Home Page | Rotary Club of South Bend

Welcome to our Club!

Service Above Self

We meet Wednesdays at 12:00 PM
Century Center

120 S. St. Joseph St.
Suites 1 - 3
South Bend, IN 46601
United States of America

District Site

Venue Map

FELLOW ROTARIAN'S

South Bend Rotarian's together for our 12^th week on the screen with 80+ of us.

Let’s welcome next week our new President Larry Davis with enthusiasm and in style with our outside and Zoom meeting.

Diane Bennett thank you for your timely invocation asking us to protect the needy and keep them safe. Diane also asked to protect us all. and let there Be Still in the world.

FINE FUNDS...

President Debie asked us to tally up the Fines, PSA's, & Happy Dollars before the end of her term, so pay up before June 30^th.

Make your check payable to the SB Rotary Charitable Foundation and send to the SB Rotary Club office at 108 W. Colfax Avenue, South Bend, IN 46601 or if you are downtown you can drop in the door slot and save a stamp. Most everyone who came to the fabulous Zoom meetings owes at least $10 over the past 12 weeks.

Thanks Sergeant Maria Kaczmarek for your genuine service this year as a terrific Sheriff.

MEETING NOTES

Posted by Nate Levin-Aspenson on Jan 24, 2019

Our very own Amy Hill, new Transpo CEO, was introduced by Rotarian Jill Scicchitano and provided the program today. Telling us more about our local public transportation institution: Transpo. 124 employees (most of them union!), 29 fixed bus routes, and 17 paratransit vans, our local municipally owned transportation company has been serving our community for over 50 years.

Recently, they have been modernizing their aging fleet and offering new programs such as the game day express route and free bus rides for K-12 students during the summer. The latter program exceeded their target numbers by over 100 percent!

With data indicating that 80% of their riders are transport-dependent, depending on bus routes to reach jobs and medical care. Their paratransit vans are vital for many people with different abilities.

Transpo is a vital public utility, and Amy told us about how the ongoing government shutdown is endangering a large chunk of their funding. They have been able to strike creative deals to keep things running so far, but their situation is a potent reminder of the local harm that can come from political brinkmanship in Washington. One wonders if a wall would do as much to help people as providing transportation to jobs and medical care does.

MEETING NOTES

Posted by Catherine Hostetler on Feb 16, 2017

Gary Hall introduced an angel in our community, Kim Becker, the founder of Hello Gorgeous. Hello Gorgeous is Kim’s mission in life and her dream that evolved from her passion and talents in the salon business. Hello Gorgeous provides a complementary make-over for women struggling with cancer. Kim provides this service to help women who have compromised immune systems to be transformed back into the beautiful women that they are. Hello Gorgeous is a complete spa experience contained in a 1998 Holiday Rambler and 2013 Monaco Coach. The vehicle goes to the person’s home, rolls out the red carpet, provides complimentary flowers, and a makeover ensemble. The Hello Gorgeous Monaco Coach was the last vehicle produced before the company closed and the employees pulled out all stops to make Kim’s dream come true. Hello Gorgeous is a 501C3 and can be contacted at www.hellogorgeous.org if you would like to donate, volunteer, or nominate a loved one, or attend a fund raiser. This year there is a .5K Run with a polish buffet scheduled for August.

MEETING NOTES

Posted by Catherine Hostetler on Feb 09, 2017

President Jackie introduced Professor of Chemistry at St. Mary’s College, Dr. Toni Barsitis, as our program speaker. Dr Barsitis is part of an inter-disciplinary team that developed P.A.D. and was granted the first patent for St. Mary’s College. P.A.D. stands for Paper Analytical Devices. These paper devices were designed and developed to provide screening to qualify the purity of pharmaceutical products. Pharmaceutical purity is a serious global issue; in developed countries compromised pharmaceuticals represent about 15% while in underdeveloped countries compromised pharmaceuticals can represent an astounding 50% to 80%. So there was a need to develop a low cost, quick and accurate screening method to detect counterfeit pills and medications. The P.A.D. protocol was developed by St. Mary’s, Notre Dame Undergraduates and some Trinity students. St. Mary’s owns the patent of P.A.D. and was just awarded a second patent in January for developing an enhancement to P.A.D. utilizing a “vessel” that Dr. Barsitis termed “a glow stick” concept. Notre Dame is working on the licensing and the P.A.D. product is going to be produced by a local start-up company. Dr. Barsitis also related her team’s experience in Nepal and how they used P.A.D. to expose massive irregularities in medications. The P.A.D. team is currently working on applications to test water and air quality, while other features used could include food quality.

MEETING NOTES

Posted by Catherine Hostetler on Jan 18, 2017

David Matthews introduced the Executive Director of the South Bend Symphony, SBSO, Agnieszka Rakhmatullaev as the Club’s program speaker. Agnieszka brought the Club up to date on the structure, programs music, and the new Director search for our regional renowned Symphony. She is happy that SBSO is supported by our major area universities and contributes over one million dollars to our local economy. There is also an Endowment Fund to help offset many of the expenses along with a generous community support. It is very unusual for a regional symphony to have two performing venues; South Bend’s Morris Performing Arts Center for the Symphony and Notre Dame’s DeBartolo Performing Arts Center for the Chamber Series. The SBSO has a core of 71 professional musicians that is augmented by other professionals to perform in over 40 concerts a year ranging from or related to Educational Concerts for elementary students. IUSB and other local community and school choirs are often a strong addition to the symphony programs. In addition members of the SBSO put on free concerts for PreK-12 students and a Donald Dake Academy Annual week long Chamber Music camp for high school students. The members of the SBSO draw from local, regional, and national musicians. The search for the new Music Director has attracted not only national but an international group of candidates. Five candidates have been chosen from the 170 applicants by the Search Committee to compete for the Concert Director’s position. Agnieszka encourages everyone to be a part of the SBSO by being involved at the Board level, becoming a donor, subscriber, or sponsor and/or by attending a performance. She also reminded us that the concerts are rebroadcast again this year on WAUS and WNDU.

MEETING NOTES

Posted by Catherine Hostetler on Jan 11, 2017

Elizabeth Dunn introduced Daryl Heller, Director of IUSB’s Civil Rights Heritage Center Building. Dr. Heller gave a brief history of South Bend's Natatorium and the role it played in racial segregation and the reason why it is an appropriate facility for the Civil Rights Heritage Center [CHRH]. IIUSB took an interest in the “Nat” as a site for its study of Civil Rights movement in Michiana. It is a multi faceted which serves as an extension of the IUSB campus for classes in history, literature, art, music and social justice. It also serves as a museum emphasizing the African Americans, Latin Community, and the LGBTQ Community in Michiana. It is venue for meeting spaces and for free public events. Included in the public events are opportunities for education in order to understand the world, culture to provide new ways of seeing the world and encourages activism to engage the world. Current topics and issues concern the Hate Crime Legislation, the Educational need of South Bend and the relationship of the Community and law enforcement. Through both its campus component and its extension component, the CRHC is committed to Scholarship in Action and unique to an academic center.

MEETING NOTES

Posted by Catherine Hostetler on Jan 04, 2017

Jeff Breiler introduced the principals of the Upper Room Recovery Community as our program speakers. The Upper Room has been housed at the First United Methodist Church since 1984 and is one of the areas most successful recovery programs for men suffering from addiction to drugs and alcohol. Steve Toepp, Public Service Chair, began the program with a video presentation that explained the mission of the Upper Room along with testimonials about their experience with the 12 Step Program and the time to process their sobriety and their relationships. Rev. Mary Hubbard is the Senior Pastor at the Church and is very involved with the Upper Room, both as a spiritual advisor and the board members. She stated she has witnessed lives transformed and families restored because the men have adhered to the standard of he program. Richard Fox, Director of the Upper Room since 2014, reported that the 29 men in recovery have a safe and secure environment to live in. A social and support network are available 24 hours a day plus individuals support services for its residents. To learn more about how Upper Room helps people who truly want to change and move toward more productive and independent lives go to their website; www.upperroomrecovery.org.

MEETING NOTES

Posted by Catherine Hostetler on Dec 28, 2016

Hugh Johnson introduced Pat Maggley, Founder of Heros Camp as our program speaker. Pat gave an inspiring account of his mission in life rescuing boys and teens and nurturing them into young men. Pat used his outstanding basketball talent and his commitment to Biblical Ethics and God to attract and engage these fatherless young people by also providing them with life’s necessities; food, clothing, shoes and whatever they need. He and his wife started this ministry 28 years ago with a handful of boys and parlayed their rich family lives and commitment to this program to save these boys from a life of poverty and/or crime. Last year his wife cooked and served 25,000 meals. Hero’s Camp is now in the process of building a new gym that will also include a cafeteria and dormitory. Pat introduced Heros Camp Executive Director, Patrick, [PJ] Perri, Aaron’s brother, to share his vision and how the Camp is the most effective outreach program is South Bend. Hero’s Camp is a “never give up forever program” that stays with these boys like a father throughout their lives. This was an uplifting program that introduced the Club to the mission of Heros Camp. Pictured L to R are Pat Maggley, PJ Perri, and Bryson Sareen.