President’s Message
Great week last week with another great week ahead. We had a wonderful turnout for our Wines & Bites Fifth Thursday Social at Stonewall Creek Vineyards. A HUGE THANK YOU TO OUR FAMILY OF ROTARY CHAIRPERSON , SUSIE HOWARD AND TO OUR HOSTS AT STONEWALL CREEK, SANDY MARK. Check out the photos below in the newsletter.
There are lots of things going on this month that you need to be aware of, so please read on so that you can get the most out of your club membership.
Recap from Last Week’s Meeting
This past Thursday was a “Fifth Thursday,” so instead of having a meeting, we had a social instead. The “Wine & Bites” social was a big success. We had 35 people RSVP and had a great turnout. Thank you to all who participated.
Check out our Facebook reel: https://www.facebook.com
We also had a great turnout at the District 6910 Conference in Cherokee, NC. Fourteen Clayton Rotarians and friends were there from our club to celebrate this past Rotary year with District Governor Jessica Fleetwood, and our club had a lot to celebrate!!!
- We were awarded the Governor’s Citation for meeting and exceeding our club’s goals in membership growth, community impact, and fellowship opportunities.
- We were awarded the R.L. Panyik Leadership Award. This is a prestigious honor given to exceptional Rotary Club presidents who demonstrate outstanding leadership skills, executing their roles with remarkable dedication and perseverance.
- We were also recognized for reaching Platinum Level for completing the highest level of Public Image goals. Thank you to Abby Jackson for doing such an outstanding job as PI Chair.
All of these recognitions are due to the hard work that our whole club has done this year. Congratulations to each and every one of you for making this such a successful year so far.
Check out our Facebook reel: https://www.facebook.com
We have two months left in this Rotary year. Keep inviting friends and people that you meet in the community to come find out what Rotary is all about. Let’s finish strong by giving back to our community through service, working on projects that will have lasting impact, and, most importantly, HAVING FUN!
This Week’s Meeting
FIELD TRIP TO RABUN GAP NACOOCHEE SCHOOL
This week we go and visit Rabun Gap Nacoochee School. This is the home of our latest Interact club. They will be presenting to our club what makes RGNS unique.
Please sign up online by clicking:
https://forms.gle/jCGTf5NbLagx
Thursday, May 7th, 2026
11:30 PM
Rabun Gap Nacoochee School
Next Week’s Program
Our guest speaker will be Walker Rice of Medlink. He will be talking about how the new Medlink facility is going to impact healthcare in Rabun County.
Thursday, May 14, 2026
11:30 PM
Food Bank of Northeast Georgia, Rotary Community Room
Impact Club Update
Tuesday, May 12 | 6:00 PM
Food Bank of Northeast Georgia
Service Above Self
The month of May should be called Service Month because there are so many opportunities for you to get involved.
- Food Packing – We are still packing meals this Thursday and every Thursday through the end of May. We will be meeting this week after our visit to RGNS. We will meet up at the Food Bank at 1:30 pm to knock this out.
- First Thursday of each month is Charity Night at Currahee Brewery, from 5:30 pm to 9:00 pm. Come and have a cold beverage while supporting one of our local charities.
- Lake Burton Cleanup – Friday, May 8, from 9:00 am to 12:00 pm. The Impact Club will be leading our club for Lake Burton Cleanup Day. We will have a couple of pontoon boats and provide box lunches. We need to have an accurate headcount. Please use this link to sign up: https://forms.gle/9tKKNASH
iDgaaQMG7 - Rotary Chefs – Friday, May 15, 5:30 pm to 9:00 pm, RCHS. You may have thought football season was over, and you would have to wait months to cook hamburgers and hot dogs for the ravenous football fans of Rabun County. Au contraire, my fellow club members. On May 15, we have a spring football game for our middle school at 5:30 and a varsity game at 7:30 against White County. Join other Rotary chefs in the cooking of burgers and dogs in support of the Rabun County football boosters. Join our master chefs Jim Antosiak and Alton Story. It should be fun! Contact: Dave Farrington 404-713-6160
- Food Distribution – Saturday, May 16, 6:45am to 9:00 am, Rabun Gap Presbyterian Church. Join us as we distribute 40,000 pounds of food to your neighbors who are in need. We will be doing this as part of Rotary’s Epic Day of Service.
- Stekoa Creek Cleanup – Saturday, May 16, 10:00 am to 12:00 pm, Stekoa Creek Park. Help the Headwaters Master Gardeners Club and the Chattooga Conservancy with this monthly opportunity to help restore this important waterway in our community.
- Free Paper Shredding Event – Saturday, May 29, 9:30 am to 1:00 pm, Civic Center parking lot. Bring your old bills and records and we will shred them for you. This is free to the community, but donations are appreciated to help us cover the cost.
- SOUND THE ALARM! Smoke Detector Distribution – Thursday, May 28, 2:00 PM and Saturday, May 30. We will be joining with the American Red Cross to install smoke detectors for our neighbors who can’t afford them. Training will take place Thursday, May 28, at the Food Bank at 2:00 pm. The distribution will take place Saturday, May 30. We are in special need of folks who speak Spanish. Contact Elizabeth Gill for details.
- RYLA Conference – Thursday, May 28 to Sunday, May 31. If you are interested in volunteering, you can see what it’s about at www.RYLA6910.com and contact RYLA6910@gmail.com.
- RYLA Dinner – Friday, May 29. Contact Dave Farrington for details.
Important Dates
(Please note that I corrected the date for the Paper Shredding to May 29)
- May 7 — Offsite visit to Rabun Gap Nacoochee School
- May 15 — Rotary Chefs, RCHS, 5:30 – 9:00
- May 16 — Club Leaders Learning Seminar, Lanier Tech, Gainesville
May 16 — Food Distribution, RGPC
May 16 — Stekoa Creek Cleanup - May 28 – 31 — RYLA
- May 28 — SOUND THE ALARM! Smoke Detector Distribution Training
- May 29 — Paper Shredding
- May 30 — SOUND THE ALARM! Smoke Detector Distribution
- June 25 — End-of-Year Celebration
Club Leaders Learning Seminar
Saturday, May 16 ⋅ 8:00 AM – 3:00 PM
Lanier Technical College
2535 Lanier Tech Dr, Gainesville, GA 30507, USA
This is our biggest learning opportunity of the year!
Club leaders, committee chairs, and officers should register for the Club Leadership Learning Seminar (formerly called District Assembly), which will be held on Saturday, May 16 at Lanier Tech in Gainesville. This one-day event, which includes lunch, has something for everyone across four different breakout sessions with over eight topics per session to choose from.
Whether you are interested in Rotary’s peace-building initiatives, how to measure the impact of your service projects, how AI can be used to facilitate Rotary activities, getting certified to apply for district grants, learning more about membership, the Rotary Foundation, public image, service, Youth Exchange, fundraisers, leadership opportunities beyond the club level, how to use Ignite and DACdb, or many more topics—you won’t want to miss this District event!
Registration fee of $55 per person will be reimbursed by the club.
Registration link:
https://www.dacdb.com/Register
Rotary Youth Leadership Academy (RYLA)
May 28 – 31
Tallulah Falls School
Volunteers needed:
- Counselors
- Activity helpers
RYLA6910@gmail.com
www.ryla6910.com
Food Bank Donations
Most Needed Items:
Plastic grocery bags
Peanut butter & jelly • Cereal • Soups • Crackers • Rice • Chili & beans
Pasta • Sauce • Beef stew • Canned meats • Fruits & vegetables
Cash donations welcome
Checks payable to: Food Bank of Northeast Georgia
Memo: Rabun County
