Dear Rotarians,

Last week Mark Whitacre was our guest speaker and he shared with us his story of being a part of the nation's largest price-fixing scandal as an executive of ADM. He reached great success early in his life but considered his true freedom in life came as a result of an 8 1/2 year prison stay where his life turned around. It was a stirring and motivating talk that captivated our hearts and attention. Mark expressed to me his gratitude for the warm welcome he received from our club and was complimentary of how attentive we were.

This Wednesday WE WILL MEET AT BESS T SHEPHERD SCHOOL for our club. If you signed the list, we will have a boxed lunch that Terri and her team will have put together for us. If you didn't sign the list and want to come, please come and possibly eat before or after the meeting (unless there are extra boxes). We will meet in the library for lunch and then look to meet folks from the school and become more acquainted with our project there. We have been advised to park on the far left side of the school along the fence/tree line. There is handicap parking capacity up front along the curb.

The District 6780 Rotary Cruise was a big success. I look forward to sharing with you all the highlights next Wednesday when we meet back at the church. One highlight of the weekend that I'll share with you is that Past District Governor Jerry Ware from Pigeon Forge was one of only 100 Rotarians around the world awarded the RI Service Above Self award this year. He is the 13th ever from our district to be selected for this immensely, prestigious award. It was quite a celebration when they made the announcement!

One sad note I discovered when I got to port on Monday morning was that our friend was the 22 year old man that was shot and killed along with his friend's mother in East Ridge. This young man grew up with our son in church over the last 13-14 years and his dad is our church's Director of Music. His funeral service is tomorrow morning at 11am, so I don't know if I will make the meeting at Bess T Shepherd - I will at least be late. That being the case, I have asked President-Elect Chris Neighbors to lead the meeting for us at the school. I'm very excited about you becoming more educated about the school and the things we can do to make an impact on the children that attend.

The address of the school is: 

7126 Tyner Rd, Chattanooga, TN 37421

Announcement:

• Chattanooga Breakfast Club Brew Skies event is this Friday from 5-9pm a the ChooChoo Gardens. See the link for more information. http://www.chattanoogabreakfastrotary.com/brew-skies/

Hope to see you Wednesday!

President Todd