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Submitted by: Debra Warner, District Governor 2017-2018I hope the new year is finding each of you well! January was a busy month for Ed and me. We started out the New Year by going to Haiti with fellow Rotarians District Governor Nominee Rick Bricker, Dr. Cleantus Jean, Jr., Rick Adams and his wife Kathy Adams from The Faith Project. Our District has been partnering with the Faith Project for several years on projects. During this trip, we were able to visit the sanitation sites funded through a District 5580 Grant this year and to see the progress on this project. It was so rewarding to see how our District is Making a Difference in the Village of Garde Saline! During our travels to our District clubs, Ed and I heard many clubs express an interest in partnering in a Global Grant. Kathy Adams has written an article, "Leadership Transforms a Community", on Garde Saline which outlines how you and your clubs can partner with other clubs to help fund and/or take part in a “boots on the ground” project in this village.
We had a great time volunteering with a new Rotary Club that will be chartered soon in Duluth called Bridges Rotary. 
The event was called “Youth Nation” which was held to honor Dr. Martin Luther King. It was fantastic to see so many young people in the area join the event to enjoy food, fun and fellowship! Bridges Rotary will have a unique focus on the youth in the West End of Duluth. If you are interested in joining this exciting Rotary Club please contact Chris Correia at chris@alt-lead.com for more information. Following our afternoon in Duluth, we went to a fundraiser for the Ashland Rotary Club where they brought in several local talented musicians for a concert. The talent was incredible, and they made 
over $10,000! Way to go Ashland Rotary and thanks for inviting us to your event! Shown in the picture with me are Ashland Rotarians Diane Foris and Matt Anich.
over $10,000! Way to go Ashland Rotary and thanks for inviting us to your event! Shown in the picture with me are Ashland Rotarians Diane Foris and Matt Anich. We spent the following weekend with the Youth Exchange Students at the Deep Portage Conservation Center. We had our 
outbound, inbound and some of our former Rotary Youth Exchange Students attend. The weather was fantastic, and the students took part in many outdoor events. It was such an honor to spend time with these students who are and will continue to make a difference in the world. Thanks to Blake Carlson, Jean Hannig, Mary Durward, David Rossetter, C.J. Craven, Sam Evans and Eric Northard for their dedication to this Youth Exchange event!
outbound, inbound and some of our former Rotary Youth Exchange Students attend. The weather was fantastic, and the students took part in many outdoor events. It was such an honor to spend time with these students who are and will continue to make a difference in the world. Thanks to Blake Carlson, Jean Hannig, Mary Durward, David Rossetter, C.J. Craven, Sam Evans and Eric Northard for their dedication to this Youth Exchange event!
I visited the vibrant Ely Rotary Club on my way home from a District Conference Committee meeting in Thunder Bay. As you can see in the picture, club president Sarah Guy Levar and her club are working to accomplish their club goals.
District 5580 Executive and Finance Committee met on January 26th, 2018 to discuss the “State of the District” and the Nominating Committee met on January 27th to select our District Governor for 2020-2021. We are pleased to announce that Bob McLean from the Rotary Club of Central Lakes was selected. Congratulations to Bob! Read more about Bob by following this link: Bob McLean Selected as District Governor 2020-2021.
Rotary’s theme for the month of February is Peace and Conflict Prevention/Resolution. Rotarians in our District and around the world make Peace happen through our service projects, Youth Exchange Programs, Friendship Exchanges, Peace Fellowships and Scholarships. Our District is very active in each of the above ways to promote peace.
The Rotary Foundation promotes the practice of peace and conflict prevention/resolution by strengthening local peace efforts, training local leaders to prevent and
mediate conflict, by supporting long-term peace building in areas affected by conflict, assisting vulnerable populations affected by conflict, especially children and youth and supporting studies related to peace and conflict resolution. Each year, Rotary awards up to 50 fellowships for master’s degrees and 50 for certificate studies at premier universities around the world. This year, Rotary International selected our District Candidate Christian Harris to represent our District at Chulalongkorn University in Bangkok, Thailand where he will earn a professional development certificate in peace and conflict resolution studies. He left in early January and will be back in time to speak at our District Conference in Thunder Bay. You can learn more about these programs in the following link: https://my.rotary.org/en/document/rotary-peace-centers-program-guide-rotarians. If you would like to nominate someone for either of these programs please contact one of our District Scholarship co-chairs: Thomas Riley at thomas.Riley@ndus.edu or Jill Zachery at jzachery@lakeheadu.ca for more details.
mediate conflict, by supporting long-term peace building in areas affected by conflict, assisting vulnerable populations affected by conflict, especially children and youth and supporting studies related to peace and conflict resolution. Each year, Rotary awards up to 50 fellowships for master’s degrees and 50 for certificate studies at premier universities around the world. This year, Rotary International selected our District Candidate Christian Harris to represent our District at Chulalongkorn University in Bangkok, Thailand where he will earn a professional development certificate in peace and conflict resolution studies. He left in early January and will be back in time to speak at our District Conference in Thunder Bay. You can learn more about these programs in the following link: https://my.rotary.org/en/document/rotary-peace-centers-program-guide-rotarians. If you would like to nominate someone for either of these programs please contact one of our District Scholarship co-chairs: Thomas Riley at thomas.Riley@ndus.edu or Jill Zachery at jzachery@lakeheadu.ca for more details. Last year, when I attended the Rotary Peace Conference in Ann Arbor, Michigan, I was asked to introduce the speakers for the Rotary Action Group (RAG) for Peace. Peace Rag is a group of Rotarians, their family members, program participants and alumni working together to advance peace throughout the world. The group formed in 2012 as a group focused on providing a network of resources to further the peace and conflict resolution work of Rotarians around the world. I immediately joined this group and you can too by accessing the information though the following link: https://www.rotarianactiongroupforpeace.org/
The District Conference registration is now open. The conference committee in Thunder Bay is dedicated to deliver an exciting conference for all! We have great speakers and activities planned; please read about the conference and register on the following link: 2018 District Conference Thunder Bay.
Molly Herrington from The Rotary Club of Bismarck has organized a bus to transport Rotarians to the District Conference and it will be stopping in many places along the way. I would take the bus if I didn’t have to be in Thunder Bay early! Read about the details in the following link: 2018 District Conference Transportation.
Have a great month and look forward to visiting many of you this month!
Debra Warner
District Governor 207-2018