More than a dozen members of the Lewisville Noon Rotary club gathered at the grand ballroom at the Embassy Suites by Hilton Denton Convention Center this past Saturday to cheer on their fellow Rotarians taking part in the United Way of Denton County “Dancing with our Stars” competition. The contest was part of the 12th annual UNITED Tribute Gala, which celebrated the nonprofit's 70-year history to improve and transform lives across Denton County. Lewisville Mayor TJ Gilmore and his wife Tanya (top left), along with LNR Sergeant at Arms Officer Rachel Roberts and her dance partner, Officer Justin Hobbs (bottom right), helped bring in donations that contributed to more than $230,000 raised at this year’s gala event.

 

Tom Smith last week received his Rotary pin and blue badge as he was officially re-inducted as a returning member of the Lewisville Noon Rotary club.

 

“My Rotary story started in 1998, when you were meeting at Sneaky Pete’s, and I was student of the month," said Smith, who is Associate Pastor of Worship & Communities at Northview Baptist Church in Lewisville. Years later, at age 24, he was invited by Doug Killough and Larry Smith to join the club and was an active member for several years before taking a hiatus. He and his wife, Tiffany, and their three children have served the Lord in full time ministry since 2014 across Texas and Colorado. We are delighted to welcome Tom Smith back to the Lewisville Noon Rotary.

LNR club president Eyad Salloum presented a quick update on club activities at last week's Rotary meeting, highlighting the efficiency of Lewisville Noon's various committees to keep things running smoothly.

 

The club is in a good financial position, according to the latest report from co-treasurer Alex Buck, and dues statements were sent out earlier this month. The cut-off for grant applications is this Wednesday, January 31st, and Donations committee chair Mary Jennings had only received 11 applications from nonprofits for grant funding as of last week. It's not too late to apply, and the donation form can be accessed online here.

 

Dwayne Middleton is filling in for Membership chair Terry Russell, and Communications chair Leslie Thompson is looking for help from another club member to keep the Lewisville Noon website up to date. Youth Committee chair and incoming president Sue Bowman also asked for volunteers to help judge students participating in the Four Way Test this March. And Audrey Stansbury continued to pass around the sign-up sheet for the monthly Adopt-a-Spot service project. The start time for the clean-up now has been moved to 9am to make it easier for club members to participate.

 

Thirteen club members are part of the Paul Harris Society, according to DAF and Foundation chair Steve Cox, who also awarded Paul Harris pins to Greg Ballantine and Gary Lewis during the meeting.

 

Finally, Sue Bowman and her planned successor as club president, Pamela Shelton, soon will be attending the President Elect Training Seminar (PETS) for District 5790. 

Golf committee chair David Seaman will be holding the next BIG FORE planning meeting on Tuesday, February 6th, at 5pm. The meeting will be held at Verf's Restaurant in Highland Village. If you're interested in joining the Golf Committee or volunteering at the club's biggest fundraiser of the year, please join the gathering or reach out to David directly at the next club meeting. Your support is greatly appreciated!

Whether or not you plan to join the Golf Committee, be sure to mark your calendars for this year's Lewisville noon Rotary Big Fore Golf Tournament on Monday, May 6, 2024. Our biggest fundraiser of the year will be held at Oakmont Country Club and promises to be a fun and memorable event. We have set an ambitious fundraising goal this year, so our club can give even more generously to local charities and non-profit organizations in our community through Lewisville Noon grants.