President Lucie's Inaugural

 

We often hear that change is good for any organization and sometimes welcomed. Fortunately, Bill and I are a lot alike so this coming year shouldn't change too much if you’ve enjoyed this past year. To ease your mind, I thought I would state some of the obvious similarities and things to expect during this coming year:

 

Bill works for THE BANK so he 
•    pays taxes
•    charges you fees 
•    will give you a loan if you’re a star with an A credit rating right after he makes you jump through hoops
•    has all kinds of time on his hands to write lovely Tack messages AND
•    never takes vacation unless forced because work is just like vacation.

 

I work for THE CREDIT UNION so I 
•    don’t pay taxes
•    don’t charge you fees
•    give you a loan immediately, even if you’re credit score is less than perfect.
•    so busy helping the “members” that I don’t have time to write clever TACK messages AND
•    I take vacation every chance I can because work is work.

 

 

Now, that I have identified the similarities between our jobs, I will point out some in our personal lives:
    
•    Bill has three kids - two boys and one girl.  I have three kids – two girls and one husband.
•    Bill grew up in Saco and loves Thornton Academy.  I grew up in Biddeford and love the Biddeford Schools.
•    Bill speaks fluent English.  I speak fluent French.
•    Bill invests less than $20 to maintain his grey-haired look. I invest well over $20 every 2 weeks to maintain this Lucille Ball image.
•    Bill struggles with delegating so he spent the entire day at each project we did this past year.  I love to delegate so I promise you will see me at the projects but I trust in all of you that I do not need to be present all day.  
•    Bill has a way with words and somehow makes insults sound humorous.  I am not a wordsmith so will most likely just insult you.  
•    Bill doesn’t have a worry in the world, except BINGO which is very stressful to him.  I worry about everything in the world except BINGO.  
•    Bill is afraid of his wife.  Doug is afraid of me.  AND
•    Bill is a lawyer.  Thankfully, I am not.  

 

 

See, we are extremely similar so I don’t expect you to see any drastic changes in the year to come.  Aren’t you thankful?  

 

In all seriousness, I would be lying if I didn’t admit I am extremely nervous about being President.  I know I am not the first Rotarian to feel this way, and enough of you have told me, “The Club runs itself” but it is everyone coming together to pitch in that makes this club successful.  I am going to ask you to please support me in this effort through a new motto and hopefully my legacy – JUST SAY YES!  

•    If I come to you and ask for your help, JUST SAY YES, even if it is out of your comfort zone.  
•    If a fellow Rotarian is planning a service project and needs our help, JUST SAY YES, even if it is the third Saturday in a row.  
•    If you are asked to help the Interact students with their ventures, JUST SAY YES, because it is our responsibility to mentor those future Rotarians. AND 
•    If you are asked to sell another ticket or solicit another auction item, JUST SAY YES, because it is those fundraising dollars that allow us to change this community.

 

Now, let’s practice – Repeat after me – Just say yes.  Great job!

 

Each year the Foundations asks each President to think about what they would like to accomplish and set goals. I plan to keep our fundraisers the same and I may add some other fellowship or community service projects but overall, I know whatever goals I set we will exceed because that is just how amazing this Club is.  We have a superb group of Rotarians in this Club who care about our community and world at-large, helping each other and like to have fun doing it.  

 

 

Therefore, the goal I have set is simple – I challenge each of you to find your “spark,” as Andy would say.  What are your interests?  What do you want to spend your time doing that could improve our community?  Maybe it’s in your current skill set or maybe you want to try something totally different.  What committee do you want to be on?  I urge you to take the opportunity, take the leap, and get involved.  Don’t let Rotary be just a weekly meeting with friends to further your business goals.  Let Rotary be a conduit for service and I guarantee it will have an incredible impact on your life.  I want to ensure everyone is invested and involved because that is when the true connection with Rotary occurs.  I guarantee it will be time well spent and you will not have any regrets.

I am confident with your support, and a JUST SAY YES attitude, we can achieve our goals.  

 

 

Thank you.