Events

Bobbie Smith is the Executive Director of the San Diego Crew Classic, the premier spring rowing regatta in the United States, attracting athletes from novice to Olympian levels and held annually on Mission Bay. Smith brings 20 years of business experience and connections in rowing to the position, with her love of the sport beginning as a rower in the US national team system and continuing as a coach on both junior and collegiate teams. A UCLA graduate in materials science and engineering, she also founded the San Diego Pride Sprints regatta in 2023. The 53rd San Diego Crew Classic takes place March 27–29, 2026.

Katy McDonald brings more than 30 years of expertise in nonprofit leadership to her role as President & CEO of Forever Balboa Park. Previously, she served as Chief of Staff at the San Diego Symphony Orchestra, where she played a pivotal role in the creation of The Rady Shell at Jacobs Park. Prior to that, Katy was Deputy Director of External Affairs at the San Diego Museum of Art and held several key leadership positions at the Museum of Modern Art in New York. A graduate of Colorado College with a Master of Business Administration from the University of San Diego, Katy's deep roots in San Diego fuel her dedication to the city's cultural institutions. She shares Forever Balboa Park's unwavering commitment to preserving and enhancing Balboa Park's beauty and cultural vitality.

Ted Anasis is Manager of Airport Planning with the San Diego County Regional Airport Authority, bringing 20+ years of experience leading long-term airport master planning, facility planning, and environmental review. He has led major projects at San Diego International Airport, including the 10-gate expansion of Terminal 2 (the Green Build, opened 2013), the first Rental Car Center (opened 2016), and the Airport Development Plan featuring the new 30-gate Terminal 1. Mr. Anasis also volunteers at Torrey Pines State Reserve and serves on the boards of TURN Behavioral Health Services and the North San Diego Business Chamber.

Drew Moser is the CEO of the Lucky Duck Foundation, which raises money to prevent and alleviate the suffering of homelessness throughout San Diego County by supporting and implementing programs designed to have a high and immediate impact.
Prior to joining the Lucky Duck Foundation, Drew was the Executive Director and President of the San Diego Hall of Champions and San Diego Sports Association, and before that he was the Director of Basketball Operations for Men’s Basketball at the University of San Diego.
Drew is passionate about teamwork and maximizing generosity and collaboration to aid those in need.
Drew earned a Business degree and MBA from the University of Redlands, and is married with three young kids. 

Join us for a special anniversary program honoring the history of La Jolla Golden Triangle Rotary, the people who helped shape it, and the impact the club has made over four decades.

Watch the 40th anniversary video: 40 years in 15 minutes

Interested in joining us? Learn more about visiting a meeting and Rotary membership.

Join us for a keynote conversation with UCSD Chancellor Pradeep K. Khosla on leadership, innovation, and the university's role in shaping the future of our region.

Interested in joining us? Learn more about visiting a meeting and Rotary membership.

Join us for a club-centered program highlighting the work of our Avenues of Service committees, recent impact, and upcoming opportunities for members to get involved.

Interested in joining us? Learn more about visiting a meeting and Rotary membership.

Speaker: Cameron Mofid 

"Redefine What's Possible"

Powerful stories from Cameron's journey to every country in the world!

With the perfect splashdown of NASA's Artemis II in the news, our club founder Bob Rohrbach recalls his days on the Rescue Team for Apollo 11 in 1969 and Apollo 14 in 1971

This topic should be near and dear to all Rotarians as it relates to our global humanitarian work. Professor Aiken will address how data science can improve our understanding of poverty and how we can make better use of resources to address this problem

 

Bio:  

Emily Aiken is an assistant professor at the University of California San Diego, jointly appointed in the School of Global Policy and Strategy and the Halıcıoğlu Data Science Institute. 

Sou Fang, M.Arch
Director, TRIO Upward Bound, Institute of College Initiatives, University of San Diego

Sou Fang will present Upward Bound: Empowering Students, Families, and Communities, including a tribute to our dear, beloved Dr. Cynthia Villis, whose vision and leadership was instrumental in establishing Upward Bound at the University of San Diego.

Sou Fang serves as Director of the University of San Diego TRIO Upward Bound, where he has secured more than $4.5 million in grants to expand college access for low-income and first-generation students in San Diego's underserved communities. The program supports more than 120 students year-round through tutoring, mentoring, academic advising, college preparation, and a fully funded summer residential component at USD.

Before entering higher education administration and leadership, Sou trained as an architect and taught undergraduate and graduate design studios at Syracuse University - School of Architecture, focusing on urban revitalization and community-centered design.

Ethnically Hmong, Sou was born in a refugee camp in Phanat Nikhom, outside Bangkok, Thailand, and immigrated to Linda Vista in San Diego. He currently serves on the board for the Advance Forward Foundation, Groundwork San Diego-Chollas Creek, and the Linda Vista Multicultural Fair & Parade.

WINTER '26: THE COMING STORMS

Veteran Union-Tribune reporter Gary Robbins will discuss some of the ways that the U-T is preparing for El Nino coverage this fall/winter, and how it will collaborate with first responders.

About Gary Robbins

Maine native Gary Robbins decided to become a newspaper reporter in December 1972 when he saw His Girl Friday, a comedic newspaper movie starring Cary Grant and Rosalind Russell. About a month later, a weekly newspaper debuted near his home outside Bar Harbor, Maine. He asked its editor for a shot at writing and got it.

Robbins went on to journalism school at Northeastern University in Boston. In 1980, he joined an afternoon newspaper in Hollywood, Florida and covered, among other things, the Cuban boat lift and Haitian boatlift. He later moved on to the Orange County Register, where he spent 25 years as a science and technology writer. He joined The San Diego Union-Tribune in 2010 and now covers science and research universities, the military and the weather.

Robbins was a Knight Science Fellow at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. He later taught journalism at USC and Cal State Long Beach. He is married to Diana McCabe, the U-T's business editor. They have a cat, Sweet Pea, who basically does nothing 35 hours a day.