Welcome

This past October, I was nominated as the District Governor for 2028-2029 for our great (and big) 5580 Rotary District.  It is a distinct honor and privilege to be selected as the administrative head of our district and to help lead our 56 Rotary clubs.  It is also great joy to work with our incoming District Governor, Peter Nelson, and District Governor Elect, Kim Nelson.

My educational background, community and Rotary involvement, and family biography follow.  I hope it gives you some insight into my interests, vocation, and family life.

 

The Reverend Doctor Terry Tilton received his educational degrees from Bemidji State University (1972); his Master of Divinity degree from United Theological Seminary of the Twin Cities (1977); and a Doctor of Ministry degree from Candler School of Theology, Emory University (2025).  He is a retired United Methodist minister who continues ministry to the church at a “retired supply” parish in Chisholm, Minnesota.

 

He was raised on the family farm at Waubun, Minnesota, the first of five children to Robert and Phyllis Tilton.  With the encouragement and example of his mother, he has been an active member of many civic organizations and service groups including: 4-H where he was elected Chair of the County 4-H Council (1968), Scouting America Eveleth as Scoutmaster (1976-1986), member of Scouting Council Executive Committees (1986-2025), Rotary Club member (1995-present) and Past President of the Breckenridge Rotary Club (2000/2007) and the Hibbing-Chisholm Breakfast Rotary Club (2018-19), and currently appointed Assistant District Governor Area 12 (2022-present). He was awarded the Outstanding Vocational Award of the Breckenridge Rotary Club in 1998 and Outstanding Rotarian of the Year by the Hibbing-Chisholm Rotary Club in 2006. He is a four-time Paul Harris Fellow.

 

He has served in many capacities in Freemasonry and was appointed the first Grand Lodge Education Officer of the Grand Lodge of Minnesota in 1993, and he received the Duane E. Anderson Excellence in Masonic Education Award from the Grand Lodge of Minnesota in 2004. In 2002, he was elected Grand Master of Masons of Minnesota and Past President and Past Secretary of the Philalethes Society, the oldest international Masonic education and research society in North America.  He was named the 200^th Fellow of the Society in 2007 for his contributions to Masonic education and research. He has been a guest speaker at many Grand Lodges and at regional and national Masonic education forums. In his community, he currently chairs a 50-member community choir, the Range of Voices Choral Society.

 

His introduction to Rotary was through a member of his church who invited him to join the Breckenridge Rotary Club.  He discovered the joy of community service through many local Rotary projects. Youth service became his special love in promoting Rotary youth programs, including facilitating the Rotary Youth Exchange program, RYLA, the Rotary 4-Way Test competition, and accompanying youth groups to the Winnipeg United Nations Model Forum.

 

Rotary has an outstanding program for youth leadership and awareness of worldwide needs within our seven areas of international focus: Peace and conflict prevention/resolution, Disease prevention and treatment, Water and sanitation, Maternal and child health, Basic education and literacy, Economic and community development, and Protecting the environment. Our efforts at educating young people in the areas of peace-making and international community development are without equal.

 

With his wife, Cheryl, the Tiltons reside in Hibbing, Minnesota. They have two children - an Eagle Scout son, Evan, who is a computer programmer after graduating from Hamline University in 2011. They also have a daughter, Katherine, who graduated from Hamline University in 2015 and earned a master’s degree in health at York University in England in 2017. Currently, she is a physician’s assistant (PA) at North Memorial Medical Clinic in Maple Grove, Minnesota, and is married with a one-year-old baby boy.  She was a recipient of the Bronze (2006), Silver (2008), and Gold (2010) Awards from the Girl Scouts.  Both children were awarded Paul Harris Fellows while high school.

 

In closing, let me share my excitement about working with Peter and Kim Nelson over the coming years as we endeavor to energize and provide planning tools for our Rotary clubs of all sizes to succeed and grow membership, with enhanced visibility and outreach in their communities.  Rotary truly is “service above self.”   I hope to visit all our clubs to learn more about their activities and meet the tremendous talent that Rotary has attracted in our communities. 

What is your story of how Rotary has made a difference in your life? And your community?