Sponsorship sales are running ahead of the last two years. To date, we have collected $6,440 compared to $5,800 at the end of 2001 and $2,925 at the end of 2002. So, this could be a banner year, but we are still a long way from our $40,000 revenue goal.

Currently, we have 19 sponsors—one food underwriter, five corporate sponsors, seven station sponsors, four youth sponsors, and two auctions sponsors. Hayden Gregg has signed again to be the food sponsor and Homewood Residence will furnish salad and potatoes. The corporate sponsors are Suwannee Supply, Alexander & Marek, Ruth Constant, Crossroads Abstract & Title, and Brannan Paving—all repeats from prior years. Blackwood Toyota is back again this year upgrading to a corporate sponsor. The others are Victoria Business Magazine, The Victoria Advocate, HEB, Victoria OMS Associates, Shirley Breedlove, and Barbara Briggs. Cole, Cole & Easley along with Truman Transfer & Storage, Frost Insurance Agency, and Six Flags Glass are our youth sponsors. Janecka Insurance and Carole Parks have made donations to our auction.

Members who have not donated thus far will find a sponsorship entry form and explanation sheet along with this newsletter and their quarterly bill. Traditionally, most of our donations come from members or their firms. Please be generous. Don’t overlook the goodwill created by inviting clients to shoot as one of your sponsorship shooters.

Team leaders meet January 15 for another coordination meeting. We need a new grounds team leader. He or she will see that we have all the chairs, tables, tents, trash cans, water, etc. that we need for the weekend and that they are in place. To keep the funds flowing we need to follow-up on the almost 400 letters that we sent in November. Let’s see. . . 400 take away 19. . . just 381 follow-ups—about four for each member.

There have been no changes in the format; we will continue like in prior years—Boys & Girls Club youth activities, shooter registration, shooter practice, steak dinner, and auctions on Saturday and the shoot on Sunday.

For the eight new members who have joined the club since our last clay shoot, we set up a sporting clay course on the last weekend of April at Dr. John Beck’s ranch. The course consists of five stations each with two traps. The types of clay targets vary to represent upland game hunting. There are small, fast targets representing doves, large targets hopping along the ground like rabbits, and standard targets thrown at different angles like quails. The station sponsorships get a sign at each of these stations. Our corporate sponsors may send five shooters to participate in the event. Everyone practices on Saturday, then, on Sunday, every shooter shoots 10 targets at each station to determine his or her shooting class. The event is closed with a shoot-off in each class for trophies and the distribution of the Calcutta pot.

On Saturday night we have a steak dinner for club members and shoot participants and two auctions. One is a charity auction of donated items; the other is a Calcutta. A what? A Calcutta. Shooters volunteer to be sold at auction. The money is put in a pot and divided among the buyers of the top two shooters in each of four classes. The higher classes get more money and the lower classes get less money. It is one of the highlights of the weekend.▲

2003 has been a year of outstanding achievements for Rotary. We have seen a significant influx of money and effort to eradicate Polio in the world. Even with significant obstacles to achieving this goal Rotary is still pushing ahead and I for one believe that it will succeed. I could not be more proud of the role each of us in the Victoria Rotary Club has played in this effort. Your continued interest in making a difference to the lives of people around the world and to those here in Victoria is a tribute to the ideals of Rotary.

2004 will bring another outstanding year for Rotary to Lend a Hand. We will soon be collecting the supplies we promised to the orphanages in Matamoras Mexico where again we will help those in need in another country. We will have another Adopt-A-Child Zoo Trip to encourage the adoption of those children looking for a good home in which to live. We will identify and begin building on a Rotary Centennial Project to be completed in 2004. We will once again have the opportunity to raise funds from the Victoria Rotary Clay Shooting Event to help support the Boys and Girls Club of Victoria. This also supports the annual grants Victoria Rotary provides to the community each year.

My fervent wish for 2004 is that each of you will see and achieve your personal and professional goals. I also pray that you will have the opportunity to serve your family, friends, community and the world through your service in Rotary or any other organization that supports your philanthropic endeavors. Happy New Year!! ▲

Hint: It’s not a rock group. For the last few years our club has entered three teams in the annual Knowledge Bowl hosted by The Victoria Advocate to benefit adult literacy. Our Rotary-related team names are: Know Wheels, Cog-nitators, and Rotary Knowtary. The teams will compete again on February 6. The best teams consist of four people with a variety of interests. Volunteer to be a member of one of the teams. It is a lot of fun and players are needed. ▲

On November 25 the Victoria Rotary Foundation, Inc. board approved $8,900 in grants to a dozen local non-profit agencies—Victoria Performing Arts Center, American Red Cross, Community Food Bank, Salvation Army, Victoria College Adult Education Program, Golden Crescent CASA, Billy Cattan Recovery Outreach, UH-V Youth Leadership Program, Victoria County Senior Citizens, Girl Scouts, Boy Scouts, and Hospice of South Texas. Thanks to Art Munford and his committee for soliciting applications and recommending the best.

While it is not obvious from agency names the bulk of the grants will support youth development. For instance, the Red Cross grant will be used to provide baby care and home safety training for high school students. The Salvation Army will use their grant to send disadvantaged youth to summer camp.

The first six checks were mailed on December 2. The remainder will go out in January. ▲

We begin the new year with less than 90 members. This is the least number we have had in several years. Normally, our membership hovers around 100 although we have had as many as 117. We should all extend an invitation to those whom we feel would make good Rotarians. When you bring a potential member let Jack know quietly and the meal is free. ▲

If so, let Robert Loeb know. He can work it in after the middle of February. Check the web site for the current program, www.victoriarotary.org. ▲