It's that dreaded hour of the year when we lose an hour of sleep as we embark on Daylight Saving Time. Don't forget to "spring forward" and reset your clocks this weekend so you don't miss Tuesday's meeting. Beth will welcome you and preside while I'm away chairing an OMC Regional Foundation Board meeting. Pat Wimmer will have a reflection and lead you in the Rotary 4-Way Test. Then, thanks to the quick work of Matt Cantlon, Club Service Lead, who dealt with a last-minute program cancellation, get ready for another very interesting and timely program. This week's presenter will be Tom Landwehr, Executive Director for the Campaign to Save the Boundary Waters. The Campaign, led by Northeastern Minnesotans for Wilderness, was organized by local residents in and around Ely, Minnesota, who are dedicated to creating a national movement to protect the clean water, clean air and forest landscape of the Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness and its watershed from toxic pollution caused by mining copper, nickel and other metals from sulfide-bearing ore.
If John Wade's RAEDI presentation last week has you wanting to know more, you're in luck. The annual Rochester Area Economic Development, Inc., meeting is happening next week and the public is welcome.
The RAEDI Annual Meeting will be held virtually on Zoom next Thursday, March 18, 2021, at 12 p.m. Keynote speaker for the event will be Clark C. Otley, M.D., Chief Medical Officer of Mayo Clinic Platform, and Medical Director for the Department of Business Development. Dr. Otley's key message will be "Partnering for Growth."
RAEDI leadership will also give an update on 2020 accomplishments and what's ahead in 2021. Register here for the event: http://bit.ly/RaediAnnual
Please, whenever you complete Rotary-related service projects or activities above and beyond our regularly scheduled meetings, send your hours to Kim Keilholtz atkimdtm@msn.com. Those members who have accumulated hours since July 1 and not submitted them to Kim should do so now. Thank you!
Following Jon Losness's Holiday Classic presentation, he shared the following note...
I want to provide for you contact information for co-chairs Tamsen Leimer and me and a link to our website within Club Runner for distribution to your club members.
The Classic planning team meets the 4th Monday of the month at 11:30 a.m. and all are welcome. Contact Jon or Tamsen for the Zoom link. Follow us on Facebook – Rotary Holiday Classic - and check out our website, https://portal.clubrunner.ca/5636/SitePage/2019-rotary-holiday-classic for more information about the event. This year's Holiday Classic is scheduled for December 28 & 29.
Consider it "Seven Wonderfuls" as last week the Risers recognized Dean Stenehjem with his seventh Paul Harris Fellow. Congratulations on your commitment to the Rotary Foundation, Dean, and making the world a better place by sharing your time, talent and treasure.
And, Joanne Rosener has set a wonderful example by using 1000 of her earned Rotary Foundation points to recognize a non-Rotarian community representative with a PHF. Joanne will be presenting the award later this Rotary year to a deserving public servant. If you'd like to know more about how you can recognize a non-Rotarian with a PHF, contact Jason Wagner.
Risers Baker and Sutor want you to know...
Our Meals on Wheels fundraising committee has been working hard on planning this year’s event. We will again be holding a virtual event. Below is the event link and details:
Tickets are $100 per individual, $500 silver sponsors (4 tickets), $1000 gold sponsors (8 tickets). More info on event page.
Ticket holders will receive early access to the auction (buy it now options provided), a home delivered Meals on Wheels meal (within the Rochester city limits), swag bags, bottle of wine and invitation to our private program on March 27th. Auctions will be open to the public and close in 3 phases on March 27, 2021.
This fundraiser supports our local Meals on Wheels program. Funds raised ensure anyone who needs a home delivered meal can receive one, regardless of their ability to pay. Please help us meet the growing need for home delivered meals in our community!
April
District Governor Marek's Club Visit
District Governor Marek will deliver his Risers Club Zoom remarks during our regularly scheduled meeting on Tuesday, March 30. Immediately following the club presentation, Ed would like to meet with as many members of the Risers Board and Club Support Team Leads as possible.
Meals on Wheels Request
Our club's Meals on Wheels Coordinator, Joanne Rosener, has a need and a "Service Above Self" opportunity. With COVID, our service opportunities are somewhat limited. Meals on Wheels, however, is one ongoing service activity our Club is doing. Due to some changes in availability of members, we need two persons to assist on the second Thursday and one person on the third Thursday starting January through June. If you can help, contact Joanne at joanne.rosener@gmail.com.
If taking on an ongoing assignment is not something you can commit to, please consider signing up for one shift. See below for dates. All shifts start at 11:15 AM and finish at approximately 12:30 PM.
May 13
June 10
Spring Tree Planting
Later this spring the Risers will be joining Rochester's other Rotary Clubs, community organizations and government agencies in a tree planting activity. The exercise is being done to help promote Rotary International's newest avenue of service - the ENVIRONMENT. April Sutor is the Risers rep working with others to coordinate the local spring tree planting and asks you reserve the last Saturday in April and first Saturday in May (rain make-up) for this community service project. More details will be forthcoming.
District Conference of Clubs
The purpose of the District Conference of Clubs is to engage members at all levels, from our most senior leaders to the newest club members. It should inspire all to become more involved and give them a vision of Rotary beyond the club level and to provide a memorable, fun fellowship experience. In considering the purpose of the conference, the ongoing pandemic and the upcoming new focus area, we are pivoting to a different Conference experience. One that will allow engagement, provide fellowship and introduce and celebrate our 7th Focus Area: The Environment.
District Governor Marek is asking Clubs to join with their neighboring clubs in planning and implementing an environmental project in their area. These projects, either new or ongoing, can be put into action anytime during the months of April and May, culminating in a celebratory event on June 5th. You can do joint projects or support each other’s projects in your own communities. June 5th, World Environment Day, we'll meet at Levee Park in Hastings, 9 a.m. - 1 p.m., to celebrate what we have accomplished. There will be more details to follow.
This week I received the following email from DG Ed Marek...
I wanted to give you an update on the results of the recent ballot we sent to the Clubs regarding proposed changes to the District By-Laws. As you recall, the changes related to the ability to hold online meetings on electronic platforms as well as in person for the Annual, Legislation and Special Meetings. We also proposed that changes to the By-Laws can be amended at the Annual Meeting or a Legislation Meeting.
Twenty-six of our Clubs (including the Risers) voted for a total of 45 votes. The criteria for a Quorum was met and the vote was unanimous, so the proposed changes have been adopted. Normally, the Annual Meeting has been held during the Conference of Clubs (CoC). Since the CoC activities will be spread throughout the months of April and May with the environmental projects, we will hold the Annual Meeting online. Watch for the announcement later this month. Thanks for your support on this!
Honolulu to host 2027 Rotary International Convention
HONOLULU (Feb. 18, 2021) — Almost one year after canceling its international convention in Honolulu due to the COVID-19 coronavirus pandemic, Rotary announced it will hold its annual gathering in Honolulu for the membership service organization’s 118th convention on June 5-9, 2027.
Held in a different city around the world each year, Rotary conventions bring members from all continents and cultures together to learn from each other and various experts, and to share ideas for delivering long-term solutions to the world’s most persistent humanitarian issues. Approximately 20,000 Rotary members from 170 countries were expected to attend the event in Honolulu in 2020, which was estimated to bring $35-40 million into the local economy.
“After canceling our convention in 2020 due to COVID-19, we are grateful to the citizens of Honolulu for welcoming us again in 2027,” said Rotary International President Holger Knaack. “As a global organization that values bringing people together, we look forward to sharing and celebrating our friendships, cultures and service in the spirit of Aloha.”
“Beyond the incredible economic impact this convention will have, the people of Hawai’i will be inspired by the humanitarian causes of Rotary International, to include: promoting peace, fighting disease, providing clean water, saving mothers and children, supporting education, growing local economies and protecting the environment,” said John De Fries, President and CEO, Hawaii Tourism Authority. “As a global community, Rotary members embody the values we cherish here, in Hawai’i.”
Organized by Rotary International in conjunction with the Honolulu Host Organizing Committee of local Rotary members, the convention will provide attendees with ample opportunities to experience Oahu’s many attractions.
The Rotary Club of Honolulu, chartered in 1915, is Rotary’s first club in Honolulu. Today, there are more than 1,470 Rotary members who belong to over 45 clubs across Hawai’i taking action on important local issues including drowning prevention, creating green space in Waikiki and helping homeless people receive medical care.
About Rotary
Rotary brings together a global network of volunteer leaders dedicated to tackling the world’s most pressing humanitarian challenges. Rotary connects 1.2 million members of more than 36,000 Rotary clubs in over 200 countries and geographical areas. Their work improves lives at both the local and international levels, from helping those in need in their own communities to working toward a polio-free world. For more information, visit Rotary.org.
Club members are encouraged to use their professional and social contacts to find potential candidates. They can also support the program by coaching candidates through the application process and connecting them to districts that can endorse their applications, a required step in the application process.
These resources can help members recruit candidates for 2022 Rotary Peace Fellowships:
Take the All About the Rotary Peace Fellowships course to learn about qualification requirements, eligibility restrictions, the application process, and more.
Use our referral form to tell us about potential candidates, and we’ll follow up with them.
Candidates have until May 15, 2021, to submit applications to their districts. Districts have until July 1 to submit endorsed applications to The Rotary Foundation.
Send any questions about the fellowship program to rotarypeacecenters@rotary.org. Thank you for your dedication to the Rotary Peace Centers and your help educating Rotary members and your community about the fellowships.
Sincerely, Rotary Peace Centers
Rotary Peace Centers are made possible by the generosity of donors.
With World Water Day approaching on March 22, we are more aware than ever that so much in our lives depends on access to clean water. We wash our hands with it to keep ourselves and our communities healthy, cook meals with it to nourish our bodies, and rely on it for proper sanitation. Yet some communities around the world still don’t have reliable sources of clean water. That’s why for this World Water Day, we need help from Rotarians like you.
Rotary International encourages members to take these kinds of action:
Start a fundraiser to support clean water initiatives on Raise for Rotary. Members can use Rotary’s new peer-to-peer fundraising tool to raise money for local, sustainable solutions that bring clean water, sanitation, and hygiene programs to more people every day. Donations go directly to The Rotary Foundation. And unlike on third-party platforms, their gifts are eligible for Rotary credit!
Make a special gifton March 22 in celebration of World Water Day. A gift of any size can make a difference when we all work together. Did you know that it takes only $24 to provide one person with safe water? Or that $50 can provide a biosand water filter?
Share with friends and family how the Foundation empowers Rotary members around the world to support clean water projects. Gifts from Rotary donors help provide access to clean water around the world. Residents of the Fulani Doka Mai-Jama’a community in Nigeria can now use water from a solar-powered borehole supply system. In Australia, a Rotarian is working to empower people around the globe to clean the rivers in their communities. In the United States, Rotarians fought toxic algae in the Great Lakes. Rotary members also worked with fishermen to build an artificial reef that helped save the fishing industry in the Philippines.
This World Water Day, we hope you join us in taking action by encouraging members to raise awareness and funds toward ensuring clean water for people in communities around the world.
The Rotary Foundation Trustees and Rotary International Board of Directors have both unanimously approved adding a new area of focus: supporting the environment.
More than $18 million in Foundation global grant funding has been allocated to environment-related projects over the past five years. Creating a distinct area of focus to support the environment will give Rotary members even more ways to bring about positive change in the world and increase our impact.
RI President Mark Maloney says that during his travels around the world as a Rotary senior leader he encountered many Rotary members and Rotaractors who advocated for the environment to be an area of focus.
“I believe strongly that our Rotary Foundation programs now have a valuable added dimension to our efforts,” says, Maloney.
Foundation Trustee Chair Gary C.K. Huang says that with the global population reaching near eight billion, protecting the environment is increasingly important.
“It is time for us to use our collective resources to invest in a smart and efficient way to protecting our environment,” says Huang. “We are qualified to take this initiative because we are a global group of problem solvers with diversified talents.”
In 1990-91, RI President Paulo V.C. Costa made the environment one of his primary causes, creating the Preserve Planet Earth subcommittee, which looked at ways clubs and members could conduct environmental initiatives.
“We have finally caught up to Costa [his vision],” says Past RI President Ian H.S. Riseley, chair of the Environmental Issues task force, which championed the new area of focus.
“As a lifelong environmentalist, I’m delighted that our great organization has recognized that the environment is a worthy and appropriate destination for our project activity,” says Riseley. “This is an exciting moment in Rotary history.”
Supporting the environment becomes Rotary's seventh area of focus, which are categories of service activities supported by global grants. It joins peacebuilding and conflict prevention; disease prevention and treatment; water, sanitation, and hygiene; maternal and child health; basic education and literacy; and community economic development.
Grant applications for projects will be accepted beginning on 1 July 2021. Gifts and commitments from Rotarians and others will be sought to provide global grant support for the new area of focus.
More information about this new cause will be announced soon.
