Wheel of Rotary
VOLUME LXVIII 17 MAY 2017 NUMBER 46
PROGRAM this Wednesday, May 17, will be brought to us by Debbie Jones and will feature Junior Chef, Zikei Brooks.
Program last week featured the Hon. Louis "Lou" Dekmar, Chief of Police and Chief of Public Safety, City of LaGrange. We hated to miss but know from all accounts it was an excellent program. We know we have the finest of everything in LaGrange, including Chief Lou Dekmar. He is also a member and officer of the International Association Chiefs of Police, the past President of the Georgia Association of Chiefs of Police, a former Council Member for the Georgia Peace Officer's Standards and Training Council, a current member of the Georgia Board of Public Safety and has served as a Federal Monitor for the U.S. Department of Justice, Civil Rights Division. He is a graduate of the FBI National Academy and the FBI Law Enforcement Executive Development Seminar. Chief Dekmar holds a Bachelor’s degree in administration of justice from the University of Wyoming and a Master’s degree in public administration from Georgia College and State University. He is also an adjunct professor for several colleges and institutions. We know he also heads the Fire Department as well. We know the LaGrange Police Department is committed to fairness, compassion and excellence; providing police services in accordance with the law, while being sensitive to the needs of the public. They are committed to community partnerships through which we can address crime and public safety concerns. The LaGrange Police Department received international accreditation from the Commission on Accreditation for Law Enforcement Agencies (C.A.L.E.A.) in July 1999, and received its 5th consecutive reaccreditation award in 2014. The agency also participates in the Georgia State Certification Program through the Georgia Association of Chiefs of Police. The department received State Certification in 1998 and continues to participate in this voluntary process. We know Chief Dekmar is respected and admired in all segments of our community and we are sure his presentation was a good one.NEW MEMBER. Jake Behr sent us this information before the meeting last week, but we forgot to include it in the "first attempt" to write up last week's doings in this week's Epistle to the Rotarians. Jake Behr introduced Chase Hall, a financial advisor with Edward Jones. He is a LaGrange native, son of Joey and Gayle Hall. In high school, he volunteered with the American Red Cross, Daily Bread Food Ministries, and studied classical ballet with the LaGrange Society for Performing Arts. Chase is a 2010 graduate of LaGrange College with a Bachelor of Arts in History (so, like our son, Christian, he was a graduate in the first class under our esteemed President Dan McAlexander). In college, Chase worked as a tutor with “Community in Schools,” helped with National History Day, worked with First Methodist, and was a research assistant in the L. C. history department. He worked over 6 years in management at KIA and is pursuing a dual master’s program in Business Administration and in Finance at Indiana University. He has also worked as consultant for companies in Bloomington, Ind. and Boston, Mass. Chase began working with Edward Jones in 2016. He and his wife, Leora, and daughter, Charlotte Elizabeth, live in Waterford Place and attend Covenant Presbyterian Church.
THANKS to our ever efficient and helpful Executive Secretary, Barbara Henigin, we have some things we can report for last week, Happy Dollars, Announcements, and Guests & Visitors.
An announcement (thanks to Barbara) was made about the meeting for May 24, 2017 when we will have a Darkness to Light Training session. It will run extended time, 11 a.m. to 1:30, but will still include lunch. Those Rotarians attending are paid for. REGISTRATION IS REQUIRED even though it will be held, more or less, during our normal club meeting time. To do so, please contact Regenia Andrews at 706 333-9698 or at rotarydarknesstolight@gmail.com.
President Jake Jones announced that district Governor Raymond Ray will be at the meeting next week.
Happy Dollars (thank you Barbara): Judy Freeman added to say that Josh Pastner, Head Coach of the Georgia Tech basketball team, will be in LaGrange May 23, 2017 and those interested should contact Judy.John Asbell added to congratulate the Rotarians who just graduated in the Troup Leadership Program and to celebrate that Troup County received the annual ‘Four for the Future’ award co-sponsored by Georgia Trend magazine and UGA. The award recognizes regions that have worked across public, private sector, and nonprofit boundaries on challenging issues that improve the quality of life. John received the award on behalf of the LaGrange-Troup County Chamber of Commerce Leadership Troup program & THINC College & Career Academy. Jennifer Shook added to thank all those who have or will attend the Lafayette Society for Performing Arts programs, and to remind us the picnic theatre production of "John Lennon and Me" still to come this weekend, May 11-13th. Connor Smith added $5 to celebrate that there are only 5 cases of polio reported this year so far and if we get no other new ones reported, we can start the clock ticking for the three-year countdown that it has been eradicated.
Guests and Visitors (with thanks to Barbara Henigin for emailing them to us) were: Baker Ellis, Publisher of the LaGrange Daily News (with whom we had the pleasure of sitting at the Boy Scout fundraiser Tuesday night, along with our own Rachel Ennis and John Harrell and Forrest, Shannon, and Deborah Johnson, thanks to the recruitment efforts of our own Jake Behr); six Rotaract students from LaGrange College; Bobbie Hart, club guest brought by Yvonne Lopez; Savannah and Sydney Miles, guests and daughters of Ken Miles; and Marcy Miles, an officer of LPD as well as Rotarianne and guest of Ken Miles; Debra Black and Rena Boykin of LaGrange Housing Authority, club guests; Keith McDow and Phillip Sledge of City of LaGrange, club guests; LaGrange City Councilman Mark Mitchell, guest of Jim Thornton; Capt. Derwin Brewer of the Troup County Sheriff's Department, guest of Susan Ferguson; Julia Hope of UPS, a club guest brought by Jennifer Shook; and Officer Ian Turner guest of Jeff Todd. We also had one visiting Rotarian from Muscogee County.
We were saddened to learn from Barbara Henigin that our own Raylene Carter has lost her mother, to whose bedside she had gone last week. Our thoughts and prayers go out to console Raylene and Gary as they journey through the days ahead.
All the Rotary News that Fits, We Print”
Reported by your Bulletin Editor, Clark Johnson.