The Rotaract Club of Birmingham believes in an ambitious mission and vision statements, one that requires us to work tirelessly to promote professional development for all of our members.  In doing so, we provide our members an audience with industry leaders and key influencers in the community at each of our bi-monthly luncheons at the Harbert Center. Rotaract meets on the first and third Tuesday of every month at the Harbert Center to interact with and learn from outstanding guest speakers. Guests are welcome to attend our luncheons to learn more about how to become a member of Rotaract.

Our philosophy is and has always been simple: To become an industry leader, you must learn from the best in the industry.  Our speakers certainly have met, if not exceeded, that billing.

Additionally, we expose our members to a professional development series to provide small group coaching on a variety of professional subject matters.

About Pam Siddall
Pam Siddall, 41, is president and publisher of The Birmingham News, a post she has held since January 2010.  Prior to working with The News and Advance Publications’ Alabama Newspaper Group, Pam worked with McClatchy (formerly Knight Ridder) starting in May 1997, when she was named chief financial officer (CFO) of the Columbus Ledger-Enquirer.  In April 2001, Pam joined The (Macon) Telegraph as CFO and was later promoted to vice president with expanded responsibilities for circulation and facilities.  In December 2003, she was promoted to vice president and general manager of the Columbus Ledger-Enquirer, and was named president and publisher in August 2004.  She was promoted to president and publisher of the Wichita Eagle in November 2007.  Pam has been the first female publisher in each of the three communities: Columbus, Georgia, Wichita, Kansas and Birmingham, Alabama.

Prior to joining McClatchy, Pam was controller of Russell Corporation, Licensed Products Division from 1994-1997.  While at Russell, she was actively involved in the acquisition and consolidation of several business units that formed Russell’s Licensed Products Business.  From 1991-1994, Pam worked as a senior financial analyst for W.C. Bradley Company, a holding company with interests in real estate, farming, retailing, manufacturing and direct marketing.

Pam was involved in several organizations in Wichita including Knight Foundation, Greater Wichita Economic Development Coalition Steering Council, Wichita Community Foundation, Wichita Metro Chamber of Commerce and the Wichita Technology Corporation.  While in Georgia, she was active in many local civic organizations.  She served on the boards of the Girls, Inc., Food Bank, the Better Business Bureau, the Columbus Business Improvement District (BID) and was a founding member of the BID Steering Committee.  She served on the boards of the United Way, Springer Opera House, Columbus Chamber of Commerce and the Muscogee Educational Excellence Foundation, where she was treasurer.  She chaired the Knight Foundation Advisory committee, and was a member of the administrative board at St. Luke United Methodist Church, the Columbus Chamber of Commerce workforce development committee, Chattahoochee Valley Community College’s Foundation and was active in the Civilian and Military Council.   She is a graduate of Leadership Georgia, Leadership Columbus and Northwestern University’s Advanced Executive Program.

Pam is a graduate of Columbus State University, summa cum laude, with a degree in accounting where she received the Top Accounting Graduate award in 1991.  She is a certified public accountant in the states of Alabama and Georgia.  Pam and her husband, Greg, have two daughters Haley and Annika, ages 14 and 9.

Rotaract meets on the first and third Thursdays at the Harbert Center located in downtown Birmingham.  Lunch starts at 11:45 a.m. and meetings begin promptly at noon.  Lunch is free for members and $10 for guests.  A limited number of recruitment spots are available.  If you wish to bring a potential member, please email bhamrotaract.membership@gmail.com.

About John Stone
John Stone serves as President and CEO of the Alabama Association of Nonprofits. A native of Tallahassee, Florida, John brings more than 10 years of nonprofit, corporate and political experience to the position and was formerly a member of the Board of Directors and Executive Board of the Association. Prior to joining the Alabama Association of Nonprofits, John served as director of community development for Children’s Hospital of Alabama for more than 5 years. Previous positions also included director of education, workforce and community development for the Birmingham Business Alliance (formally Birmingham Regional Chamber of Commerce) as well as communications and legislative positions for members of both the U.S. Senate and House in Washington, DC. John is married to Molly Dobson Stone, director of student affairs for Association member Restoration Academy in Fairfield, Alabama. They have three daughters – Ellabee, Anne Bailey and Pryor – and live in Birmingham. They attend The Church at Brook Hills.

Rotaract meets on the first and third Thursdays at the Harbert Center located in downtown Birmingham.  Lunch starts at 11:45 a.m. and meetings begin promptly at noon.  Lunch is free for members and $10 for guests.  A limited number of recruitment spots are available.  If you wish to bring a potential member, please contact Jeris Burns.

About Jeffrey Brewer

Jeffrey Brewer joined Goodwyn, Mills and Cawood in 1998 as head of the Birmingham Architecture Department. He currently serves as vice president of the Birmingham, Huntsville and Vernon offices, and is principal in charge of the Birmingham Architecture, Civil Engineering, Municipal Engineering, Geotechnical, Environmental and Transportation departments. In addition to his day-to-day management duties, Jeffrey plays an integral role in the firm’s economic development efforts in north Alabama, where Goodwyn, Mills and Cawood helps provide the planning, infrastructure development and facilities that enable communities to attract new businesses. He also finds great satisfaction in helping bring new clients to the firm, and coordinating projects from assembling the teams to developing concepts and contracts.

In 2004 Jeffrey was awarded the Birmingham Business Journal’s “Top 40 under 40″ and Birmingham’s “Rising Star” recognition. Jeffrey graduated (magna cum laude) from Auburn University in 1995 with the President’s Award designation as the year’s top graduate. Jeffrey studied at the Boston Architectural Center in ‘94 and Europe Study Abroad in ‘93.

Jeffrey’s notable projects include the award winning Ross Bridge Renaissance Hotel and Golf Resort, the State of the art new AIDT Robotics Training Center and the new Bass Pro Shops in Leeds.

Jeffrey is an avid outdoorsman who counts fly fishing and golf among his favorite activities. The proud father of four is also active in his church, Canterbury UMC, as well as various community associations.

Rotaract meets on the first and third Thursdays at the Harbert Center located in downtown Birmingham.  Lunch starts at 11:45 a.m. and meetings begin promptly at noon.  Lunch is free for members and $10 for guests.  A limited number of recruitment spots are available.  If you wish to bring a potential member, please contact Jeris Burns .

About Tom Broughton

Tom Broughton opened opened ServisFirst in May 2005 with $35 million in capital – the most capital raised by a start up bank in Alabama.  ServisFirst has offices in Birmingham, Montgomery, Huntsville and Dothan.  In 2009, American Banker named Tom “Community Banker of the Year.”

Prior to founding ServisFirst, Tom was the Co-Founder and President of First Commercial Bank and Co-Founder and Director of First Commercial Bancshares, Inc. (NASDAQ). He also served as the Regional CEO of Synovus Financial Corporation from 1998 to 2004 and was responsible for ten banks in Alabama, Tennessee and Georgia with assets in excess of $5 billion.

Tom received a Master of Management from the J. L. Kellogg School of Management, Northwestern University and was named a Distinguished Scholar of the Class of 1977.  He received a Bachelor of Science from the University of Alabama. He serves as a Director for the Birmingham Music Club, Mountain Brook Sports Park Foundation, Magic Moments and the Alabama Higher Education 529 Fund Board (ACES) and Prepaid Affordable Tuition Board (PACT).  He is also a member of the Rotary Club of Birmingham and the World President’s Organization.

Mr. Hofmeister will discuss the BP oil spill and his public policy education firm, Citizens for Affordable Energy, which promotes sound U.S. energy security solutions.

To secure your spot at lunch, register online by Thursday, July 8^th.

Video: Jon Hofmeister Discusses Deepwater Horizon on MSNBC

About John Hofmeister

John Hofmeister, upon retirement from Shell Oil Company in 2008, founded Citizens for Affordable Energy.  This Washington, D.C.-registered, public policy education firm promotes sound U.S. energy security solutions for the nation, including a range of affordable energy supplies, efficiency improvements, essential infrastructure, sustainable environmental policies and public education on energy issues.

Hofmeister was named President of Houston-based Shell Oil Company in March 2005, heading the U.S. Country Leadership Team, which included the leaders of all Shell businesses operating in the United States. He became President after serving as Group Human Resource Director of the Shell Group, based in The Hague, The Netherlands.

As Shell President, Hofmeister launched an extensive outreach program, unprecedented in the energy industry, to discuss critical global energy challenges. The program included an 18 month, 50-city tour across the country during which Hofmeister led 250 other Shell leaders to meet with more than 15,000 business, community and civic leaders, policymakers, and academics to discuss what must be done to ensure affordable, available energy for the future.  A business leader who has participated in the inner workings of multiple industries for over 35 years, Hofmeister also has held executive leadership positions in General Electric, Nortel and AlliedSignal (now Honeywell International).

Hofmeister serves as the Chairman of the National Urban League and is a member of the U.S. Department of Energy’s Hydrogen and Fuel Cell Technical Advisory Committee. He serves as non-executive Director of the Hunting PLC, London, UK, Lufkin Industries Inc. and the Sodexo North America Business Advisory Board. He is Senior Advisor to two energy start-ups: Liberty Power of Fort Lauderdale, Fl and NewEarth Technologies of Seattle, WA. Hofmeister also serves on the boards of the Foreign Policy Association, Strategic Partners, LLC, the Gas Technology Institute and the Center for Houston’s Future. Hofmeister is a Fellow of the National Academy of Human Resources. He also is a past Chairman and serves as a Director of the Greater Houston Partnership. Hofmeister is active in education serving Advisory Boards at the University of Houston and the University of North Texas. He is also a Director of the Texas Education Reform Committee.  Hofmeister earned Bachelor’s and Master’s Degrees in Political Science from Kansas State University.

Julie Keith is a Birmingham native and graduated from Auburn University with bachelors and masters degrees in English. She began working in magazine publishing in 1993 for Symbol of Excellence Publishers (now Hoffman Media) and then took over editing Alabama magazine in 1996. She and her husband Todd moved to Des Moines, Iowa in 1997 where Julie was a managing editor in the Better Homes & Gardens Crafts Group. After having their first child in 2001, Julie and Todd moved back to Birmingham, where Julie took over the editorial direction of Portico magazine through 2007. She left to launch Thicket magazine, a statewide lifestyle publication, before taking the job as editor of Birmingham magazine in the summer of 2009. She lives in Homewood with Todd and her sons Collins and Fletcher.

Dr. Saag received a B.S. in chemistry with honors in 1977 Tulane University and earned his medical degree from the University of Louisville. During medical school, he served for three years on the Medical School Admissions Committee and received the Presley Martin Memorial Award for Excellence in Clinical Medicine. He completed his residency and infectious disease and molecular virology fellowship training at the University of Alabama at Birmingham. During his fellowship training, Dr. Saag made seminal discoveries in the genetic evolution of HIV in vivo.  He evaluated isolates of virus obtained from individual patients at different periods in time and cloned and molecularly characterized these isolates to determine the degree of diversity of co-existing viral variants and to describe their evolution over time (Nature, 1988).  While working with Dr. Dismukes, Dr. Saag designed and led a multi-center national AIDS clinical trial on the management of cryptococcal meningitis.  This study included 194 patients and demonstrated the role of oral azole therapy in the treatment of this disorder in HIV-infected patients (NEJM, 1992).  During the last 6 months of his fellowship, Dr. Saag conceived the concept of a comprehensive HIV outpatient (1917) clinic dedicated to the provision of comprehensive patient care in conjunction with the conduct of high quality clinic trials, basic science, and clinical outcomes research.  Within the clinic structure, he established a clinical trials unit, a data management center, and a Clinical Specimen Repository designed to support the activities of the newly established Center for AIDS Research at UAB.  In essence, the clinic became a “hub” for the clinical, basic science, and behavioral science investigators within the Center by creating a dynamic interface between the patients and the investigators.

Since the establishment of the clinic, Dr. Saag has participated in many studies of antiretroviral therapy as well as novel treatments for opportunistic infections.  He has published over 280 articles in peer reviewed journals, including the first description of the use of viral load in clinical practice (Science, 1993), the first description of the rapid dynamics of viral replication (Nature, 1995), the first guidelines for use of viral load in practice (Nature Medicine, 1996), the first proof of concept of fusion inhibition as a therapeutic option (Nature Medicine, 1998), and directed the ‘first-in- patient’ studies of 7 of the 25 antiretroviral drugs currently on the market (including indinavir, efavirenz, abacavir, and enfuvirtide).  Dr. Saag has contributed over 50 chapters to medical textbooks, has served on the Editorial Board of AIDS Research and Human Retroviruses, Co-Edited a textbook entitled AIDS Therapy (Churchill Livingston, now in its 3^rd edition, and currently serves as an Editor of the Sanford Guide for Antimicrobial Agents and the Sanford HIV Guide.  He recently served on the Board of Directors of the American Board of Internal Medicine (and as Chair of the Infectious Disease Subspecialty Board), has twice served as a member of the HIV Disease Committee of the Medical Knowledge Self-Assessment Program for the American College of Physicians, and has served recently on the NIH Office of AIDS Research Advisory Council. Dr. Saag currently serves on the International AIDS Society-USA Board of Directors, is President of the HIV Medical Association, is a member of the HHS Guidelines Panel on Antiretroviral Therapy, and on numerous state, local, and national committees.  He was elected into the American Society of Clinical Investigation in 1997.  Among his other awards, Dr. Saag has received the Myrtle Wreath Award from Hadassah, was listed as one of the top ten cited HIV researchers by Science (1996), and has been listed as one of the Best Doctors in America since 1994.  He received the Outstanding Medical Research Achievement Award from the AIDS Task Force of Alabama, an Excellence in Teaching Award from the Medical Association of the State of Alabama, was named a “Health Care Hero” by the Birmingham Business Journal (2003), received a Service Award from the AIDS Survival Project in Atlanta (2003), was a 2004 honoree of the Birmingham Chapter of the National Conference on Community and Justice (NCCJ), a recipient of the Birmingham Chamber of Commerce Spirit of Birmingham Award (2005), was a recipient of the Leonard Tow Humanism in Medicine Award (The Arnold P. Gold Foundation), was a recipient of the UAB Alumni Society Hettie Butler Terry Community Service Award (2007), and received two Argus Awards for Best Lectures to the 1^st year medical student at UAB (2009) and another in 2010.

Kyle Whitmire was the political editor and author of the weekly “War on Dumb” column for the Birmingham Weekly from 2001 until January 28, 2010.

Whitmire graduated from Thomasville High School in the Clarke County town (located north of Mobile). He graduated from Birmingham-Southern College in 2001 with a degree in English and Political Science and edited the campus newspaper, Hilltop News. One of his reporters, Glenny Brock, later recruited him to the Weekly.

The Association of Alternative Newsweeklies and the Medill School of Journalism awarded Whitmire’s column first place for best political column in 2008 in the 55,000-and-under circulation division.  Whitmire has reported for the New York Times in addition to other national publications.

Paul Finebaum has been the leading authority in Southern sports for over 20 years, writing and commentating on regional and national sports issues. His syndicated radio show is heard throughout the Southeast and his column in the Mobile Register appears in countless newspapers around Alabama. A weekly contributor for Fox 6 Sports (WBRC-TV) in Birmingham, he’s also seen regularly on national networks like ESPN, CNN, MSNBC, FOX NEWS, HBO and Court TV.