Thanks to all members who have paid their 2023-24 Rotary membership dues prior to the end of the 2022-23 Rotary year which was June 30.
A significant portion of our club's dues are paid each year to Rotary International (RI) and Rotary District 5960. RI and D5960 use our active membership list as of June 30, and invoice us per member. It is therefore essential for the financial health of our club to have an accurate account of active/current members in good standing.
As a TRCR member during the 2022-23 Rotary year, you received a dues statement in May to renew your membership. Thank you to those who have made the ongoing commitment to our Club, the District and Rotary worldwide. If you wish to pay dues monthly or quarterly, contact our Club Administrator at romnrotary@gmail.com or 507-722-1717.
On May 20th, 2023 exactly 50 years from the 1973 dedication of the Nature Center, we will welcome the community to celebrate and recognize this important milestone.
This event, free and open to all, will feature celebratory speakers including Friends of Quarry Hill Board Chair Peggy Edwards, Rochester’s Mayor and former Quarry Hill Board Member Kim Norton, Rochester Public School Board Chair Cathy Nathan, Former director Greg Munson and present director Pamela Meyer.
On this day we will also invite the community to join us for a day of conservation. Working with community partners we will plant 350 trees and shrubs, more than 360 native plants and pull pounds of invasive garlic mustard - activities that will protect the natural landscape and our outdoor classroom for generations to come.
Refreshments and custom seed packets that participants can take home to plant their own backyard prairies will also be a part of the celebration.
From: Rotary International Risk Management <insurance@rotary.org>
Sent: Wednesday, April 26, 2023
Subject: Call to Action! Copyright Trolls Pursuing Rotary Clubs (U.S. Rotary Club & District Liability Insurance Program)
The U.S. Rotary Club & District Liability Insurance Program provides all U.S. Rotary and Rotaract clubs and districts with general liability and directors & officers / employment practices liability insurance.
Clubs continue to post images and other media (cartoons, songs, etc) online in disregard of copyright laws, resulting in a considerable increase in claims activity under the U.S. Rotary Club & District Liability Insurance Program ("Program"). Over 40% of the Program's open claims now pertain to copyright infringement. Since claims activity determines state-by-state insurance assessment rates, your club could raise the rates for all of the clubs in your state.
Copyright owners hire companies offering software that "trolls" the internet in search of copyright violations involving their images or other media. These companies are commonly referred to as copyright trolls. When a troll finds a violation, they contact the party who mis-used the image or other media and make a demand to settle the violation. Failure to respond to the demand increases the difficulty of resolving the claim.
It is your club's responsibility to comply with copyright laws. Here is what your club can do to prevent receiving a notice of copyright infringement:
Immediately:
Review your club's social media accounts and websites and delete any content using images or other media where you do not have the copyright owner's permission. This includes bulletins, newsletters, and other documents and forms, even if they are 10+ years old.
Contact Risk Management immediately if your club receives a notice of copyright infringement. The Program may provide coverage depending on the way the image or other media was used.
Going Forward:
Instead of lifting images or other media off the internet, use images or other media created by members of your club (first receive their permission) or use the Rotary Brand Center.
Never use images or other media without permission.
Purchase images or other media online.
Consult the United States Copyright Office's website.
For further information about this topic, please go to the Program website and review Copyright Infringement & Privacy Guidelines.
Host an exchange student for a few months next school year!
The Rochester Rotary Clubs are sponsoring a female foreign exchange student, Thea, from Denmark to attend Century High School during the 2023-2024 school year. During the school year, three families within the same high school attendance area are needed to host the student from mid-Aug – early June (approx. Aug-Nov, Dec-Mar, Mar-June). The exchange student benefits by experiencing the different ways in which each family lives and builds relationships with a variety of people.
The exchange student does not require their own room, as they can share a room with a host sibling of the same gender as long as they have their own bed. A proper place to study is also needed and they are required to attend school. Families with young children, no children, older children, single parents, same sex parents, retired and empty nesters are eligible after a required application and background check.
Rotary provides school lunch money and a $100 per month allowance to the student. A counselor from the Rotary Club is involved and available to help with acclimation or any problems that may arise. The students’ airfare and medical insurance is paid for, and they use their own spending money beyond the funds Rotary provides. In addition to a place to live, host families provide meals and a loving family so that the student has the opportunity to fully participate in the life in our community, state, and country.
This is a rewarding lifetime opportunity to develop a lasting relationship benefiting both the family and the students.
Please contact Melanie Trimble if you are interested in learning more and are considering being a host family for the 2023-2024 school year.
Check this Clubrunner link for Meeting Activities Please sign up to help with Rotary Meetings as a Greeter, Lead the Four-Way Test, Visitor’s Desk and Introductions, Provide a Reflection.
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