Dave Carlin of Montgomery took the helm of The Rotary Club of Cincinnati in June with a pledge to focus more eyes and more hearts on the Rotary’s twin goals of selfless service to the community and membership interaction and engagement.
Carlin is a partner in Go2 Partners marketing and operations specialists in West Chester and will lead the 109-year-old networking and service club for the 2019-20 club year.
As he was installed as new president on June 27, he reminded members of the power and reach of the club, including raising more than $1 million over the past eight years for services for children with disabilities through the annual Believe to Achieve event, providing another $2.4 million through the Rotary Foundation since 2009 and supporting four international aid projects with $125,000 since 2015.
The Rotary is an international service and networking organization that harnesses the energy and passion of business and community leaders to meet community and global needs. International Rotary has a mission to eradicate Polio worldwide, as well as projects to bring schools and clean water to underdeveloped countries.
The Rotary Club of Cincinnati is the oldest and largest club in Greater Cincinnati, with close to 340 members and a mission to improve the lives of children with disabilities and their families. Rotary members participate in local projects ranging from serving meals at Ronald McDonald House to eye screenings at Children’s Hospital to hands-on service at the Rotary-owned Stepping Stones Camp Allyn, which provides recreation and life skills programs for children with disabilities.
“It makes me feel good to be a small part of a big Rotary family,” said Carlin. “But I think we can do more. I spell it M.O.R.E – the Magic Of the Rotary Experience,” Carlin said. “We need to share the Magic.”
That’s why he is focusing on engaging current members, bringing in new members and increasing community awareness of the club’s impact.
“Succeeding in these three areas will allow us to extend our reach and serve those in need more effectively,” said Carlin, who plans to launch a major service event at the end of 2020 to further engage club members with the community.
“Service is the overall goal, and working with an engaged and passionate team makes that service possible,” said Carlin, who has been a Rotary member for 10 years.
“Two things keep me coming back. First, and most important, is the service we provide to those in need both locally and globally. Second, the relationships I’ve formed with so many incredible Rotarians in our club, district and throughout the country are very important to me.”
“Rotary has helped me grow personally, both from a professional and charitable level,” said Carlin.
Carlin succeeds Rick Flynn of Evendale, who created the Rotary Club’s Leadership Development program, logged more than 1,000 hours of volunteer time since joining the club in 2012, has been a major donor and sponsor of events, and brought in 29 new members. “I believe he has accomplished more in a short time than any other member in our club’s history,” Carlin said.
The new president-elect for the club will be Brett Lebhar of Anderson Township. Lebhar is a retired IBM Global Delivery Project Executive and has been in Rotary for five years.
Lebhar has directed the club’s youth services, overseeing five committees that build youth leadership through awards programs, Rotary-sponsored service and leadership clubs for high school and college students and young professionals and a community-wide speech contest for high schoolers.
Mary Ronan, former superintendent of Cincinnati Public Schools, will be the club’s secretary/treasurer for 2019-20. Ronan, of Anderson Township, has been in Rotary for seven years.
“Rotary is one of the ways I can give back to my community,” said Ronan, who first saw the Rotary’s local impact at Roselawn-Condon School for children with disabilities and special needs. The Rotary Club of Cincinnati helped start the school nearly 100 years ago and continues support and involvement including an annual holiday party where each child receives a gift chosen for them – sometimes the only gift they receive over the holiday.
“I attended my second international conference this summer in Hamburg, Germany,” said Ronan. “I was amazed at the reach that Rotary has with thousands of individuals from all over the world in attendance. It took one half hour to introduce the names of all the countries participating. It is great to be part of something bigger than yourself or your neighborhood.”
