We had a great group tonight as we met at the Redwood. There were 23 Naples Rotarians and one guest who were met by Sue. The Rotary year is winding down and President Jack is getting ready to pass the Gavel soon!

 

Jack led us in the Pledge followed by the National Anthem. Jo brought us a quote from Mohammed Ali: "Service to others is the rent you pay for your room here on earth". 

 

Sue introduced our guest, Alan Braun's friend, Bob Naramore. She also gave greetings to the Board meeting attendees who were already here this afternoon.

 

Announcements: Naples Rotary was represented at  Watkinstown Day on Saturday by Kevin J., Alan B. and Sue. They handed out many info pamphlets and encouraged people to join us! * The Great Grape Derby happened on the creek at 1 pm. Everything went really well. Many photos and videos were posted on Facebook. * Camp Onseyawa golf tournament is Saturday 6/13. An online raffle is happening until Thursday evening - info email came today from Micah. * We received Thank You notes from Camp Onseyawa, Budding Readers and Honor Flight Rochester for our recent donations. * The Gavel/Crossover dinner is June 29th at 5:30pm at Reservoir Creek Pavilion. Skip is taking reservations at 585-721-2647. Cost is $30 per person. Jack becomes Past President and the duo of Judy and Carrie will be Co-Presidents for 2026-2027. * Dues are due by the end of June for the period of July - December 2026. We are assessed our per capita dues on July 1st by Rotary International, based on number of members on that date. The dues are $75 for 6 months. You can pay by check or by Zeffy online at a meeting. See Cindy or Judy Manser for questions.

 

The Board Meeting today included a sparkling grape juice toast to Nancy for her many years on the Board. * The '26-27 budget is in progress. * The America 250 celebration on July 4th in Canandaigua may include their Rotary Club. We are checking to see if we can join in. * The new Giving Committee recommends recipients of non-budgeted donations on a quarterly schedule. The approved donations for June are going to Finger Lakes Nurse Honor Guard, Family Promise and Naples Youth Corp. * June is Rotary Fellowship month.

 

Birthdays and anniversaries for June were shown again. Today is Alan and Kristie Braun's 30th anniversary. An addition to the list is Denise and Kevin's anniversary on June 24th! Congrats were sung to all!

 

We welcomed Bill Stopka today as our newest member!

His sponsor and former neighbor, Nancy, gave him his membership pin. Also participating in the induction were Jack, Carrie, Judy Miller, Laurie and Cindy. Congrats Naples Rotarian Bill!

 

Our scheduled speaker Morgan will be rescheduled soon. Alan Braun stepped up to give his "Meet a Member" talk.  He went to college for music education, has a masters in special ed. His career changed direction when teaching jobs were eliminated in NYC. He went into sales of greeting cards and eventually moved to our area at Bristol Harbor. He was then the director of development at Genesee Country Village and Museum. Retired now, he enjoys singing in the Finger Lakes Chorale and giving back to his community, including volunteering at CMAC, BVT and now Naples Rotary! He learned about Rotary from Janet and Kim Tenreiro from Canandaigua Rotary who convinced him that it was for everyone, not just businessmen. He helped with Watkinstown Day this past Saturday and also attended a Meet and Greet. He has signed up for the Rotary RV Fellowship and will be trying out their new camper this week at Hickory Hill! He is excited to get further involved in all that the Naples Rotary Club does for our community.

 

The Ace of Hearts was up to $152. The lucky ticket was #0252 belonging to Karen. She picked the 9 of Diamonds. So the pot keeps growing.

Many Happy Bills went to Alan for his bio talk, welcome to Bill and meeting Bob today. * Jack enjoyed assisting at the NYS Boys HS golf tournament in Mumford. * A former student of Tim's credited Rotary Exchange program for inspiring going into the Peace Corp for the next two years. * Brenda is happy to be back and able to drive after a long recovery from her fall in February. She enjoyed the opening of Plenty the Diner over the weekend! * Bill is happy to be a Rotarian and thanked Nancy for her guidance of many years. * Bill Grove was happy to have another Bill in our ranks. * Carrie will be at the last Interact meeting of this school year on Tuesday. New officers will be announced. * Judy was happy the Great Grape Derby is over and it went well. She also enjoyed Watkinstown Day and a concert at Point of the Bluff with her daughters. * Denise mentioned the 100th birthday of Rotarian Bill Vierhile on Tuesday. It will be celebrated on Saturday 6/13 at the Naples Historical Society Morgan Hose Building with a reception from 3-5 pm. He was a dedicated NHS member and town historian. All are welcome! * Jo Anne celebrated the wedding shower of her granddaughter Chloe on a windy Saturday.

 

Jack shared the photos from the Derby for our Rotary Moment. Most of the winners were Rotary members!

 

Jack led us in the Four Way Test and rang the bell to adjourn at 7:03 pm.