Pictured here is President Gretchen Harvey with Rotary International President Francesco Arezzo of Italy, taken at the recent RI Convention in Calgary, Canada.
The Rotary Club of Omaha is proud to announce a distinguished start to the new Rotary year with the official installation of President Gretchen Harvey and the 2025–2026 Board of Directors. This year’s installation is especially meaningful, as we are joined by no less than Nebraska Secretary of State and proud Rotarian Bob Evnen, who will preside over the ceremony.
Rotary District 5650 Rotarians: This is my first newsletter of the new Rotary year. First, let me tell you what an honor and a privilege it is to be your 2025-26 District Governor. We have an exciting year ahead of us and I know we will all accomplish important things together serving our communities and the world as we “Unite For Good.”Before I give you my message for July, I would like to thank PDG Tom Kerfoot, Omaha Suburban Rotary Club, for his great leadership over the past 2024-25 year in serving our Rotary District. Thank you, Tom!!
Tom, along with the rest of our District Leadership Team, did an excellent job, always thinking of others and how to best serve our Rotary Clubs. We are fortunate as Tom will continue to serve next year as Foundation Chair. Mick McKinley, PDG, Council Bluffs Noon Rotary Club, is stepping down after serving in this role for many years. A big thank you to Mick for his many years of dedicated service. Please thank him when you see him.
Hopefully, that won’t be long, as he and his bandmates from “Paul Harris and his Fellows” will be headlining at our Fall Rotary District Conference, October 17-18th, 2025 at the Scott Conference Center, Aksarben Village, Omaha on Friday evening, October 17th, 2025, for “Rotary Got Talent”.
I am writing this message to you having just returned from the Rotary International Convention in Calgary, Alberta, Canada June 21-25th, 2025. Including Rotarians and their family members, we had twenty-seven people in attendance from our Rotary District 5650. Thank you to everyone that attended. 15,000 Rotarians and their families from around the world attended.
The RI Convention was held at the Calgary Stampede Grounds & BMO Center where everyone did their best to make us feel welcome. The standard headgear was the Calgary white cowboy hat, and we all got into the spirit. There was even a Rotary Ferris wheel that you could ride. Outstanding speakers, breakouts, food, rodeo and music entertainment, tourism sites and networking were all part of the experience.
We heard from outgoing Rotary International President, Stephanie Urchick and incoming Rotary International President, Francesco Arezzo. I look forward to sharing his message of “Unite For Good” with all of you at my upcoming Rotary Club meetings over the next few months.
Rotary is not new to the idea of “Unite For Good.”
