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YEARS OF SERVICE
FAMILY OF ROTARY Our membership cares deeply about the needs and concerns of our members. We don’t want to miss an opportunity to reach out in friendship when such concerns arise. The chairperson of this committee is Lynne Lindsey and all news should be directed to her at lynnehlindsay@outlook.com
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President's Message
“You’re going to find out about it anyway, so here’s a little preemptive truth-telling… There is no happy ending. The ride is sometimes smooth, sometimes hard and ugly. That’s life”— Anthony Bourdain, world traveler and global storyteller. As we step into 2026, that honest reflection feels especially fitting. Most of us have written down resolutions—health goals, professional ambitions, promises to be better spouses, parents, friends, and Rotarians. But beneath the “what” of those resolutions lies a deeper and far more powerful question: What purpose and meaning are we attaching to the commitments we make to ourselves? Our speaker last week challenged us to consider, in less than a minute, what we truly want out of life and what would make us happy in life. Is the answer simply checkboxes on a list, or are they signposts pointing us toward a life of greater fulfillment and service? Happiness, after all, is not a future destination we eventually arrive at—it is a practice we engage in every single day. The 1960’s philosopher Alan Watts offered a powerful way to think about this. He once said that: “Most people live life like it’s some type of tightrope, one wrong move, and poof down you go. So, they grip; they grasp; they try to control it all. The more you try to clutch the river, the faster it slips through your fingers. Now, of course I’m not saying don’t try. Do your best. Absolutely! And once you’ve done that, let go. Let life dance with you a little because the whole thing isn’t a war. It’s a play. You were meant to enjoy it. People ask me all the time, what’s the meaning of life. And I say, well, what’s the meaning of a piece of music? You don’t play it to get to the end. If that were the point, composers would just write one loud crash at the end and be done with it. You play music to enjoy the notes. So it is with life. It is with life!” That idea cuts straight to the heart of how we live—and how we serve. We live in a culture of waiting. People spend all day waiting for the evening and work to be over. They spend the entire week waiting for the weekend. Then they wait all year for summer, and a lifetime for happiness, accomplishment, or meaning. But happiness is not waiting in the next vacation or just beyond the next milestone. It is not somewhere ahead of you. It is now. The habit of postponing joy is the habit of missing life. Stop waiting for the perfect moment—there is no such thing. There is only this moment, and what you choose to do with it. You don’t wait for happiness. You practice it. The great writers and storytellers have echoed this truth for centuries. Ralph Waldo Emerson reminded us that “life is a journey, not a destination.” The ancient parable of the Chinese farmer—who meets every triumph and tragedy with a quiet “maybe”—teaches us that meaning is rarely found in a single outcome, but in how we walk through each chapter with humility and purpose. Even Robert Louis Stevenson captured it beautifully: “To travel hopefully is a better thing than to arrive.” Rotary understands this better than most. “Service Above Self” is not a slogan reserved for the end of a project or the moment a goal is reached—it is a way of moving through the world. The meetings, the planning, the setbacks, the small victories, and the quiet acts of kindness along the way—that is the journey. And in that journey, we practice happiness by practicing service. As we move through this new year, may we not rush to the “final note” of the song, but take the time to enjoy each measure—to be present, to serve, and to let life, and Rotary, dance with us a little along the way. Sic Vos Non Vobis, Trummie Lee Patrick III President, Roswell Rotary Club Speaker Thursday 1/22 Kit Cummings
Note: Georgia’s Insurance and Safety Fire Commissioner John King who was originally scheduled to speak on 1/22 had to cancel to attend the unexpected funeral of a staff member. He will reschedule. We appreciate Kit Cummings stepping in at the last minute! Date: Thursday, January 22, 2026 Time: 12:15 pm Location: Roswell Area Park Bill Johnson Community Activity Building 10495 Woodstock Road Roswell, GA 30075 Kit Cummings is an Award-Winning Author | International Speaker | Team Builder, Peacemaker & Storyteller Kit’s passion, his gift for storytelling, and his entertaining style will have your team on the edge of their seats. His unique message of peace, conflict resolution, and team-building has been used to bring about change in corporations, sports, schools, prisons, and faith-based communities. In 2010, Kit Cummings launched the Power of Peace Project with a bold mission: to bring hope, healing, and transformation to some of the most dangerous and divided spaces in the world. With deep experience resolving conflict behind prison walls and in at-risk communities, Kit has become a powerful voice for nonviolence, second chances, and real change. On MLK Day 2020, the NAACP honored Kit with the Martin Luther King Jr. “Living the Dream” Award for his civil rights work, prison reform efforts, and impact on underserved youth. In 2021, he was appointed to the Georgia House of Representatives Study Committee on Youth Gangs and Violence Prevention, playing a pivotal role in the passage of HB750, a groundbreaking anti-gang bill. From juvenile prisons to war-torn neighborhoods, Kit has taken POPP across the globe—from Tijuana’s La Mesa Prison to South African townships, from U.S. high schools to Eastern European rehab centers, from urban courts to rural churches, from Cambodian hospitals to Brazilian penitentiaries. His tools of change? Hope, humility, courage, and compassion. Reach & Recognition • Over 100 prisons, jails, detention centers, and rehab facilities visited across 5 continents • Partnered with Georgia Department of Juvenile Justice to serve over 1,000 incarcerated youth • Peace summits and international speaking tours on 5 continents Books & Thought Leadership • Author of seven books, including the award-winning Peace Behind the Wire: A Nonviolent Resolution (endorsed by the King Family) • Latest book: The Power of Peace: How powerful leaders harness peace to eliminate chaos and deliver results! • Named “Honorable Mention, Author of the Year” by Georgia Writers Association (with co-honoree President Jimmy Carter) Certifications & Awards • Certified Gang Specialist, National Gang Crime Research Center (Chicago) • Recipient of the 2021 Spirit Award for Innovation in Gang Prevention • Honored by local and international leaders for youth mentorship, peacebuilding, and leadership Kit Cummings is lighting the path forward—inside corporations, prisons, schools, courtrooms, churches, and communities—one brave heart at a time. Let's pack the gym this Thursday for this outstanding speaker! New Member Spotlight |
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