Holiday Social - December 21, 2023 (Dec. 22, 2023)

Last Time We Met 12/21/2023

Messages from President Debbi

Some additional photos I took below...... Bob

Last Time We Met 12/14/2023

Today our meeting was led by President Debbi Rydberg. We sang and recited the pledge:

We pledge ourselves to "Create Hope in the World". We will accomplish this by reaffirming our mission to inspire leaders with passion to serve humanity, strengthen youth for tomorrow's leadership and dedicate ourselves to enhancing lives in our world. Before we speak, act, or make decisions, let us pause and ask ourselves: Is it the truth? Is it fair to all concerned? Will it build goodwill and better friendships? Will it be beneficial to all concerned? These are our compass and will ensure that our actions are filled with integrity and genuine care.

Attending

Dirk Barrett, Melanie Clemons, Julie Fish, Katie Harstad, Tom Kerber, Heather Kliewer, Tove Lichty, Debbi Rydberg, Ashley Schultz, Theresa Slominski, Joe Stremcha, Nicole Wocjik, Bill Yueill, Robert Maxwell, John Osterman, Bruce Tyler

Guests Attending

Mark Hanson, General Manager, Elk River Municipal Utilities (ERMU); job shadow students Easton Jones (with Katie Harstad), and Kaden Healy (with Melanie Clemons)

Program

Joe Stremcha introduced Mark Hanson from ERMU. Mark gave a brief history of ERMU with Fred Waterman starting Elk River Power and Light in 1915 utilizing hydropower at the dam, and it became a public municipal utility in 1945. ERMU does not generate the electricity power now but purchases it from a joint action agency called Minnesota Municipal Power Agency (MMPA), which is about 70% of the annual budget. Two big projects for ERMU was the completion of the new Field Services Building on Main Street, and currently installing an Automated Meter Infrastructure (AMI) system. AMI allows the utility to obtain meter readings and information from the office, rather than being physically close to the meter to obtain readings. AMI will also allow two-way information to be obtained from the meters in fifteen minute increments rather than once a month. This type of information will be able to identify water leaks for customers, and also in the future, customers will be able to view real-time usage information. ERMU is always planning for the future and works closely with the City for this planning so that services can be available as Developers want to develop areas in the City of Elk River. ERMU is working with a consultant to obtain customer service survey information and plans to have this completed prior to the AMI project completion so that good survey information can be obtained post implementation too. ERMU has been awarded the Reliable Public Power Provider award, the Smart Energy Provider award, and an Excellence in Communication award. The last thing Mark wanted to leave us with was that they are budgeting for a 0% electric rate increase in 2024!

Rotating Reports

District updates

District Mid-term is January 6, 2024 in St. Paul

Community update reports

Mark Kuyava is home and doing well, although it will be a long recovery. He is grateful for the Rotary prayers and support, and his wife loved the Christmas flower arrangement.
Service update – Shiver Elk River is February 10 in Big Lake and Rotary will be providing hot cocoa again. Debbi also encouraged the club to jump in the water this year!
A Taste meeting will be today after the regular meeting here at Rockwoods.
January 18, 2024 is the meeting date for public recognition of the $10,000 in donations to the various agencies. The agencies will actually get the physical checks by the end of December.
Debbi showed a video from Rotary International on Health and Wellness, the theme of the month, focusing on disease prevention. Our local Rotary club is part of a much larger organization and it’s good to see how we are a part of that and can help with our foundation dollar contributions.

Fundraising Opportunities

Delights and Dilemmas:

Nicole Wocjik was delighted to have completed the college visit to Moorhead and Concordia, and still has a visit to UMD planned for next year. She was also delighted to have won a $500 gift card at Mark’s company Christmas party, and lastly to be attending the Ripley Wreaths for the Fallen this weekend with her mom (and will be able to meet her mom’s boyfriend.)

Julie Fish was delighted for her family’s Christmas gathering (“Fishmas”) this weekend, and her A1C number is down to 6.6 this year!

Theresa Slominski was delighted her daughter is recovering from appendicitis, and her husband is recovering from having two teeth pulled.

Debbi Rydberg was delighted for her mom’s cataract surgery to have gone well, and her husband’s cataract surgery went well too. She had a dilemma, however, that the kittens did not do so well with them being gone and not being at their home, suffering from anxiety.

Birthdays – Tom Kerber had us sing to him for his

birthday December 24. John Osterman wants to be sung happy birthday at the Christmas party for his birthday on December 26.

Melanie Clemons was the winner for the card draw this week! The pot will start fresh in January!

Other updates

There is no regular meeting on 12/21 since we have the holiday party that evening at POUR approximately 5:30-8:30pm. Wear an ugly Christmas attire, bring $1s and $5s, and there will be a new game requiring some skill. Don’t be late as there is a booby prize for that! Rotary will be providing appetizers and the first round of drinks.

Pearls of Wisdom:

“The purpose of human life is to serve, and to show compassion, and the will to help others.” Albert Schweitzer.

Wanted to add this to the bulletin... Bob

Holiday Social - RSVP to:

Nicole @ 763-331-5747

Theresa 763-227-0654

Ashley 715-741-7526

Julie @ 763-286-7298

Julie@elkriverprinting.com

Last Time We Met 12/7/2023

Today our meeting was led by President-Elect Heather Kliewer. We sang and recited the pledge:

Attending

Terry Bizal, Melanie Clemons, Julie Fish, Neil Gagnon, Katie Harstad, Tom Kerber, Heather Kliewer, Tove Lichty, Dr. Laura Mullennex, Pete Reiner, Theresa Slominski, Joe Stremcha, Bill Yueill, Robert Maxwell, John Osterman, Bruce Tyler

Guests Attending

Twila Johnson, Executive Director Maria’s Voice; Lissa Weimelt, Co-Founder Maria’s Voice; Michael Spellman, Assistant District Governor

Program

John Osterman introduced Lissa Weimelt from Maria’s Voice. Maria and her husband founded Maria’s Voice after their daughter was murdered by her husband. They didn’t know the signs of domestic violence and it was right under their nose. Now they want to educate everyone to be able to recognize the signs and know what to do. Their mission is to prevent domestic abuse, and their vision is to end domestic abuse. Their Values are Awareness, Education, and Safe Action. The education of domestic abuse is so important and they feel if every person that has an average of eight interactions per day can share the message then that is 2,920 messages

delivered every year. (They compared the message sharing like that of how most people now know how to recognize the signs of a heart attack and now know to call 911.) The best thing anyone can do is to know the signs. The number one sign is isolation, as the abuser doesn’t want the abused to seek help or to have others know they are an abuser. The number one thing NOT to do is confront the abuser; rather ask the suspected abused how they are doing and if you can meet to have a cup of coffee or something somewhere. Their organization provides resources in the form of business cards with help phone lines listed (in multiple languages) for adults, and coloring books for kids to help them recognize the behaviors of abusers and how to resolve. They provided packets with the coloring books, a handout of the signs of an abuser, and resource business cards. Finally, they shared how important it is for men to be good role models and speak up when other men are telling jokes about body parts and putting women down.

Rotating Reports

Fellow Rotarian Mark Kuyava was in the hospital with aortic stenosis. He had surgery Monday and hopes to return home Friday. Please keep him and his family in your prayers!

District updates

Midterm is January 6, 2024 in St. Paul

Julie Fish presented Tom Kerber with his badge, certificate, packet, and pin officially welcoming him into Rotary!

Community update reports.

Service update – Shiver Elk River is February 10 in Big Lake and Rotary will be providing hot cocoa again. Heather challenged the club to jump in the water this year!
Joe Stremcha gave an update from the Donations Committee. They will be distributing the $10,000 to seven various groups in increments of $2,500, $1,500, $1,000, and $500.
A Taste meeting will be next Thursday, December 14 after the regular meeting. Anyone interested in helping out should attend, or let Katie know if you want to help out and are unable to attend, because she would like to start delegating tasks at this meeting. Reminder that the event is scheduled for August 8 at the Furniture and Things Event Center.

Fundraising Opportunities

Birthdays – None

Delights and Dilemmas:

Tove Lichty was delighted to be here. She had to travel to Mendota Heights and shared about a podcast she listened to called 10% Happier that really moved her and said it is worth a listen. It was about Father Boyle with an organization for gang outreach being successful due to the power of love. The bible verse from Corinthians says love never fails, and this podcast restated it saying love never stops loving. She also had a dilemma that a veteran staff member is retiring on January 4.

Bob Maxwell was $22 delighted to be here as 22 years ago on this very day he had the widow maker event, survived, and appreciates the support received from Rotary.

Bill Yueill was delighted to be learning to play the cello. It is his motivator to keep his mind and body healthy.

Pete Reiner was delighted for their company Christmas party tonight at Rockwoods.

Julie Fish was delighted for awesome sunrises and sunsets, and for Bob.

Tom Kerber was delighted/dilemma-ed that his father-in-law was moved to rehab and is no longer in the hospital.

Heather Kliewer was delighted for her daughter’s birthday, her grandson’s birthday, and her son’s birthday, for leading today, and for a Christmas party she is going to tomorrow night at Rockwoods.

There was no winner for the card draw this week.

Other updates

The next meeting will be December 14 and Cal Portner’s program will be Mark Hanson with Elk River Municipal Utilities.
Terry Bizal had to leave early but wanted to let members know that Student of the Month will start in January, the second Thursday of the month and so January 11 will be the first one.
There is no regular meeting on 12/21 since we have the holiday party that evening at POUR approximately 5:30-8:30pm. Look for an email from Julie with more information.
encouraged us all to participate in district activities.

earls of Wisdom:

“The best way to spread Christmas cheer is singing loud for all to hear.” Elf

Last Time We Met 11/30/2023

Today our meeting was led by President Debbi Rydberg. We sang and recited the pledge:

Attending

Dirk Barrett, Melanie Clemons, Julie Fish, Neil Gagnon, Tom Kerber, Bonnie Koste, Dr. Laura Mullennex, Cal Portner, Debbi Rydberg, Ashley Schultz, Theresa Slominski, Joe Stremcha, Nicole Wocjik, Bill Yueill, David Anderson, Robert Maxwell, John Osterman, Bruce Tyler

Guests Attending

Alan Sakry, Colleen Bernard from Gifts Anonymous

Program

Dr. Laura Mullennex introduced Colleen Bernard from Gifts Anonymous. Colleen has been a board member since 2017 after her husband passed away suddenly of a heart attack and she does this in honor of him. Gifts Anonymous has 479 kids and 189 families signed up so far in 2023. Guardians will come and shop on December 16 and they also have curbside service available. They are taking donations through December 14 and have 55-60 barrels out in the community to collect the toys, blankets, gift cards and money. What they don’t collect in donations they shop for with the money collected. Everyone receives a blanket, several gifts, and each family a gift card for $50-$100 for additional needs. They also do gift bags for seniors.

Rotating Reports

Community update reports.

Joe Stremcha gave an update from the Donations Committee that they are meeting today after the regular meeting to decide on grant awards.
John Osterman gave an update on the Literacy Project. It was well received by the third graders and their teachers.
Taste update that the next meeting will be Thursday December 14 after the regular meeting.

Fundraising Opportunities

Birthdays – Bill Yueill had us sing the regular way.

Delights and Dilemmas:

Melanie Clemons had a dilemma that she was not able to make the book event at the school she signed up for but was delighted that they served 390 people at the Thanksgiving event.

Nicole Wojcik was delighted to be heading to Moorhead State and Concordia for senior visits with her daughter, a great Thanksgiving turkey cook-off, and the holiday planning party meeting tonight.

Bruce Tyler was delighted to be the world champion for his baseball league!

Bob Maxwell was delighted to have been able to attend the Eagles and Doobie Brothers concert as his kids surprised them with tickets, and was at the Gopher football game with his grandson.

Alan Sakry had a dilemma that Jordan and Scott are in Kansas and delighted he was able to spend Thanksgiving with them.

Debbi Rydberg has a dilemma that Chip and Dale are now jumping on the counters. She was delighted for their Thanksgiving on Friday that everyone came, and she is also delighted for Heather to be able to run the meeting for her as she will be helping out her mom after her cataract surgery.

There was no winner for the card draw this week.

Other updates

The next meeting will be December 7 and John Osterman’s program will be Maria’s Voice.
December 14 is Cal Portner’s program and it will be Mark Hanson from Elk River Municipal Utilities.
Save the date for the Holiday Social on 12/21 at POUR approximately 5:30-8:30pm. There will be no noon meeting that day. The board will be meeting at 9:00am.

Pearls of Wisdom:

“The question isn’t who is going to let me; it’s who is going to stop me.” Ayn Rand

Last Time We Met 11/16/2023

Today our meeting was led by President Debbi Rydberg. We sang and recited the pledge:
We pledge ourselves to Create Hope in the World. We will accomplish this by reaffirming our mission to
inspire leaders with passion to serve humanity, strengthen youth for tomorrows leadership and dedicate
ourselves to enhancing lives in our world. Before we speak, act, or make decisions, let us pause and ask
ourselves: Is it the truth? Is it fair to all concerned? Will it build goodwill and better friendships? Will it be
beneficial to all concerned? These are our compass and will ensure that our actions are filled with
integrity and genuine care.

Attending
We welcomed Tom Kerber as our newest member! Terry Bizal, Melanie Clemons, Julie Fish, Neil
Gagnon, Katie Harstad, Tom Kerber, Heather Kliewer, Bonnie Koste, Mark Kuyava, Dr. Laura Mullennex,Cal Portner, Debbi Rydberg, Theresa Slominski, Joe Stremcha, Nicole Wocjik, Bill Yueill, David Anderson, Robert Maxwell, John Osterman, Bruce Tyler

Guests Attending
Paul Thomas Hohag “PT”, Livin’ Foundation

Program

Bob Maxwell introduced PT from the Livin’ Foundation as a friend of Rotary and local media personality of 102.9 The Wolf. PT founded the organization after he

lost his father 1/21/2013 to suicide, as a way to help others seek answers and find peace after surviving such tragedies. Livin’ is a choice every single day to find things that make you smile and put peace in your soul. It’s the idea that today can be a beautiful day and tomorrow can too. The foundation is like the stewards and supporters of mental illness. There have been a lot of resources assembled to help people facing mental illness but it was an overwhelming amount of information and tough to navigate when you are already struggling. The infrastructure for physical health is much more advanced than the infrastructure for mental illness. They have created a website to help get people in touch with mental health resources and it has an AI robot named “Hope” that welcomes an individual and helps them navigate the site and feel connected. The website “Livin’ Connected” was built by Healthtek with help from Optima, MNDH, Tina Smith’s office, and some Fortune 500 Companies. Information is available at livinconnected.com and livinfoundation.org.

Rotating Reports
Board meeting update. Funds were approved for the Christmas social, a membership event will be
coming in early 2024.
Community update reports.
 Joe Stremcha gave an update from the Donations Committee that they currently have eight grant requests for a total of $18,000. The deadline for applications is November 30 and there
are $10,000 to distribute. Checks will be sent out the end of December and a program will be
scheduled to recognize the recipients.
 Mark Kuyava gave an update on the Literacy Project for the Service Committee. The books have

been stickered with a sticker that has the 4-Way Test, noted the donation by the Elk River Rotary Club, and a place for the students to write their name that the book belongs to them.
Mark has assigned leads for each of the schools to take

the books and he will distribute the
boxes after the meeting. Mark also provided information for the teams on the program at each school and instructions for the day.

Taste update that the date will be August 8 at the Furniture and Things Event Center and we will
be utilizing the Zeffy electronic ticket sales platform. Taste meetings will be every month on the
second Thursday after the regular meeting.

Fundraising Opportunities

Birthdays – none this week

Delights and Dilemmas:

Melanie Clemons was delighted her taxes went down in her proposed property tax statement.
Tom Kerber was delighted to be a new member.
Bob Maxwell was delighted for PT’s Livin’ updates for the program today.
Julie Fish was delighted in her position as Membership Chair to welcome Tom as our newest member.
Debbi Rydberg was delighted for the Thanksgiving gathering date for her family to be determined.
Heather Kliewer was delighted to have returned from Napa last week with her girlfriends, and that her
grandson’s twelfth birthday is tomorrow. She was also delighted to plug CAER Foodshelf for give to the
max day.
PT was delighted to give CAER a shout out and also to recognize that give to the max in Minnesota is a
leader for other states.
Theresa Slominski was delighted for the sunshine again and for the good work that the Livin’ Foundation
does.
Bonnie Koste was delighted to bring the bell back after having it repaired by her neighbor.
Terry Bizal was delighted to go to Montreal Canada on a road trip with this daughter.
Cal Portner was delighted to fine Neil Gagnon for promoting Rotary as a singing club over anything else,
and also delighted to share a story regarding Paul Martin and his daughter who had him help coach
defense with her for the Breck girls’ team.
Neil Gagnon was delighted to have attended an Edina Rotary Club meeting.

There was no winner for the card draw this week.
Other updates

 The next meeting will be November 30 and the program will be Gifts Anonymous. They really
need gifts for teenagers and blankets so if you can bring some on the 30th it would be much appreciated!
 Save the date for the Holiday Social on 12/21 at POUR approximately 5:00-8:30. There will be no noon meeting that day.
 Terry Bizal updated that the Student of the Month should be able to start in January and he and
Molly Hanson are working on that.
 The Elk River Fire Foundation and Kiser are hosting a Thanksgiving meal at Central Lutheran
Church from 11:30-1:00 and they will have homebound meals available as well.
 Kiser Kid’s Christmas toy drive has collection sites are at the Police Station, VP, Kiser and the
Furniture and Things Arena.

Pearls of Wisdom:
“Gratitude is a currency that we can mint ourselves and spend without fear of bankruptcy.” Fred DeWitt
Van Amburgh

Last Time We Met 11/09/2023

oday our meeting was led by President Debbi Rydberg. We sang and recited the pledge:

Attending

Melanie Clemons, Julie Fish, Molly Hanson, Mark Kuyava, Tove Lichty, Cal Portner, Pete Reiner, Debbi Rydberg, Ashley Schultz, Theresa Slominski, Joe Stremcha, Robert Maxwell, John Osterman, Bruce Tyler, Stewart Wilson

Guests Attending

Alex Safe, Bank of Elk River Branch Manager in Otsego; Tom Kerber, prospective member (he grew up with Rotary, his father started two different clubs and is a six time Paul Harris fellow, is a former Rotary exchange student to Australia and his family hosted exchange students, but never joined Rotary himself); Margo Barry, Elk River Library Services Coordinator/Branch Manager

Program

Tove Lichty introduced Margot Barry as our speaker today. Margot has previously worked with the Great River Library program in Carver County, and with the public school system in St Paul before that. She visits libraries wherever she goes and her favorite is Nova Scotia. She has been with the Elk River Library since the end of May. Elk River Library is part of the Great River Regional Library system which encompasses six counties, thirty-two branches, one locker station where people can pick up items, and is headquartered in St Cloud. St Cloud is the largest library in the system and Elk River is the second largest. The library’s main focus is the collection of books (digital and regular.) Programming is designed and developed for lasting impact as the children grow into adults to keep them engaged in the library all their life as life-long learners. She has been very focused on communication and discovering what the needs of this community are so the appropriate programming can be available. They have programs for almost all ages: 0-3, 3-6, home schools programs, teens’ book club and new teen writer’s club, two adult book clubs, plus miscellaneous varied programs about history, arts, music, etc. The library’s core values are exceptional service, forward thinking community focus, literacy access, library awareness, and operational excellence. The literacy component is missing for programming in K-3 and so right now working on a reading program to help kids be at their best reading level for school. It is a mentoring program for adult volunteers to come to the library once a week in an eight week cycle. They are paired up with kids who are struggling with reading and there is a curriculum to follow and you sit and read with them. When the program is ready to go she would be coming to groups like ours for volunteers to help mentor students. Outreach is important to Margot, to let others know all that the library has, and to bring back to the library programs needed in the community.

Rotating Reports

Community update reports. Tove gave a reminder for grant funding. As we send money to the foundation, we get money back, and she asked us to give to the foundation. She also asked that we think of ideas for potential grants in our community so we can be ready to go in the spring. November is Foundation month.

Mark Kuyava gave an update on the Literacy Project

for the Service Committee. Mark has been in contact with the district office and has contacts for Lincoln, Parker, Meadlowvale, and Twin Lakes Elementary, as well as on online group of students. He is passing around a signup sheet and would like to have five Rotarians to help out but needs at least two for each location. There is also a need for a group to put stickers inside each book with the club donation noted, the four-way test, and a place to write their name as owner of the book. Julie is printing the stickers and will let us know a date to put them inside the books at the Elk River Printing location.

There is a Taste Of Elk River meeting after meeting today. Katie gave an update that we met last week and tabled decisions until we talked to the major sponsors John Houlton from First Bank, and Phil from POUR. Meetings will be the second Thursday of every month after the regular meeting moving forward.

Fundraising Opportunities

Birthdays – none this week

Delights and Dilemmas:

Julie Fish was delighted for Margot’s presentation without a slide show, and also for the Veterans in the room and her favorite Veteran her father.

Tove Lichty was delighted for Margot’s presentation as literacy is close to her heart as well as her husband’s.

Stewart Wilson was delighted to be heading to Florida.

Peter Reiner was delighted for his daughter Erin’s wedding and the talk he had to give on being a father of four daughters but the program stated he had a son as well (oops – gotta proof read those things!)

Margot was delighted to be here and meet us.

Theresa Slominski was delighted for the sunshine today, excited for the literacy opportunity Margot is working on, and potential grant opportunities.

There was no winner for the card draw this week.

We have a board meeting prior to next week’s meeting, November 16.

Pearls of Wisdom:

“They say there are two things that define someone; your determination when you have nothing, and your attitude when you have everything.” Anonymous

Just received this from Mark Kuyava

Here is the schedule by school and who signed up to participate at each school.

Lincoln Elementary School

11/20 @ 10:00 AM

82 students

Bob M, Joe S, John O, Melanie C, Theresa S

Meadowvale Elementary School

11/21 @ 1:30 PM

98 students

Debbi R, John O, Theresa S, Ashley S

Online 728 Elementary

11/27 @ 11:00 AM

5 students

Mark K

Parker Elementary School

11/20 @ 10:45

87 students

Cal P, Ashley S, Julie F

Twin Lakes Elementary School

11/21 @ 9:20 AM

114 students

Mark K, John O, Theresa S, Katie Harstad,

Last Time We Met 11/02/2023

oday our meeting was led by President Debbi Rydberg. We sang after reciting the pledge:

Attending

Melanie Clemons, Julie Fish, Heather Kliewer, Mark Kuyava, Tove Lichty, Laura Mullennex, Cal Portner, Debbi Rydberg, Theresa Slominski, Joe Stremcha, Nicole Wojcik, Bill Yeuill, David Anderson, Glen Ertel, Robert Maxwell, Bruce Tyler

Guests Attending

Phil and Cody Collins from Collins Brothers Towing

Program

Mark Kuyava introduced Phil Collins from Collins Brothers Towing as his former neighbor, and said they are more than just a towing company. They help to keep the roads safe providing an essential high quality service working with emergency groups like police and fire (with super clean red trucks!) They serve in Elk River, Big Lake, and Princeton moving everything without a heartbeat – tractors, trailers, semis, trucks, cars, etc. (Occasionally they do help move something with a heartbeat such as getting horses and cows out of mud.) They have 16 employees and 15 trucks responding 24/7 and usually respond within a half hour. Phil previously served as a firefighter for 32 years and believes in giving back to the community, as well as keeping the community connected and hosts a firefighter breakfast for just that purpose. His sons Cody and Gavin will be taking the reins someday and he brought Cody with to begin to get his face out in the community. Phil says he wakes up every morning thankful and wants us to remember that there is always someone else who has it worse than you, and he wouldn’t change any of his trials in life because they made him who he is today.

Rotating Reports

Debbi Rydberg presented Tove Lichty and Theresa Slominski with Paul Harris recognition pins for their contributions to the Rotary Foundation.

Our club raised $3,488 for Rotary International with the Strike Out Polio bowling event!

Congratulations to John and everyone that contributed to this special event.

Mark Kuyava gave an update on the Literacy Project books that we will be distributing to the third grade classrooms and gave a book report for us to learn a little bit about the book. It is a story that teaches “service above self” and how everyone working together without thinking about themselves produces great things, and a lesson that when you do for others you benefit too. The third grade is the perfect age to distribute this kind of book because they are at the age where they transition from learning to read, to reading to learn. There are four schools in the area and we’d like two people per classroom to distribute the books, so everyone should have an opportunity to help and look for signups to come.

Save the date for our holiday social on December 21. Julie, Nicole, and Theresa volunteered to coordinate the event.

District Events

Camp Enterprise occurs the first weekend every November and we should start now recruiting an attendee next year that our club could sponsor.

The Foundation Celebration “Ignite Impact” is November 11 from 5:30-8:30pm

Midterm is January 6

Fundraising Opportunities

Birthdays – Nicole had happy birthday sung the traditional way for $10

There was no winner for the card draw as no one bought a card this week.

Delights and Dilemmas:

Julie Fish was delighted for the Monticello high school girls volleyball going to state for the third year in a row, for Phil and Cody Collins coming to Rotary and maybe joining, a Two Harbors road trip she was able to do last Friday, the 169 progress and Monticello progress for road construction, Paul Harris awards for Tove and Theresa, and being an alumni for Camp Enterprise.

Nicole Wocjik was delighted to be back from her 9 days in Porta Vallarta for her honeymoon, for celebrating her birthday, her upcoming one year wedding anniversary, visiting her mom who is recovering well from her surgery, and going on her first college visit to Augsburg with her daughter, and an upcoming college visit in Moorhead.

Tove Lichty was delighted for 8 days in Italy, her recent promotion to Regional Leader responsible for helping 50-60 branches in the area, and making partner in this Fortune 300 Company of Edward Jones. She is super busy now trying to balance it all and so may be absent a few meetings but is committed to Elk River and Rotary.

Theresa Slominski was delighted for her Paul Harris award.

Debbi Rydberg was delighted to have no trick or treaters because she was worried about her cats getting out.

Joe Stremcha and Melanie Clemons are coordinating the donations requests so if you know a nonprofit wanting to apply, send them their way.

Pearls of Wisdom:

Quote by General Daniel Hokanson, the Chief of the National Guard “In leading by example, it sets the standard everywhere you go.

Last Time We Met 10/26/2023

Today our meeting was led by We sang and then recited the pledge:

Attending

Dirk Barrett, Terry Bizal, Melanie Clemons, Julie Fish, Neil Gagnon, Katie Harstad, Heather Kliewer, Cal Portner, Debbi Rydberg, Theresa Slominski, Joe Stremcha, Robert Maxwell, John Osterman, Bruce Tyler

Guests Attending

District Governor Patricia McClease, and Assistant District Governor Michael Spellman

Program

Debbi gave a shout out to John Osterman for bowling better than average and scoring a 624 for our Strike Out Polio event. Also thanks to Bob Maxwell for the pictures, and Neil Gagnon for collecting funds and sending to District for the match.

Our program was the District Governor, Patricia McClease, and she was introduced by Mike Spellman noting that she is a lifelong educator and you will always learn something from her. Michael also encouraged every Rotarian to participate in the “greater Rotary” by attending conferences and events. Patricia encouraged everyone to attend the Conference of Clubs next year because it will be international. It will be at Mystic Lake and is 1 ½ days. The District is focusing on four initiatives of 1) Increase our Impact, 2) Expand our Reach, 3) Enhance Participant Engagement, and 4) Increase our Ability to Adapt. They have created a new template for recording goals to show what clubs are doing and how they are impacting communities. She promoted the district newsletter for ideas and engagement opportunities. There is also a three year initiative called Make Peace Visible and the first year is to Create Hope in The World. Hope means promise, and Rotary looks for ways to solve problems by investing in other organizations solving problems and thereby helping those organizations make promises and create a culture to cultivate peace. We have influence in our lives with various interactions we have with others through work, faith, school, visiting establishments - and always treating others with respect in these interactions – and we create environments where peace can happen. If we are conscious of peace, we create it. And the world needs peace. The District has a youth program “Youth Peace in Action”, and also is having peace talks to help expand ways of thinking and help make peace visible to all.

We played a game of Jeopardy to see how much we know about all things Rotary. There were four teams and Team 3 won (Dirk, Cal, and Neil) and they all received prizes for their win.

Patricia closed with a quote from Paul Harris: “The world is changing, and we need to change with it. So the Rotary story has to be retold over and over and over again.” She asked all of us, what is our story? What is our Elk River club adding to the Rotary story? She had everyone stand and thank everyone next to them for being in Rotary and adding to the story.

Rotating Reports

Julie Fish brought in some Rotary magazines for those honorary members who might like to read them, so see Debbi if you’d like to get one. Debbi thanked the Rotarians who participated in the mock interviews at the Elk River high school this week. Katie announced a loyalty rewards program Rockwoods is starting to reward the customers who frequent the establishment and you get triple points during lunch. The Taste committee is meeting after the regular meeting next week, and where the decisions will be made regarding the proposed changes.

Fundraising Opportunities

Delights and Dilemmas:

Neil was delighted to be attending the Maple Grove Rotary event with Pete Reiner in Rush Creek.

Cal Portner was delighted to have traveled to Saskatchewan watching his nephew play hockey and they won both games in OT. He had a dilemma as the same nephew played in Maine last year where the recent shootings occurred. His final delight was going this Saturday to the Maxx Bar in East Bethel to hear his daughter sing in the band for their Halloween event.

Heather Kliewer had a dilemma with one more employee giving notice at CAER, so down to just her, but she has two new hires coming on board. She was delighted that her son got engaged in Italy over the weekend.

Terry Bizal was delighted for all the Rotary support at the high school events and they are very appreciative for the participation.

Katie Harstad was delighted for her middle child’s tenth birthday and the surprise party coming. She was also delighted for her work with Lance Lindberg to bring back the Old Thompson event the Saturday after Thanksgiving.

Melanie Clemons was delighted that her son was going to be taking his driver’s license test soon and it will be nearby rather than having to travel a long distance to take it. She was also delighted for her son’s opportunity to participate in Spring Break training in Tampa, Florida next year.

Theresa Slominski was delighted for the Wild game the other night and having finished taking her piano apart.

Michael Spellman was delighted for all the peace talks he has given and thanked the club for the initial launch of the talks earlier this year.

Birthdays – Joe Stremcha was sung to with the Applebee’s version.

Cal Portner was the winner for the card draw this week with a four of clubs.

Next week we will have story time with the reading of the books we will be distributing to the classrooms.

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