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MONDAYS
11:30 AM - LUNCH SERVED
12:00 - 1:00 PM MEETING
DON'T MISS THIS!
December 16:
Holiday Program with the Rotary Singers
January 6:
Dave Kuhn, Indiana Physical Therapy: PT for Olympic swimmers like Michael Phelps
January 13:
Cheryl Taylor, The Foellinger Foundation
Spin for December 16, 2019
GREETERS: Bob Wearley (Commercial Filter) & Mike Weber (Star Financial Bank)
CASHIER: Ashley Warren (Star Financial Bank)
INSPIRATION: Steve Smith (Fort Wayne Medical Surety)
ROTARY IS….
HOUSE: Evan Hyndman (Home Nursing Services) & Roger Reece (Associated Churches)
SPIN AUTHOR: Lisa Esquivel Long (KPC Media)
WEB MASTER & AV: Julie Zollinger (Bona Vita Architecture)
PROGRAM: Holiday Program with the Rotary Singers
MENU: Chef Choice Soups, Garden Salad, Baked White Fish with Lemon Cream Sauce, Rice, Normandy Blend, Cookies and Lemon Bars
Reporter: Lisa Esquivel Long (KPC Media)
Meet MamaJo
Matthew Wirtz & Kumar Menon of City Utilities explained the MamaJo Tunnel Project. MamaJo, whose name comes from the city’s three rivers – the St. Marys, Maumee and St. Joseph – is a boring machine creating the tunnel under the city. Menon grew up knowing the work of Rotarians because his family in India were Rotary members. City Utilities has water, wastewater and stormwater programs that extend outside the county limits. It has 360 employees and contracts with 1,500-1,600 a year, so it’s a large community employer. It has invested about $110 million a year into its infrastructure since 2008. The pipes hadn’t been invested in since the 1960s, so the tunnel is a part of the work to update the infrastructure for the next 150 years.
“The tunnel is our version of the Great Wall,” Menon said. “We’re trying our best to keep wastewater from intruding into our rivers, storm water from getting into your basements.”
Fort Wayne has some of the best-tasting water in the state and water for fire service at multiple points throughout the city. A higher rating for a water department, means an average savings of $100 per household a year on insurance.
City Utilities has minimized flooding to 18,000 homes. The utility is working to increase storm water and wastewater capacity to get it treated before it’s put back into the rivers.
“The wastewater that we treat and push back into the river is hundreds of times cleaner than the water that we take in in the first place,” Menon said.
He invited Rotarians to visit the tunnel.
Wirtz, deputy director and chief engineer, presented a video that showed how the sewers get overwhelmed with excess storm water, some of which gets pushed back into residents’ homes or into the rivers. Federal regulations will require the city to reduce its overflows into the rivers from 70 times a year to four by 2025. The city worked on storm water drains in neighborhoods to minimize backups. The wastewater treatment plant on Anthony has had its capacity increased from 40 million gallons a day to over 100 million.
The tunnel is the largest project and will go 5 miles from near Anthony Boulevard to Foster Park. The borer has about 4 miles left to go as it creates a 19-foot diameter tunnel, which is 250 feet in the ground. During heavy rain the tunnel will hold sewage so it can be pumped to the plant for treatment.
The city requires that contractors transfer knowledge to local workers and they have to hire local interns from colleges. The internships provide students who promise to work in this 9-county region $6,500 from the internship and $5,000 in scholarship money. The tunnel project is creating 4,500 jobs. “It’s more than just a hole in the ground,” Menon said. “It is creating a talent pool. It’s creating a pipeline of talent for the future. And it’s creating opportunities (for economic) development citywide.”
Visiting India clubs
We have a $473,000 global grant for a children’s heart catheter lab in a hospital in India. Nick Shah visited that club, the Rotary Club of Bombay Queen City, and did a flag exchange with them. It’s a very active club.
He also visited a second club, the Rotary Club of Mombi, an industrial town. He presented them with $2,500 from our club to fund a neighborhood clinic. The $2,500 came from the international service committee, of which Nick is the chair.
Flamingo of Change Award
Tim Gibson said, “We give this to people we recognize and identify who are doing things every day in Rotary and not drawing a lot of attention, but are really, really moving our message forward. This goes to Ruth Kuntz because of the fact Ruth has taken so many of our Rotary Youth Exchange students that we sponsor during the school year to all kinds of events.”
Rotary is... The Big Easy Feast
Present by Dave Dyer (Tonn & Blank), he explained that The Big Easy Feast, our biggest fundraiser, is an opportunity for community outreach. We hold it on Fat Tuesday, which is coming up on Feb. 25. The previous three years we’ve raised over $38,000, which went to the Rotary fountain in Promenade Park. This year we’ll be supporting the Fort Wayne Dance Collective and Heartland Sings. We’ll also have scholarships for the New Tech High School Interact Club. Dance Collective will perform. Along with the traditional Mardis Gras cuisine and live music, we’ll add a bourbon tasting. Look for your six tickets to sell with information and sponsorships for $100 and up in white envelopes with your name on them. If you don’t plan to sell or use your tickets, return them or we’ll be charged $15 per person based on the tickets. More information will be coming on Facebook. If you would like to have your envelope mailed to you, please contact Secretary Jane Wilks at fwrotarysecretary@gmail.com.
Red envelopes
We’ll be collecting money for the Parkview Tin Caps staff who help set up, take down and put on the buffet. The envelopes will again be on the table Dec. 16. Please consider contributing.
Dues Statements Being Sent
The dues statements will be going out soon via email. President Holli encouraged those who have their business pay their membership to also pre-pay lunches. Not only does that make your expense reports simpler, it helps our dedicated Treasurer, Mark Westerhausen. Each week we have to pay for a minimum of 50 lunches, so if you haven't been eating lunch, we encourage you to try the buffet. The staff at Parkview Field receive rave reviews for the quality of the lunches they serve! Fines (supporting service dollars) can also be pre-paid when you pay your dues, meaning you don't have to look for cash every week.
The dues statements will be going out soon via email. President Holli encouraged those who have their business pay their membership to also pre-pay lunches. Not only does that make your expense reports simpler, it helps our dedicated Treasurer, Mark Westerhausen. Each week we have to pay for a minimum of 50 lunches, so if you haven't been eating lunch, we encourage you to try the buffet. The staff at Parkview Field receive rave reviews for the quality of the lunches they serve! Fines (supporting service dollars) can also be pre-paid when you pay your dues, meaning you don't have to look for cash every week.
GEAR UP with Rotary Club of Fort Wayne
Many have asked about ordering Rotary Club of Fort Wayne branded "gear." We have established a relationship with DKM Embroidery for ordering items branded with the Rotary Club of Fort Wayne logo. Here are several ways you can order your "gear."
- Call Rhea Adams at DKM: 260.471.4400 to discuss what you would like branded.
- Visit DKM's website: http://www.dkmlogo.online/ to select your item for branding and then order through Ms. Adams.
- Visit DKM's store at: 3203 Caprice Court, Fort Wayne, IN 46808 to place your order.
Please note, that item(s) must be paid in full at the time you place the order. Orders can also be shipped to your home with an added charge for shipping.
DKM has our club logo on file and is ready to help you with your order.
2020 Rotary International Convention
For those planning to attend the 2020 Convention, rooms are quickly filling up – contact Lisa Waterman for room reservation information.
UPCOMING PROGRAMS: Invite a guest to hear…………..
December 23 & 30: NO CLUB MEETINGS IN OBSERVANCE OF THE HOLIDAYS
January 6: Dave Kuhn, Indiana Physical Therapy: PT for Olympic swimmers like Michael Phelps
January 13: Cheryl Taylor, The Foellinger Foundation
January 20: Mayor Tom Henry, State of the City
Committee Meetings:
December 16: Retention, 11 am
ANNOUNCEMENTS…Mark Your Calendar:
December 23 & 30: NO CLUB MEETINGS IN OBSERVANCE OF THE HOLIDAYS
Membership at a Glance: 135 Active and 10 Honorary
APPROVED MEMBERS:
Mark Moen, General Manager, Fort Wayne Courtyard by Marriott, proposed by Rick Zolman
Returning Member:
Dave Kaverman, Acuity Mergers & Acquisitions
New Active Members:
Maurice Pearl, General Manager, CitiLink
Jay Maddox, Market President of NE IN, Horizon Bank
Jacquelyn Mann, Office Manager, IES (Innovative Engineering Services
Angela Grant, Vice President, Commercial Lender, First Federal Bank
Chuck Wolfe, WCA, Strategic Solutions for Non-Profits, transfer from Lima OH Rotary Club
Stephanie Carlson, Development & Program Manager, Dance Collective, sponsored by Holli Seabury
Timothy Durnell, VP Private Banker, First Federal Bank of the Midwest, Proposed by Greg Allen
New Corporate Members:
Fort Wayne Newspapers, Sponsored by Rick Zolman:
Scott Stanford, President & CEO (member of Ski Town USA Club); Sherry Skufca, Editor of Journal Gazette; John Christensen, Director of Sales & Marketing
Associated Churches: Kelley Bawmann, Development and Volunteer Coordinator
Star Financial Bank: Jim Griest, SVP, Private Banking; Mike Weber, Account Executive
Resignations:
Louise Jackson; Jorge Ortiz, Masson Robertson;
Allen County Public Library Corporate Membership—Greta Southard & Stephannie Smith
Tom Heil with Associated Churches Corporate Membership
Honorary Members:
Win Rood, a 50 year member of the Rotary Club of Fort Wayne since 1969
