People in Action in Thomasville
Upcoming Events & Projects
Saturday, March 24th, District Assembly in Columbus, GA - We encourage all Board Members for the current and the upcoming year to attend. We invite any member that would like to attend to please join us. We meet at the Belk parking lot a little before 6:00 am (TBA), we drive over to Columbus, stopping half way for a coffee break, a full Breakfast will be served, assembly takes place and we adjourn and travel home. Group decides on lunch? Please contact Andre', Rick or Teri so that they can register you for the event? (Club pays the registration fee)
Thursday, March 29th, Club Cookout-NO LUNCH MEETING
Please mark your calendars for March 29th at 5:30 pm for our special club meeting. We will be having a cookout at the Chamber of Commerce. After dinner we will have a more informal club meeting. Fran will be leading a Club strategic plan on the best practices for the future of our Rotary Club. Come prepared to participate. Discussion will be encouraged.
Something bothering you at Rotary, bring it to our strategic planning meeting.
See you there.
Tree Planting Challenge-Don't forget to plant your tree. (We would love to gets some pictures of you planting your tree.)
This Week's Program
Ashley Henderson, Thomas County High School's New Head Football Coach
In six seasons at the helm of the Valwood football program, Ashley Henderson made the Valiants a force to be reckoned with. After three Region titles and three GISA State Championships, Henderson is moving on. On Thursday, he was formally introduced as the next head coach at Thomas County Central.
The coach was 66-12 in six seasons at Valwood. He's always coached in South Georgia, even attending Valdosta High School, and being a home grown guy, he said he is ready to carry that success to Central.
"Being at all of those different places has kind of molded me into the guy I am, the coach I am," he said. "To me, it's a lot about what we're going to do off the field as what we're going to do on the field. The results will come but we'll start off the field and try to help these guys become better football players, but most importantly better people and better students as well.
" After his career at Valdosta, he attended Georgia Tech with Joe Burns, who went to Thomas County Central. Henderson said through Burns, he learned a lot about the Jackets, and now he is honored to take over the program.
"Talking to Joe through the years, and when I did take him home one time, I met Ed Pilcher and he treated me like family," he said. "You just knew this place was special. I've been convinced the last 18 or 19 years of my life that this was a job that I'd be interested in taking over and being here for the next 20 or 25 years."
Next Week's Program
Al Latimer, Director of the Office of Economic Vitality in Tallahassee. Will speak on Tallahassee’s bid for the Amazon HQ2
Al Latimer — a former high ranking Enterprise Florida executive — has been tapped to lead the Office of Economic Vitality, the new economic development hub for Tallahassee and Leon County.
Latimer, of Apopka, has a 25-year career in state-level economic development, most recently an 18-year stint with Enterprise Florida, the state's economic development arm.
Latimer has been applauded for his ability to build relationships between public and private sectors as well as for his connections with various business sectors, universities and governments. Latimer — who played five seasons in the NFL — led Enterprise Florida's business recruitment efforts, successfully bringing the Jacksonville Jaguars to Duval County.
Most recently, he was senior vice president of strategic partnerships at Enterprise Florida, a position he held since 2006. In that post, he led an
Before his time at with the state, Latimer was vice president of government relations for the Florida Chamber of Commerce, executive director of the Jacksonville Sports Development Authority and regional director of the Governor's Council on Fitness and Sports.