Every Rotary function and club visit showcases great projects underway via our clubs. District 5950 grant committees are reviewing dozens of applications, representing clubs’ great programs that generate funds for Rotary International’s gem -- The Rotary Foundation (TRF).
Rotary Trustee Chair and Past RI President Ray Klinginsmith was the featured guest at a November 5 event recognizing our 200 Paul Harris Society (PHS) members. PDG Holly Callen (Eden Prairie Noon) and PHS Chair Carolyn Pratt (Bloomington Noon) orchestrated a spectacular evening capped by PRIP Klinginsmith’s message of “Cowboy Logic.”
District 5950 representatives experienced more inspiration as we attended Rotary Day at the United Nations in New York City. Rotary honored six with Global Women of Action Awards. The humanitarian aid accomplishments of each were truly amazing, but also very familiar. Each aspires to the Object of Rotary and our motto, Service Above Self, just as we do week-in-and-week-out in District 5950. Our communities and the world truly are better places by the work we do!
Rotary Foundation Month celebrates all this great work and helps us promote Annual Fund giving. Please use the link at the bottom of this message to continue reading an overview from last week’s PHS recognition dinner. Global Grant Committee Chair Todd Bollig (Eden Prairie Noon) had no trouble finding a recent project example in each of TRF’s six Areas of Focus. One Area our district truly excels at is Peace and Conflict Resolution. Peace Scholar and Global Scholar Chair Ellen Kennedy (Mpls. University) and her team currently have five Peace Fellow Scholars in five universities around the world, with one more student leaving next spring. Since fewer than 100 scholarships are awarded annually worldwide, our district’s success is unprecedented. Beyond all the great humanitarian aid we accomplish through TRF programs, we truly excel at building bridges of peace, goodwill and understanding. The six featured projects are just a sampling of all that District 5950 has underway at any given time. Your generosity makes this all possible!
Rotary District 5950 leaders are pleased to announce that Carol MacDonald will be the District's new Executive Director effective January 1, 2016. MacDonald succeeds Diane Confer who has served as the District Executive Secretary and North Star Rotary Youth Exchange Administrator for 38 years. Duties will transition until Diane's full retirement on June 30, 2016.
A District Administration Task Force of eight past, current and upcoming District Governors spent two years planning for this staff transition and hiring MacDonald.
District Governor Tim Murphy noted, “We have been truly blessed for 37+ years by our Diane’s commitment and dedication. Carol comes at a pivotal time for District 5950. She possesses the perfect skillset for the position. She has worked with Diane in a volunteer capacity since July 1. The two will work side-by-side for another six months to ensure a seamless transition.”
This executive administrative and management position is the District’s only paid position. MacDonald will be responsible for managing the District 5950 office, with administrative responsibilities for district meetings and event planning, marketing, public relations outreach support to the District, club and inter-district communications and relations, liaison functions with Rotary International, and other duties.
Like Diane, Carol will be the unofficial Ambassador of the District, becoming an integral catalyst of this dynamic organization of approximately 2,900 Rotarians and more than 70 Rotary, Rotaract and Interact Clubs. A key value of this position is the administrative support and continuity it brings as a partner with each District Governor, the Corporate Board of Directors, other District leaders, and all District 5950 clubs.
Posted by DG-N Bob Halagan (Buffalo), District Foundation Fundraising Chair
November is here -- bringing with it Rotary Foundation Month.
A bit of pride and potential:
During the 2014-15 year, our District averaged $274 per Rotarian in giving to The Rotary Foundation (TRF). That was a significant increase from the previous year’s $231/member -- and a great step toward reaching our goal of $365 per Rotarian.
Last year, the 63 clubs in our District gave $779,914 to the Annual Fund, a whopping $116,000 increase over the prior year! (Imagine what we can do with 64 clubs this year!)
Those dollars translate into District-wide projects touching more lives than we can count. Annually, the District receives 50% of the money District 5950 Rotarians donated to the Annual Fund three years earlier. This money is used for local and international projects. Based on 2011-12 giving, clubs in our District had $293,346 to spend on projects during 2014-15. This year, clubs have $320,190 at their disposal. Last year’s donations will fund nearly $390,000 in club grants two years from now.
Remember that The Rotary Foundation is your charity. It is the only charity that will allow you to spend your dollars on your projects. And it is the only charity that will give your projects both matching funds and the help and support of enthusiastic volunteers from your club and clubs around the world.
Thanks for all you do as Rotarians to support our District and to support TRF! Please give generously this year and make The Rotary Foundation your charity of choice.
World Polio Day came to the Twin Cities on October 24! The I-35W Bridge was lit in shades of red and yellow to honor Rotary International’s fight to end polio with its 30-year long initiative, End Polio Now. City Councils in Minneapolis, Edina, Burnsville, and Apple Valley declared October 24 as World Polio Day in their cities.
Rotary International marked the annual event by announcing it would give an additional $40.4 million to the global effort to end polio.Click to read “World Polio Day Plans.”
Rotary District 5950 End Polio Now Chair Tim Mulcrone (Chanhassen) summarized recent developments, saying, "As if near total eradication of polio wasn't enough, the greatest public private health care initiative in history is creating health care infrastructure in areas that never had it, building international trust and fueling the ‘WE CAN DO IT’ attitude for the next global initiative. That's the plus in PolioPlus."
The Global Grant is a unique scholarship for students pursuing a master’s degree at an overseas university. The year’s District Global Grant committee announces that Grace Petrie, nominated by Minneapolis South Rotary Club, was chosen for the $30,000 award. Grace is a senior at Macalester College; she hopes to study community and economic development at the Universita Cattolica del Sacro Coura in Milan, Italy.
When Grace studied in Cali, Colombia as a high school Rotary Youth Exchange student, she saw the impact of micro-lending to women, and the positive economic changes these opportunities brought to individuals, families, and communities. Grace went on to study and live in Europe, become fluent in several languages, and expand her Rotary involvement through leadership roles in Rotex. She is committed to global service and to Rotary. She plans to begin her graduate studies in January 2016.
For more information about Global Grant Scholarships in District 5950, contact committee chairperson Ellen Kennedy at kennedy@worldwithoutgenocide.org or 952-693-5206. Continue reading to see a summary of Rotary Peace Fellows from 2012-2016.
Rotary honored six women – all members of Rotary clubs across the globe – at its Rotary Day at the United Nationsevent on November 7. Rotary’s ‘Global Women of Action’ were recognized for donating their time, talents and expertise towards helping thousands of people in need throughout the world.
Since its founding more than 100 years ago, Rotary has harnessed the strength of professional and community leaders to tackle humanitarian challenges at home and abroad. Today, Rotary provides a platform for successful men and women of all ethnicities, faiths and cultures to make the world a better place through volunteer service.
“Every day at Rotary, I see first-hand how our members work to change lives and make significant impact around the world,” said Rotary International President K.R. Ravindran. “Through hard work, dedication and selflessness, Rotary’s ‘Global Woman of Action’ embody Rotary’s motto, Service Above Self. I extend my warmest congratulations to them for their outstanding service to humanity.”
Continue reading to meet the six Rotary ‘Global Women of Action.’
May 12-13, 2016: District 5950 and 5960 Conference
at Mystic Lake Conference Center
Participate in advance for our “Days for Girls” sew-a-thon service project by sewing feminine hygiene kits on November 17 and/or December 17. See sew-a-thon details and locations on the District 5950 home page.
Bulletin Editor
Cheri Ashfeld
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The Plymouth Sun-Sailor highlighted how Rotary Club members, Excelsior Elementary students and local residents gathered together on Oct. 10 to clean up Mitten Pond in Excelsior.
The Redwood Falls Gazette promoted Redwood Falls Rotary Club's contributions of time and money to revamp a park shelter and its Annual Rose Fundraiser.
In the Savage Pacer and other other papers across Districf 5950, the announcement of the I-35 Bridge Lighting and Rotary's Polio Eradication efforts made the news
If your Rotary Club has been in the news lately and you'd like the rest of the district to know, please email jeanne.zetah@hotmail.com to share some details and include the link to the article.
Rotary Trustee Chair and Past RI President Ray Klinginsmith was the featured guest at a November 5 event recognizing our 200 Paul Harris Society (PHS) members. PDG Holly Callen (Eden Prairie Noon) and PHS Chair Carolyn Pratt (Bloomington Noon) orchestrated a spectacular evening capped by PRIP Klinginsmith’s message of “Cowboy Logic.”
Rotary District 5950 leaders are pleased to announce that Carol MacDonald will be the District's new Executive Director effective January 1, 2016. MacDonald succeeds Diane Confer who has served as the District Executive Secretary and North Star Rotary Youth Exchange Administrator for 38 years. Duties will transition until Diane's full retirement on June 30, 2016.
Like Diane, Carol will be the unofficial Ambassador of the District, becoming an integral catalyst of this dynamic organization of approximately 2,900 Rotarians and more than 70 Rotary, Rotaract and Interact Clubs. A key value of this position is the administrative support and continuity it brings as a partner with each District Governor, the Corporate Board of Directors, other District leaders, and all District 5950 clubs. 
Rotary International marked the annual event by announcing it would give an additional $40.4 million to the global effort to end polio. Click to read “
When Grace studied in Cali, Colombia as a high school Rotary Youth Exchange student, she saw the impact of micro-lending to women, and the positive economic changes these opportunities brought to individuals, families, and communities. Grace went on to study and live in Europe, become fluent in several languages, and expand her Rotary involvement through leadership roles in Rotex. She is committed to global service and to Rotary. She plans to begin her graduate studies in January 2016. 
