Rotary Club of Regina

Club Meeting April 8, 2024

 

 

Al Goudie acted as chair for today’s meeting. He acknowledged that the meeting is being held on Treaty 4 territory. He reaffirmed our commitment and responsibility to improving relationships between nations and to improving our own understanding of local Metis and First Nation communities.  He thanked the volunteers who assisted in the organization of the meeting, reminding members that we now have one duty team, so all are encouraged to volunteer.

 

Mark Stefan introduced Thomas Benjoe, a member of Muscowpetung First Nation and partner in OneHoop, an Indigenous Consulting firm based in Saskatchewan. Thomas has a very impressive resume, currently serving on the board of directors at the Canadian Chamber of Commerce, board of directors of Economic Development Regina, the SIIT Indigenous Innovation Advisory Council, and is a member of the Saskatchewan Roughriders Indigenous Task Group. He is the past chair of the Saskatchewan Chamber of Commerce. In his role as business leader and entrepreneur, Thomas has developed a number of strategies in Indigenous engagement, procurement, human resources, and investment.  OneHoop works with multinationals to assist with economic reconciliation and the transfer of assets from non-Indigenous to Indigenous business owners, including the transfer of knowledge and capacity. In his volunteer and community endeavours, Thomas is working on his own strategy to develop Indigenous capacity among young people. He described some of the larger projects that he is currently involved with, including the transfer of $1B in pipeline assets in Alberta.  He is passionate about working with Indigenous and non-Indigenous business owners in changing the face of what business looks like in the province.

 

Birthdays: Mitch Zaba—April 4^th; Alison Green—April 19^th; Charles Keple—April 20^th; Rollie Hardy—April 29^th.

Anniversaries: Moses Nkachukwu—5 years on April 6^th; Al Goudie—34 years on April 7^th.  

 

Soul’s Harbour—Eight to 10 volunteers needed to serve a meal on the third Thursday of the month from 4:00 to 6:00 pm. Contact George Carson of Al Goudie if you are able to assist.

Munch Catering fundraising dinner on May 4, 2024; contact George Carson or Al Goudie if interested in putting a table together for the event.

President George and President Al Hoeft continue their discussions about a potential amalgamation of the two clubs, as each has less than a critical mass. The two boards have met in person and are developing a proposal to bring back to the membership for discussion and decision.  The other two Regina clubs will also be invited to attend. Feedback from the members is encouraged.   

 

Joanna Alexander, club historian, noted that in addition to the birthdays mentioned earlier, another important Rotarian’s birthday is in April. On April 19^th Paul Harris, founder of Rotary would have been 156 years old. Joanna mentioned that Paul Harris visited Regina on February 25, 1929, to attend a provincial gathering of Rotarians gathered at a gala dinner at the Hotel Saskatchewan.

A new 50/50 draw totalling $37 lives on.  

Thanks to those assisting with the meeting including Ian Toms, Gerald Fiske, Art Wakabayashi, Carole Bryant, Stewart Graham, Gilda Treleven-Graham, Ernie Richardson, Al Goudie, Katherine Bergman, Moses Nkachukwu, and Charles Keple.  

 

 

Rotary Club of Eastview meeting—April 18, 2024 (Delta) speaker Trevor Harriet

Rotary Club of Regina meeting—May 6, 2024, (Delta) Speaker TBA.

 

Meeting Report’s Name and Email: carole.bryant@ranchehrlo.ca