President Pat Wegman

There is a popular phrase that says that ―home is where your story begins, but for those of us who have moved several times, we know that ―home is where your story continues. One of the main reasons that I do feel so very at home here, far from my original roots, is my involvement with Newcomers and the amazing people who I have met through that involvement. I have had the opportunity to meet many of you personally, not only during my tenure as Membership VP, but also through our wonderful activities, and I encourage all of you to take the opportunity to make lasting friendships in this way.

We have a very talented group of women who have generously offered to serve on the Board this year, and they have some extremely creative ideas for new pro-grams, fundraisers and activities. Please take part in these events – you won’t be sorry that you did!

As you probably know, our Club is a social/philanthropic organization and we support at least one charity each year, both with our fundraising efforts and our volunteer hours. Our Philanthropic Chair for this year, Irene Friedman, will be asking for your suggestions for charities to be considered for our support for 2009-2010. We strongly encourage your input.

During the 2008-2009 Club year, our current President Emeritus, Vickie Kroeger, and her Board made wonderful strides in identifying our Club by creating a specific logo to be used on Club publications, stationery, etc. That’s the logo that you see here on my article – the outline of the state of South Carolina, with a pine-apple strategically located where Greenville would normally appear. The pineapple has been the symbol of hospitality since the early American colonists adopted it as a sign of welcome, warmth and good cheer. Truly an appropriate symbol for our organization! That is the simple, one-word theme of this Club year—HOSPITALITY. I hope that you as members experience the joy of not only receiving it, but also offering it.

I’m looking forward to enjoying a wonderful year with the Newcomers Club and hope to see all of you soon! Pat