Fellow Rotarians,
Our quest to find a long-term home for the club is hopefully moving to a final stage. My thanks to all who completed our survey and to our Venue Task Force members who convened earlier this month to discuss the results. With a majority of the first-place votes in the survey and seven out of eight Task Force members naming it their top choice, First Pres on Constance Avenue emerged as the clear front runner. Responding to the results, the Club Board moved to start a formal negotiation with First Pres for a long-term contract, a process that continues to work through the venue’s governance channels.
In the meantime, we will be back at the location for our May 20 meeting featuring Mark Sylvester discussing TEDx programs in Santa Barbara. President-Elect Michael Baker will serve as the MC for the occasion as I am on the road this week in Chicago. Click here for the Zoom link.
Special thanks to Bob Fatch for filling in for me on May 3 as we welcomed two distinguished public servants. Up first was Van Do-Reynoso, director of Santa Barbara Co. Department of Public Health, who received an Honorary Paul Harris Award from our club for her above-and-beyond leadership throughout the Covid pandemic. She was followed by our speaker, SB Mayor Randy Rowse, who discussed the state of the city and answered member questions.
I hope to be back at the podium on June 3 after my adventures with Covid that knocked me out since late April. We’ll be on the road again for a site visit to the SB Zoo on June 3, followed by a return to First Pres on June 17, the last official club meeting of the 2021-2022 year. We will update the club with more information on our venue project once all details are finalized. Until then, thank you for your continued service to the community.
In service,
Matt
Matthew Nehmer
President (2021-2022), Rotary Club of Santa Barbara
President (2021-2022), Rotary Club of Santa Barbara
