We had a Board meeting last week and here's what we did:

1. Donation request for the DARTS' West St. Paul Circulator Bus for $1,000 was tabled to May 9 to wait to see how much money we have after Rotary Roses
2. Donation request for Fishing for Fun for $1,000 was tabled to May 9 to wait and see how much money we have after Rotary Roses
3. Approved membership application of Ben Kusch, who works with the school districts - ISD 197, ISD 199 and SSD 6
4. Decided to combine April and May Board meetings and just have one meeting on May 9
5. Pres-Elect Hanson's Proposed 2017-18 Board discussed but no decisions made... he's still working on it
6. Reminded everyone that Loaves & Fishes is coming up on April 6
7. Noted that Adopt a Highway will be scheduled in April or May
8. Mentioned that due to the number of new members, we should have a new member orientation in May.  Date to be determined.

Last week we heard from 2 of our newest members:  Jackie and Zoua.  In case you have had trouble keeping all the newbies straight, here is Jackie, who is from 360 Communities and is in a water ski show every summer near White Bear Lake:

 

 

Here is Zoua, from Affinity Plus Federal Credit Union who has scored some nice theater tickets from a neighbor thanks to her dog being attacked by a dog named Peaches:

The Annual Rotary District Conference, "Rotarians Changing the World" will be held April 27 - April 29 at the Holiday Inn East in St. Paul.  Here is the brochure for the event so you can see all the great action. Here is a link to the FB page.  https://www.facebook.com/events/1304457862943298/ On the right hand side you have the option to "invite friends." Please take a moment to invite friends from your Club and the District that you are "friends" with on Facebook. There will be inspirational keynote speakers, musical entertainment and dynamic and interactive breakout sessions.  It is an opportunity to connect with your Rotary family.  Attend as much or little of the conference as you can but with over 60 Clubs participating, it is a great chance to gather a great deal of knowledge about all things Rotary in one visit. Check out the District website at www.rotary5960 for all the details.    Anyone is invited to attend, but if you are on the current Board or next year's Board, you really SHOULD attend. Johanna, Dave, Katie and Bernadette are all signed up already - feel free to join them!

The St. Paul Sunrise Rotary Club announces its 12th Annual Community Forum "Addressing Mental Health and Minnesota's Criminal Justice System: Can Minnesota Do Better?" to be held on April 20 from 7:15-9:15 a.m. at the Town and Country Club, Marshal Avenue at Otis Avenue, St. Paul.  Cost is $25, includes breakfast (I sure hope so!). Speakers are Sue Abderholden, Executive Director of National Alliance on Mental Illness, Dr. Eduardo Colon, Chief of Psychiatry at Hennepin County Medical Center and Tom Roy, Commissioner of the MN Department of Corrections.  This event is sponsored by the Rotary Clubs of St. Paul Sunrise, Minneapolis City of Lakes, St. Paul and Woodbury.