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Holly W. was our greeter and Hal L. offered the invocation. We had a visiting Rotarian, Stan Saetre, a member of the Fergus Falls Sunrise Club. Stan told us he has been a member of Rotary for 66 years and that before coming to our meeting he read to second graders at Adams School as part of the Sunrise club's literacy efforts -- the club buys 20 books each school year that are contributed to our schools and read to students. Dave J. also brought us three seniors from the Fergus Falls High School, Daphine Nadgwick, Aarian Blondeau and Ellie Mathiesen. Daphine's parents are Matt and Tara, and she plans to attend UND next fall majoring in dietetics. Adrian will be attending the University of Minnesota and pursuing a major in environmental engineering; his parents are Alex and Megan. Ellie's parents are Cynthia and Ben, and she will also enroll in UND next fall pursuing a major in psychology.  Brian T. announced that there are only 400 Lucky Duck Derby tickets left to be distributed. After our meeting, Hal L., Lisa M., Dean M., Mary P., Matt S., and Zack S. were heading to McKinley to distribute Josh the Otter water safety books, with Kathy A. to distribute them at OLV and Hillcrest. We also acknowledged Keith O. on the very day of his birthday, singing Happy Birthday to him. Lisa M. told us that for our meeting on the 22nd, club members are encouraged to bring Rotary materials that they have been storing so we can maybe relieve them of that responsibility and figure out what to do with the stuff. When we got to Brags & Fines, Hal L. contributed $5 first for missing two meetings and explained he and Donna had travelled to Colorado to see a grandson graduate; he also contributed the same amount for missing our visioning session. Keith O. reported that Elaine was diagnosed with a heart valve that is not functioning properly, causing some fluid build-up; he also told us that son Brandon and his wife our expecting a baby girl, but because of some issues with the baby's heart will have to spend the last six weeks of the pregnancy living down by the Children's Hospital in the Twin Cities so the issue can be addressed at birth. Please remember Keith's family in your thoughts and prayers. Wally C. enjoyed the fourth through twelfth grade concert at the school in which his fourth and seventh grade granddaughters performed; he also brought with him a 1960 Rotary magazine that his father received as a Rotarian in Hibbing. President Zack told us he attended a commencement ceremony for his son who obtained a land surveying degree and who will be working for the City of Fergus Falls in that capacity. Ryan W. contributed to acknowledge the graduation of our visiting high school students. Finally, Matt S. contributed for missing the prior meeting and for tomorrow's meeting, as he will be attending a choir concert in which his daughter is participating. Our program was Lois Josefson who talked to us about the American College of the Building Arts ("ACBA") and its president, Lt. Gen. (Ret.) Colby M. Broadwater III, who has been instrumental in retiring a huge debt load the College was carrying. In the summer of 2018 Lois arranged a visit from Mr. Broadwater and the school's chief operating officer to explore an adjunct association with M-State that could have resulted in a new use for the RTC. M-State ultimately determined not to pursue that opportunity, but Lois would like to see the concept revisited. Located in Charleston, ACBA offers its students a four-year baccalaureate degree in one of six specializations: architectural carpentry, blacksmithing, classical architecture and design, plaster, architectural stone and timber framing. Classes in the traditional liberal arts are integrated with historic preservation, drawing and drafting, architectural history and design, material science and construction management. In addition, ACBA's students spend two-and-a-half days each week in apprentice labs learning the artistry and hands-on skills in their chosen craft. Lois shared with us a video about the college, and we learned that it is located in an old trolly barn that has been restored. Tuition is under $10,000 a semester and 80% of its students get financial aid. For more information, you can go to https://acba.edu. |
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