Make a Difference DKC finished in excess of its goal, as the four-day packing event at The Suter Company finished up on Sunday, November 12th...with over 1.3 million meals packed, for delivery to Feed My Starving Children.
This annual event brought together hundreds of volunteers, who took time to help prepare and load the pre-packaged, ready-to-cook meals for distribution around the world. Organizers aimed to prepare 1.26 million meals, but wound up with 1.36 million -- a difference of 100,000.
Rotarians from Sycamore joined their counterparts from DeKalb, Kishwaukee Sunrise and our New Generations clubs during the Saturday morning shift; but none worked harder than Heidi Wright, who again helped organize this event on behalf on Make a Difference DKC.
Pete and Char Johnson were recognized as this year's Volunteers of the Year, for their efforts during the weekend; they have volunteered every year since this event began, and worked a half-dozen shifts this weekend alone.
And Sycamore Rotarian Paul Stromborg won the grand prize in the Make a Difference DKC Raffle -- $10,000. A portion of the proceeds from this raffle will be returned to the Rotary Club, and all other organizations which sold tickets; the remainder will be donated to Feed My Starving Children.
The Rotary Club of Sycamore has been cited by District 6420 for its contributions to The Rotary Foundation, during the annual Foundation Dinner in Dixon on November 4th.
Sycamore was recognized as the second-highest donor to The Rotary Foundation in the district during 2016-17; the Club was also cited as one of eight clubs to donate $1,500 or more towards End Polio Now.
Club Foundation Chair Paul Stromborg (right) was on hand to receive the awards from DG Steve Kuhn (left) and PDG Scott Shore.
The Rotary Board of Directors once again has a vacancy, due to the resignation of Dave Miller from our Club. Whomever takes this role, would eventually serve as Club President in 2020-21.
We will also be needing someone to join the Board in July of 2018, as Past President Sue Emberson completes her term of service. That Rotarian would serve as Club President for 2021-22.
If you are interested in either seat on the Board, please contact Eric Jones for more information.
The coats have been ordered, and help will be needed when they arrive.
Operation Warm is the Sycamore Rotary Club's campaign to provide brand-new coats to children in need in the Sycamore School District and at St. Mary's of Sycamore; together, we raised $2,195.00 for this Rotary-backed charity...and the coats are scheduled to be delivered on or about November 15th.
At the November 15th Rotary meeting, we will be seeking volunteers to go over to the Sycamore School District's warehouse and sort out the coats by school; the exact time and date for doing so will be determined at that meeting, based on volunteer availability.
The remaining coats will eventually be brought over to Blumen Gardens, for display at our November 29th "Season of Giving" meeting; some will be given over to Adopt a Family, and the rest will be handed over to the Goodfellows.
The Sycamore Rotary's meeting on November 29th will feature information on the various charities we'll be supporting during the holiday season.
Neilly Berger, the Homeless Liason for the Sycamore School District, will be the featured speaker; she will update us on what the district does for its homeless students during this season and year 'round.
There will also be updates on what we're doing for this year's Adopt a Family project; we will be assisting up to five families and some individual emancipated students, by providing them with Christmas gifts and other perks for the holiday season.
Other projects to be covered include the Sycamore Food Pantry, Operation Warm, Goodfellows and Toys for Tots. Rotarians are asked to contribute to the latter, by bringing a new, unwrapped toy to the Rotary meeting; these items will be presented during the annual Toys for Tots Benefit Concert in DeKalb on Sunday, December 3rd.
Sycamore Rotarians are again being asked to contribute towards this year's Toys for Tots drive, conducted by the Salvation Army and the DeKalb County Marine Corps League.
Please bring a new, unwrapped toy to the November 29th meeting, as part of our "Season of Giving" event; these toys will be presented during the annual Toys for Tots benefit concert, scheduled to be held on Sunday, December 3rd at the DeKalb County high-rise on Taylor Street in DeKalb.
Continuing an annual tradition, the Sycamore Rotary Club will be helping out families in need...by making their Christmas a little brighter.
Families from each of Sycamore's District 427 schools have been selected for our annual Adopt-a-Family project; each will receive a helping hand for the season, with the purchase of Christmas gifts on their behalf.
We will be assisting these select families, as well as some individual emancipated students, during the month of December. For privacy reasons, their identities will not be disclosed; but for whomever they are, it's our hope that we can do something to make the holiday season a happier one for them.
The International Fellowship of Rotarian Military Veterans, Inc. is a Florida non-profit corporation formed to bring together Rotarians from around the world in support of Rotary’s efforts towards Peace and Conflict Prevention/Resolution.
On October 14, 2016 they were notified that the RI Board of Directors had voted to recognize the Fellowship. The paperwork was filed and on October 19, 2016 the International Fellowship of Rotarian Military Veterans officially came into being – the first step in what will be a long journey in support of peace around the world.
The Fellowship is seeking Rotarians who have been in the service to join its ranks; it also seeks volunteers to serve as Membership Coordinators in each of the 48 Rotary Zones (including Sections). They in turn will be responsible for identifying one District Membership Coordinator in each of the 536 districts.
If you are interested in joining and/or volunteering, go to http://rotarianveterans.org for more information.
The Sycamore Middle School Interact Club took time on Wednesday, November 8th to pay tribute to the veterans in our Rotary Club.
Interact presented each Rotarian vet with a special commemorative gift; they have more to be given out at the Veterans Day breakfast, at the school on Friday, November 10th.
Interact has also been working the concession stand at this fall's sports events; they took $100.00 of the proceeds, and donated it to Make a Difference DKC -- which is holding its annual meal packing event this weekend.
The meeting opened with a quartet from Sycamore High School, which performed "The Star Spangled Banner" to open our Tribute to Veterans.
(Amy Bickner, who was scheduled to address us on the topic of "Women in the Military", had to cancel her appearance due to a family emergency.)
Winners from the Pumpkin Festival Bake-Off at Sycamore Middle School came to the November 8th Rotary Club meeting to claim their prizes -- and bring samples of their entries for Rotarians to try!
This year's winners are:
Pumpkin Pie
1st place – Kameron Schroeder 2nd place – Taylor Wesley 3rd place – Laynee Sosin
Baked Pumpkin Goods
1st place – Amanda Jamrog 2nd place – Isaac Ward 3rd place – Caroline Harbecke
The Sycamore Rotary Club will be manning collection kettles on behalf of the Salvation Army for DeKalb County on Saturday, December 2nd; we will be at the Jewel-Osco on Peace Road from 10:00 a.m. until 6:00 p.m.
At least two Rotarians will be needed for each shift; we will be signing up volunteers at an upcoming Rotary Club meeting. See Dave Andrews for more information.
The Sycamore Rotary Club will be hosting a Make-Up Session on Wednesday, November 22nd -- the day before Thanksgiving -- in lieu of our regularly-scheduled meeting.
Attendance is optional, and no formal business will be discussed; those in attendance will receive a make-up credit, towards a past or future absence. Be sure to notify Sally Bruch in advance, if you plan to attend.
This year's annual Rotary Holiday Party will be held at Taxco Restaurant in downtown Sycamore on Wednesday, December 20th.
We will be gathering at our usual meeting time, at 11:45 a.m. Details of the party are still being worked out; please keep watch for more details.
This will be our last official Rotary event of 2017; the following week's meeting on December 27th has been cancelled, so Rotarians can enjoy the holiday season with their family and friends.
Attendance Report -- November 15, 2017
Attendance: 61.19%
Guests of Members: Dr. Anthony Tsiftilis (Pat Shafer) and Gabe Carrick (son of Michele Jurkovic)
Other Guests: Luca-Sophie Giese (exchange student)
