Rotary International President Gary C. K. Huang

Rotary International President Gary C. K. Huang with wife Corinna and District 6900 Governor Alicia Michael

GM CEO Mary Barra

Rotary International President Gary C.K. Huang, (shown right) and the newly appointed CEO of General Motors, Mary Barra, highlighted the recent Rotary Club of Atlanta’s Interfaith Business Prayer Breakfast held in the jammed-packed Centennial Ballroom of the Hyatt Regency in downtown Atlanta.

Rotary International President Huang gave the opening prayer to hundreds of Rotarians, and business, professional, community and spiritual leaders who came together for this annual Rotary Club of Atlanta event that started in 1998.

As International President, Mr. Huang, a member of the Rotary Club of Taipei in Taiwan, leads Rotary and its 1.2 million members worldwide. Earlier this year, Mr. Huang chose Light Up Rotary as his theme for 2014-15 to inspire Rotarians worldwide who focus on impacting their communities through thousands of varied service projects.

“The Rotary way is to light a candle. I light one, you light one, 1.2 million Rotarians light one. Together, we light up the world,” said Huang.

The evening before the Atlanta event, Mr. Huang, and his wife, Corinna, along with District 6900 Governor Alicia Michael took part in an event at the Rotary Club of Buckhead where Rotarians thanked teachers in a very "old school" way… by polishing red apples and getting ready to place them on desks of every teacher in the Atlanta Metropolitan area.

For the last 41 years, the Rotary Club has performed this project and about 100,000 apples later, Rotarians are still doing their part to remind teachers of how much they are appreciated for what they do for children.

In addition to the Rotary Club of Buckhead, all the Rotary Clubs in the DeKalb Rotary Council took part in the event, including Stone Mountain, Northlake, Dunwoody, Decatur, South DeKalb, Brookhaven, Emory Druid Hills. Members of the Atlanta Airport Rotary, the Atlanta West End, and the Midtown Rotary Club also participated in the massive undertaking.

“It was a very special time spent with Rotary International President Gary Huang and his wife Corinna. We showed them how District 6900 can Light Up Rotary,” reported District Governor Alicia. (left) “During the International President’s entire visit, you could feel the synergy that is Rotary.”

The District Governor also reported that students involved in Rotaract and Interact Clubs across District 6900 were involved in the Apple Polishing event.

At the Interfaith Business Prayer Breakfast, GM CEO Mary Barra’s, “fireside chat,” included glimpses of her childhood in Michigan, her rise to the top of GM after 34 years, and the way her faith has helped her overcome various professional and personal challenges while managing a worldwide conglomerate.

“Doing the right thing is something I learned very early,” Barra stated. “I was fortunate to have a mother who was my best friend and a person with deep faith.”

Barra, an electrical engineer who also has a business school degree from Stanford University, has drawn high praise from national media outlets for her personally directing the recall of 1.37 million GM cars with a potentially flaw in their ignition switches.

Discussing the challenges times, Barra stated at the Atlanta gathering, “We are being transparent and we are showing our customers that we are accountable. It has been a challenging time but we have been honest, and we have stuck to our customer-centered philosophy. We have plenty of hard work in front of us, however this is an excellent example of how relationships matter, and you must have good partners.”

Barra (right) reported that along with running General Motors she still is, “A soccer mom, a hockey goalie’s mom and a fan of the cross country circuit.”

She also reported to those gathered for the prayer breakfast that at the center of her busy schedule is faith. “Faith makes all things possible,” Barra said. “Not easy, just possible.”