🌐 Rotary Club of Longmont | AUGUST 2026 

🎙️ FROM THE PODIUM

Greetings, Rotarians, and happy impending meteorological fall! Who is ready for sweater weather to return?

Our second month is nearly complete, and we have had an amazing time so far. We have welcomed two new Rotarians to the club, and have joyfully received another application. We hope to see more on the horizon, and as always, encourage everyone to bring guests to the meetings to share the message of Rotary.

We have revived the Rotary Youth Exchange program, welcoming Vitoria Quandt from Curitiba, Brazil on August 2nd. She is now attending Silver Creek High School, and is living her best American life as a first time cheerleader. So far, she is pretty excited about her calculus and physics classes, plus her electives in art and US government too. We have encouraged her to create a bucket list of things she wants to experience while she is here. If club members would like to take her to a sporting event, concert, or up to the ski slopes when they open, get in touch with Anne (her first host family), Janessa Lopez (youth exchange officer), or Janet Day (club youth counselor). We will do our best to facilitate.

In exciting PR news, District 5450 has done a review and audit of around 55 clubs’ newsletters and websites. We ranked 5th in that review! Thanks are due to Neil Barker, who took over the monumental task when Debbie Setlock moved away. He is doing great work getting our name out in the public, with write-ups in the Times-Call and managing our online presence. Emily Chambers, one of our newest members, will be joining him on the PR committee, increasing our reach even further. Congrats to Neil, and thank you to Emily for stepping up!

Now for the harder news. Our budget committee has put in the hard work to create the budget for the 2026-27 Rotary year, and we are staring down some shortfalls, mostly due to increasing costs. As was said to us at the last board meeting, to make this budget balance we will need to cut back, raise dues, or do a little of each. Several board members are diligently working on finding ways to minimize the impacts, but a dues increase is definitely on the table. Our mandatory RI and District costs went up minimally last year, but our last real dues increase was around three years ago. Since then, we have had a 45% increase in rent at the church, from $105 per week to $150, and have negotiated a 14% increase in meal fees to help offset the rising cost of food and materials that our caterer was working with, $900 per week becoming $1050. We all have seen our grocery bills skyrocketing, and they were no exception.

At present, we are looking at the need to raise dues to $250-260 per quarter. As mentioned, we are trying to mitigate this, by exploring our options, such as meeting periodically at alternative sites, as a happy hour rather than a conventional meeting. This might be as rare as once a quarter, or as often as once a month. Our other options to lessen this impact include literally growing our way out of the problem. If we can increase our dues-paying membership, then we would have a larger base of resources with which to cover our expenses and continue our Rotary mission. If any of you have suggestions or creative ways we can lower our costs and continue to be a vibrant club, please contact one of the board members. We welcome your input.

Yours in Rotary service,

Anne Reynolds-Smith and Clay Douglas

Co-Presidents 2026-2027

🔍 IN THE SPOTLIGHT: Vitoria Quandt

Our Rotary Youth Exchange student, Vitoria Quandt, joined us from Curitiba, Brazil on August 2. We caught up with Vitoria to find out how she is settling into Longmont, what she has experienced so far and what she is looking forward to during her exchange year.

You’ve only been in the United States for about four weeks. What has been the biggest surprise so far—something that is very different from what you expected?

"The classes in school are very different than in Brazil. In Brazil the students can’t choose the classes and stay in the same room all of the day, so I think that’s something really new for me."

What has been your favorite experience in Longmont so far, and what made it memorable for you?

"I went to the County fair, saw the rodeo, it was a really great experience that I never had before. The high school has been a good experience too, I’m in the Leadership Academy program in Silver Creek High School and in the cheer team, these are good opportunities to make new friends and enjoy learning new things about the USA culture. I went to the SCLA retreat in the Silvercliff ranch, it was a great weekend, I made new friends, went hiking and learned more things about how school was going to be."

You’re experiencing American culture while also sharing Brazilian culture with us. What is one Brazilian tradition, food, or custom that you wish more Americans knew about?

"Something that I can share and I like about Brazil is the food, we normally have rice and beans in our plate for lunch and can be beans with some meats that we call “feijoada” is really good, another good that I like are “coxinha” that has chicken inside it, “pão de queijo” that it’s bread of cheese but it’s not a bread with cheese, “brigadeiro” a really good and sweet dessert that needs condensed milk and chocolate powder to be made and a lot of other foods and traditions, like the Brazilian music, that I enjoy."

What is something about everyday American life that you find interesting, funny, or perhaps a little confusing compared with life in Brazil?

"Being in the cheer team helps me to get introduced in the full American experience, because is not a very popular sport in Brazil, specially in the schools, so I can learn a lot of new things that I didn’t know before."

You still have much of your exchange year ahead of you. What is one thing you really hope to experience, learn, or accomplish before you return to Brazil?

"I’m so excited for the winter weather, I hope I can see snow, that is something I never saw before, I want try skiing and snowboarding. I’m excited for the fall season too, the Halloween house decorations, costumes, scary corn mazes and Thanksgiving too, because it’s not a holiday and part of the Brazilian culture."

"I want watch football, basketball and other sports games"

Before coming to the U.S., what did you know about Rotary, and has your experience with Rotary so far been different from what you expected?

"I knew a lot about Rotary programs and events because my grandpa had been a Rotarian for so many years, I came to some meetings, dinners, exchange program events and I’m really enjoying the Rotary experience here."

⚙️ THE ENGINE ROOM

Longmont Rotary Palisade Peach Sale Raises More Than $3,500 for Community Projects

Longmont Rotary’s annual Palisade Peach Sale has once again demonstrated what can be achieved when club members and the local community come together to support Rotary’s mission of Service Above Self.

This year’s sale generated $10,839.00 in net sales, with members and supporters purchasing a total of 235 boxes of fresh peaches. After accounting for the $7,320.25 cost of the peaches, the sale has generated a current net profit of $3,518.75.

The Palisade Peach Sale is an important annual fundraising activity for Longmont Rotary, providing an opportunity for members to work together while offering the community high-quality, fresh Colorado peaches. The success of this year’s campaign reflects the continued generosity of Longmont residents and the strong support Rotary receives from friends, families and community partners.

Funds raised through Rotary fundraising activities are returned to the community through a variety of local and international service initiatives. These include programs supporting children and families, literacy, education, community organizations and projects that improve the quality of life across Longmont and beyond.

This year’s results are particularly encouraging, with more than $3,500 already available to support Rotary’s charitable work. The club thanks everyone who purchased peaches, promoted the sale and helped with distribution.

We made two changes this year: introducing a prepay online option and having a sale at Ace Hardware on the Saturday, in addition to the main event at High Plains Bank. Both changes proved to be successful.

The Peach Sale is a great example of the Rotary motto “Service Above Self” in action. Every box purchased helps turn a simple community fundraiser into meaningful support for causes that make a difference locally and around the world.

A big thanks to organizer Rose Hopman, our team of Longmont Rotarians, High Plains Bank, Kirsten Pelliser, owner of Ace Hardware, and members of Twin Peaks Rotary.

In addition, members from Left Hand Rotary and Niwot Rotary helped spread the word. This community group effort resulted in a successful fundraiser. Thank you all for your efforts.

Longmont Rotary Continues Role in City Flag Redesign

On August 22, Rotarians Clay Douglas, Rose Crispin and Neil Barker participated in a community meeting hosted by the Longmont Public Arts Commission as the city continues its process to develop a new official Longmont flag.

Longmont Rotary has a special connection to the city’s current flag. In 1974, Longmont resident Glenn Troester created the existing flag through a design competition sponsored by Longmont Rotary. More than 50 years later, the club is once again playing an important role in the city’s flag-design process.

The meeting reviewed the top seven proposals and provided an opportunity for the Public Arts Commission to share feedback on each design. Community members and Rotarians were then invited to provide their own input and perspectives.

The redesigned flag is intended to use symbolism, color and established flag-design principles to reflect Longmont’s community, shared values and aspirations for the future.

The next step is for the Commission to select the top three proposals for further development and discussion. Longmont Rotary looks forward to continuing its involvement in this important community project.

MESSAGE FROM A GRANT AWARDEE

Breakthrough Alliance of Colorado is a Colorado-based nonprofit that supports individuals impacted by the criminal legal system through in-prison education, career readiness, entrepreneurship, and post-release support. Operating inside seven Colorado correctional facilities, Breakthrough equips participants with the skills, confidence, connections, and support needed to successfully return home and build meaningful lives in their communities.

A powerful part of Breakthrough’s work is bringing community volunteers directly into correctional facilities to work alongside participants at key milestones throughout its programming. Volunteers conduct mock interviews, provide feedback on resumes and cover letters, support participants as they develop business concepts, and celebrate their accomplishments—creating meaningful connection while challenging stigma surrounding incarceration and reentry.

Breakthrough team members will be joining Longmont Rotary for a program this winter to share more about their work. In the meantime, there are three opportunities remaining to volunteer in 2026:

Sept. 22 – Arkansas Valley Correctional Facility Graduation & Business Pitch Competition
Oct. 6 – Centennial Correctional Facility Mock Interviews & Completion Celebration
Oct. 8 – La Vista Correctional Facility Graduation & Business Pitch Competition

Registration deadlines are quickly approaching for all three events. Interested in volunteering or learning more? Contact Charlotte Infinger, Volunteer Coordinator, at charlotte@timetobreakthrough.org | (843) 901 - 0807.