Buffet Lunch is $18 for members and $20 for visiting Rotarians and guests. Lunch ticket is back. Please collect your lunch ticket after check-in and put it in the jar at the beginning of the buffet line
Preston Love, Jr., brings the wisdom derived from his life experiences, his crusade and community activism for economic inclusion to his work. Preston, who is the Sunday School teacher in his church, Holy Ghost Temple COGIC, gives all honor to Jesus Christ. Married to Martha, his spiritual leader, best supporter and love.
EDUCATION: Bachelor of Science, Economics, University of Nebraska, Lincoln Master’s Degree from Bellevue University, Omaha, Nebraska, in Professional Studies, M.P.S.
CAREER ACCOMPLISHMENTS:
Former UNL (Husker) Football Player and Detroit Lions Draftee
IBM pioneer marketing executive (1966-1980)
Microcomputer historic innovator (opened Atlanta’s first retail computer store—1980)
Groundbreaking political mogul (incl. organized and ran Jesse Jackson’s presidential candidacy—1984)
Playwriter (wrote and performs: “Adam Clayton Powell,” a one-man performance)
Award-winning newspaper columnist (Omaha Star column Black Votes Matter)
Editorial page Columnist. Omaha World Heald
Contributor: The Fine Lines Journal. a national, quarterly, non-profit publication, which is devoted to networking with creative writers from around the world.
National Lecturer: Incl. the Nashville film festival regarding urban voting and the documentary film,
One Vote; Jefferson Educational Society, Erie, PA), AAACE (American Association for Adult and
Continuing Education) at the Annual Conference in St Louis, Mo., October 9, 2019, Frequent panelist, University of Nebraska-Lincoln, annual Black Leadership Symposium
UNO Adjunct Professor (Black Studies & Political Science)
Author: Economic Cataracts, (sold in over 30 states and Thailand.) The Jackson Papers. two children’s book, Bridge to Your History”. (June 17 th , 2019) Bilingual Edition; Awards (2020 NEX GEN finalist, 2020 Nebraska Book Award), “A Clear Vision (2020)
Serves as the 1 st Vice President NAACP Omaha
Board member, Kids Can, Inc
Created and produces an highly acclaimed, annual trip of 40+ high school students: Black History tour (BVM Tour) to Tulsa, Memphis, Jackson, MS, Birmingham, Tuskegee, Montgomery, Selma and Atlanta (all expenses paid). Documentary of the tour released October 2018. 2020 Virtual Tour (released Sept/2020, watched by over 5000 nationally)
Creator of the highly acclaimed BVM Virtual Tour (1hour 10 minutes), 2020
Serves as a consultant with, The Minnesota Humanities Center. (A National Education Organization)
Founder, Director: Black Votes Matter Institute of Community Engagement (BVM), LLC 501 c (3)
Founder, Director: Institute for Urban Development (4Urban.org) 2020
NOTABLE ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS:
Nebraska Black Sports Hall of Fame inductee 2016 (University of Nebraska at Lincoln, football player)
Commendation for Excellence (2017) Nebraska Secretary of State for Omaha Star Newspaper column.
2008 Douglas County Dem Party Chair Award For leadership (winning the CD2 historic electoral vote)
NAACP Presidents Award (2018), Vice President Nebraska/Iowa Chapter NAACP
Preston Love, Jr. was presented the Distinguished Citizen Award by the West Point Society of Nebraska and Western Iowa on March 30, 2019 during its annual West Point Founders Day in Omaha, Nebraska
National Assoc. of Social Workers-NE 2020 Public Citizen of the Year award
Nebraska Democratic Party: recipient of having the annual volunteer awards after his name: CD1, CD2 & CD3 NDP Volunteer of the year
Northeast Community College: Alumni Hall of Fame, 2022
North Omaha Area Health; Community Advocacy Award 2022
Omaha Public School Athletic Hall of Fame, 2022
Nebraska High School Sports Hall of Fame inductee October, 2023
Featured on Nebraska Education Television: Nebraska Stories 2023
Special invitee/attendee to White House, 2023: Presidential Policy Briefing
2024 Douglas County Dem Party Chair Award(Blue Dot Award) For leadership
Hello Rotarians and friends of the Rotary Club of Omaha! It’s another great week to be a Rotarian!
Thank you to the many guests who visited in person and especially to those who have already applied for membership. Woo-hoo! Our club is vibrant and growing, and we’re happy to welcome more new members! For all (new and seasoned) members, we have some incredible opportunities to connect with other Rotarians, serve various communities, and always to continue learning. Most notably right now, our Engagement Committee is seeking several members to kick off the much-anticipated Rotary Buddy Program! Please let me or Yolanda know if you’d like to be a part of this exciting group!
Thank you again to Dan Esch and everyone who assisted in making our club’s annual 9/11 memorial happen.
As a reminder, let’s meet Vanessa Clark’s challenge to get to $500 toward Polio Plus in support of immunizations happening in Gaza! Go to https://my.rotary.org/en/donate. Sign in for your Paul Harris points, choose Polio Plus, and let me, Yolanda, or Vanessa know that you donated.
Our Business Sponsor of the month is Zac Triemert with Brickway Brewery and Distillery. In this season of Oktoberfest, you may consider celebrating with one of their brews!
We had a memorable program this week. Thank you to David Brown for an informative and inspiring vision of a bold and ambitious future for our cities, and for teaching us about “Schismogenesis!” There were many takeaways, but I especially noted the call for cooperation since divided we fall, and united we rise.
Our upcoming featured speaker is Preston Love! He is followed by Greg McDermott, Creighton Men’s Basketball, and we have many other anticipated programs (including a new date for Tony Vargas- stay tuned)!
I’ll see you at the Field Club this Wednesday for lunch. Bring a guest!
President Heather Legge The Rotary Club of Omaha
President Heather's weekly video message, watch it in YouTube or copy/paste this link to your browser: https://youtu.be/YTdtn-AqAws
Thanks to the efforts of Rotarians and dedicated volunteers, nearly 3,000 flags now stand at Memorial Park as part of our 9/11 Tribute. Each flag honors one of the 2,977 lives lost on September 11, 2001, displaying the name, age, location, and personal details of a victim. A special section is reserved for flags representing those with a Nebraska connection. We extend our deepest gratitude to Dan Esch for coordinating this meaningful project, and a heartfelt thanks to all the Rotarians, Boy Scouts, family members, and friends who generously volunteered their time.
August 29, 2024, Omaha NE. Recently, we welcomed transferring Rotarian Liesel Kittlitz from Rotary Club of Spokane Rotary 21.
Liesel joined Global Financial Markets Institute (GFMI), a boutique capital markets training firm, in November 2013 to spearhead the company’s marketing efforts, grow the client base, broaden the instructor talent pool, implement new technology, and support the company’s expansion. Prior to joining GFMI, Liesel served as Senior Vice President of Global Marketing and Operations with Omega Performance, an international performance improvement company providing credit and sales skills training for the financial services industry. During nearly two decades at Omega, Liesel also held leadership positions in learning technology, design and development, facilitator management, consulting services, and client implementations.
A veteran of the education, training, and performance improvement industry for over 25 years, Liesel’s experience also includes contracts and grants management with municipal government and public school systems. She delights in uncovering opportunities for improvement and helping clients meet and exceed their learning objectives.
Liesel graduated cum laude from James Madison University with a B.S. in Communication. She continued her education with post-baccalaureate studies in Psychology (particularly social, learning, and organizational psychology) and graduate work in Business and Finance from the McColl School of Business at Queens University of Charlotte. She earned her MBA from the Graduate School of Business at Gonzaga University, where she also taught as an adjunct instructor.
Outside of the office, Liesel volunteers with numerous church and community organizations. She enjoys golf, wine, and traveling.
August 29, 2024, Omaha NE. Recently, we welcomed back Rotarian Amie Konwinski. Amie is the founder and CEO of Smart Gen Society, an Omaha-based, national reaching nonprofit, inspiring students and families to think critically about their digital usage, while maintaining their privacy and safety, and protecting their social, emotional, and mental well-being.
Prior to founding Smart Gen, Amie served 14 years in the U.S. Navy, serving as Information System’s Technician Chief Petty Officer and a civilian government contractor. Stationed in both the Pacific and Atlantic arenas, Amie designed and installed hardware and software systems on three continents and in multiple Top-Secret U.S. and allied government facilities.
An Omaha Native, Amie graduated from the University of Nebraska at Omaha with a Bachelor of Art in Communications, a minor in Information Systems Technology. She holds multiple certificates in organizational and military leadership, network hardware, software, security, and communications.
Amie lives in Omaha, Nebraska with her husband Roger, their daughters and fur babies. In her free time, Amie enjoys reading, live music, and adventurous traveling.
September is Basic Education and Literacy Month for Rotary. As I am visiting clubs in our district, it is fantastic to see the number of clubs that are recognizing students for academic achievement, giving out dictionaries to grade schoolers and awarding scholarships to high school seniors to help support our next generation of leaders.
In addition, I would like to thank PDG Kathryn Schubert and her committee for all of the work that they have put in to bring the Rotary Youth Leadership Awards (RYLA) back on October 11-13 at Camp Sonshine in Roca, Nebraska. We truly are "People of Action".
I would also like to thank our District Conference Committee, led by James Mackiewicz for all of the work that they are doing to plan a terrific "Fusion 5650 District Conference".
We will be hosting the conference on October 18th and 19th at the Downtown Omaha Marriott. Please make plans to attend. The discounted conference rate and the room rate will end on September 20th.
We are working on a great agenda that will include Don Eckles, Co-founder of Scooters as our keynote speaker at the District Luncheon on Friday. PDG Barbara Bartles will present on her group's NID trip to India on Saturday. We will have some interactive roundtable discussions on Membership Recruitment and Public Image best practices and more. We will post the entire agenda soon. I hope to see you all there.
Where three or more Rotarians gather, it's called a Rotary Social, and you earn attendance credits. Rotarians may come from different clubs. Connect with Rotarians and enjoy the power of Rotary fellowship. Below are our recent Rotary Social.
Rotarians Viv Ewing, John Ewing, and Michelle Trawick meet up
Michelle Trawick with Hal Daub. Michelle and Hall will tell us at the meeting the missing third Rotarian
Rotarians in action at the recent Commercial Real Estate Summit. L to R: John Sullivan, Kevin Baitey, Adam Hoebelheinrich, and Larry Sullivan
The Rotaract Club of Belize City is renovating a rural school and a Rotary club-sponsored park as part of its youth-focused agenda. In April, club members met at the Hattieville Government Preschool to paint restrooms and complete other beautification work. A later phase will include new toilets. “We’ve been able to replace chalkboards in 10 classrooms with whiteboards and to donate a printer and other school and hygiene materials,” says Kristoff Nicholson, immediate past president. The club partnered with a telecom provider and raffled off smartphones to help pay for the project. It also received a District 4250 grant of $1,000. In March, club members replaced basketball and goal nets and painted benches and a playset at Love Park in Balama, another element of the project, Nicholson says.
Colombia
In January, the Rotary Club of Cúcuta-Ciudad de Arboles purchased about $600 of school supplies and delivered 100 sets of notebooks, pencils, pens, erasers, sharpeners, and more to students in the city. It’s about 350 miles northeast of Bogotá. Club members also visited with students in the neighborhood of Las Delicias, says Dora Patricia Lobo, a past president of the club. “The hustle and bustle and joy of these students when they receive their school package warms our souls and encourages us to continue,” Lobo says. More than 1,400 students have benefited since the project began.
June 26, 2024. Outgoing President Larry Guenther recognized our members who achieved perfect attendance. Perfect Rotary attendance(aka Perfect Rotarians) is attained through consistent participation in weekly meetings, service projects, committee work, weekly club service, Rotary socials, visiting other clubs, Rotary online makeups, Zoom attendance, attendance at club board meetings, and attendance at club foundation board meetings. Below is the list of our perfect attendance Rotarians.
July is the perfect time to start your journey towards becoming a Perfect Rotarian!
Rotarians are making a difference at Stephen Center. CLICK HERE to sign up.
Stephen Center partners with the community, families, and individuals to overcome homelessness, addiction, and poverty. Stephen Center has served the homeless and low-income in Omaha since 1984 through its three programs: Emergency Shelter, HERO Program, and Transitional Living Program. The Omaha Downtown Rotary partners with Stephens Center in serving hot meals to its residents.
Pictured here are the July 2024 volunteers L to R:Steve McCollister, Colleen Brennan, Christopher Nwafor, Fletcher Reel, and Julie Sanford
The Rotary Club of Omaha is now recruiting more members! It's your opportunity to join the Rotary Club of Omaha, click here to complete the membership application form. For questions, please contact Membership Chair Franco Gentile at FGentile@sbgtv.com.
Chase Bank
UNO College of Business
Centris
Ollie The Trolley
Carlson West Povondra Architects
DA Davidson
Elkhorn Athletics Association
Omaha Massage Therapy
Catholic Archdiocese of Omaha
Kevin Baitey
Brad Burklund
Paul Cohen Hal Daub
Gene DeBoer Dianne Desler
John Ewing
Viv Ewing
Brett Frevert
Dawn Gonzales
Okley Gibbs
Fr. Lloyd Gnirk
Tom Gouttierre
Larry Guenther Bill Harvey
Gretchen Harvey
Barbara Hayman
Yolanda Hoffman
Larry Johansen
Bob Keefer
Susan Koesters
Heather Legge
Sandy Lemke
Adam Leong
John Marburger
Steve McCollister
Heidi McGinness
Camille Metoyer-Moten
Lloyd Meyer
John Mock
Jim Murphy
Roxy Orr
Fletcher Reel
Jim Scott-Miller
Deb Skinner
Jim Stewart
Jim Suttle
LeRoy Swedlund
Lisa Tonjes Moritz
Michelle Trawick
Jennifer Trebill
Kathryn Weitz
President's Pen
August 29, 2024, Omaha NE. Recently, we welcomed transferring Rotarian Liesel Kittlitz from Rotary Club of Spokane Rotary 21. 
August 29, 2024, Omaha NE. Recently, we welcomed back Rotarian Amie Konwinski. Amie is the founder and CEO of Smart Gen Society, an Omaha-based, national reaching nonprofit, inspiring students and families to think critically about their digital usage, while maintaining their privacy and safety, and protecting their social, emotional, and mental well-being.
Belize
Colombia
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