Justin Perkinson
Ambassadorial Scholar

Click here for the full Report that Justin Perkinson submitted to RI

     Ed Kizer, of our Rotary Foundation Committee, and club contact for Rotary Ambassadorial Scholarships, introduced our speaker, Justin Perkinson.   Justin was nominee of our club in spring 2000 for one of these $25,000 awards, and then chosen by our District 7680's Selection Committee.  His year abroad in Argentina began in their fall--March, 2002--and concluded in their late spring (early winter here).  Since returning, he has been in Charlotte, co-composing and planning the stage debut of a musical to be premiered at his alma mater, Davidson, next fall.  When that is completed he will join McKenzie & Co., in New York.

    Justin was a natural for this Rotary experience, which emphasizes cultural and academic interaction in another country.  He is articulate, highly fluent in Spanish, gregarious, and extremely bright, according to Ed and others who know him.  While at Davidson College, he was an intercollegiate wrestler, President of the Honor Council, and graduated with the top academic average in his senior class.

    Justin drew Charlotte Rotarians into the Argentine situation at the time he arrived, by asking us to imagine that our access to savings, pension funds, and bank accounts was frozen by our government, access to borrowing almost stopped, monetary policy changes cutting in half the value of what we have and earn, with inflation battering us further.  This state of things had held sway for three months in Argentina, when he arrived in Buenos Aires.  Fellow students and others were astonished that he wanted to come there while the nation was in such straits (preceded by bloody demonstrations just weeks before his arrival).  However, he reflected, one learns more easily about a culture different from one's own, when it is most vulnerable; and people were open to discuss with him many aspects of their way of life and government, over succeeding months.  He was graciously welcomed by students in the University del Salvador, his Rotarian host Hugo Luppo and family, and Hugo's suburban Rotary Club. Numbering 19 total, club members came together weekly for a dinner meeting, starting between 9 and 9:45—casual arrivals!-- and ending around midnight; lots of talk, except for the forbidden topics of politics and football ("soccer," to us).  Small as it was, the club provided scholarships to quality private high schools for promising underprivileged children in its area, and arranged to get 3 fire trucks for the impoverished region, whose people had had only unreliable fire protection from the city.  His Rotary district in Argentina is similar to our club in date of founding, and celebrated its 75th year while he was attending its assembly--whose program topic there was world peace, and featured 3 religious leaders as speakers—Jewish, Christian, and Islamic.  Check our club website for summaries of two of Justin's letters while "down there," (insert his name in the "search" blank).  His "year-end report" to the Rotary Foundation is in our files.  Perhaps we can put it on our website too, for a more detailed look at a fascinating and productive year, for which Justin expressed profound thanks.  The personable young man held his after-lunch audience of Charlotte Rotarians rapt and interested through an extended Q and A period.

     Head Table: David Anderson, John Bradberry, Jerry Walters, Ed Kizer, Gene Bratek, Pat Millen.

     Visiting Rotarians & Guests: Gene Bratek; Health & Happiness: John Rogers, Song: Carroll Thomas; Invocation: Duke Ison.

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DID YOU KNOW

z Bids are closed for the auction of the 1983 Sports Illustrated Magazine, donated by Bob Culbertson.  Tigger Alexander’s bid of $55 was accepted and will be used to benefit the club’s Public Safety Scholarship Fund.

z NEW Rotary Office address: 841 Baxter Street, Suite 118, Charlotte, NC 28202.   Please update your records.

z  4^th Quarter Invoices must be paid by mid-June in order to close out the 2002-2003 Rotary year.

z Welcome new members Natalie English and Henry Cantrell.

 z Winn Maddrey has left Capital Strategies, the firm he merged with Crescent PR.  He plans to stay in Charlotte and expects to do something involving communications.  For now, “he plans a little bit of travel, a little bit of play and a little bit of research to see what’s out there.”  Unfortunately, Winn will be resigning from the club in June.

z Jeff Triplette, vice president of risk management services at Duke Energy Corp., was featured in the Charlotte Business Journal with remarks made at the McGraw-Hill Homeland Security Summit in Washington on May 15.

z Nancy Dorrier, president of Dorrier Underwood, received the 2003 Algernon Sydney Sullivan award for her compassion, grace and dedication to helping others.  The award was presented during a ceremony held at Queens University of Charlotte on May 3, 2003.

z Chuck Ambrose and wife Kris are preparing for a 1,000 mile bike ride in support of The Ride for the Ribbon.  Kris was diagnosed with breast cancer in June, 2001.  See their efforts at www.RIDEFORTHERIBBON.com.  Chuck will be on leave from the club until August.

z The Early Lunch Group Meeting will not be held next week due to the Club Assembly at SMS Catering.

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Click here for photos of this Meeting