• District 6450 Annual Meeting - Monday, May 6, 2024, 6pm on Zoom.  Every district Rotarian is invited to the Annual Meeting where a review of the 2023-24 Rotary year will be provided, the budget for the 2024-25 year will be presented, and other business of the District will be discussed and voted on.  Everyone should register to make sure we have enough space on Zoom, and you must declare during registration if you will be a voting delegate for your club.  Here is the list of allowed voting delegates - Click Here.  For the Annual Meeting, Register Here.
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• District Governor Installation - Sunday, June 23, 2024, 5-8pm.  Get started making your club Simply Irresistable and learning about the Magic of Rotary by attending the District Governor Installation at The Barn at Blackberry Farm in Aurora, IL.  Check out the fun you can have at Blackberry Farm and REGISTER HERE!
   
• District Board - There are 2 District Board positions available for 2-year terms (2024-2026).  If you are interested in being considered for a District 6450 Board position, please fill out the BOARD APPLICATION and return it to District Governor Nominee Bonnie Sanchez-Carlson at dgbonnie6450@gmail.com on or before April 25, 2024.
   
• Global Grants - Are you interested in participating in a Global Grant but don't know how?  You're District Global Grant Committee wants to help your club get involved.  They have resources to help clubs investigate what grants are in process and which clubs might participate.  For more information, contact District Grants Chair MARSHALL SCHMIDT.
• Environmental Service Committee - News from Mary Onorad, Chair
  Check out this Operation Pollination video and consider how your club might get involved - Do you like to eat?  For more information go to esrag.org/operation-pollination.
• New District Grant Program Platform - Due to recent security concerns, we have switched the District Grants process platform from matchinggrants.org to DACdb starting with the 2024-2025 cycle. (This will not impact the current year District Grants.) This is a positive development which will improve the user experience and provide some additional capabilities and efficiencies by consolidating our platform into DACdb. We are currently configuring the interface, which will have a similar, but improved, feel to the current platform. We believe that anyone familiar with the current platform should find the DACdb Grants module easy to use. Within the next couple of weeks, the District Foundation and Grants Committees led by Chuck Corrigan and Marshall Schmitt will reach out to PEs to provide general instructions, a timeline and links to training materials on how to use the module to enter and report on your grants projects. We plan to provide multiple online workshops where you or your designee can receive live coaching from our Grants team on entering your project into the platform.
• The Rotary Means Business Downtown Networking Group has started meeting the first Monday of each month at Barnes & Thornburg, LP.  For more information on all of the Rotary Means Business networking opportunities, go to www.rmbchicagoland.com.

Club News

• Hinsdale Rotary Bikes for Military Kids - May 18, 2024, Hinsdale Community House
• Hinsdale Rotary will distribute bikes to children of active military families.  For more information go to the Hinsdale Rotary Website or contact Tom Norton.

Now is the perfect time for clubs in our district to become Rotary’s Promise Clubs to increase the impact that we can make in the world. This club recognition opportunity, achieved when 100% of active members contribute US$1,000 or more to The Rotary Foundation’s Endowment, amplifies our ability to create lasting change. A robust Endowment empowers Rotary to make a difference for generations, even in challenging times. Contributions from club members in your district can be outright gifts or can be commitments or bequests in a will or estate plan. To support the Foundation’s continued impact, we invite you to encourage clubs in the district to meet the qualifications to become Rotary’s Promise Clubs.  Who wants to be the FIRST PROMISE CLUB IN ROTARY DISTRICT 6450? For more information, contact DG Conor.