Rotary Club of Santa Monica

05/31/2026

This Friday, June 5th, the Rotary Club of Santa Monica will celebrate some of the best and brightest students in our community.

We’ll meet at the Hilton Santa Monica starting at noon, with the program running from 12:30–1:30 p.m.

At our lunch, we’ll be awarding scholarships to local high school students and Santa Monica College students, along with citizenship awards recognizing outstanding middle school students.

It is one of our favorite Rotary traditions: seeing the talent, hard work, character, and promise of local young people up close. These students have already accomplished impressive things, and we are proud to play a small part in supporting what comes next.

Join us to see Rotary in action — helping local kids, celebrating their achievements, and investing in the future of Santa Monica.

Guests are welcome.

05/27/2026

Join us this Friday for lunch as we welcome Dr. Kiersten Elliott, Dean of Community and Academic Relations at Santa Monica College.

Santa Monica College is one of our city’s most important educational and community institutions, and Dr. Elliott will share more about SMC’s role in creating opportunity, strengthening connections, and serving students and the broader Santa Monica community.

Come for lunch, conversation, and a chance to learn more about the work happening right here in our own backyard.

📍 Hilton Santa Monica
🕛 Lunch starts at noon, program begins at 12:30 p.m.

Guests are welcome. We hope to see you there.

05/19/2026

The Rotary Club of Santa Monica will be dark this week in observance of Memorial Day.

While we won’t be meeting for lunch, we hope everyone has a meaningful holiday weekend — with time to connect with family and friends, enjoy a little well-earned downtime, and pause to remember those who gave their lives in service to our country.

We look forward to being back together next week and continuing the work of building community here in Santa Monica and beyond.

For more on the meaning and history of Memorial Day: https://www.cem.va.gov/Memorial-Day/

Next week's speaker will be Dr. Kiersten Elliot from SMC.

Apply for and manage the VA benefits and services you’ve earned as a Veteran, Servicemember, or family member—like health care, disability, education, and more.

05/11/2026

Join us this Friday at the Rotary Club of Santa Monica as we welcome Debbie Lee, Chief Executive Officer of Downtown Santa Monica, Inc.

Debbie brings deep experience in public affairs, community engagement, strategic communications, and local leadership. She previously served as Santa Monica’s Chief Communications Officer and has returned to Downtown Santa Monica, Inc. to help guide one of our city’s most important districts through its next chapter.

Downtown Santa Monica is central to our community’s identity, economy, and future, and we look forward to hearing Debbie’s perspective on what is ahead for the Promenade, local businesses, residents, visitors, and the broader Santa Monica community.

Guests and prospective members are welcome.

For more background on Debbie’s appointment as CEO:

Debbie Lee returns to Downtown Santa Monica, Inc. as CEO with $318,000 starting salary after serving as Santa Monica's chief communications officer until 2022.

05/06/2026

Join us this Friday, May 8th, at the Rotary Club of Santa Monica as we welcome Deputy Police Chief William Heric of the Santa Monica Police Department.

Deputy Chief Heric will share insights on public safety, community policing, and the work being done to support residents, businesses, and visitors throughout Santa Monica.

Whether you are a longtime Rotarian, a community leader, or simply curious about what Rotary is all about, this is a great opportunity to hear directly from one of our city’s public safety leaders.

Friday at noon
Hilton Santa Monica
Program begins at 12:30 p.m.

Guests are welcome. Come for lunch, fellowship, and an important conversation about our community.

Deputy Chief Heric began his career in 2000 with the San Diego Police Department before joining the Santa Monica Police Department in 2005. During his time as an officer, he served as a Field Training Officer and Detective. Promoted to Sergeant in 2011, he held supervisory roles in patrol operations...

04/24/2026

Join the Rotary Club of Santa Monica for happy hour next Tuesday at The Whaler in Santa Monica starting at 5pm.

Whether you’re a longtime member, a newer Rotarian, or simply curious about what Rotary is all about, stop by for a casual evening of conversation, connection, and community.

No speeches. No pressure. Just good people getting together by the beach.

Location: The Whaler, Santa Monica
Link: https://whalerbeachbar.com/santa-monica-location/

Whaler Santa Monica Your “LocalS” Destination Welcome to the Santa Monica Whaler Just like our original Venice location, we’re only steps from the beach and offer you the best coastal party vibes, no matter the tide. Catch your favorite sports team and the amazing California sunset with a fres...

04/24/2026

We're dark (no meeting) on May 1st for Mayday. (Well, for other reasons, but it happens to be Mayday).

04/23/2026

We’re pleased to welcome Matthew Hallock, Chief of the Santa Monica Fire Department, as our speaker at the Rotary Club of Santa Monica.

Chief Hallock brings more than two decades of experience in public safety and emergency response, having led departments through major incidents and complex challenges across Southern California.

From wildfire readiness to emergency medical services and community safety, this is an opportunity to hear directly from the person responsible for protecting our city every day. The department responds to over 16,000 calls annually and plays a critical role in keeping Santa Monica safe.

📅 Join us tomorrow for an inside look at the work, leadership, and decisions behind the scenes of our local fire department.

🔗 Learn more about Chief Hallock:
https://www.santamonica.gov/profiles/matthew-hallock

The Fire Chief directs, plans, and manages the activities and staff of the Fire Department. This includes formulating the Fire Department’s organization design, mission, goals, rules, policies, and procedures. 

04/15/2026

No Rotary lunch meeting this Friday.

If you need to know why, it was definitely due to parking issues, construction, partner organization constraints, a speaker falling through, members hitting the beach, miscommunication, a funeral, a dog eating the meeting notes, the Board deciding it was the best thing to do, the Hilton not being the proper place to celebrate National Cheeseball Day, and possibly because it’s the 102nd anniversary of the first crossword puzzle book being published and some of us felt called to honor it properly.

In truth, it was a little of some of those, and none of the others.

Have a great Friday, enjoy the unexpected break, and we’ll see you next week when our speaker will be Santa Monica Fire Chief Matthew Hallock.

04/06/2026

Join us this Friday at the Rotary Club of Santa Monica as we welcome Tyrone Nance, CEO of It’s Bigger Than Us LA.

Tyrone is doing meaningful work in our community, and we’re looking forward to hearing from a leader who is making a real difference through service, vision, and action.

If you’ve been curious about Rotary, this is a great week to come by, enjoy lunch, and connect with an engaged group of local professionals and community leaders.

Friday | Hilton Santa Monica
Lunch at 12:00 PM | Program begins at 12:30 PM

Guests are welcome (although you need to pay for lunch)

Explore impactful community initiatives with It's Bigger Than Us. From weekly food distributions to education programs, join us in creating positive change in South LA.