Rotary Informer 

Petoskey Rotary Noon Club NEWSLETTER

February 28, 2024

102 Years of Service Above Self

Welcome to the Rotary Club of Petoskey. President Reg Smith; officiated the meeting.

If you did not get the chance to attend, you can read about it in this newsletter.

Pledge/Anthem:  Andre Strydom is still not here so we recited the Pledge of Allegiance  

4-Way Test:  Walt Byers

Invocation:   Chris Hammond

February 28 marks the last episode of MASH in 1983. (That's the real series - not all the syndicated reruns.) So it's fitting that today's words come from Alan Alda who said, "Begin challenging your own assumptions. Your assumptions are your windows on the world. Scrub them off every once in a while, or the light won't come in."

Calendar Winners:  Read off by Ashley DeCarteret

Calendar Winners February 28, 2024

International Insight:  Rotary was a founding partner in the Global Polio Eradication Initiative and has been working toward that goal since the first vaccinations of children in the Philippines in 1979.

Visiting Rotarians:  None

Guests:  Ron Kerver; Liz Eddington, Maggie Steffy, Patrick Obrien, Rich Perlberg, Prospective Members  

Life Events:

In spite of the fact that we had about a 60 degree temperature change from Tuesday to Wednesday, and snow and ice on the road today versus yesterday we had an in-house Rotary meeting today. Thirty brave souls weathered the day and came to Rotary. It was warm and sunny in the Rose Room at the Perry Hotel.

Birthdays:

Terry Newton

Steve Brown

Anniversaries:

None

Singing/Song:  Andre Strydom was not here but we had our very own Steve Cross who helped us sing Happy Birthday to Terry Newton. With the silky smooth voice of Steve Cross we did not hear any dogs braying outside of the Perry Hotel. We are still hoping for Andre to return very soon as we miss our piano man.

ANNOUNCEMENTS  

Club Notification:  Reg Smith gave a timeline that we require a March 1^st letter of interest from agencies interested in how our funds will be used. On March 5^th there will be a Board Meeting at 5:30 pm in the Perry Hotel Board room to discuss the proposals and vote on the winning project.

April 3 is 'Bring a Guest to Rotary' Day:  On Wednesday, April 3 the Club will hear a program from Leadership Little Traverse. Members are encouraged to bring a colleague, friend, or family member who you think would be open to exploring membership with us. Rotary will pay for all guest lunches that day.

Spaghetti Dinner on April 18:  Mamma Mia! It’s time for the 72^nd annual Spaghetti Dinner. Save the date for April 18, 5 – 7 PM at Petoskey High School. Every Rotarian is asked to volunteer that day—from slinging spaghetti and working the ticket table, to washing dishes and cleaning up, there’s plenty of fun to go around. Sponsorships are available and we ask for your support to make this event a roaring success. There is still time to join the Spaghetti Dinner Committee – contact Drew Smith or Karen Ragland to learn more.

Rotary Foundation:  Jane Millar encouraged members to buy a ticket for the District 6290 50/50 Rotary Foundation. Get your Rotary Foundation raffle tickets from Jane Millar. Tickets are $20 and split the prizes among five winners. This is the last day so see Jane if you want a ticket or several.

Save the Date:  Save the Date for Career Day at Petoskey Public High School on Wednesday, March 13. Rotarians will be called upon to represent their professions again this year.

PROGRAM:  Club Assembly

Georgia Abbott shared an update on the Club's new strategy, which is tied to Rotary International's strategy. We have four areas that we are focusing on:  increase our impact, expand our reach, enhance participant engagement, and increase our ability to adapt.

Georgia then reviewed efforts by the Club over the last year to address these focus areas:

• Surveyed members on our desired impact. The Club voted to have an impact on several key community issues, including childcare, mental health, affordable housing, workforce development, and basic needs.

• Surveyed members on where and how members would like to become more involved in Club operations.

• Boosted its marketing efforts, with a refreshed website and more social media content.

• Updated the Club's bylaws, created a policy/procedure manual, and is working on a timeline of activity.

Karen Ragland gave an update on charitable income. In the last year, we had three sources of charitable income:  $10,000 from the spaghetti dinner, $3,000 from the (cancelled) fall festival, and about $20,000 from calendar sales. We did also raise about $2,300 through Pedal for Polio rides. Karen noted that the Board has decided to put the fall festival on hold and is exploring other ideas.

Christine Hammond then spoke about the Rotary Youth Exchange. This is when a Rotary Club hosts a foreign exchange student from August through January. During that time, the student stays in 3 Rotarians' homes. This is something our club used to do, but hasn't for awhile and members are being asked to consider if now is the right time to resurrect our participation. We need to signal our interest to Rotary International by September 2024, if we would like to host a student starting in August 2025. The cost to our club would be an estimated $3,000-$4,500.

Liz Ahrens gave an update on Petoskey Rotary Club Charities Inc. (PRCCI) - the 501(c)(3) charitable arm of our club. Every spring PRCCI conducts a grant cycle, awarding about $20,000 worth of grants to local nonprofits. This year PRCCI will give priority to applications that address our Club's stated impact areas.

Reg Smith then gave a brief update on the Rotary Parks Fund, noting it has a $511,000 balance and will not be making any grants this year.

Next Week’s Program:  Vocational program with Drew Smith and Sarah McDonnell - Hospitality Industry