Next Meeting January 31, 2024 - President Tony N. called the next weekly meeting in person and Zoom at The Marsh, 15000 Minnetonka Blvd, Minnetonka, MN.
New Pictures - Send to michaelcglover@comcast.net. Ed.
************* See Social and Service Activities Below **************
From the Members and Archives
IMPORTANT UPDATE to Upcoming Events Below
Important - Check with meeting leaders to confirm date, time and location information for all events below.
Please send your Happy Buck and Polio Pitcher donations to Mac H. as follows:
Mac Hardin
Minnetonka Rotary Club
12926 Rutledge Circle
Minnetonka, MN 55305
Rotary International Foundation
Please send your end of year donations to Chris Rosenlund as follows:
Chris Rosenlund
8672 Meadowvale Drive
Eden Prairie, MN 55347
Meeting Minutes - Bob H.
Meeting called to order at 7:30 AM
Guests
None noted.
Invocation
Invocation by Mac H. Based on a couple of “close encounters of the Costco kind”, Mac was thrilled to receive attention and kindness from a fellow (female) shopper. A pat on the arm or two, ably demonstrated by Tony, made for his theme today. “Little things mean a lot.” Mac smoothly segued these moments into how so many little things in our club have such huge benefits. Amen, Reverend.
Pledge
Everyone.
4-Way Test
Everyone.
International Theme
Everyone.
Announcements
Tony N. -The Rotary RYLA (Rotary Youth Leadership Awards) program is coming up this spring. Jim Martin is asking us to find 2 High School students (Mtka and Hopkins, ideally) to join others in a 2-3 day program involving empowerment and leadership skills. Contact Jim for more info.
Board Meetings are getting well attended, and we may switch to all live, rather than half Zoom.
Alexa R. - Tomorrow (Thursday 1/25) is a Happy Hour at the Luce Line Brewery in Plymouth 5:00-7:00
Feb 1; The Jersey Boys at The Chanhassen Dinner Theater
Feb 12; Charter Night Dinner at Ann’s home. Usually in October, RSVP to Ann or Alexa soon.
Mar 11; St Patrick’s Day Irish steak dinner at Char’s home at The Moline Apts. 5:00-?:00
April 18; An evening at Ryan’s Jewelry Store. 6:00
Bob H. - start planning for a spring Memorial Blood donation day in May. Alecia from MBC will be speaking to us on Apr 17. We’ll actually be getting our blood typed, to see if you have ‘the good stuff’
Bill S. - our repeat of a New Members Open House at The Bear Cave. Tues, May 7 from 5:00 to ?
Chris R. - A Velvet Hammer report and presentation. We are over $24,000 in hand for our $25,000 goal! Paul Harris Awards ($1000/year) were handed out to Ben Monnens (PH +6) and Ron Usem (PH +8) Terrific generosity on all counts!
New Member Induction
None this week.
Rotary Minute
None this week.
Raffle
Raffle with Ryan; ticket #975 drawn for Terry. (Are we noticing that he’s a frequent flyer in raffle draws?) Alas, Joker remains in play.
Foundation Award Checks
None this week.
Happy Bucks
Happy Bucks with Pete G.
Don C. - of course a quick Michigan nod, and for great service from Ryan with all of Don’s valuables.
Ben M. - $11 for an adults (no kids) trip to Mexico, for tournaments, and hoping for good news with his Father-in-Law’s cancer.
Lindsey L. - $5 for her new baby who isn’t a fan of sleep, and her husband going the extra hours.
Alexa R. - thanks to Bill, Chris, Jerald, Mike for help in planning the upcoming District Meeting. And it finally dawned on her that neither Ron nor Don “are coming after Alissa”, but that the club president sequence is Alissa next, then Ron, then Don.
As Roseanne Rosanadana would say, “Oh, never mind”
Bob H. $7 for one of his favorite long-time patients being named to the Hall of Fame on his first year of eligibility. Joe Mauer, #7, will be inducted on July 21. Beyond his HOF stats, he’s a terrific young man.
Pete G. - for his Russian pottery throwers getting Big 250,000 views on social media.
Program
Speaker; Elliot Powell from the U of M Athletic Dept
Elliot is a good friend of Mtka Rotary, having given us a few tours of their facilities and venues. He’s also been generous with tickets for our fundraisers.
He is a 1991 grad of our own Mtka HS, attended Concordia University, played baseball, and has worked in fund development at West Point and SDSU before coming to the U in 2021. His work is just as much about success in the classroom and life, as it is for keeping the Athletic Dept financially sound.
He alluded to turmoil in the Dept, prior to Mark Coyle, the A.D, and his 1st hire, PJ Fleck arriving.
As the football program covers 94% of the budget, it was essential to keep that program strong. More than just wins and losses, the student-athlete experience was primary. The U student and life success banner reads, ‘United are We” and "Champions for Life”
The Golden Gopher Fund, both from inside and outside revenues, supports the athletic and academic experience. There are 600+ athletes; a staff of 250, a cumulative GPA of 3.4.The graduation rate is 95%, 30% are All Big Ten, 9 are All Americans. The U ranks #1 in Big Ten academic achievement. That is VERY strong as the conference will have 18 schools in 2024.
They come from 25 countries, 38 states, and 107 are home grown in MN. In the Village, beyond coaching, they receive measured nutrition, guidance, career counseling, and internships with the wide range of Twin Cities businesses. They want the students to transition from ”backpack to briefcase” for successful careers and lives.
Elliot handled several questions about the costs of college sports and the very new challenges of N.I.L. (Name, Image and Likeness).
Elliot wrapped up with the many means of financial support we can consider to keep this excellent Athletic Program strong and sustained. Team win-loss records are a goal, of course, but it is clear that Building Responsible (and successful) Youth is the high priority of the program.
Thanks, Elliot for a very informative talk and the work you do to keep the U of M Athletics bigger picture of life skills as a leader in the country.
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