Dear Fellow Rotarians and Friends:
I am thrilled to welcome everyone to the 2022-2023 year of The Rotary Club of Boca Raton. This marks our Club’s 66th year and, thanks to the great leadership we have had in recent years, we have come out of the pandemic stronger than ever with membership soaring and ready to continue the great work we do. I know I have many big shoes to fill and fortunate that I can lean on many of the men and women who have served as our Club President, including the following current members who have served in that role:
John Phillips
Dennis Frisch (served twice)
Dave Jackson
Wendy Gutmann-Kupfer (our first woman President)
Rick Zimmer
Neil Saffer
Ken Davis
Bill Riddick (our youngest President)
Spencer Siegel
Rachel Huerta
Vanessa Havener (and incoming District Governor)
Gary Hildebrand
Julie Vianale (served twice)
I offer a huge thank you to our immediate Past President Julie Vianale. Julie served as Club President for the second time with distinction as she led us out of the pandemic and back to regular, in-person weekly meetings with membership that has grown to roughly 90 members. While other community service organizations have seen their membership rolls shrink with some groups disbanding altogether, Julie led our Club to numbers not seen in quite some time while also bringing back Future Stars, a beloved community event. Thank you to Gerry Purdy for continuing to line up interesting speakers and publishing the weekly write-ups following each meeting. In the past year or so, we have welcomed so many incredible new members. They are already making a meaningful and positive impact on our Club and our community. These new members are: LIST THEM HERE AND INCLUDE EVERYONE SINCE THE LAST PRESIDENT’S MESSAGE UP TO THIS WEEK’S INDUCTION.
Another huge thank you goes out to our OPAL Committee led by Neil Saffer, Jan Savarick and Spencer Siegel. This trio with the support of so many others including Claudia DuBois, Bob Buruchian, Bill Riddick, Pat McCarthy, Silva Alexandrov, Lisa Talley and countless others continue to pave the way for us to break fundraising records. The entire OPAL team is once again busy planning OPAL 2023 scheduled to take place on January 14, 2023 at Boca West Country Club.
It’s not just about raising money. It’s what we do with it. Thanks to the hard work of Pia Giannone, our Club is supporting close to 45 local students through both our scholarship program as well as our mentorship program. The two programs paired together sets us apart and is recognized by our donors and friends in the community.
But wait . . . there’s more! Our Club’s plate is never complete without all of the other things we do such as Youth in Government Day, the Dictionary Project and so much more. 2022-2023 is going to be another great year.
On a personal note, this is also my second stint as a Rotary Club President. I served as President of the Rotary Club of Plantation in 2000-2001 but this time around is so different. My prior Club was small and intimate and not as active. Great people but not the talent and resources we have up here in Boca Raton. One thing I did import from my prior Club are regular Craft Talks. It has been a personal joy getting to know our members through Craft Talks and having many laughs along the way. I hope to continue doing so as long as the Club will let me.
Lastly, it is truly a great honor to be leading The Rotary Club of Boca Raton and I could not do this without a few other key players on this team. If I could, I’d give a game ball every week to Treasurer John Mollica, Debbie Davis, Fund Chair Vanessa Havener, Foundation Chair Bernardo Wolfson, Chris Maner and Club Administrator Claudia DuBois. A warm thank you also goes out to President-elect Gerry Purdy and President-elect-nominee David Dweck for stepping up and paving the way for more great years to come. Let’s have even more fun in 2022-2023. I can’t wait!
Your Friend in Rotary Service, Jeff Tromberg
President, 2022-2023
The Rotary Club of Boca Raton
