Home page - 2023 Rotary District 5030 Conference

October 13, 2023

Rotary District 5030 Conference 2023

Don't miss out. Register now!

Don't miss out on this great event and a chance to connect with your fellow Rotarians in beautiful British Columbia. You'll save a lot of money registering early too!

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SCHEDULE OF EVENTS

Register for the District 5030 Conference

Registration: $425

Rotaracts: $250

Embrace the spirit of community, service, and fellowship at the Rotary District 5030 Conference, taking place at the iconic Fairmont Empress Hotel in Victoria, British Columbia. From October 13th through 15th, 2023, we welcome Rotarians from across the district to spark new ideas, celebrate accomplishments, and design a future full of impactful service and inspiration. Our agenda is brimming with dynamic speakers, engaging workshops, and networking opportunities that cultivate our shared mission of Service Above Self.

Nestled within the scenic city of Victoria, the Empress Hotel is a testament to timeless elegance, inviting guests to revel in its historic charm and modern luxuries. This year, we are excited to announce that attendees can fly directly from Seattle to Victoria on Kenmore Air and enjoy a 20% discount on their travel. Make the most of this opportunity to connect, learn, and inspire against the backdrop of Victoria’s stunning landscapes. Mark your calendars for this transformative experience at the Rotary District 5030 Conference.

Travel Discount Codes

Victoria Clipper: DISTRICT5030

Kenmore Air: RotaryVic2023
Travel Dates: 10-Oct. 16-Oct.
Discount: 20%
Route: Keh/LKE - YWH

Activities

Lt. General Stephen Lanza

Stephen Lanza is a retired United States Army lieutenant general who commanded I Corps at Joint Base Lewis-McChord from 2014 to 2017. He served in various command positions, including the 7th Infantry Division and the 5th Brigade Combat Team, 1st Cavalry Division during Operation Iraqi Freedom. Lanza's extensive military career also encompassed notable staff assignments, such as aide-de-camp to the Commander in Chief, United States Army Europe, and Deputy Commanding General for V Corps, U.S. Army Europe and Seventh Army.

Nyreese Castro

Dr. Nyreese Castro joined Rotary International/The Rotary Foundation as the Area of Focus Manager for Disease Prevention and Treatment and Maternal and Child Health in May 2021. She provides technical support to Rotarians and maintains strategic partnerships for the facilitation of DPT/MCH programmatic initiatives. Nyreese is passionate about increasing the world’s access to health care services by developing and improving public health policies and supporting programs that benefit the most vulnerable populations.

David Laub

Project description - Senegal Village Water and Food Security Project - Helping a village out of poverty in an Environmentally and Financially Sustainable Manner. David Laub is a 20 plus year member of Bellevue Rotary whose classification is Fishing Commercial. He was president of the club in 2017-2018 and is a major donor. David is the current CFO of Cell Systems, a manufacturer of scientific tools for research institutions. He also serves on the board of directors/advisors of Arena Sports, 2bar Spirits, and InferoniX

Christopher Davis MD

Over the course of a 35-year career as an Emergency Department Physician, Dr Christopher Davis has cared for over 100,000 patients. He has taught emergency medicine in the Washington DC area, the Pacific Northwest, and as guest faculty member in Laos, Bhutan, Cambodia, and Uganda. He is a Past President of Ballard Rotary. In retirement, he has written the book he always wanted to write. Compassion Amidst the Chaos is brimming with the tension, anguish, exhaustion, relief, gratitude, and compassion that are all part of a typical day at work in the ER. Travel with Dr. Chris Davis through the cases he remembers most from his 35-year career as an emergency medicine doctor.

Tracy Rubstello

Tracy majored in Communications with an emphasis on Advertising at the University of Washington and has a long history of nonprofit work. She started and ran her own nonprofit that worked in Rwanda post-genocide in helping to establish healing and reconciliation as well as poverty reduction programs. Tracy’s strengths include: casting a vision for new ways to impact the world for good, creating a community of support around those visions, and sharing hurting people’s stories in ways that honor as well as empower them. In her free time, Tracy enjoys walking in the woods or near the water, reading actual books (no kindle for her), and spending time with her husband and grown children and their families. She can often be seen pogo sticking or playing power rangers with her grandson.

Andrea Suarez

Andrea Suarez is a King Country resident of 24 years living in Belltown where she founded We Heart Seattle, a volunteer led Boots on the Ground grassroots a-politcal Coalition for a more Beautiful and Safe Seattle for all to Enjoy. To date, she has harnessed the power of one into a movement that has serviced the entire City of Seattle by inspiring 8000 volunteer hours to clean up the trash weekly now totally 880,000 pounds, 20,000 needles removed, and restored and maintained 50 parks and green spaces through civic engagement. Unknowingly, picking up the trash in encampments built trust with our unhoused neighbors and her team has housed more than 170 people and has become one of the most effective outreach models in the region.

Sif Jensen

The Human Library Organization strives to create spaces for open and honest conversations where one can engage with and explore diversity. We facilitate encounters that can create opportunities for better understanding and to unjudge someone: unjudge: To reconsider opinions or conclusions, based on newly acquired understanding. Sif Jensen will be giving a speech on the Human Library Experience. She resides in Copenhagen and has been part of the Human Library for five years. She is the head of communication and is also a part of the Human Library team that works internationally with workplace Human Library experiences, facilitating safe spaces for people to engage with diversity and challenge their biases, prejudices, and preconceptions

Dr. Susanna Southworth

Dr. Susanna Southworth is dedicated to ending human trafficking and child sexual exploitation. Through her law firm, Restore the Child, PLLC, she represents victims of abuse, online exploitation, child sex abuse material (CSAM), and sex trafficking. Susanna’s mission is for her clients to experience a new beginning, to a life free from the pain of past abuse, while receiving maximum recovery for their harm. Since obtaining her license in 2004 to practice law in Washington State, Susanna has advocated for vulnerable populations in several areas of the law, including, immigration (removal defense and U visas for victims of abuse), criminal (excluding sex offenses), and guardianships and estate planning. Further, she holds certifications in collaborative law and basic mediation training. Susanna serves survivors of child sex trafficking in her leadership as president of the Rotary Club of the Pacific Northwest Ending Sex Trafficking during the 2022-2023 Rotary year. In addition, she serves on the leadership boards for CHILD USA, CHILD USAdvocacy, Compassion Washington, and the Organization for Prostitution Survivors (OPS) to help survivors of sex trafficking and exploitation. Prior to forming Restore the Child, PLLC, Susanna represented survivors in numerous lawsuits against websites and hotel brands for their facilitation of child sex trafficking, including the first case to not be defeated at the motion to dismiss stage and reach global resolution against a well-known website. She brings experience representing survivors of child sex abuse in high stakes litigation to Restore the Child with an unyielding commitment to protect the most vulnerable and fight for justice. Susanna has a heart for mentoring youth and a passion for education, which she invests in as a Lecturer for the Division of Politics, Philosophy, and Public Affairs for the School of Interdisciplinary

Jeffry Cadorette

Jeffry Cadorette, PRID (Rotary International Director 2018-2020) is Associate Broker, Commercial Realtor, and Senior Advisor to the Commercial Division at Media Real Estate Company He served on the Board of Directors of the Rocky Run YMCA for 14 years, 4 as Board Chair, and was Honorary Chair of their Phase ll and Phase lll Capital Campaigns. He is a past Board member of the Philadelphia Freedom Valley Y where he was Chair of its Branch Operations Committee.

Lorelei Higgins

Lorelei Higgins is a Métis Canadian Cultural Mediator, a Rotary Peace Fellow and Positive Peace Activator as well as a Governor General’s Canadian Leadership Program alumna. She has worked on community-based projects locally and internationally with government agencies, non-government organizations and the business sector. These projects centre on peace and conflict transformation, Indigenous matters and the elevation of female voices in leadership. Lorelei has worked across the globe in communities in Africa, Asia, Europe, North America and South America.

Rachele Bouchand

Rachele is a member and Past President of the Bellevue Rotary Club since 2009. She currently serves on the District leadership team and is the co-chair of the RISE (Rotarians Inspired to Succeed and Engage) leadership program. Additionally, she will serve as Governor for 2024-2025. Rachele was also a member of the Rotary International Next Generation Conference in 2014. Lastly, she was able to blend her vocational and Rotary lives when she served as a member of the Global Polio Finance Committee. Her Rotary classification is Consulting-Business. Rachele currently serves as Managing Director of Pathstone, where she is responsible for advising families and single-family offices on a variety of wealth management and estate planning topics.

Judge Vic Fleming

A resident of Little Rock, Ark. Vic Fleming (Class of 1973) is a judge, author, law professor, songwriter, crossword puzzle constructor, and haiku poet. A legal humor columnist from 1984-2016, he’s the author of Real Lawyers Do Change Their Briefs (1989) and Perry’s Dead (And the ‘Juice’ is Loose) (1995). The editor of two nonfiction books and co-editor of Random House Casual Crosswords in 2009-2010, he has written over 1,000 published crosswords, including 47 in the New York Times. In the 2006 documentary Wordplay, Vic performed his song “If You Don’t Come Across (I’m Gonna Be Down).” In 2007, he was inducted into the Arkansas Writers Hall of Fame.

Matthew "Griff" Griffin

In 2008, Matthew was invited to serve as the Director of Military Sales for Remote Medical International in Seattle, WA. During this time, he helped develop military medical training programs serving customers around the globe. Working in the defense sector eventually led him back to Afghanistan to assist with infrastructure development. After witnessing the positive effects of economic growth in conflict areas, Matthew recognized an opportunity to empower mindful consumers to support “Business, Not Bullets”–flipping the view on how wars are won.

Lisa Edwards

Lisa is a member and current President of the University District Rotary Club (UDRC) . She started her Rotary experience in LaCrosse, Wisconsin in 2015 and was active in supporting Midwest PETS and then moved back to Seattle and found her new Rotary home at UDRC. Her Rotary Classification is Nonprofit/Healthcare. Lisa is the Superintendent/CEO of Public Hospital District #2, Snohomish County where she oversees healthcare access and ensure lines of service for more than 300,000 residents. Her 30 year career commitment to public service has been complemented by her participation in Rotary and she is passionate about cultivating emerging leaders.

Cassie Howder

Cassie Howder comes from a drug & alcohol affected home in rural Eastern Washington. Her life was profoundly changed when she joined an Interact club as a freshman in highschool. She went on an international service trip with the group, gained Rotary Scholarships for RYLA and then college, she helped start a Rotaract club, and soon after became the first out of her five siblings and parents to graduate from university. She credits the influence of Rotary for much of her successes thus far in life, and aspires to one day be a Rotary International President. Cassie has been invited to share her deep and moving Rotary story for 10+ years at various Rotary conferences, including the 2019 International Convention in Hamburg, Germany where she gave a key-note address in front of 23,000 people from around the world. Today, she is the Youth Services Chair for the Issaquah Rotary Club, started an Interact Club about 2 years ago and was also selected for a Rotary Young Professional Exchange program which she attended in Japan this last April, 2023. We’re excited to hear Cassie’s message on Saturday Oct 14th at 8:30am. Join us for this inspiring and powerful presentation which has connected with the lives of so many.

Jenny Andrews

Career and life experiences have helped me develop a careful blend of excellent listening skills and a gift for story telling, critical in building long-term relationships with clients that result in mutual gratification. Global traveler who built the PATH Journeys program and led many trips throughout the world to give people the opportunity to see the impact of their philanthropy first-hand, building loyalty and long-term commitment.

Patrick Galvin

Co-founder and partner of The Galvanizing Group®, a learning and development company in Portland, Oregon. With a bestselling book series (“The Connector’s Way” and "The Trusted Way"), a unique cohort coaching program, and an online learning curriculum, The Galvanizing Group® offers high-performance companies and teams a methodical approach to improving loyalty, referrals, and sales through better relationship building.

Amy Downs

Amy Downs was one of the last survivors to be pulled from the rubble of the 1995 Oklahoma City bombing in which a total of 168 people were killed, including 18 of her 33 co-workers. While buried alive and waiting to die, she realized she had never really lived. Once freed from the rubble, Amy launched a self-improvement campaign. Amy shares with the audience how to apply what she learned on her journey from a 355lb teller who dropped out of college to obtaining her Masters in Business Administration, becoming the CEO, and completing an Ironman Triathlon. This call to action key note will leave the audience inspired, ignited with hope, and with new ideas on how they can achieve their goals.

Mark Brown

Mark is the co-founder of Agricultural Resilience Incentives (AgRI), a charity that supports Zambian farmers who are experiencing crop failure due to increased instances of drought. Through Rotary support, AgRI has empowered over 600 small-scale farmers in eastern Zambia to become more climate-resilient through its sorghum adoption program. Prior to starting AgRI, Mark worked in social innovation and agriculture for development with the UNDP, the UN-FAO, Engineers Without Borders Canada, USAID, The Government of Ontario, and has consulted for social enterprises in Ghana, Canada and Zambia. In 2015-16, Mark attended the University of Oxford on a Rotary Global Scholarship.

Gino Reyes

For 15 years he walked a parallel line with Rotary, never feeling like there was a place for someone like him within this organization. In December of 2021, a year after moving to Las Vegas, he finally decided to join a local club. He thought to himself, what better way to meet like minded people and build community. He jumped in head first ready to make an impact on his club and a difference in the community.

Jordan Harrison

Jordan Harrison is a professional speaker, DEI consultant, Rotarian, and international youth development specialist born in Chicago, IL. He earned his BS from San Diego State and his Masters in Education from Harvard University. Most importantly, he is a disruptor to make a difference. He lives a mission-driven life focused on eradicating inequality with the constant reminder of our collective shared humanity. His work has allowed him to speak to over 250,000 people in boardrooms, classrooms, prisons, and conferences on anti-racism, equity, inclusion, and how to build people and institutions to thrive across differences. He is currently the Vice President of Community Impact and Partnerships at Reality Changers where he has worked with over 20,000 8th-12th grade first-generation, low-income college-bound students in San Diego who attend universities around the world. In addition to his work with students and families. he works with Fortune 500 companies, educational institutions, and nonprofits to solve their most pressing equity challenges seeking to solve how we can create environments where every person can succeed, no matter where they come from. Harrison is committed to the challenging work of transforming hearts, minds, and systems to change our conditions and rewrite our conclusions. Harrison continues his work in transforming lives, communities, and the world with the message to encourage others to live out the conviction that our conditions are not our conclusions

Doug Pinkley

Doug Pinkley CPO LPO is Vice President / Owner of the Center for Prosthetics Orthotics Inc in Seattle. He has been there since 2004. Doug has a BA in Psychology and BS in Prosthetics and Orthotics, both from the University of Washington. He also was a volunteer with Washington Orthotic and Prosthetic Association for 3 years to help monitor and affect change of the state’s legislative and regulation processes. Since October, 2016, he has been a volunteer and Practice Manager at a La Paz Mexico prosthetics and orthotics clinic.

Great Fundraising Challenges

District 5030 Golf Classic

Join us for our 16th Annual District 5030 Golf Classic. We will be having an 18-hole tournament, 4-person team scramble format.

Everyone is welcome! Invite your friends and family (Non-Rotarians Welcome)

Hunger Strike

Hunger Strike is a fun and friendly team-based fundraising competition that culminates in a one-day in-person bowling event where club and community members come together to celebrate their efforts and for some, receive sweet prizes. Hunger Strike benefits Harvest Against Hunger, an organization that works with farmers, truckers, volunteers and others to bring valuable skills and resources into hunger relief efforts in communities across Washington state and beyond. This event is a powerful way for Rotary clubs to engage with their local communities and demonstrate the impact of Rotary.

Dine & Raise To End Malaria

Participate in an active Dine & Raise fundraiser during the 3 - day conference at any of the participating Victoria area restaurants. Form dinning parties and raise money just by paying for your meal. Simply scan the Dine and Raise QR code and pay.

Be with us in this room!

Hear What People Are Saying

The last time we had the District 5030 conference at the Empress Hotel of Victoria was 2009 when I was the DG. This location was absolutely perfect for our event. It's nice to see the return of our district conference at this historic destination.

Jesse Tam Past District 5030 Governor

Explore Victoria like a VIP!

Victoria Conference Centre, Destination Greater Victoria and its local partners would like to say ‘Thank You’ by presenting you with our exclusive Delegate VIP Program. Our VIP Program quickly and easily points you to the best deals and discounts at restaurants, shops, attractions, tours, transportation and more. Click the link below to discover more about this awesome program brought to you by Business Events Victoria.

Visit the Website

Conference

Mouse over the sections below to see highlights of the Conference

Day 1

October 12, 2023

Registration
Governor's Reception and Dinner
Dine Around Fundraiser Begins

Day 2

October 13, 2023

Registration
Meetings
Breakouts
Presidents & Presidents-Elect Reception
Plenary Session 1

Day 3

October 14, 2023

Breakfast
Late Registration
Meetings
Breakouts
Plenary Sessions 2 & 3 Foundation
Reception
Dinner

Day 4

October 15, 2023

Breakfast
Meetings
Plenary Session 4

Reserve your room today

We are now accepting hotel reservations for the Rotary International District 5030. Through this website you can book, modify or cancel your hotel reservations at any time and receive updated information about the event. We look forward to seeing you!