Ray Kulla is a member of the Academy of Senior Professionals at Eckerd College (ASPEC) and a former Rotarian. As a commissioned officer in the U.S. Army, he served as Company Commander and Chief of Personnel Security Investigations. He is the retired general counsel of World Kitchen, Inc.

(L-R) Sergeant Randy Morton, Jim Watters, Chief Harmon, Bud Purdy, Detective Jim Culberson

The Rotary Club of St. Petersburg in conjunction with the St.Petersburg Police Department presented the Annual Ned March / Bud Purdy Awards to Detective James Culberson and Sergeant Randall Morton on Friday, February 3.  In addition to a plaque, the officers also received a watch courtesy of Bruce Watters Jewelers.

Established by the Rotary Club in 1952, this prestigious award has recognized over 100 St. Petersburg police officers for their dedicated service to our city. The award is named in honor of the late Ned March and longtime Rotary Club member and former St. Petersburg Police Chief, E. Wilson “Bud” Purdy.

Detective James Culberson joined the St. Petersburg Police Department in 1984. In 27 years with the Department, he has served with distinction as a patrol officer and Field Training Officer. In 1992, Jim joined the Department’s high-risk, undercover surveillance C.A.S.E. unit. He has served in that unit for the past nineteen years.Several years ago, Detective Culberson suffered serious injuries – once in 2005 when he was chasing a serial commercial burglar on foot and was run over
by a vehicle, and again in 2007 when he tackled a wanted felon and re-aggravated his earlier injuries. He returned to duty in 2009 with a fresh zeal and passion for the job unequaled by younger detectives in the unit.

In 2010 and 2011, Detective Culberson was selected for the Department’s Employee of the Quarter award thanks in part to the fact that he and his partner made more arrests during those two years than anyother team in the C.A.S.E. unit.

Sergeant Randall Morton became a Police Officer with the St. Petersburg Police Department in 1983. He was promoted to the rank of Sergeant in 1990. He is the supervisor for the Downtown Deployment Team, the Homeless Outreach Program and the Department’s Mounted Unit. These units consist of ten officers who work on the many concerns unique to the downtown area, one Homeless Outreach Officer and two Mounted Officers who patrol on horseback.

Sergeant Morton was assigned to the Downtown Deployment Team in August of 2010 because of his strong leadership style, calm demeanor, excellent communication skills and an innovative ability to resolve problems. Sergeant Morto has faced a number of challenges in the downtown area, including increasing crowds at a growing number of establishments and the extension of bar’s operating hours, which have strained police resources. He has developed a professional partnership with business owners to address security issues, proper licensing and potential code violations to enhance a vibrant yet safe reputation for the downtown night life.

But Sergeant Morton’s biggest challenge by far has been the development of the Pinellas Safe Harbor project, Pinellas County’s first Homeless Shelter and Diversion Program that began in January of 2011. The primary goal of the program was to divert homeless people from the criminal justice system, offering them temporary shelter and the services they need to become productive members of society.

The Rotary Club of St. Petersburg thanks both of these officers for their dedicated service to the citizens of St. Petersburg.

Interact will celebrate its 50th year in 2012. Since the first club was established in 1962 at a high school in Melbourne, Florida, thousands of communities worldwide have benefited from Interactors putting Service Above Self. The program has helped countless youth develop leadership skills, meet new friends, and become more familiar with Rotary. Rotary clubs that sponsor an Interact club gain fresh insight into service and help develop future Rotarians. As a Service Club within St. Petersburg High School, Interact conducts service projects within the school as well as in the community. They work closely with their sister club, Rojans, as they plan some service projects and socials together.

Rotary District 6950 sponsored a Group Study Exchange (GSE) team to
Rotary District 4360, Region Bío, Chile in April 2011. The receiving
district, 4360, is approximately 300 miles south of Santiago and
includes the city of Concepción. This region was severely impacted by
the earthquake and tsunamis that occurred on February 27, 2010. The
incoming team from Chile visited District 6950 in summer 2010. The
GSE team consisted of one Rotarian team leader and four non-Rotarian
team members.

From left to right: James Morrow, Candace Cooke, Bob Memoli, Lindsay Cross, Jeff Reese

Margaret Sullivan, PhD, has served as Regional Chancellor of USF St. Petersburg since 2009. She has
extensive leadership experience in public and private universities. As a consultant, she has helped more than
200 institutions and university systems in the southeastern United States as well as Ecuador,
Nicaragua, Mexico and the Virgin Islands. Sullivan has more than 15 years of experience in higher e

Lynda Leedy, Project Manager for ONE BAY: Healthy Communities, gave an update about the regional vision for improving the health of the eight counties in and around Tampa Bay.  The presentation  provided an overview of the current health status in the Tampa Bay region, highlighting Pinellas County and collective strategies for making an impact in the community.

We welcome the “Pitchforks” from St. Petersburg High School who provided our holiday entertainment.

January 1, 2012 will be the Centennial of the creation of Pinellas County. Today’s talk will recount the personalities and events that led up Pinellas’ independence from Hillsborough County, which we were previously part of. Our speaker is club member, Will Michaels. Will is the retired Executive Director of the Museum of History and a former Museum Trustee. He has served as President of St. Petersburg Preservation which advocates for the landmarking of the city’s historic buildings, and as Vice President of The Carter G. Woodson Museum of African American History. He has also taught at USF and St. Petersburg College where he led a course entitled “Turning Points in St. Petersburg History.” His local history column is a regular feature of the Northeast Journal. He also recently served as Design Committee Chairman for the City’s Pier Advisory Task Force. He is the current Co-Chair of the Tony Jannus Distinguished Aviation Society, an organization dedicated to the commemoration of pioneer pilot Tony Jannus and the World’s First Airline, which originated in St. Petersburg in 1914.

The annual Bruce Watters Jewelers Holiday Festival and Illuminated Boat Parade returns to Spa Beach Park on the Pier approach in downtown St. Petersburg on Sat. December 10.

The event includes ST. PETERSBURG’S FIRST FOOD TRUCK RALLY!  This year we are joining in on the food truck phenomenon as some of the most popular local food trucks will be cooking up their specialty cuisines for the first time ever in downtown St. Petersburg! Participating food trucks are: Fire Monkey Food Truck, Wicked ‘Wiches, Freshley’s Café, The Cuppin Cake, Michelle Faedo’s on The Go, Flying Sliders, La Creperia Café’s “Crepes to Go”, Mr. Empanada Mobile, Fat Tortillas Southwest Grill, Gone Bananas and Pop Craft Popsicles!

Saturday, December 10 -Noon-10 pm
Spa Beach Park, 615 Second Ave. NE. (Map)

Admission: Adults-$5, Children 12 & under-$3 – admission includes Chili!

With 17 years of perfect attendance in Rotary, David West has helped charter seven
new clubs in the District, has been both club and District Rotarian of the
Year, was District Governor in 2005-2006, now serves as an RLI facilitator,
and has served as a trainer and on the operations committee both for
Florida PETS and for the Zone Institute. His present focus is on the
development of his own club in Wesley Chapel which has grown from less
than 10 members to more than 50 in the past two years. He enjoys being
the club's program chair and providing orientation for new members. He
has recruited more than 100 new members into Rotary.