North Rotary member appointed district governor
by JESSICA L. FINCH Associate Editor

Pravin D. Suchak, a member of the Amherst North Rotary Club, was recently named a district governor. He has been a Rotarian since 1975.

A Rotary member in chapters across the world, Pravin D. Suchak, has been selected to serve as district governor for 75 chapters in the United States and Canada.

"I will bring a lot of ideas to help the district and bring a unique perspective," Suchak said.

His term will be from 2009-10 for district 7090.

Currently a member and past president of the Amherst North Rotary, Suchak joined his first chapter in 1975 in Tanzania, where he was born.

When he came to the United States for college he joined different chapters before settling in Amherst in 1984 with a computer software company, Suchak Data Systems, Inc., that he founded with his brothers. He joined Amherst North the same year.

"I think Rotary is one of the best organizations because it gives the opportunity to serve locally and internationally," he said.

Suchak added not everyone knows that Rotary raises money for local projects, as well as internationally. Half of the donations are transferred to the headquarters in Chicago and used for international projects.

He served as North's president from 1990-91 and during that time received the multi-zone award for the club's programs on Preserve Plant Earth. That was the first multi-zone award that a club had received in the district.

He has also served as area representative for Amherst and Williamsville since 1991, and was the assistant governor for Area 13 for three years.

A past district membership chairman, Suchak received the Zone 22 Membership Award for achieving the highest membership growth in Zone 22.

Suchak has several other titles to his credit, on the local and international levels, for his service to the Rotary for the past 32 years.

One of his main goals is what he calls a water project, which would bring a water supply to an area in India the clubs have been sponsoring.

"Children are spending hours getting water, and they complain about back pain," he said, adding that if the water was at the village it would save time and labor.

Since 2004 district Rotary chapters have been aiding an Indian village and to date have donated $22,000.

When he takes over as district governor, Suchak will be responsible for visiting the 75 chapters and overseeing them.

He said his appointment will be a benefit for Amherst and the whole district, because he will be able to gather ideas and bring them back to the chapters.

Suchak estimated the last time a local Rotary member was named district governor was 10 years ago.

e-mail: jfinch@beenews.com