John M. offered our invocation, utilizing words Robert Burns wrote in 1789. We were alerted to an upcoming ditch cleaning effort, the exact date to be announced later, and a Rotary Minute Plus Quiz was administered based on the prior Rounds, with two of three questions answered correctly. There were many brags and fines: Buzz L. saw his first robin on March 3rd or 4th; Steve L. was proud of our swimmers, Lance Johnson's (one of last week's student guests) robotics team placing first of 59 teams on the first day of competition and finishing third overall, while Steve's grandson's team from Alexandria came in about at the middle of the pack; Tim H. heard three geese and took that to mean spring has sprung; Jamie L. marked two spots off on his card for missing last week while in Florida and having to leave the day's meeting early; Josh B. paid for missing a couple weeks; Brian T. reported Peter Cottontail will be at Trilogy on March 30th from 10:00 a.m. to noon, which prompted Mary P. to also make a contribution; we were told of an invite to the Salvation Army Appreciation Dinner on April 25th from 5:00 to 7:00 p.m.; John M. told us that he learned to use an air fryer his sister-in-law gave him at Christmas by attending a community ed class the prior Wednesday night; and Keith O. reported that with their air fryer he and Kim could sell their stove (or did they?) and also to brag about nephew Robbie who is 40 years old and just became engaged to Mary, a sixth-grade teacher, with the wedding planned for July.
Katie J., filling in for Randy K., introduced our speaker, Lance Anderson, the new Executive Director of Greater Fergus Falls, Minnesota, a non-profit organization. Katie told us that Lance and her husband went to high school together and she remembers that Lance had a ferret, which Lance told us was named Gladys. Lance's father worked at Otter Tail Power Company and Kirby is his older brother, Karen Stigen his sister. Lance has been in the Twin Cities the past 20 years working in the start-up world. He mentioned that one of his businesses was SportsEngine which he sold off to NBC Sports about four years ago. He and his wife are in the process of selling their home in the Twin Cities, having a place north of Fergus on Long Lake. Lance's youngest child will be graduating from Chanhassen this spring while their oldest will be graduating from college. As to returning to Fergus Falls, Lance said that Greater Fergus Falls has been on his radar for about six years and when he read the job description for his position, he felt it was a perfect fit. Lance has been on the job for two months, with the goal to grow Fergus Falls. He said his door (at The Foundry) is open to anyone, assuring us, however, that he treats his communications confidentially. There are a lot of resources in our town and Lance can help make connections for people; there is room for everyone and bringing in competition is not a concern. One of the programs he told us about is the zero percent loan program to help businesses improve their facade. Lance also told us that on the prior Monday night, he arranged for a mastermind on Artificial Intelligence to talk to 20 business owners. During his first two months on the job, Lance said he has taken a lot of calls on the Prairie Wetland Center. Before taking the position, Lance said nothing was said to him about redevelopment of the Regional Treatment Center. Asked what has surprised him the most about his job, Lance said he thought things would move a bit faster. He is not an economic developer but came here because of his business acumen and knowing how to get things done. We were encouraged to tell people to seek his help. Lance can be reached at (612) 889-5220.and his office is at The Foundry, 101 W. Lincoln Ave.