Next Meeting June 21, 2023 - President Mike G. called the next weekly meeting in person and Zoom for June 21, 2023 at 7:30 a.m., The Marsh, 15000 Minnetonka Blvd, Minnetonka, MN.
New Pictures - Send to michaelcglover@comcast.net. Ed.
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 - Gloria Cazanacli
Mike started the meeting at 7:30, welcoming everybody.
Guests
Rotary Members introduced 4 guests.
Invocation
“When I joined in 1991 I was in the younger half, things have changed now I am in the older half (…) I volunteer at the Ridgedale Assistant Living center, being part of the Bible study group (…), they are very grateful of what we do. We at Rotary bless other people, God bless the cheerful giver (…)"
Pledge
Everyone.
4-Way Test
Everyone.
International Theme
Everyone.
New Member Initiation
“Fellow Rotarians (…) “. Ryan was initiated.
Rotary Minute - Cathy C.
None this week.
Announcements
Mark Marlin - Mark Marlin remind us about the Summer Fest, coming on the 24th, it is a fundraiser that goes to the Club, fireworks at 10 o’clock.
Jennifer S. - Invited us to an event, July 14, 4-5:30pm, “Go to Tonka Park”, at Prospect Place in Minnetonka, volunteer, we use to plant trees and maintain properties.
Jerald S. - Reminded us about the raffle books “if you don’t have one please see me”.
Ann W. - Our next fundraiser is at Tuttle’s in Hopkins, “please see me if you have a connection to a brewery”.
Cathy C. - Let us know that if we have a heart condition, we can change our magnetic badge for one with a clip.
Sam S. - "Come see me if you need a headshot
Raffle
The last three digits are 693, Jennifer got the numbers, but she didn’t make winner.
Happy Bucks
Didn’t get all but here we go:
Frank B - sharing news about his friends.
Alissa O. - talking about her last trip with her mom, dad and sister.
Chris Rosenlund - The Club made the Rotary International Fund Bowl (…) more than $600 per capita in the Club, top 5 in the district.
Mark Magney - Gaia left, Tammy and I took her to the airport, US Postal office couldn’t deliver the 2 boxes Gaia wanted to send from here.
Char M. - Happy bucks.
Pete G. - Happy bucks.
Nate R. - Julie’s installation.
Jerald S. - Happy bucks.
Program
Sara introduced Whitney Clark, Executive Director of Friends of the Mississippi River. His presentation titled: “Our Mighty but Imperiled Mississippi and How We Can Save It”.
Presentation (by Whitney):
Friends of the Mississippi River is a 30-year-old organization. I am going to present about some of the issues affecting the river.
The river has many ecological resources, millions of bird species, waterfalls, it is a natural corridor for migrating mammals. These ecological functions support life.
The Twin Cities are here because of the support of the river. He shared some history: before the Europeans the river supported indigenous communities, he shared photos, the river is increasing its importance as a recreational asset, our 72 miles of river were designated as a National Park in 1998.
The river changes more in the Twin Cities:
North Minneapolis: Looks like a prairie.
Saint Anthony Falls: Gorge formed on the last 12,000 years with a geological foundation of sandstone and limestone, when the sandstone eroded the limestone shows and formed the gorges.
Downtown Saint Paul: The river opens up, big, about 3-4 miles side to side, there are wetlands, islands and others that provide a rich ecological environment.
The organization has 4 programs:
Land Conservation: works with landowners to protect natural areas and restore habitat and ecological health. Whitney shows some pictures of landowners in Dakota county (Hampton Woods), he also runs a video of the prairie field along the Elk River 340 acres of restored habitat, the owners sold the land to DNR.
Stewardship & Education: The presentation has a map of restoration sites along the river, there is a picture of volunteers donating time to reconnect with the river and, he talked about Minneapolis Parks and Rec work on restoring the gorge. Some of the activities highlighted are engaging young people (958 youth) distributed in summer cohorts (FMR) and the ESL program that relates to the Youth Advisory Council.
Water: Laws enacted in the 70’s created cleaner water, but the river is still very polluted with phosphorus, nitrate (fertilizer) and sediment. Whitney shows some pictures and graphics that support that since 1976 to 2014 the river got 40% more polluted. A part of the presentation was devoted about new crops developed by the U of M to clean the water (Kernza Cereal) and the Annual Crops that hold the soil in place during the winter so after that we replant so we have living vegetation the whole year.
Land use and planning: He talked about lobbying for policies that promote and allow the use of the new crops, also touched on the issue of invasive carp and installing a sound and bubble barriers to keep the carp away.
Whitney closed with a Vision: Remove the Saint Anthony Falls Upper and Lower and the Dam #1 that will bring up vegetation and habitat for migratory species.
Adjournment
Mike G. thanked the club and the presenter, and we got $58.24 between raffle and happy bucks.
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