The Rotary E-Club of Tampa South (RECTS), chartered on June 1, 2022, is the youngest club in Rotary District 6890, which includes Hillsborough, Highland, Hardee and Polk counties. Recognizing the challenges of certain professionals to attend a local Rotary meeting, FishHawk resident, retired military professional and past Rotary District Governor Deborah L. Williams decided to start an e-club that meets on Zoom.
She and Duane, her husband (also retired military), set up a booth at MacDill Air Force Base’s Tampa Bay AirFest in 2022 to advertise the club designed for active-duty military, military reserve, military spouses and military contractor professionals who wanted to engage in local, national and international service through Rotary. The club has since expanded to civilians, first responders, law enforcement officers, firemen, medical EMTs, RNs, realtors, pastors and others with tight schedules who might not be able to attend a club meeting in person but who would still like to engage in meaningful service.
On June 6, during the installation of its fourth club President Kevin Wint, 14 current members of the club were recognized as Paul Harris Fellows by The Rotary Foundation of Rotary International in appreciation of their tangible and significant ‘Service Above Self’ toward better understanding and friendly relations within their communities and peoples of the world. Past District Governor Mark Scolnick and District International Service Chair Irma Cole provided a presentation on The Rotary Foundation, its seven areas of focus and the history of Paul Harris, who founded Rotary in 1905.
The Paul Harris Fellow recipients were individually recognized and pinned by incoming District Governor Linda Devine and past District Governor Nick Hall. Now, all 22 members of RECTS are recognized Paul Harris Fellows — a testament to their commitment to service.
On the global stage, RECTS was an international partner club on a global grant with the Rotary Club of Pune Laxmi Road, India. The global grant was awarded by The Rotary Foundation to upgrade the Primary Health Centres and Sub-district Hospital in Bohr-Pune, India. The global grant was completed in December 2024. Last November, RECTS recognized veterans on Veterans Day with breakfast at FishHawk Bagels. It raises funds through various projects to provide college scholarships to graduating high school seniors. More recently, in February, member Deborah Williams traveled to India to administer polio vaccines to children as part of a District International Service Team.
RECTS invites all those interested in joining its efforts to attend one of its Zoom meetings on the first and third Tuesdays of each month, 7-8 p.m.; the Zoom meeting link is https://zoom.us/j/7328811760. For more information, contact Duane Williams at dsigma79@aol.com or 813-541-6202.
