2008
NEWS / PHOTO ARCHIVE – Rotary Club of Kernersville
(All images are thumbnails – select for larger images)
(2015, 2014, 2013, 2012, 2011, 2010, 2009, 2008, 2007, 2006, 2005, 2004)
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On Dec. 31st, Roy Collette, aka. Mr. Sunshine, presented the ‘Anything Goes’ Year-End Review. Roy roasted most all of us in a collection of one-liners and zingers. Predictions and long-lost twins included geckos, Grizzly Adams, Michael Vick’s future attorney and a soon-to-be-released book titled “Larry, Raising a Little Cain”, a Viagra pop-up book.
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Rotary Visit to Rest Homes in Kernersville! – Dec. 17th
– Hamp Langdon
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On Dec. 17th, Jason Cagle (SunTrust Director of Financial Risk Management) did an outstanding job of giving us some perspective on several financial fronts: 1) Overview of the Treasury Bailout Program. 2) Overview of the Government’s Purchase of Preferred Securities. 3) Discussion on the Credit Markets and the recent flight from stocks to cash and….4) Issues for clients to consider, relative to their approach to their portfolios.
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On Dec. 9th our annual “State of the Union – Roundball Preview” occurred. Basketball coaches from East Forsyth & Glenn High Schools spoke about the upcoming year. Lee Reavis (Glenn) and Brandt Short (East) both were optimistic about their chances and complementary of their student athletes. Students and teachers of the month from East and Glenn were also recognized.
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 Pancake Supper Dec 7th – Kernersville Elementary |
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On December 3rd, we had our Annual Meeting / Club Assembly where the election of officers for 2009-2010 occured.
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On November 19th, our club presented the 3 area elementary school principals with “Andy & Elmer’s Apple Dumpling Adventure”. This book was written to teach the “4 Way Test” to 3rd graders. 500 of these books were purchased by our club from proceeds from this year’s Pedal the Piedmont fundraiser. We also presented Paul Harris Fellows to Amy Harper, Becky Lewis & Monica Young.
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On November 128th, Patrick Merrill – WS/FC Schools Gang Specialist spoke at our breakfast meeting.
He showed many images of the various gang tags, tatoos and symbols, as well as explained the origins and the reasoning behind these symbols. Besides showing us these images, Patrick gave us some interesteing facts about gang membership, especially the fact that 90% of gang members do NOT have Fathers living in the same houehold. November Students & Teachers of the Month – (Glenn) Sarah Brown, Wade Rothrock, Fleming El-Amin (T) – (East) Danny O’Brian, Beth Collins, Michelle Woods (T). |
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On November 4th, Mike Roach, Director of the UNC-G Spartan Club, discussed the role of the Spartan Club in supporting UNC-G student athletes and the athletics program. Dick Stewart, Associate Athletic Director, talked about the basketball program and its plans to move more games to Greensboro Coliseum as well as the impact of the new chancellor Linda Brady, who has declared significant increased support of the athletics program. Stewart finished his talk with a couple of funny anecdotes about Jim Valvano, the late coach at North Carolina State, where Stewart was an assistant coach.
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On October 29th, Arnold King presented our “Triple Crown Initiative”. This plan is three-fold, where our club will be striving to regain 100% Paul Harris Fellow status, obtain 100% Sustaining Membership status, as well as becoming a 100% Benefactor club. All three areas are in support of the Rotary Foundation, which enable Rotarians to advance world understanding, goodwill, and peace through the improvement of health, the support of education, and the alleviation of poverty. This “Triple Crown Initiative” is easily achievable.
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On October 22nd, Dr. Gary Green – President of Forsyth Tech, spoke to our club about Forsyth Tech and the local Swisher Center which will be espanding by 11,000 sq.ft in the very near future. Currently Forsyth Tech has approximately 8000 students and has seen steady growth in the last 10 years, especially with local associations with Deere-Hitachi and Dell. Its positive impact on the community has been attributed to accomplishing 2 goals – 1. Providing opportunities for students in preparation for 4 year colleges and 2. Teaching students the skills they will need for the immediate job market.
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Oct. 15 – Club Assembly
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On October 8th, Kerry Avant, project developer, spoke to our club on the plans for Civic Plaza in Downtown Winston-Salem. This will be located between 3rd & 4th streets, include 1 Park Vista, a parking deck, a park as well as a 220K S.F. mixed usage 8 story building. Students & Teachers of the month – (East) Jordan Graves, Adam Robinson, Kethy Ottorbourg (T), (Glenn) Angel Mercado, Faith Robins, Deborah Sutton (T)
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On Oct. 1, our meeting included a Panel Discussion about the “Financial Industry Bailout Plan”. Our guests included Jim Barrett (Edward Jones), Jim Monroe (Southern Community Bank) and was moderated by our own Ken Flynt. Topics included the sub-prime mess, the loose standards in various lending institutions where everyone was being given a house, setting fair market values for businesses / real estate, and how the stock market is truly a leading indicator and a good predictor of our nation’s overall financial health. Other topics included the idea that a good cleansing may be necessary and that our economy is driven by the idea that the strongest will survive. No one knows for sure, but the future may entail higher inflation, a weaker dollar, higher lending rates and more instability in all markets.
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On September 24th, Brent McKinney – Executive Director, Piedmont Authority for Regional Transportation (PART), spoke at our meeting. Brent discussed the positive impact that PART is having on the entire region’s commuters. In a local strategy to reduce dependence on foreign oil, PART is also helping to reduce problems related to parking, gas, air quality, congestion and overall public safety. With the dramatic increase in the cost of gas / fuel, many routes have increased ridership by 50-80% and are now “standing room only”. PART is trying to cultivate a generation of commuters into using mass transit to save everyone $$.
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On September 17th, Todd Lasseigne, Executive Director of the Paul J. Ciener Botanical Garden, spoke at our breakfast meeting. The ground breaking for the Ciener Garden will be next Monday at 4:30PM and will include Bob Timberlake and Don Martin as guests. His talk centered on the upcoming programs that the gardens will be offering, including partnerships with Kernersville Middle School and Forsyth Tech to capture the interests in teenagers as well as career opportunities in the horticultural and the landscape gardening fields. September Students of the Month from East Forsyth – Zach Gignac, Kelsey Fitzpatrick, Evelyn Frye (Teacher)
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On September 10th, we recognized the Glenn H.S. students and teacher of the month. Principal Doc. Coplin also gave a spirited classification talk. (L-R Lily Catone, Janet Davis (Alg I Teacher), Carmen Caruthers) . Yates Parker was also inducted as a new member.
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Our annual “Pigskin Preview”, featuring the football coaches from Bishop McGuinness, East Forsyth and Glenn was today, September 3rd. All 3 coaches discussed their kids’ talent, the difficult schedules ahead, as well the fact that the programs are all run “clean” and in a professional manner. Coaches Charlie Jones (Bishop McGuinness) Todd Willert (East Forsyth) & Dickie Cline(Glenn)
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On August 27th, Darrell Walker & Jack Kerr presented our OPEN HOUSE. Al Kerr and Brooks Mayson were inducted as new members of our club.
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On August 20th, Debbi Butner, director of the Kernersville “Family Promise” spoke at our breakfast. Family Promise’s purpose is to assist homeless families in Forsyth County that currently have children. Most families in this situation are not visible due to the misconception that if they are seen, social services will take away their children. Family Promise will coordinate with some 12 congregations in Kernersville on a rotating basis to serve the homeless each for 1 week as they transition into permanent homes.
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On August 13th, Janet Johnston, author of the children’s book “We All Live on Earth“, spoke at our breakfast. Janet is a retired school teacher of 30 years and has lived in Saudi Arabia, Yemen and other Middle Eastern countries. We All Live on the Earth is the story of Filip, a boy from Sweden, who shares with the reader his curiosity about how other children in the world live. It is also a story about diversity, acceptance and the need for understanding, and is a great tool for teaching that we are all a big family on this great planet we call Earth.
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On August 6th, Gloria Whisenhunt, Chair of the Forsyth County Commissioners, spoke at our breakfast meeting. Gloria has served on many local boards from the Airport Authority, to PART, Forsyth Hospital Board of Trustees, and “HOT” in her many years of public service. This morning she started out by saying, “The two most important issues always seems to be zoning and water”. She also spoke on local improvement projects including the Triad Park, which will include an amphitheater and a miniature golf center. The TDA, Tourism Development Authority, was also mentioned.
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On July 30th, Pete Kunkle, Pastor of First Christian Church of Kernersville, spoke about and showed pictures from his recent trip to Israel. His tour of the Holy land was in association with almost 30 other fellow scholars and in Pete’s words, “reignited my passion”. Locations included Jerusalem, the Sea of Galilea, Mount of Beatitudes, Capernium (Home of Peter) the Jordan River, Nazareth, the Wailing Wall and Bethleham. Pete described how the group “walked in the footsteps of Christ” and how each member of the group led a nightly communion service in their own denomination’s style. The four sections of Jerusalem (Christian, Armenian, Muslim & Jewish) were not only physically separated but also socially separated in their own worlds.
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| On July 23rd, Rotary 7690 District Governor Charles Allen visited our club. District 7690 now includes 52 clubs and is the ONLY Rotary district in the world that is 100% Paul Harris Fellow. Charles spoke on the importance of Rotary both locally and internationally and how it can make a difference and change the lives of many millions of people. The theme for this year is “Make Dreams Real”. |
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| Rotary Club takes students on a whirlwind tour – By Monica Young For 12 years, the Kernersville Rotary Club has sponsored the youth leadership academy. The idea came out of a desire to send more than two students to the similarly structured district conference for youths, which is held in Greensboro. All 18 teenagers who participated in the 2008 Kernersville Rotary Club Youth Leadership Academy voted that eating lunch at the Forsyth County Jail was the worst experience of their week. Even the skeptics, though, said they found the academy worthwhile…(Full article HERE) |
July 4th Parade and 5K Race – The 13th annual Kernersville Rotary Club 4th of July 5k Run was held on Friday, July 4, 2007. 403 runners participated … Wow what great day!
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21th Annual |
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On June 25th, Gabrielle Causby, President of the Thomasville Medical Center, as well as theKernersville Medical Center, spoke to our breakfast meeting. Gabrielle reminded us of the scheduled groundbreaking sometime this summer with the anticipated grand opening to be in the Spring of 2010. The KMC will bring some 800 jobs and an anticipated $120 M in overall impact to our community.
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On June 18th, Steve Delay from Mandalay Sports spoke to our club on the plans for our minor league baseball team and stadium. The name has still not been decided but construction of the stadium next to Business 40 is well ahead of schedule. Our team will still be affiliated with the White Sox and will be a “Single A” farm team. “Family Friendly” will be the organization’s primary focus. |
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On June 11th, Terry Lawson, Manager of the Rotary Little League Teamspoke at our breakfast meeting. Arnold King also led the club assembly in ALL of the projects we are undertaking the next 2 months. They include the Pedal the Piedmont cycling event, 4th of July Race and Parade, Summerfest, RYLA (Rotary Youth Leadership Academy), Golf Marathon & Award’s Night. |
 Rotary Little League Baseball Team |
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On June 4th, Curtis Swisher spoke to our club about the TOK 2008-09 budget. The tax base will stay at $.56, mainly due to many necessary budgetary cuts. $12.1M was collected this past year from property taxes which is about 1/2 of the total budget of $24M. |
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 “Keep Going Ball” |
 “What a Stance!” |
 “Dave, Don’t Miss the Ball” |
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June 2 – Golf Marathon – Rotary Club golfers met atPine Knolls Golf Club and each played 100 holes of golf.
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 “Sexy Legs” |
 “Shhh, concentrating “ |
 “Perfect Form” |
 “Standing a we bit close, aren’t we?” |
 “Don’t leave yet!” |
 “What, no socks?” |
 “Hunchback of Pine Knolls” |
The marathon round of golf started at dawn and ended when all of the players finished their 100 holes. Each of the players solicited sponsors for each hole to raise money for local causes, such as scholarship awards and community outreach programs.
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On May 28th, Kelly Hildebrandt an East Forsyth senior spoke to our club about her upcoming plans regrading her participation with “Up With People“. Up with People has provided students with a renowned international education and an unmatched passageway to see the world. Today, through its distinct 6-month program, Up with People participants experience personal growth, leadership training, service learning and performing arts as they travel through three continents. Kelly was a finalist for the Rotary “Service Above Self Scholarship”. |
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On May 21st, Suzanna Watkins, from the Thomas S. Kenan Institute for the Arts spoke to us about the upcoming Magnolia Baroque Festival.Magnolia Baroque Festival 2008 presents five magical days of the very best in Baroque music played by world-class musicians on original instruments. Join us in Winston-Salem for the musical experience of a lifetime! |
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On May 14th, the Rotary Scholarship Winners from East Forsyth and Glenn High Schools were announced and the recipients were Annie Machamer & Haley Sink from Glenn and Caitlin Crawford and Carmen Green from East. This scholarship is based on the Rotary “Service Above Self” motto. Character, academics, extra curricular and financial needs were all part of the selection criteria. Darrell Walker, Assistant Superintendent WS/FCS also gave a presentation on the status of our schools relating to operational matters. These included budgeting and planning for buildings, growth, maintenance and transportation of 51,000 students into 82 facilities, 371 buses and 7.6 M sq. ft. of building space. |
 Darrell Walker |
District Assembly – Jamestown, May 9th
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On May 7th, we had our Club Business Meeting including club announcements. We then proceeded to Cash Elementary for Media Center Dedication & Presentation of Study Buddies.
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On April 30th, John Coulter, Director of the Kernersville Family YMCA, spoke to us briefly on the upcoming building project and the capital campaign. It includes a community pool, reforming of the current outdoor ball fields, a children’s playground, a safer loop entrance and additional parking. We all received a tour of the facilities. |
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On April 23rd, Pam Ray showed us many pictures and explained the wonderful GSE Trip to Taiwan. Their 30 day adventure was filled w/ many group photos, exotic meals, ancient ruins and widespread Karaoke singing. Pam was the textile consultant, Sam the hospital administrator, Denise the UNCG study exchange consultant, Abby the furniture designer, and Kim the social worker. Checkout the GSE Blog for their postings!
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On April 9th, Kernersville’s new Fire Rescue Chief Walt Summerville spoke at our breakfast meeting. Since his first experience in the Boone Fire Department, Chief Summerville has literally climbed the ladder / fire ladder. He has only been on the job as chief for 1.5 months, but has made an impact. The citizens of Kernersville in a recent survey requested that a fire chief be able to make decisions, build the staff up, and have plenty of experience. Chief Walt Summerville will do a fine job for our town. |
 Students of the Month |
 Students of the Month |
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On April 2nd, Brian Robinson – Girls Basketball Coach at Bishop McGuiness spoke at our breakfast meeting. Coach Robinson focused not on the 3 consecutive state championships but rather the importance of teaching his girls values and “life after basketball”. Brian mentioned repeatedly that “things happen for a reason” and that “if you want to be good at anything, you must choose to put in the time.” Erinn Thompson was selected as the Associated Press’ 2007-08 North Carolina Player of the Year!!! Congratulations Erinn!
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On March 26th, the status of the “Heart of the Triad” was given by Arnold King. Arnold spoke of the various misinformation and inaccurate stories that many people have interpreted as fact. The HOT is simply a land use and transportation master plan and is not a ploy by local commercial real estate brokers to make a fast buck. HOT is an attempt to coordinate various growth plans from the surrounding cities and municipalities. Growth is inevitable and HOT does not want this area to turn into the same transportation mess that RTP has experienced.
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 L-R Pam Ray, Abby Eaton, Sam Seifert, Dave McKoy (DG) Denise Bellamy, Kim Herzing |
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 New Member – Ken Gamble |
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On March 12th, Hon. Paul Newby, Associate Justice North Carolina Supreme Court, spoke to our club about the amazing story and progression of events that led to recovering the NC copy of the original Bill of Rights. At the end of the Civil War, it was stolen by an Ohio Union soldier who in turn sold it to am Indiana person for $5. It traveled from state to state, was offered numerous times to NC for various $$ amounts, but each time the NC state officials informed the sellers that we could not spend tax payer money on stolen property. Finally it was recovered in a clever manner with the aide of many honorable parties. (Story1 , Story 2, PDF Story) |
 Students of the Month |
 Todd Lawson |
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On March 5th, Brian Stewart, Tom Fitzgerald, Rich Blakemore explained and showed the variousRotary web sites and their respective databases, rosters and directories. These includedKernersvilleRotary.org , Rotary.org / Member Access , Rotary7690.org ,PedalthePiedmont.org , the 7690 GSE Blog , and the 7690 Database Directory . ALL of which can be accessed via this page / web site. Most of the private areas you can gain access to by using your current email address and your RI number. If you forget your RI number, look on the mailing label of yoru monthly Rotarian magazine! It’s important that when you have a change (employment, phone number, email address, etc.) that you inform the club secretary so that he can keep ALL information current and accurate!
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On Feb. 27th, the inaugural Pedal the Piedmont bike ride was discussed. Barbara Fulp and Josh Katz explained the various aspects of the fund raiser including the purpose, the route, the need for volunteers now and the day of the event, corporate and individual sponsorships, the schedule of events, online registration and the sale of jerseys. Our motto for 2008 is “Move Education Forward”.
Classification talks were also given by Keith Speaks, David Sheperd, and Mike Lacey. |
 Jeff Gunter |
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On Feb. 20th, the “Four Way Test Award” was given to Kernersville Police Chief G. C. “Neal” Stockton. (Presented by Jason Grubbs) – Good morning. As many of you know, for the last 12 years, our club has presented a member of the Kernersville community with our Four Way Test Award.
The award honors a non-Rotarian member of the community who exemplifies in their daily life the high standards of ethical behavior, integrity and goodwill required by the Four Way Test. (Full text HERE!) |
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On Feb. 13th, our new Mayor Mayor Dawn Morgan spoke at our breakfast meeting. This was her first public appearance as mayor. Dawn pointed out that this is most likely the first time when our town has had a new mayor, a new town manager and a new board all at the same time. In her first 100 days, Dawn hopes to tackle items such as hiring a new fire chief, deciding a on a new fire station, crime prevention, traffic hot spots and government efficiency, which may include a paperless town government.
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 Students of the Month |
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Dr. Terry Moffitt, National Superintendent – Veritas Sports Academy spoke at our breakfast meeting on February 6th. Veritas is a tuition free high school for boys which will combine athletic, academic and spiritual education. Their mission is to assist in developing student athletes spiritually, academically, socially, emotionally & physically by providing a Christian education in a traditional college-prep setting. The main headquarters will be in Kernersville near Beeson Rd. and will eventually have ~ 140 students.
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On January 30th, Ted Johnson from Piedmont Triad International Airport Authority & Stephanie Freeman from SkyBus spoke at our breakfast. Ted updated the group on the many changes that are occurring and will occur at PTIA. FedEx will be up and running the summer of 2009 w/ 750-1500 employees. Honda Jet will be starting their operations come the summer of 2008 with 300 employees. Other areas he covered were the new traffic patterns, the land usage and the economic impact that this project will impact. Stephanie Freeman explained the new SkyBus operation and its nonstop low-price strategy.
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January 16th Pat Ivey, NCDOT Division Engineer spoke at our breakfast meeting. His discussion centered around the various NCDOT projects in our region (Macey Grove interchange, Union Cross Road widening, the Winston-Salem Northern Beltway, etc.) and how the state simply does not have the money to accomplish all of these projects, let alone all of the other state wide projects.
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 Curtis Swisher |
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January 9th brought us the East Forsyth Finance Academy. Jennifer Haymes talked about the business curriculum that the students are taught, including summer internships at local businesses. Courses include economics, personal finances as well as intense career counseling. Some courses are also college level for which the students receive college credits.
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 Students of the Month |
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January 2nd brought us Andrea Hulke, National Manager, Outreach –Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation . JDRF is an international non-profit organization with over 81 chapters in the US. Their mission is to find a cure for diabetes and its complications through the support of research and local volunteer support networks. 91% of donations go directly to fund research.
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 Michelle Hollis |
