Rotary Informer

Petoskey Rotary Noon Club NEWSLETTER

December 9, 2020

Welcome to the Rotary Club of Petoskey via Zoom on the world wide web. Liz Ahrens, President officiated the meeting. If you did not get the chance to attend, you can watch it from this:  Recording  

Pledge/Anthem:  Howard Richards Played “My Country Tis of Thee”

4-Way Test:  David Finley

Invocation:  Lisa Hammond

A good life is when you assume nothing, do more, need less, smile often, dream big, laugh a lot, and realize how blessed you really are.

John Tesh

Calendar Winners:  Read off by Bob Metzger

Guests:  None 

Life Events:

Congratulations to Jean Frentz, who is celebrating her 50th wedding anniversary!

Congratulations to Sharon Schappacher, who won the Athena Award at the Petoskey Chamber's annual Breakfast for Champions. Very well deserved!!

Rotary Care List:

We have three people in our club we need to be thinking about. 

Neil Bidwell is back home recovering from surgery.

Ron Broquet is struggling with sciatica which is causing him intense pain.

Tim Kaufman had a little setback and is on antibiotics until January.

Birthdays: 

Jeff Wynder

Anniversaries: 

Kam Culbertson – 3 Years

Singing/Song:  Howard Richards led us in singing Happy Birthday and Smile

ANNOUNCEMENTS

Salvation Army bell ringing  on Dec. 18:  Save the date! We will ring the bell for Salvation Army. This year we will ring outside the Petoskey Chamber building at the corner of Mitchell & Howard (across from our old JC Penney location). We will also have one location at the north end of Walmart. Sign up sheet is circulating in ClubRunner. Please sign up for your preferred time slot(s). There are still 9 slots to be filled.

Wreaths Across America on Dec. 19:  Save the date! We will gather at Greenwood Cemetery to conduct wreath-laying ceremonies on veterans' graves.

Rotary Secret Santa gift exchange:  Thank you to the 22+ people who signed up! This is going to be fun. Ashley Whitney recently sent all participants instructions for how we will exchange gifts and guess who our Secret Santas are.

Calendar sales: We're in the home stretch!!  As you sell your calendars, you may drop off your calendar money to three locations: (1) Mail it to our club at PO Box 61, Petoskey, MI 49770. (2) Drop it off at Harbor/Brenn office, across the street from Culver's. There is a mail slot in the front door to slide your money through. (3) Drop it off at Karen Ragland's home. Please contact her first!

Toys for Tots:  This annual toy drive is still happening! If you'd like to donate a toy for a child in need, please drop it off at the Perry Hotel. Or you can make a cash donation if you prefer -- simply write a check out to Toys for Tots and mail it to Dave Thomas's home address. Please contact Dave Thomas with any questions.

Pints for Polio glass:  Let Nikki LaDeur know if you'd like to purchase one!

Spaghetti Dinner postponed:  The Spaghetti Dinner Committee recently decided to *postpone* this beloved event to mid/late April, when our pandemic situation hopefully will have improved. Also, we envision this year's dinner to be 'take out' meals only. Please contact Mike Snyder or Christian Smith with any questions or thoughts on this.

ELECTION RESULTS

Congratulations to all candidates! Through electronic ballot, our club approved the following slate of candidates:

President Nominee:  Reg Smith

Board of Directors:  Christian Smith; Lisa Hammond; Karen Ragland

PRCCI Board of Directors:  Jean Frentz and Bob Waldvogel

PROGRAM  Club Assembly

Today we had a Club Assembly, led by Rotary's board of directors. This assembly focused on things that have taken place amidst the COVID-19 pandemic. Here are some highlights:

Liz Ahrens and Ashley Whitney both agreed to extend their respective presidencies. Liz's presidency ends December 31 (6 months later than usual). Ashley Whitney's presidency begins January 1 (6 months earlier than usual.)

Jim Wibby, Treasurer, reported that we currently have about $135,000 in the bank -- some of which is dedicated to our Centennial Service Project and other initiatives. There have been no issues with members paying bills. However, if any member is experiencing financial hardship due to the pandemic, please come talk with Jim.

Jeff Wynder, who oversees community service, highlighted the many projects we were still able to accomplish in this challenging year:  We did a roadside cleanup, Wreaths Across America, Salvation Army bell ringing, Toys for Tots. We donated to Women's Resource Center, Alzheimer's Association, Camp Daggett and Camp Quality. We also donated $22,500 to various local charities to support COVID-19 relief and recovery.

Christian Smith, who oversees charitable income, highlighted some of our fundraisers this year. We raised $870 for polio eradication through our Pedal for Polio event and another $800 for polio eradication through a fabulous Pizza & Pints for Polio dinner at Perry Hotel. We also gave a cash award to Mr. Lance Bailey during our Teacher of the Year ceremony.

Terry Newton, Secretary, reported on our membership. We have 105 members (100 regular members and 5 honorary members). This year we welcomed (or welcomed back) several awesome new members -- Christian Smith, Sharon Schappacher, Nikki Devitt, Becky Phillip-Kranig, Geno D'Angelo, Christine Hammond, Angela Lasher and Andrea Coronado. We did lose a few members -- a few folks moved out of the area, and a few others transferred to Sunrise Rotary because it better-suited their schedules.

Kassia Perpich, who oversees club service, highlighted the many social activities we were still able to organize this year. There was the modified Exchange of Officers ceremony in Pennsylvania Park, a Zoom happy hour to celebrate Dave Thomas's year as District Governor,  an outdoor afternoon concert & pizza in Pennsylvania Park, two guided walks -- one through the Offield Family Viewlands and another through the Winter Sports Park, several Friday afternoons spent holding "Smile!" signs in the new People's Park, and lastly a Secret Santa gift exchange.

Stuart Fenton, chair of the program committee highlighted the many interesting programs we still enjoyed virtually via Zoom. There was honoring Lance Bailey as Teacher of the Year, the viola performance by Libor Ondras, remarks from Rotary International president Holger Knaack, COVID-19 updates from various on-the-ground nonprofit agencies. Special shout out to Howard Richards for all the fabulous music!!

Nikki LaDeur, who oversees international service, noted it was a quiet year for this. However, we still contributed to our District's international project.

Dianne Litzenburger, who is the president of Petoskey Rotary Club Charities, Inc. (PRCCI - the charitable arm of our club) gave an overview of PRCCI and the history of our calendar fundraiser. PRCCI is also responsible for our annual Diamonds & Denim fundraiser. Dianne noted that over the last 6 years we have raised almost $500,000 for our various partners!!

Ashley Whitney, president elect, then gave a brief 'sneak peek' of activities and festivities our club can expect in 2021 -- our 100th anniversary.  Expect to hear a lot more about this in the coming weeks / months.

Next Week’s Program:  Mike McGovern Rotary Int'l Polio Plus                                                                                     

Parting Shots:  Howard Richards closed with: Tom Lehrer 1954 “A Christmas Carol”

One very familiar type of song is the christmas carol. although it is perhaps a bit out of season at this time. however, I'm informed by my "disk jockey" friends - of whom I have none,
In order to get a song popular by christmas time, you have to start plugging it well in advance. so here goes. it has always seemed to me after all. that christmas, with it's spirit of giving, o
Us all a wonderful opportunity each year to reflect on what we all most sincerely and deeply believe in.

I refer of course, to money. and yet none of the christmas carols that you hear on the radio or in the street, even attempt to capture the true spirit of christmas as we celebrate it in the unit
Ates. that is to say the commercial spirit. so I should like to offer the following christmas carol for next year, as being perhaps a bit more appropriate.

Christmas time is here, by golly,
Disapproval would be folly,
Deck the halls with hunks of holly,
Fill the cup and don't say "when."
Kill the turkeys, ducks and chickens,
Mix the punch, drag out the dickens,
Even though the prospect sickens,
Brother, here we go again.

On christmas day you can't get sore,
Your fellow man you must adore,
There's time to rob him all the more
The other three hundred and sixty-four.

Relations, sparing no expense'll
Send some useless old utensil,
Or a matching pen and pencil.
"just the thing I need! how nice!"
It doesn't matter how sincere it
Is, nor how heartfelt the spirit,
Sentiment will not endear it,
What's important is the price.

Hark the herald tribune sings,
Advertising wondrous things.
God rest ye merry, merchants,
May you make the yuletide pay.
Angels we have heard on high
Tell us to go out and buy!

So let the raucous sleigh bells jingle,
Hail our dear old friend kris kringle,
Driving his reindeer across the sky.
Don't stand underneath when they fly by.
Actually I did rather well myself, this last christmas. the nicest present I received was a gift certificate "good at any hospital for a lobotomy". rather thoughtful.