NRI Pulse

City News

Rotary Club of Emory Druid Hills Installs New Office Bearers; Chandler Sharma is New President

BY RAVI R. PONANGI
Photos by Kireeti Vaggu

 Atlanta, GA: Rotary Club of Emory Druid Hills (RCEDH) installed new office bearers at its recently held annual banquet at Palace Restaurant, Norcross. Past District Governor (PDG) Rtn Barry Smith inducted Rtn. Chandler Sharma as president of the club for 2014 – 15, starting from July 1. Members of Rtn. Chandler Sharma’s team are: Rtns. Ravi Chander, immediate past president; Shiv Aggarwal, vice president & president elect; Ravindra Singh- Secretary and Chair- Club Administration Committee; Bhairavi Nadgonde- Treasurer; Susan Sweeney and Naveen Shroff- Sgt. of Arms. PDG. Rtn. Smith congratulated the new office bearers and each of them took the oath to serve the club to the best of their ability.

The theme of the induction ceremony, apart from aiming to be the best club was “The Year of the Happening”. The new inducted officers will be racing to work towards achieving Rotary goals and giving back to the community.

Club president Chandler Sharma and Swami Adhyatmananda presenting a memento to Rotary Governor Alicia Michaels.

Alicia Michaels, District 6900 District Governor graced the occasion as guest of honor and her address uplifted the induction ceremony. She talked about “The Power of One” and about how everything we do makes the world a better place.

Swami Adhyatmanandaji, President of Sivananda Ashram, Ahmedabad,Indiawas the keynote speaker.  His words of wisdom on building peace across nations, meeting basic human needs, leadership, attendance and service above self was outstanding. It left the crowd enriched from his talk.

The event also had the esteemed presence of Rtn. Ben Hunter, Assistant District Governor who has been supportive of the club in many ways.

The evening began with a social hour with Rtn. Dr. Nazeera Dawood serving as the emcee of ceremony. Her humorous presentation style enthralled the audience.  The icebreaker at the event left every last one in the room sitting with smiles. The ceremony began with the recital of convocation and the pledge of Allegiance by Rtn. Dr. Mel Fareed. The 2013-2014 club member leadership was acknowledged for their service. They were each given certificates of excellence.  The club member of the year was awarded to Mr. Mustafa Ajmeri for his selfless service in the operations of the club.

Rtn. Ravi Chander, outgoing president of the club, who is away inHyderabadin an email message to the members said “We have not only increased in strength but achieved our goals that we set forth during the beginning of my term.  I sincerely feel that we as a club have a good heart and we are proving to be a group that others want to join.”

Chandler Sharma’s acceptance speech was empowering, as he addressed the group on the importance of charity, leadership, community contributions which are needed to carry out RCEDH’s desired and planned charitable activities. He also detailed his plans for his presidency and thanked the past and the current leadership for their valuable contributions.

The Rotary Club of Emory-Druid Hills (RCEDH), which has diverse, international members,  received its charter as a new club from Rotary International on October 21, 2009. The new club is sponsored by the Rotary Club of Lake Spivey and the Rotary Club of Sandy Springs. The club meets every Wednesdays at 12:15 PM in Ashiana Restaurant, Global Mall, 5675 Jimmy Carter Blvd; Ashiana Restaurant, Norcross, GA  30071. Fellow Rotarians and individuals interested in joining the Rotary Club are invited to attend.

Overall the induction ceremony raised the bar for future programs. The program ended with a quote from Mother Teresa, ‘Yesterday is gone. Tomorrow has not yet come. We have only today. Let us begin.’

Related posts

Suspect charged in Georgia Indian American’s driveway shooting death

Veena

Ekal Vidyalaya Celebrates 25th Anniversary with Music & Dance

Veena

Sangeet Sangam: A unique jugalbandi concert featuring Hindustani and Carnatic music

Veena

Leave a Comment