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Trio Plan Evening Rotary Club

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By KENNETH KNIGHT

kknight@tampatrib.com

Published: December 17, 2008

NEW TAMPA - Three local Rotarians plan to step out on their own and launch a third Rotary Club in New Tampa.

The New Tampa Evening Rotary Club will hold its first provisional meeting sometime in January. Club organizers say they are talking to area businesses about finding a permanent meeting place.

When the new group starts, there will be venues for New Tampa Rotarians morning, noon and night. The evening group aims to attract residents who spend much of their day out of the community.

"As New Tampa has grown, not everybody can meet at 7 a.m. or come back for a lunch meeting at noon," said Jim Mutascio, vice president of Kauffman Tire in Tampa.

Mutascio of Tampa Palms, in partnership with Said Iravani of Heritage Isles and Doug Andrews of Lutz, make up the team organizing the club.

The trio said they have spoken to many local businesspeople, civic leaders and educators who would be interested in participating in a Rotary Club if the hours were more convenient. The evening club would meet that need.

"The purpose is not to take members from other clubs but to bring new people into the family of the Rotary," Andrews said.

Of the existing Rotary clubs in the area, one meets for breakfast on Fridays at the Tampa Palms Golf & Country Club, and the other group gathers for lunch on Wednesdays at Circles Bistro in the Pebble Creek Collection plaza.

When the organizers of the evening group gathered at the Hunter's Green Golf & Country Club last week, they did not set a date or place for the inaugural meeting. Those decisions would be announced soon, they said.

Potential meeting sites include the Hunter's Green Country Club and the New Tampa Regional Library.

When details are finalized, the group will meet on Thursdays at 6:30 p.m.

To start a new club, Rotary International requires the group to have at least 20 members and be sponsored by an existing Rotary Club. Organizers expect it should take about five weeks to become a charter member of Rotary District 6890, which covers Hillsborough, Highlands, Hardee and Polk counties.

The Rotary Club of New Tampa, which meets Friday mornings, is sponsoring the new group, Iravani said.

Residents who attend the provisional meetings will become charter members. Annual membership dues will be less than $200.

Iravani, an adjunct engineering professor at the University of South Florida, will serve as the charter president. Mutascio will initially serve as vice president, then become club president in July. Andrews will serve as sergeant-at-arms.

When approved, the evening Rotary group will be the 47th club in the district, said Iravani, a former Rotarian of the Year and President's Award winner.

"We are inviting business professionals, community activists, PTA presidents and others to participate," said Andrews, a past president of Rotary Club of New Tampa and the immediate past district governor.

Andrews, Iravani and Mutascio aim to create a casual environment where civic-minded volunteers can discuss a wide range of community service projects and activities over coffee or cocktails. Buying dinner will not be a requirement at the meetings.

"The way the economy is now, people want to still be a part of the Rotary, but they can't afford it," Mutascio said. "We are trying to keep people together and do something different than other Rotary clubs are doing."

Evening Rotary clubs are a growing trend, Iravani said, citing similar groups in Tampa and Sebring.

"We are all about meeting new friends and starting new projects," Andrews said.

The group will contribute to Rotary International causes such as eradicating polio and improving water purification worldwide, as well as focus on local community service issues and Caribbean and Central American projects.

"Fellowship, that's what it's all about," Mutascio said.

JOIN THE CLUB

For information about the date and location for the inaugural meeting of the New Tampa Evening Rotary Club, contact the organizers at NTpmRotary@gmail.com.

Reporter Kenneth Knight can be reached at (813)865-4842.

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