One of the highlights of any Rotary Club is an in-person visit by the District Governor. On Friday, November 19th, we were privileged to have District Governor Bev Harrington at our Club for our Regular. Assistant District Governor Duane Rhodes introduced the Governor. Bev Harrington was born in San Mateo, California living in the same house until she left for college. Bev was an exchange student in Austria and attended the University of California, Berkeley until marrying and starting a family. Bev and her husband Dick live in Burlington. She joined Rotary in 2005 and was attracted to the organization because of our motto, Service above Self. She is a member of the Paul Harris Society and a Major Donor of the Rotary Foundation.
The major focus of our Rotary International President is what brings us together as Rotarians was emphasized by the Governor. Her brother still lives in California, and she has never seen her brother without him wearing his Rotary pin. She spoke of her early involvement in Burlington. There are five clubs in Skagit County. She was drawn to an article in the newspaper about the contributions these clubs have made to the community. So, she showed up for their Friday morning meeting and the rest is history.
The main concentration of her visit and talk was about the time is now to get the word out to students who will be high school 11th graders in September about applying for the Snohomish County YES team. YES stands for Youth Engaged in Service. The YES brochure says that the YES Program touches many lives through unique local and international service opportunities. Their mission is to provide leadership development opportunities while engaging youth in service both locally and internationally. The cost per Club in Snohomish County would be $2,000 per student. $1,000 offsets the student's $2,500 program fees for training materials, the team building retreat, Youth Adventures in Leadership Conference (YAIL), and so much more.
She also encouraged everyone to register for the District Celebration (aka Conference) next May at Semiahmoo Resort.
This was a fantastic visit by our District Governor and one of the first since the Covid-19 outbreak. Thank you, DG Bev Harrington, for your visit, words of wisdom and leadership.