Palatka Sunrise Rotary Club

06/17/2026

As speaker this morning, we welcomed Charles L. Overturf III, Putnam County’s Supervisor of Elections. Charles attended Flagler College & has dedicated much of his career to public service & civic engagement. In addition to overseeing fair, accurate, & transparent elections in Putnam County, he is a Master Florida Certified Elections Professional and State Certified Supervisor of Elections. Many in our community also know Charles through his decades of volunteer service with youth programs, including Palatka Babe Ruth and the Kiwanis Terrific Kids program, where he has helped recognize thousands of local students over the years.

Highlights from Charles’ presentation today included remarks on the great voter turnout & timely results count we had in Putnam County in the 2024 elections. He also stated that for this 2026 election year, the qualifying period is done, with some local candidates unopposed. We will have an August primary for those races with more than one candidate. Charles noted that the redistricting in Florida does not result in any changes for the Putnam district. And he stated that the property taxes issue will be on the ballot in November.
Looking ahead, Charles discussed the citizenship identification legislation that will be effective in January 2027 & the types of ID accepted at the polls.
The Supervisor of Elections Office wants to provide education to the public on voting & ensure that all populations have the opportunity to vote. Contact Putnam County Elections office at 2509 Crill Ave, Suite 900 �Palatka or call 386-329-0224 for more information.

Charles emphasized that those who sacrificed & served our country gave us the rights & freedoms to vote & we should exercise that privilege! Vote in honor of a veteran!

06/13/2026

The primary reason our club works so hard raising funds all year ——> awarding scholarships to help deserving students right here in our Putnam County community further their education & training!! Out of a pool of about 2 1/2 times as many applicants, our club’s scholarship committee made difficult decisions to narrow the selection to 11 outstanding recipients. Nine scholarships were presented at our club meeting last Wednesday, with 2 more (Jamie Dockery & Makenzie Hutchinson) to come later when those two are back in town. Congratulations to each of these deserving awardees! Palatka Sunrise is proud to invest in your future longterm success!! 👏 ❤️

06/06/2026

FOR THEIR SACRIFICE, SERVICE & VALOR WE'LL BE FOREVER IN THEIR DEBT 🇺🇸❤️‍🩹

06/04/2026

Service Above Self!! Our amazing 2025-26 Interact students from Q.I. Roberts Jr-Sr High School once again set goals for the year to serve others by raising funds to be donated to The Rotary Foundation (TRF). The club recently gave a check for $500 as a contribution to be earmarked for TRF’s Polio Plus Fund, which is used towards eradicating the disease of polio from the world! No child, no matter where in the world, should have to suffer from this terrible disease. Our Interact students likely will never know any of the many children they are helping, but Q.I. Interactors, your selfless efforts are acknowledged & appreciated! 👏 ❤️
Photos are from various dates throughout the year of several of these amazing Interact students.

06/03/2026

06/03/2026

Our informative speaker this morning was Sarah Carrigan, Volunteer Recruiter, Florida Guardian ad Litem (GAL).

Sarah’s presentation included information on the Florida GAL’s mission, which is to provide the most vulnerable children in Florida with an adult from their community who will be a consistent, positive presence in the child’s life as part of a multi-disciplinary team that includes an attorney, child welfare professional & hopefully a community volunteer providing the highest quality community advocacy & legal representation to protect each child’s legal interests. And to provide dependency judges with thorough and accurate information regarding the children under the court’s jurisdiction.

A child may become part of the dependency court system due to abuse, neglect, or abandonment. The judge then must protect the child and make the decisions a parent normally would. When a judge appoints the Florida Statewide Guardian ad Litem Office, they use a multi-disciplinary team approach that always includes a Guardian ad Litem Attorney, a professional child welfare manager, and hopefully a trained volunteer or pro bono attorney from the child’s community. Their unique approach allows GAL to support the whole child, addressing their physical, educational, mental, emotional, social & legal needs.

As a volunteer, you are responsible for gathering facts surrounding a child’s case, reviewing reports, finding out the child’s wants and desires, visiting a child’s home, school, or placement, and providing the court with an unbiased recommendation on what is required to serve the child’s best interests. The volunteer assists in providing the judge with the information needed & what the child wants, so the judge can decide what is in the child’s best interests.

Every child needs a stable adult; YOU can be that person. A child with a Guardian ad Litem is more likely to:
* Find a safe, permanent home
* Experience fewer foster placements
* Spend less time in long-term foster care
* Receive needed healthcare & educational support
* Participate in extracurricular & social activities
* Succeed in school
* Avoid re-entry into foster care

Volunteers must pass a background check, provide letters of reference, participate in an interview, & complete free, online training. Your commitment is to remain with the child for the duration of their case. To become a volunteer & make a meaningful Impact for a child, please contact Sarah Carrigan, GAL Volunteer Recruiter, at 904-347-9052 or email [email protected].

06/01/2026

🎂 🎉🍨 HAPPY JUNE BIRTHDAYS to Palatka Sunrise Rotarians Nicole, Kyle, Bob & Chuck!! 🎊🎁🎂

05/31/2026

Palatka Sunrise congratulates our Q.I. Roberts High School Interact liason, Jamie Dockery, and all our Q.I. Interact students on achieving successful completion of their high school curriculum and graduation!! 👏 We look forward to hearing about your continued journey as you go forward in Service Above Self!

05/27/2026

The St. Johns River Water Management District (SJRWMD) Executive director Mike Register presented highlight information at our club meeting this morning on the District’s purposes & activities. Mr. Register was accompanied today by SJRWMD Chief of Staff Brad Purcell.

SJRWMD is one of Florida’s five regional water management districts. The overall mission of the SJRWMD is to protect our natural resources & support Florida’s growth by ensuring the sustainable use of Florida’s water for the benefit of the people of the District & the state. SJRWMD encompasses all or part of 18 counties. The main water body in the District is the northerly flowing St. Johns River, the longest river entirely in Florida. To achieve the overall mission, the 4 main core missions are: Water quality, Water supply, Flood protection, & Stewardship of natural systems.

The District declared a Phase III Extreme Water Shortage earlier this month in response to ongoing exceptional drought conditions, declining groundwater levels and reduced surface water flows. SJRWMD is continuing to urge residents, businesses & large water users to conserve water. Current conditions remain extremely dry, and significant rainfall is needed across the region to improve drought conditions, as we are currently in our biggest rainfall deficit.

The District also owns or manages over 775,000 acres of land (through transfers, donations, fee-simple purchases and less-than-fee acquisitions). The majority of the property is open for the public to enjoy.

Thank you, Mike & Brad, for bringing awareness of this important information to our attention!

05/26/2026

***** WEDNESDAY PREVIEW, May 27, 2026 at 7:15 a.m. *****
Our program speaker on May 27 will be Michael A. Register, Executive Director, St. Johns River Water Management District

Mike Register was appointed Executive Director by the District’s Governing Board on Sept. 14, 2021. He has been with the St. Johns River Water Management District since 1990. During his tenure with the District, he has worked in a variety of areas, including environmental resource permitting, consumptive use permitting, water supply planning, engineering, and environmental sciences.

As director of the Division of Water Supply Planning and Assessment, he was responsible for overseeing the Bureau of Watershed Management and Modeling and the Bureau of Water Supply Planning. These work groups are responsible for performing surface water and groundwater modeling, developing minimum flow and levels (MFLs) and prevention/recovery strategies, and conducting the District’s water supply planning efforts.

Register holds Bachelor of Science and Master of Engineering degrees in agricultural engineering from the University of Florida. While at the University of Florida, he conducted research on using reduced irrigation rates to freeze protect commercial foliage crops. He is a registered professional engineer in Florida.

Please join us at SUNRISE ROTARY on Wednesday at 600 S 13th St for breakfast & a great program!