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District Governor Bala Murthy
My Fellow Rotarians,
 
I am humbled and  thrilled to be your District Governor for this Rotary Year 2022-2023.  

It’s even more exciting for all of us because finally after 117 years of Rotary, we have a woman RI President at the helm with Jennifer Jones who is a great friend of our District. Jennifer’s goal is to involve families as much as possible, similarly I would like to do the same and envision our events to be as family friendly as possible.

I am grateful for a fantastic District Team who are there to help support your clubs:
 
DISTRICT TEAM
Vice Governor - PDG Jane McManus     
District Secretary - Lois Halsted
Treasurer - Steven Lepsetz       
Membership - Roma Murthy
Foundation- Ashish Sarkar        
Public Image - Kat Dooley
Training - Karen Gabrys
Conference Chair - Sparky Leonard
Finance – Don Jackson
Youth Services – Gabriel Naranjo
 
AG’s BY SECTOR
Sector 1 - Ken Corlett
Sector 2 - Henny Boeters 
Sector 3 – Wendy Downing       
Sector 5 – Jenni Sproul
Sector 6 – Lynda Ludy
Sector 7 – Wendy Jones
Sector 8 – Renee Floer 
Sector 9 – Lee Halsted
Sector 10 – Rick Hill     
Sector 11 – Rosemarie Rowney
Sector 12 – Manish Mehta
 

Let’s get to know each other better and let me tell you a little bit about myself:

  • I was born in Mysore, India and can speak many of the Indian languages. 
  • As a Mechanical Engineer, I worked at Tata Motors for a couple of years and eventually at General Motors for 27 years.
  • I was part of an Indo-Canadian youth exchange team for 4 months in Victoria, BC, Canada  and continued with the same exchange group in India for another four months where we focused on youth development and peace initiatives
  • I was a Rotary Foundation Ambassadorial Scholar and came to the University of Pittsburgh to complete my MBA where I also met my classmate and wife Roma and have been happily married for 37 years! 
  • Shortly after marriage, we moved to Grand Blanc, MI where I started working for General Motors and also became President of the Grand Blanc Rotary. Simultaneously, I completed my MS degree from Carnegie Mellon specializing in software development from the Software Engineering Institute. 
  • In 1999, our family relocated to Troy where I transferred to the Detroit Rotary club. In 2010, my business took me to Washington DC and I transferred my Rotary membership to the Washington DC Rotary where I was on the Board and was part of the International Services, Rotary Foundation and Embassy Relations and Sister cities committees.
  • My son Arjun and his family live nearby. Our grandson, Jackson is 2-1/2 years old and is the apple of our eyes.
  • In 2018, I moved my business from Washington, DC to Troy and once again transferred my Rotary membership to Troy and became President of the Troy Rotary Club in 2020-2021.
  • In 1993, after a devastating earthquake in India, I led and coordinated a global grant to rebuild fallen Indian cities. I led a 3-H grant approval to provide low-cost housing shelter in Western India. I have led matching grants for supporting schools in both India and Cancun, Mexico to get desk, chairs and blackboards and water related projects.
  • I believe strongly in Rotary Fellowships and started the Yoga and Meditation Fellowship which is now in its 4th year. I am also the President of the Rotary Travel and Hosting fellowship. I am a member of the RI Alumni Relations Committee
  • Humbly, I received the D6330 Rotary Foundation District Service Award in 1993-1994 for leading the low-cost housing shelters for earthquake survivors.
As you can see, my entire adult life and career has been entwined in Rotary where I am truly passionate about giving back to my communities. 

FOCUS ON 4 STRATEGIC AREAS:

My focus for this year will be on you, our members and your families. We will focus on 4 strategic areas:
  1. Your health & wellness, happiness. It is said each day, we should dedicate 2 hours – 1 hour for our personal well-being and 1 hour involved in our community work.
  2. Youth Leadership and Development.
  3. Environment
  4. Peace
All our district and related RI initiatives, projects and events will fall within one of the above 4 strategic areas.

I encourage you to participate in the upcoming events/projects coming in Fall 2022
  • Sep. 10th, 2022 – Operation Pollination Tour Launched
  • Sep. 23rd – 24th, 2022 – Multi District Peace Conference, Ann Arbor, MI. 
  • Oct. 1st, 2022 – Free Bikes for Kidz. 
  • Oct. 16th 2022 – Detroit Free Press Marathon
  • Oct 2022 - Rotary One Summit
  • Nov. 2022 – Foundation Gala. 
  • January/February 2023 – First Three Ladies of Rotary (RI President Jennifer Jones, Imm. RI VP Valarie Wafer, Rotary Foundation Trustee Dean Rohrs) participating in our Day of Service & Giving
  • April 2023 – RYLA 
  • May 5th - 7th, 2023 – District Conference in Caesars Palace, Windsor, Ontario. 

So much fun at our July 21st Family Fun Picnic AKA Meet The Governor
On July 21st, Rotarians from across our district gathered to the Ballywood (Bollywood) themed “Celebrate You and Your Families” AKA Meet The Governor picnic event at the Kensington Metro Park. This diverse event was an insight into the Indian culture and allowing delicious food for all palettes. The fellowship and the pleasure of meeting each other in-person after a long time in an outdoor setting overlooking the beautiful lake, was much appreciated by everyone who attended.  Following the fellowship, our members enjoyed great Indian cuisine from North and South India prepared and served on site. The tandoori delicacies from the northern part of India, and Dosas (crepes from south India) straight from the griddle and good ole Mac n Cheese for the American classic. 
 
After raising money for polio from a raffle and (Bollywood) Squares, all the Rotarians were anxious to get their Bollywood dancing moves on and danced the evening away led by Neelam Puri dancing troupe. Decked in their new Bollywood scarves, everyone had so much fun, started dancing to the rhythmic beats. Lots of laughter and positive vibes flowed all the way from the shelter, outside on the grass and to the lakes. It was joy all around and will be remembered by all of us for years to come. This marked the beginning of the fun and joy in our district. As our DG shared, this year, we will “Imagine Rotary In The Joy of Service and Giving”. 

Please enjoy viewing the picnic photos at https://photos.app.goo.gl/7kGwGjR6mdKhXLdQ7 

DISTRICT GOVERNOR CLUB VISITS BEGIN

It is my honor as your District Governor to visit each and every vibrant club in our district. So far, I have visited Rochester, Lake Orion Sunrise and Romeo Rotary Clubs. It was great to meet so many passionate Rotarians at each of these club meetings.   In addition, I attended our outbound Youth Exchange Summit and was happy to interact with these energetic kids.
 
Upcoming DG Visits/Events August 2022
  1. Rochester Rotary – Aug. 2nd Noon. New Member Induction and Paul Harris Awards
  2. Highway M-36 – Aug. 2nd 6:30 PM
  3. Birmingham – Aug. 8th Noon
  4. Milan – Aug. 17th Noon
  5. Auburn Hills – Aug. 18th 6:30 PM 
  6. Ortonville – Aug 23rd 6:00 PM
  7. Troy – Aug. 24th Noon 
  8. Richmond – Aug. 30th 12:15 PM
Let’s get reacquainted again, Let’s collaborate on ideas and let’s keep that Rotary Wheel turning with positive energy in everything we do this year.
 
L-R Rotary International Director Drew Kessler; First Lady of District 6380; Membership Chair Roma Murthy; RI President 2022-2023 Jennifer Jones; D6380 District Governor Bala Murthy
L-R: Rotary International Director Drew Kessler; First Lady of D6380 and District Membership Chair Roma Murthy; RI President 2022-2023 Jennifer Jones; D6380 District Governor Bala Murthy
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             Find District 6380 news, information and events at: Rotary6380.org