The mission-driven DeKalb County Community Foundation is striving to make an impact in DeKalb County according to Executive Director Dan Templin who was featured speaker at this week’s Rotary meeting. Established in 1993, the Foundation had over $3 million in grants and distributions awarded over the past year. Their mission statement reads: “To enhance the quality of life in DeKalb County by proactively addressing community needs and expanding, managing, and distributing philanthropic resources.” Rotarians Sally Bruch and Jim Stoddard serve on the Foundation’s Board of Directors.
Foundation activities center around four roles. These are Endowment and Donor Services, Stewardship of approximately $60 million in assets, Grantmaking, and Community Initiatives. Grantmaking covers the general categories of Arts and Culture; Community Development; Education; Environment and Animal Welfare; and Health and Human Services. Community Initiatives include the DeKalb County Nonprofit Partnership (DCNP – described as filling the role of a “Chamber of Commerce” for non-profit agencies); Youth Engaged in Philanthropy (which lets 70 students from nine high schools decide how grant money will be used for youth-focused initiatives); and Community Economic Development Grants (to fund planning and project implementation in municipalities in the County).
Templin mentioned there exists the Sycamore Rotary Charitable Impact Fund as a pass-through fund at the Foundation. It currently has a balance of just over $1,300. Templin encouraged Rotarians to think of ways to use it to enhance future fundraising for specific projects.
More information about the DeKalb County Community Foundation is available at their website: www.dekalbccf.org.
Our speaker this week will be Joel Maurer from the Sycamore Food Pantry with the latest on the organization's activities. Please note this meeting will be held at the SYCAMORE VETERANS CLUB (121 S. California Street).
Following is our schedule of upcoming speakers/presentations:
Wednesday, May 19 (Hybrid meeting: In-person at Sycamore Veterans Club, pending status of Covid mitigation efforts, and online via Zoom): Sycamore Food Pantry (Joel Maurer)
Wednesday, May 26 (Hybrid meeting: In-person at Blumen Gardens, pending status of Covid mitigation efforts, and online via Zoom): Kishwaukee Valley Wanderers Club (Brian Wallace)
Wednesday, June 2 (Hybrid meeting: In-person at Blumen Gardens, pending status of Covid mitigation efforts, and online via Zoom): RAMP (Justine Whitehouse)
Wednesday, June 9 (Hybrid meeting: In-person at Blumen Gardens, pending status of Covid mitigation efforts, and online via Zoom): Rotary Foundation (Paul Stromborg)
Wednesday, June 16 (Hybrid meeting: In-person at Blumen Gardens, pending status of Covid mitigation efforts, and online via Zoom): TBD
Wednesday, June 23 (Hybrid meeting: In-person at Blumen Gardens, pending status of Covid mitigation efforts, and online via Zoom): Year in Review (Michael DeVito)
Wednesday, June 30 (Hybrid meeting: In-person at Blumen Gardens, pending status of Covid mitigation efforts, and online via Zoom): TBD
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Posted by Bob Brown and Featured in the Daily Chronicle on Nov 28, 2020
Thanks to the very successful recent Sycamore Rotary Harvest Raffle, lead by Rotarian Brandon Diviak, the Sycamore Club was able to award two $2,500 checks to: the Sycamore Food Pantry and the Spartan Food Pantry.
The Sycamore Food Pantry, located at the United Methodist Church, has operated for over 27 years feeding the hungry. Approximately 130 families are currently using this Pantry each month. Client families are able to receive at no cost canned fruits and vegetable, diary items and frozen meat, and paper products. The pantry is open each Monday from noon until 4 PM, with Sycamore families allowed to come once a month. The food pantry is fortunate to partner with several local businesses for food donations including Aldi, Meijer, and Panera. The Sycamore Food Pantry has recently given out over 85 turkey meals to client families for a little extra holiday cheer during the current pandemic.
The Spartan Food Pantry is supported by the generous donations of Sycamore CUSD #427 teachers and staff, community sponsors, and individuals. Through the Illinois Food Bank, your monetary donations are amplified to provide even more food at lower costs. Contributions are tax-deductible and a contribution form can be obtained by emailing spartanfoodpantry@syc427.org. Volunteers Appreciated: From unloading food and stocking shelves to providing a smiling face to those in need, our volunteers are what make the Spartan Food Pantry an inviting and supportive place for the families we serve. If you or an organization you represent would like to volunteer for one of our shifts, email or call us.
In spite of the current Corona Virus challenges, the Sycamore Rotary Club continues to meet weekly via Zoom with its over 100 members under the leadership of President Michael DeVito. Although the virus has changed many of our 2020 activities and fundraisers, this active Club has found creative ways to continue its mission of "Service Above Self". Interested community men and women can contact President Michael DeVito for more information at 815-408-6441.
The Rotary Club of Sycamore is one of over 34,000 Rotary Clubs worldwide of the world's largest international service organization. Our local club is very active, helping international, regional, and local efforts focused on our motto of "Service Above Self". In addition to sponsoring a young adults Rotaract Club, we also sponsor a satellite Rotary Club at Oak Crest Senior Living Center.
One night at Cheers (TV Sitcom), Cliff Clavin said to his buddy, Norm Peterson:
"Well, ya see, Norm, it's like this...
A herd of buffalo can only move as fast as the slowest buffalo. And when the herd is hunted, it is the slowest and weakest ones at the back that are killed first. This natural selection is good for the herd as a whole, because the general speed and health of the whole group keeps improving by the regular killing of the weakest members! In much the same way, the human brain can only operate as fast as the slowest brain cells. Excessive intake of alcohol, as we know, kills brain cells. But naturally, it attacks the slowest and weakest brain cells first. In this way, regular consumption of beer eliminates the weaker brain cells, making the brain a faster and more efficient machine! That's why you always feel smarter after a few beers."
December 2, 1942 – Physicists led by Enrico Fermi carried out the first successful nuclear reaction at the University of Chicago.
December 1, 1955 – Rosa Parks is arrested in Montgomery, Alabama after she refuses to go to the back of a municipal bus in the era of segregation ushering in the modern civil rights movement.
December 3. 1967 – The first successful heart transplant is performed by Dr. Christiaan Barnard at Cape Town, South Africa.
December 1, 1990 – England was connected to mainland Europe for the first time since the Ice Age as workers digging the railway tunnel under the English Channel broke through the last layer of rock.
December 5, 1782 – Eighth U. S. President Martin VanBuren is born in Kinderhook, New York.
November 30, 1835 – American author Samuel Clemons (Mark Twain) is born in Florida, Missouri.
November 30, 1874 – Renowned British politician and British Prime Minister during World War II, Sir Winston Churchill, is born in Oxfordshire, England.
December 5, 1901 – Animated film and amusement park guru Walt Disney is born in Chicago, Illinois.
