Member of Rich-Mar Rotary to be governor
A recent push by Rotary International aims to give prospective participants more options that can fit their schedules, an idea Ken Fleeson believes has merit.
For the next year, Fleeson will serve as district governor for Rotary District 7280, overseeing and guiding the 43 clubs and working to grow both Rotary membership and the club's impact on its communities.
Fleeson, a Cranberry Township resident, has been a member of the Rich-Mar Rotary Club for 27 years. He officially takes over the district governor position next month.
The position requires a three-year commitment, with the candidate serving as district governor nominee and district governor elect. Fleeson said there are separate training exercises to be completed throughout the process.
The district governor serves as the official representative for Rotary International to the clubs within the district. District 7280 covers a large swath of Western Pennsylvania, from Cranberry to Leechburg and from the Ohio line to DuBois. It extends as far north as Erie and contains 42 physical clubs and one e-club that has only online members.
Fleeson said in addition to helping those clubs with everything from membership development to community service projects, he will also present initiatives that are a priority to Rotary International. He said a major focus of Mark Maloney, Rotary president, is growing the organizations and making Rotary a larger part of the communities it serves.
“That's not so much to grow our membership, but to grow our engagement and our involvement in the community,” he said.Fleeson said that sort of outreach and focus on community programs can inspire others to become involved. He cited service projects conducted by the Rich-Mar Rotary and the annual Mars Applefest as examples.“Hopefully, the ultimate result of that is that by being out in the community and doing things with visibility, people say, 'Wow, that's pretty neat, I'd like to join,'” he said.Fleeson also sees the use of satellite clubs as helping to grow the organization. He said those clubs are unlike traditional Rotary groups in that they don't meet each week and are more service oriented. The flexibility, he said, provides another option for people with busy schedules.“This is a much easier vehicle for them to become involved,” he said, adding the Rich-Mar Rotary Satellite Club will be chartered later this year. “We want to get more people involved in the Rotary spirit of giving back to the community.”Fleeson is the third Rich-Mar Rotary member to serve as district governor. That list includes Alfred Jacques and Jack Nicklas.
