Former DG Tom Gump and DGE Leif Hagen attended the Rotary International Peace Forum in Istanbul and Leif said, "The Rotary International Peace Forum in Istanbul has wrapped up, but our mission is just getting started. With 1,000 Rotarians from 90+ countries coming together, we leave more inspired, more skilled, and more determined to build peace in a divided world.

As Rotary International President Stephanie Urchick put it: “Spread peace in your home, your community, and the world. Remember—peace begins among us.”

Our club presidents shared their top five Rotary moments with us – see some below! We'll share more in upcoming newsletters and on our social media.

Great River Rotary:

• Working the booth at the Benton County Fair in August selling turkey drumsticks, brats, local sweet corn, etc. This requires all of our members, families and friends to pitch in for the six days of the fair. It’s one big party! (plus our fundraiser for the year).
• As part of our strategic planning, we set up a projects committee tasked with coming up with more, hands-on projects of the right scale for a small club. Our first new project was a major fall yard and garden cleanup for the Benton County Historical Society’s museum.
• For the 35^th year, we put on a full Thanksgiving dinner, on the Sunday before Thanksgiving, for seniors from the local senior living facilities. We do this in partnership with Sauk Rapids - Rice Schools and with major donations from a local bus company to bring our guests, and many other longstanding donor relationships. This also requires us to mobilize everyone. Plus, this year we had the help of DG Sharon! 
• One of the goals of our new, small-project strategy is to attract service oriented members who are interested in actively doing things. Our second “small” project this year has been to sew, from scratch, colorful book tote bags for preschoolers which we will give away in March, each with a book. Many Rotarians are learning some new skills. More important, we have attracted three potential new members!
• 100% EMEY Foundation support, again.

Minnetonka Rotary Club:

• Welcoming New Members & Giving Back – Adding Annika, Mikey, Nancy, and Terry to the club, hosting inspiring speakers each week, handing out grant checks to amazing organizations, and seeing members receive awards for their contributions to the Rotary International Foundation—these moments made every meeting special.
• Charity Golf Event – This is always a highlight! It’s so much fun seeing our members and the community come together for a great cause, raising funds to give back to organizations doing meaningful work.
• Free Bikes 4 Kidz – Volunteering is always rewarding, but getting to ride an awesome mini bike while doing it? That’s next-level fun.
• Alexa’s 40th Birthday Party – Bringing together members, friends, and Rotary big shots under one roof to celebrate an incredible person.
• Social Outings with Club Members – From breakfast to happy hour, I just love spending time with our members and connecting on a personal level.

Eden Prairie Noon:

1. We had Pong Fest fundraiser and it raised money but we had NMDP (Be The Match)on Site and they were able to add six new members to the NMDP blood stem cell registry.

1. EP School Administer for coordinating our main local project “My Book Day” has brought new enthusiasm which is welcomed.
2. We have Plymouth Rotary Club planning to come to do CPR Training in March
3. Working with Paul Peterson and Bocar Kane has been a high point
4. We're working on a new membership campaign

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In honor of International Women's Day, we’re joining the Celebrate Rotary Women in Action campaign! Let’s shine a spotlight on the incredible women of Rotary and their impact.

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We have a lot of new Rotarians that have joined this year! 
Please help us welcome everyone! 

Would you like to promote your upcoming Club or District events? 
Add your events to the District 5950 calendar!