allowed me the opportunity to reconnect with executive leadership team for the district.  

Some pictures from the evening meal and presentation follow:

In Virginia for the Week -- Day 2

After a restful night's sleep, Jim and I headed over to Roanoke where I gave a morning presentation to the Rotary Club of Roanoke Valley.  This meeting took place at the Hidden Valley Country Club, where I was interviewed for the Ambassadorial Scholarship more than two years ago.  Below is a banner exchange between Club President Tarek Moneir and I.

After the breakfast meeting, Jim and I had  a few hours to spare before a Noon Rotary meeting.  Therefore, he treated me to a visit to the O. Winston Link Museum.  Link is a phenomenal photographer who specialized in creating masterworks with a focus on steam locomotive trains such as that pictured below.  (As a little boy, my dad and I would often--probably illegally--take hikes and ventures through railroad trestles and tunnels...so I have always had a fascination with these engines, some of which can weigh over 1 MILLION pounds.)

Following our museum side trip, we headed to "The Daily Grind," the venue for my next meeting with the Rotary Club of Salem-Glenvar.  This was a newer club in the District, and I had a great time with Club President John King (pictured below with me) and his fellow Rotarians.  

After my stint with the Salem-Glenvar Rotarians, we headed back to the Johnsons to rest and relax before my third Rotary meeting of the day.  This evening I was pleased to speak with the Rotary Club of Martinsville.  Jim, Janet, and I spent about 1.5 hours traveling to this Club, but it was my goal to visit with District 7570 Rotarians, near and far within the District.  Below I am sharing a welcome with Club President Connie Mask.

Following our trip to Martinsville, Jim, Janet, and I headed back into Blacksburg, where we retired for the rest of the evening...as we were beat!

In Virginia for the Week -- Day 1

R0tary District 7570 is quite a large geographical area, stretching from Greeneville, TN to Winchester, VA; therefore, there are many Rotary Clubs interspersed between here and there. Today, I arrived in Virginia to spend a week with Jim and Janet Johnson, both Rotarians from Blacksburg.  Over the next week, I will be speaking to eleven Virginia Rotary Clubs in the District.  These District Rotarians deserve to see where their dollars are going -- to support Ambassadorial Scholars such as myself; therefore, I am happy to spend time in this central and northern area of the District.  Next week, I will be speaking to several Tennessee Rotary Clubs in the District.

Earlier around Noon, I met Jim and Janet in Pulaski, VA, where I gave my first presentation of the week.  Below I am exchanging banners with Pulaski Club President Leroy Henry.

Following this meeting, we travelled to Blacksburg, and I got settled into Jim and Janet's home.  At 5:30 PM, I gave my presentation to the Rotary Club of Christiansburg-Blacksburg (Janet's personal club).  Below is a picture of President Ike Eller and I.  (I had met Ike down in Burlington, NC, around two years ago, and it was nice--and quite accidental--to reconnect with him.)

Following the evening Rotary meeting, Jim and Janet took me around for a visit to the Virginia Tech campus, where I paid my respects to those students and campus leaders lost in the April 2007 tragedy. Janet is a former Dean at Virginia Tech, and the VT spirit remains high in local residents.