Club President Kristin Keller called the meeting to order. She welcomed all to the start of a new Rotary year.
Kevin Courtney offered the prayer and led the pledge to the flag.
Lynn King, Immediate Past President, presented Creighton Stuckart with a "President's Sprit of Service" award.
Sergeant at Arms, Suzi Oliver introduced the speaker, Major General Craig Whelden. Craig has served over 30 years in the Military, has retired to Bluffton in 2019and is an award winning and best selling author and Fortune 500 speaker.
The title of his book is "Leadership: The Art of Inspiring People to Be Their Best", and that was the basis of his presentation today.
He told many of the stories that are in the book which are leadership and life lessons to be learned. One story was the "next rung on the ladder". First you need to figure out what is an attainable goal and be happy when you get there. The rung above that may be too difficult or impossible to attain so be happy the the goal you have attained. The message of the story is not to strive for mediocrity, but strive for realistic goals. There needs to be a balance. Other messages he relayed through story were to be careful of your priorities, make sure you put the right rocks in the jar. . He shared a personal story of a low point of his life when, after moving to Fort Hood as a young married couple, his wife left him. A senior leader mentored him telling him about his own challenges and that "there is light at the end of the tunnel", which in time became evident to Craig. Other lessons and inspirations about leadership, teamwork value, and life were shared through stories based on his years of experiences. For more inspiration, read his book - "Leadership The Art of Inspiring People to Be Their Best". Also visit his website: CraigWhelden.com
Craig generously donated a copy of his book to be raffled off. Lucky John Cunningham was the winner!!!