Over 200 Delegates from District 7030 converged in Barbados from April 7th to 9th for our annual District 7030 Conference after two years of virtual events! The event was declared officially opened on Friday morning by Dr. Hyginus ‘Gene’ Leon, sixth President of Caribbean Development Bank. Our District Governor (DG) Sonya Alleyne welcomed the delegates and encouraged all to continue the work of Rotary.
During the three days of activities the delegates were graced with the presence of Past Rotary International (RI) President Barry Rassin and Past RI Director John Smarge, RI Director Elect Jeremy Hurst, RI Membership Director Brian King, who delivered the message of Rotary via our virtual platform. They reminded delegates to continue supporting their members, their community, and the RI Foundation to allow Rotary to create more impact globally.
A number of Past District Governors (PDG) including our very own PDG David Edwards and PDG Tony Watkins were present along with our future district leaders. District Governor Elect Leslie Ramdhanny outlined his plans for the next year with a key focus on environment and delegates got an opportunity to learn more about him as well as District Governor Nominee Brian Glasgow and District Governor Designate Debbie Roopchand during a fireside chat led by DS PP Paul Ashby.
The President-Elect Training Seminar (PETS) concluded on Day 1 with an exciting presentation on Budgeting led by PDG Lisle Chase. This was followed by a cocktail reception to allow the club leaders to network with their fellow leaders from across the district.
On Day 2 and 3 several countries were given the opportunity to present some of their key projects taking place within their community which allowed for Rotarians to see what others are doing across the district and take back some of these ideas and projects to their own clubs. District Rotaract Representative Mario Boyce presented on behalf of our Rotaract clubs in the district.
A symbolic walk to raise awareness of polio formed part of the weekend. Rotarians gathered from 6am on Saturday dressed in their signature red #endpolionow t-shirts to support the fight to eradicate polio and raise funds for this cause. Rotary was a pioneer in the fight against polio and started efforts in 1978 with a very ambitious goal to reach a polio-free world.
The three day event culminated at Charles Fort at the Hilton with a masquerade party ushered by District Conference Chair Rtn Neal Griffith but not before DG Sonya signed off a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with CDEMA, represented by the Executive Director Elizabeth Riley to collaborate on projects within our district. This MOU will allow countries within District 7030 to be better prepared to manage disaster risks.
It was a weekend of learning, fellowship, service, and lots of fun in beautiful Barbados. Next year's event will be held in Grenada.
