Rotopep for November 19, 2020

Rotary Club of Evanston

November 19, 2020

Program: “Rotary Club of Evanston Day” Declaration

Presiding: Tracy Tebear

This week’s meeting will be a celebration of the declaration of Rotary Club of Evanston Day, in honor of our club’s 100th anniversary! The program, which starts at 5:30 p.m. on Thursday, November 19, will feature special video presentations, a photographic slide show, and wonderful memories.  Speakers will include RI General Secretary John Hewko, Evanston Mayor Steve Hagerty, and 6440 District Governor Lyle Staab. Registration is required for this meeting – please sign up HERE

November 12 Scribe Notes: 

Abby McNear’s inspiration for the day was a quote from Nelson Mandela, one of her personal heroes: “May your choices reflect your hopes, not your fears.”

In addition to our speaker, 6440 District Governor Lyle Staab, we had one other visiting Rotarian: Assistant Governor Don Gwinn of the Rotary Club of Evanston Lighthouse. 

We welcomed one guest, Kelly O’Brien, a recent Northwestern graduate interested in learning more about Rotary. 

Announcements:

President Tracy thanked Pamela Rosenbusch for her work on the “Coffee with a Rotarian” series, which is helping establish strong relationships and encouraging club connections. 

Don’t miss the remaining Friday night drive-in movies at the parking lot of the Autobarn Service Center on Howard Street, organized by “Evanston Loves Rotary.” Movies are scheduled for November 27 and December 4 and 18. 

About “Evanston Loves Rotary”:

Evanston Loves Rotary is an independent, community-driven initiative, ready to bridge the knowledge gap about Rotary International in our city and activate Evanstonians to support local Rotary clubs’ critical work during this time of COVID19 and beyond.

The group is heightening the awareness of Rotary International in Evanston, and promoting our city as the global headquarters for one of the largest and most impactful non-profits in the world.

Members include: 

Evanston Mayor Steve Hagerty

Jill Bishop, Multilingual Connections

Annie Coakley, Downtown Evanston

Jeff Cohen, Analysis Group

Patrick Hughes, Jr., Byline Bank

Pat Hughes

Joe Flanagan, Acquirent

Keith Glantz, Glantz Design

Evelyn Lee, Rotary Club of Evanston

Judy Newton, Levy Foundation

Helen Oloroso, Rotary Club of Evanston Lighthouse

Deb Orabey, Dream to Product

Jim Orrico, Dream to Product

Mike Sophir

Dave Davis, Northwestern University

Roger Sosa, Evanston Chamber of Commerce

Paul Zalmezak, City of Evanston

November 12 Program: Lyle Staab, 6440 District Governor

Governor Lyle offered perspectives on Rotary International and activities and initiatives in our district. The Rotary theme for the year is “Rotary Opens Opportunities,” and Governor Lyle suggested that in the face of COVID-19 and other challenges, Rotary presents new opportunities to serve. 

Our district has taken a variety of steps to assist during COVID, including helping fund Northern Illinois foodbanks and providing laptop computers to help primary care medical offices. The district has worked closely with clubs in providing additional funding for local projects: To date the district’s clubs have provided more than $100,000 in assistance. 

Highlights from Rotary International include the selection of Jennifer Jones of Ontario, Canada, to be Rotary’s first-ever female president for the 2022-23 year. Jennifer has been a friend of our district over the years, and served as the emcee for our May Centennial Gala. She will be committed to diversity and inclusion during her term in office. 

Also of note: Rotary has adopted protecting the environment as one of its primary strategic areas of focus. The importance of the environment as a global issue has been a growing topic of discussion in recent decades within Rotary’s leadership and this move will make it possible to have greater impact. 

We are getting closer in our polio-eradication efforts, with the African region recently being declared free of wild polio virus. Our decades-long work in mounting complex and wide-reaching vaccination drives will be of great use to the word as the COVID-19 vaccines come on line; we have much expertise to offer. 

Governor Lyle highlighted our district’s pilot project, in partnership with District 6450, called “The Rotary Network,” which offers business networking and mentoring, financial information, a Rotarian business directory and other resources. He also noted the new Rotary alliance with Toastmaster’s International, which will help individuals in Rotary build leadership skills and grow their impact. 

Membership and fundraising have both been a challenge in our district since COVID-19 arrived, but the good news is that we are up in membership slightly since July. Governor Lyle urged our club to continue exploring new ways to conduct its activities – which is very important in becoming more attractive to potential members. Adjusting when and how we meet, in order to be more flexible for young people and those with families, is just one step. He also urged us to be upfront about expectations of new members and to host alt least one strategic meeting a year to ensure we are doing all we can to build our membership. 

Governor Lyle closed by asking us to take “AIM”: “Adapt” to changing circumstances; “Invite” partners and local stakeholders to work with us; and “Matter,” remembering that our commitment over a century of service has impacted our local community and the world. And, on top of it all, don’t forget to HAVE FUN! The relationships and friendships we build are just as important as the good work we do. 

Governor Lyle took a few minutes to recognize club member Shawn Iles for his generosity and commitment to Rotary, noting that Shawn was recently named a Paul Harris Fellow – at the Plus 5 level! Awesome work, Shawn! 

Shawn ended the meeting by quizzing us on “Things in History that Happened on November 12.”