We welcome Tonya Wolfe, Red Deer Polytechnic Associate Vice President, Applied Research. Red Deer Polytechnic (RDP) is helping to build central Alberta through innovation and research. Findings from the 2025 Business Retention, Expansion and Workforce Development (BREWD) study by the central Alberta First Partnership show that central Albert businesses have identified that skilled labor shortages directly impact their ability to grow sales or production. Training and integrating new technologies takes time. Adoption of technology such as AII is progressing faster than businesses can adapt. Workforce data showed a need to gather data regarding skill needs across the region would assist in forecasting future employer demands. RDP is poised to assist businesses to solve these challenges, adopt new technologies, train people and help them grow. The Division of Applied Research helps partners explore, test, and validate real-world solutions.
Melinda Mills, MBE, FBA is a professor of Demography and Population Health at the University of Oxford and Nufield College where she is the Director of the Leverhulme Centre for Demographic Health. Always a popular speaker, Melinda is welcomed each year as she expands our knowledge of the role of demography in our society. Melinda shared information about The National Conversation, a major UK-wide public listening initiative, inviting people right across the country to share views on community life and the kind of communities they want to build together. It is an opportunity for members of the UK to have their say on what they would like their country to be. This study hopes to reveal what factors tear apart a community and what brings them together. Preliminary findings and general trends were also presented. This is timely as there may be many similarities between trends in both the UK and Canada, particularly as Alberta approaches the Oct 19, 2026 referendum vote.
We take the time to recognize two Rotarians who have demonstrated high ethical standards, strong commitment to Rotary's motto of Service Above Self, and involvement in club, community, and Rotary International initiatives.
This year we presented the" Rising Star" Award to Debbie Valyear.
We also honored Judith McIntyre with the “Rotarian of the Year” award.
The Rotary Clubs of Red Deer and surrounding area were provided with a special opportunity to hear from Marty Helman, 2026-28 Rotary International Director for Zones 28 and 32.
During her visit, seven Rotary Clubs from Central Alberta united at the Mattie McCullough Elementary School Access For All Barrier-Free Playscape. The playscape, built in 2009 was the result of the collaborative efforts of parents & teachers of Maddie McCullough School . community organizations, and Rotarians. Financial support and sweat equity during the site assembly was provided by the AFA committee and all of the Red Deer Rotary Clubs, Rotary District, City of Red Deer, and others. This location was chosen as it is an excellent example of how amazing things happen when Rotary connects with the community to meet a need.
As Rotarians we are committed to supporting activities that strengthen the conservation and protection of natural resources and advance ecological sustainability. Dagmar Knutson has been the leader in organizing the yearly Rotary Branches Out activity in which community members and Rotarians gather together to help reforest areas around Red Deer. Through Ten Peaks Innovation Alliance, a non-profit organization, Dagmar leads a 1 day conference for Gd 7-9 students from around the province connecting them with industry, academia, government, non government organizations and indigenous leaders along with the scientific community to expand their knowledge around energy, our environment and climate. Summer camps are available that focus on developing STEM skills such as coding, robotics, and design thinking.
As a club member, Dagmar has served at the district level with RAYEC, on the Board as Youth Director, member of the Square team, dedicated money raiser as a volunteer at 50/50 games, promotions for Black Tie Bingo and securer of many donors, and a volunteer for whatever else fits her busy schedule.
Dagmar is a wonderful example of our motto: Service Above Self. We congratulate her on her service to others.
The Rotary Club of Red Deer is pleased to be able to help support The Lending Cupboard Society of Alberta -TLC in Red Deer. Funds will be used to maintain and purchase essential medical equipment that is available by loan to central Albertans. Each month approximately 1500 pieces of medical equipment is borrowed by people of all ages ensuring that they have access to what they need, when they need it. Maintaining such a well used inventory requires funds. The Rotary Club of Red Deer helps to meet some of these needs.
The Lending Cupboard is a community organization with close ties to the Rotary Club of Red Deer. Jaqui Joys, a dedicated Rotarian and community organizer, worked alongside local health regions and service organizations to establish this needed community resource in 2006. She began with one hospital bed and it grew from there, thanks to donations and the support of many volunteers. Rotary continues to work together with organizations to support the needs of their community.
Through a Community Service Grant the Rotary Club of Red Deer was proud to visit Notre Dame High School to present a Community Service Grant and experience firsthand the incredible impact of their Unified Sports program. Rotarian Eric Madsen presented this initiative with a $2,000 grant!
Unified Sports creates inclusive teams by pairing students with and without intellectual disabilities—giving all participants the opportunity to compete, connect, and succeed together. For many students, this is their first team, their first jersey, their first tournament, and even their first medal.
Today we welcomed our latest group of recipients of the Career Opportunity awards. Eleven Central Alberta students each have received $5,000 to go towards their continuing education.
Congratulations!
Click on READ MORE (below) to learn more about our 2026 recipients.
Brent Ramsay, County of Red Deer Mayor outlined the areas of focus for the upcoming year. Collaboration and partnerships will be key as the County is unique in that the population is a mix of rural agriculture and residential properties. The recently elected council bring many new perspectives to tackling issues.
We welcomed Red Deer City Mayor Cindy Jeffries. The focus for the first 196 days in office for the mayor and the council has been to connect with the community and listen to concerns, ideas, and share what is happening with regard to issues.
On June 6, 2026 , join us for the 6th Annual Rotary Branches Out! Tree Planting at McKenzie Trails in Red Deer. All are welcome to come - we provide the trees, the shovels, and pizza after we are done.
We recognize our Club Historian and “keeper of all the stories”, Dr. Robert Lampard. He is a key member of our club and we are honored to recognize him for his service.
On April 3, 2026 we were pleased to learn more about two of our newer members, David Harrop and Iain MacDougall. Both are active professionals within their community who have a strong desire to make their community a better place through serving others. They are a welcome addition to our club!
September is Rotary International Education and Literacy Month.
Literacy Alive! Reading Intervention leaders from Belize
Rotary Club of Red Deer's Literacy Alive! project continues to receive international recognition. Learning to Lead Literacy: Lessons from a Basic Education and Literacy Project, written by Lynne Paradis, has been featured on the launch day of the RI salute to Literacy projects. It is with great please that we share the link from Rotary International's Rotary in Action webpage.
Congratulations to Lynne Paradis, Rotary Club of Red Deer member, and her Canadian and Belizean team members for the work that they have done to support literacy learning. This collaborative project is making a difference in the lives of thousands of educators and students.
This article appeared in the Rotary Magazine. September 2025. p. 56 during Basic Education and Literacy Month.
Rotary Club of Red Deer member and project lead of Literacy Alive , Dr. Lynne Paradis, was asked to share her passion for literacy with Holger Knaack, Rotary International Foundation trustee chair. This was indeed a great honour and a testament to the power of Foundation grants.
Get ready to Dress to Dazzle! and celebrate in style with champagne, bingo, and community spirit. It is an evening of elegance, excitement and giving back to our community. In addition to Camp Alexo, our spotlighted organization this year, The Rotary Club of Red Deer is pleased to support local charities and organizations with proceeds raised from this gala event.
Are you looking to get outside for a couple of hours? Come join us at the fifth annual Rotary Branches Out! Tree Planting Day.
When: Saturday, May 31 at 10:00 AM -12:00 PM Where: McKenzie Trails main parking lot (look for the Rotary Banner) What: Planting 16" white spruce saplings. Last year we planted 1,400!
Everyone is welcome - youth groups, families, fellow Rotarians, students, and youth needing volunteer hours!
Thank you to the City of Red Deer for providing 100 spades for us to use!
Weyerhaeuser will give a 10-minute eco talk on how to plant the trees at 10:00 AM, and then the planting begins! The City's urban forester will also give a safety talk.
At 12:00 PM we will hand out pizza and pop to all youth who participate.
Please like and share this post to spread the word!
We welcomed our newest member, Cliff Soper. Welcome to the Club Cliff!
We also recognized our Rotarian of the Month, Grant Edmonds. Congratulations Grant, and thank you for all that you do to make our club and our community a better place.
Our April Business Meeting saw the nominations of our upcoming Board of Directors, as well as the creation of a new Reserve Fund to assist the future Boards in our efforts to NOT utilize fund raised dollars to pay for club operations.
Next week, we will have an update from club member and the Mayor of the City of Red Deer, Ken Johnston. Don't forget to RSVP for you and your guests.
A story about The Rotary Clubs of Red Deer, Alberta, Canada, and San Ignacio, Belize’s collaborative efforts in a live-changing reading program. Major partners are the Belize Book Industry
Association and the Rotary International Literacy Alive Project.
Promoting the gift of reading across Belize
Highlights Promoting the gift of reading across Belize
We welcomed four new members to our club today! A very warm welcome to Thelma Maris, Amanda McKenna, Debbie Valyear and Vince Morelli! We look forward to getting to know all of you!
Annette Eby gave us her Vocational Talk. We are all very happy that you chose Red Deer as home and that you have joined us in Rotary!
Danica Hoffart from the Central Alberta Women's Emergency Shelter share the fabulous news around the funding and upcoming 2 stage contruction of the new CAWES!
On behalf of the Rotary Club of Red Deer, fellow Rotarians Bill Hull, Judith McIntyre, Lynne Paradis, and Darcy Mykytyshyn would like to take a moment to thank the following for their support of Beers for Belize and the incredible work our Literacy Alive team is doing in Belize.
Thanks to their generosity we raised $5000 in a matter of hours selling Christmas Gift packs.
THANK YOU 2nd Wind Brewery & Eatery, Sawback Brewing Co., Hawk Tail Brewery, Dark Woods Brewing, Snake Lake Brewing Co., Belly Hop Brewing, Olds College Brewery, Troubled Monk, Field & Forge Brewing Co. and Red Hart Brewing
As well, thanks to our good friends at Fletcher Printing, including fellow Rotarian Ross Fletcher, for their generous donation of time and materials to support this project.
The return of our beloved Black Tie Bingo event is here after 3 years. The ticket order form is available on the right side of the web-site for download. Please get your orders in, and share the forms with your friends, families and business colleagues.
President Elect Amanda Oscar and Membership Director Leann Scarlett inducted our two newest members to the Club. Welcome to Terry Balgobin and Corinna Bruin-Tewson.
Please join us in welcoming the new members of our Club. Victor Maris, Jodie Jamieson and John Benson. The guy on the right is President Elect Phil Hyde. :)
Lara Alhmidat and Patricia Arango form the Central Alberta Sexual Assault Support Centre came and gave our club a presentation on the staggering statistics around sexual assault. Thank you for taking the time and for opening our eyes to one of our society's big problems.
Stuart Cullum - the 12th President of Red Deer Polytechnic gave us an update on all of the exciting things happening on campus. The staff at Red Deer Polytechnic also provided lunch. Thank You!
Today's Vocational Talk was new member Cheryl Gascoyne. Cheryl's vast experience in Education and her involvement with Literacy Alive in Belize have been a great fit to have her join our club. Welcome Cheryl!
Our Guest Speaker today was Maiden Manzanel-Frank - Rotary Peace Scholar
Gerry Winia presented Maiden with the Gift of Sight for coming to speak with us today.
Recently inducted member Obiageli Afowowe gave us her Vocational Talk and told us of her introduction into Rotary at a young age and her transition into life in Canada. Welcome Obiageli!
Our Club enjoyed a change of venue as we celebrated Ukrainian Christmas at St. Vladimir's Catholic Church. The food was great and the company was better, as we were able to get to know some of the families that have come to Central Alberta due to recent events in their home land.
We had some other special guests, including former Premier of Alberta, Mr. Ed Stelmack. We also had three of our members receive the QEII Platinum Jubilee Medals from fellow member, the Honourable Adriana LaGrange. Congratulations Gloria, Grant and Ray! Thank you for all that you do!
The Rotary Club of Red Deer's 20th FREE Christmas Concert for Seniors took place on November 29th. Thank you to Shelley Raulston, Adele Poratto and everyone that made the Christmas Concert a reality again!
Janette Santiago and Keith Ennis gave us an update on Junior Achievement in Central and East Central Alberta. The involvement is way up from even pre-COVID numbers! Brett Mauthe thanked both Janette and Keith with a Gift of Sight.
Sheryl Kriel Introduced NEW/Returning Member Eric Madsen. Eric also received his first Paul Harris Fellow...which he achieved prior to taken a leave from Rotary.
Judith McIntyre gave us her Vocational Talk, sharing her career as an educator and her family tie to Rotary.
To recognize World Polio Day, a group of us left the meeting early on Monday, October 24th to go for a walk through Rotary Park. We also bumped into an old friend (sort of) when we came upon the bench along the path by Ross Street in memory of our friend and past Rotarian Bill McCartney.
Today we heard from three of our newest members as they gave us their Vocational Talks
Amanda Bruin introduces Leigh Sands. Leigh is part of the Donna Purcell QC Law Corporate Membership. Welcome to our Club Leigh!
Jerry Pasman was introduced to the Club by Dick McDonell. Jerry owns and operates Alberta European Motorworks. Welcome to the Club Jerry!
Nancy Brown was treated to her Induction Ceremony where her Sponsor Jack Donald presented her with her Rotary pin. She changed gears on her Vocational talk where she glowed about her time in the Rotary Exchange program. She spoke fondly of her time spent in Noosa, Australia, the time spent with her host families, and her lifelong relationships gained through the Rotary Exchange Program. We also learned that Nancy will be moving on to Medicine Hat where she will be making a career move to Medicine Hat College. Thank you for joining Rotary Nancy! The Medicine Hat Club will gain a great advocate for all things Rotary.
We were happy to see the trishaws at our meeting today with some of our members taking the time to pilot them or just enjoy the ride. Congratulations to Rick & Jan Johnson and their committee for their great work around getting these into our community!
Craig Nykyforuk & Burton Bailey came to our meeting to share what their group is doing to assist the families that are coming to Central Alberta from the Ukraine.
Click HERE to download the pdf with information on how you can help the effort, or contact Craig directly at 403-350-6081 or craigny@telus.net
Our Second Annual Rotary Online Silent Auction is taking place from 9:00am on Tuesday May 10th to 5:00pm on Friday, May 13th.
This is an important fund raiser for our Club with the pandemic limiting us from being able to host our very successful in person events, including the Black Tie Bingo.
Please share the link with your friends and family and help us raise funds for our community. Please cut & paste the link below and send it to everyone in your contact list.
Today we recognized two of our Club's newest Members. Vangi Willington brought laughter to the room as she did her Vocational Talk. Vangi joined our Club as part of the SERVUS Credit Union Corporate Membership.
We also had the Induction Ceremony for Jerry Pasman with Alberta European Motorworks. Welcome to our Club Jerry, and thank you to Dick McDonell for nominating Jerry.
Shereen Dillon and our guest from Shen Yun spoke about their production that will be taking place in both Calgary and Edmonton this month. They also discussed some of the cultural changes that have taken place since Communism arrived.
Performances will be in Calgary from April 15th to 17th, and Edmonton from April 23rd to 24th.
Mark Jones from the Central Alberta Child Advocacy Centre gave the club an update on the recent announcement on receiving $3.4 million from the Provincial Government to help with the infrastructure costs for their new location on the grounds of Red Deer Polytechnic.
Yet another one of our members to receive recognition for being a Paul Harris Fellow during the 20/21 Rotary year is Ingrid Nossack. Ingrid has been a very active Rotarian during her short time as a member of our Club. Thank you Ingrid for all that you do for Rotary and our community! Ingrid received her Paul Harris +1.
Here is an update from our student in Belize, Kevin Zetina, who like the rest of the world has struggled during COVID, but has kept a great attitude and is looking forward to improving his grades now that he is back in school.
Co-Presidents Jack Panteluk and Robert Mast will be accepting nominations for the Board of Directors for the upcoming year, and will ask the members to participating in the nomination and election process.
Please plan to attend Monday's meeting on Zoom to participate in shaping the future of our club.
The Rotary Club of Red Deer is holding an online Silent Auction from Tuesday, June 22nd at 9:00am to Friday, June 25th at 5:00pm.
Visit the Montgomery Auctions site for more details and to view all of the items and experiences that will be available. Click HERE to visit the auction site.
Thank you for supporting the Rotary Club of Red Deer and the many community organizations that we will be supporting with the funds raised from this silent auction.
Check out the photos from our "Rotary Branches Out" Tree Planting Event on Saturday, May 29, 2021
Thank you to Rotarian Dagmar Knutson for the organizational skills.
Thanks you also to the City of Red Deer for providing the location, Weyerhaeuser for providing the trees for the students to plant, and Prime Boiler for the hand sanitizing stations.
Click the Link HERE to see the rest of the photos.
As our meetings transition back to ZOOM, Graham Ingham, CEO of the Red Deer Regional Airport joined us to update the club on what's happening at the Airport and some of the things that we may be able to look forward to in the coming years. Thanks for joining us Graham!
Mike Veny from the eWall St Rotary Club has graciously agreed to speak to our clubs (and anyone who is interested) during the Red Deer Rotary Club meeting at noon on May 25. This is an incredible opportunity to hear a premium speaker. Check out more information on mikeveny.com. Please promote it to other community members. This is a great way to help others as well as let people know about Rotary.
Our Club welcomed back our very busy member, the Honourable Adriana Lagrange,
Adriana gave us a quick update on her very busy schedule as Minister of Education and MLA for Red Deer North, and was happy to answer questions about all things Alberta Legislature.
Our Club hosted a number of local high school students for our Annual Career Opportunity Scholarship Lunch. Each year, the Rotary Club of Red Deer provides $30,000 in scholarships to local students that will be attending an Alberta post secondary school next year. Congratulations to all of this year's scholarship recipients
It was great to have an All Clubs meeting with Mayor Tara Veer, Red Deer City Council and our fellow Rotarians from Red Deer Rotaract, Urban Spirits, Red Deer East and Red Deer Sunrise clubs.
Leroy and President Mike present one of our new members, Ivan Pozihun, with the "Gift of Sight" in honour of him recently becoming a Canadian citizen. Congrats Ivan!
Jim Smith, a member of the Rotary Club of Olds, came to speak with our club about the experiences with establishing the Legacy Land Trust Society. There is a definite connection with our Club's Centennial Project, the Rotary Nature Centre. The Legacy Land Trust Society may even be able to partner with us to save some time and resources in completing our project.
Gloria Beck presented Jim Smith with "the Gift of Sight" for coming and speaking with our club.
Jim also shared the link for a video on Jackson Lake, the latest Legacy Land Trust protected area
Stephanie Jones came to give our Club an update on the Junior Achievement Company Program Opportunities, and showed us the projects that last year's teams did.
If you or your peers are interested in getting involved with the program, please contact Stephanie at sjones@jasouthernalberta.org
Please see the Company Program documents that are available in the Downloads Menu.
Robert Lampard & Margie Hansma present President Michael Clark with the 2018 International Convention Banner. Robert & Margie gave the club their update on the events at this year's International Convention in Toronto. From our Club, Robert, Margie and Lynne Paradis were in attendance. The jerseys are always a hit!
We had a great parade this year and in addition to our sporty convertibles and dignitaries, we had a float with all incoming club Presidents and walkers from the various Rotary Clubs along with our District Governor. The Rotary float took home a second place ribbon for our category! Thanks to everyone for making it a success, raising our community profile and creating another opportunity for the Rotary Clubs of Red Deer to work together while having a lot of fun!
Today saw the conclusion of President Raymond Rogers' year as President, and the beginning of President-Elect Michael Clark's year at the helm.
Thank you for your leadership over the last year Ray! Michael brings with him much optimism & energy. Looking forward to another great year as Rotarians.
Today we heard from two ladies that are a part of our club. The first was Adele Poratto. Adele gave the Club her Vocational Presentation that started from where she grew up in Sudbury, Ontario, with details of her family and careers, and ended with her life in Red Deer and how she became a member of the Rotary Club of Red Deer. It's great to have you as part of our Club Adele.
The second young lady that spoke to our Club today was Anissa Toual. Anissa has been our incoming Rotary Exchange student for the last year. She did her presentation on her time in Canada, and expressed her love for our country and the people that she has met. She even has a cousin that was born in Alberta! Anissa is looking forward to getting home to Belgium after her time here, to see her family, her pets, her boyfriend, and getting started with her studies to become a lawyer. Good luck Anissa with everything that life throws at you! It's been a pleasure having you with us.
2018 Red Deer Citizen of the Year - Rotary Spring Gala
May 23rd, 2018. A Wednesday evening!
The 2018 Citizen of the Year Gala and Annual Rotary Spring Dinner is soon upon us fellow Rotarians!
It is an honoured tradition of our club to participate in this annual inspirational acknowledgement of exemplary service back to our beloved city and its citizens.
This year’s evening involves participation with all the Rotary Clubs in Red Deer and the proceeds will go towards completion of the Access for All Barrier Free Playscape. A fantastic project supported by all the Rotary Clubs in Red Deer! https://accessforallreddeer.ca/
This is one of our greatest annual “Rotary in Red Deer” opportunities for social club fellowship and we hope to see every Rotarian at the event, supporting such a great civic honour and raising funds for such a great Rotary cause.
2018 Citizen of the Year Gala - Rotary Spring Dinner
All four Rotary Clubs of Red Deer and Rotaract have teamed up to help create awareness and raise funds for a worldwide disaster relief program.
ShelterBox is an emergency disaster relief program that provides immediate shelter and the essential tools and materials needed by those around the world made homeless by natural disasters or conflict.
Dr. Bob Lampard has a full page article in the latest edition of Rotary Canada! A sample of his article is included under Read More to read the full article check out the July issue of Rotary Canada
We celebrated some exciting news from our Rotary Employment Partnership with Red Deer College and Andrea Liptek sharing as alumnus of our Rotary Youth Exchange program. To top it off we heard from Cassidy, our outbound exchange student for 2017/18 before she heads out to Belgium. Thank you to all who made today possible!
Today we are investing $32,000 through our Career Opportunity Fund! Sixteen students will receive $2000 each based on financial need, academic standing, volunteer activities and acceptance into a Post Secondary institution. Congratulations to each of our students!
Thank you to the Olds College team for joining us today to share about what is happening with you in our region and your plans to future proof the college!
Lynne Paradis did a presentation to the combined Rotary Clubs of Jakarta, Indonesia in December. She shared the Literacy Alive project with the the Indonesians who have taken an interest in possible future literacy developments projects in Indonesia. A contingent of Rotoractors and Rotary youth exchange students with interests in literacy improvement joined in the presentation. Three banners were presented to our Club which were received by President Iaian at the January 2017 meeting.
The Rotary Club of Red Deer has made a valuable commitment to Central Alberta youth struggling with mental health issues. Proceeds from the Black Tie Bingo have been donated to Family Services of Central Alberta to support the “Healthy Kids” program.
Executive Director Judy Scott accepted the donation on behalf of Family Services and offered Rotarians information about the program they’re funding.
LITERACY ALIVE III PROJECTRAINFOREST READING AND ADVENTURE CAMP 2016 WHAT HAPPENED IN BELIZE (CAYO DISTRICT) IN APRIL 2016 TO SUPPORT COMMUNITY LITERACY ? To read more please click here
Ever wonder what the youth of today will bring to the world? Aspen Heights School is modeling some innovative new ways of looking at education through their MicroSociety. Curious to learn more? click here
Game 7 in Red Deer Rebels playoff's meant big crowds and a big record breaking 50/50 haul for the hard working local Rotarians, total was $37,220 meaning a payout of $18,610!
Have you ever considered voluntravel? Join the Literacy Alive Program in Belize this March 2016. Find an application under the "Belize Voluntravel Brochure" and start planning your adventure today!
Many thanks to Judy Scott for presenting to the club this week and giving us an insight into the F.A.S.T. program that we funded, photos are of Judy receiving her Community Grant cheque from the club
Judy Scott - Executive Director at FSCA
Update on New Services & the state of Mental Health in Central Alberta
Judy Scott – Executive Director at Family Services Central Alberta will provide an update on new services they are providing as well as an update on the overall situation in Central Alberta with regard to Mental Health and the F.A.S.T. program that we funded
- See more at: http://portal.clubrunner.ca/975/Speakers/11a72cc9-eac9-44f6-b30a-1f9249b9a897#sthash.HjoLbfDw.dpuf
Judy Scott - Executive Director at FSCA
Update on New Services & the state of Mental Health in Central Alberta
Judy Scott – Executive Director at Family Services Central Alberta will provide an update on new services they are providing as well as an update on the overall situation in Central Alberta with regard to Mental Health and the F.A.S.T. program that we funded
- See more at: http://portal.clubrunner.ca/975/Speakers/11a72cc9-eac9-44f6-b30a-1f9249b9a897#sthash.HjoLbfDw.dpuf
This young man is a Belizean High School Student that the Red Deer Rotary club supports with $500 US per year scholarship through the World Community Service program. We will be receiving a letter and his first semester mid-term grades in November.
We have recently received the letter and mid-term grades click here to read them
From Jack Barnes, Scholarship Committee, Rotary Club of San Ignacio, Belize.
Shawna Dawson our outbound Exchange Student for 2014-15 who spent a year in Germany, made a presentation to the club and answers questions about her expereince
Today outgoing President Marc St Pierre gave a speech thanking all Rotarians and highlighting events from the last Rotary year and then handed the Gavel over to incoming President Dean Williams
Chris Warren, Chair of the Career Opportunity Committee with this years students who received a $2,000 scholarship for their Degree studies with Phil Pattison Acting President and Treasurer.
It is our distinct pleasure to announce our 2015 Young Citizen of the Year. This individual’s nominator captured it most accurately in her application to describe our winner.
“She genuinely cares about others, her community, and the world. She not only talks to talk- she walks the walk. When she sees a gap, she fills it. When she witnesses and injustice, she does her part to raise awareness. When there is a need, she steps forward to offer her help. <She> embodies all of the qualities of an ideal volunteer - committed, compassionate, approachable, caring, trustworthy, non-judgemental, professional, and displays outstanding integrity and initiative. She is one of those volunteers who just gets it.”
Darci Shave, Coordinator Volunteer Resources, RDRHC Alberta Health Services
This individual manages to be a local celebrity and community backbone all in one breath. The daunting task of summarizing all of the ways she has contributed to our community only strengthened our resolve that we had selected the right candidate.
This person is one who works both diligently behind the scenes but can gracefully transition into the forefront when called upon. Originally from Vancouver, this candidate has lived in our fine city since 1982. Her community calling began at a young age as she navigated groups like Brownies, Girl Guides and Parents Council.
The Red Deer Rotary Club sponsored Water School (H2O) project recently received the prestigious STARS Foundation Impact Award. The Award for improving water, sanitation and hygiene, carried with it a cheque for $100,000.
The Red Deer Rotary Club sponsored Water School (H2O) project recently received the prestigious STARS Foundation Impact Award. The Award for improving water, sanitation and hygiene, carried with it a cheque for $100,000. - See more at: http://rotary5360.ca/stories/(more)-stars-for-rotary/#sthash.fN46nGJR.dpuf
The Citizen of the Year and Young Citizen of the Year Award are given out each spring at the Rotary Spring Gala in Red Deer. The cornerstone of these awards is volunteerism and leadership with a view that the award recipients possess attributes/have made contributions that have enduring affects on society/community.
On behalf of the 2015 Citizen Of the Year Committee, we am pleased to announce that we have secured Michael "Pinball" Clemens to be our guest speaker for this years Spring Gala event on May 7th, 2015 at the Sheraton Hotel. Pinball is highly regarded in a number of ways over and above his CFL Football career with the Toronto Argonauts. He is an exceptional community-minded person and motivational speaker.
One of the fantastic prizes at last years Black Tie Bingo event (rumored to be repeated this year) was a flight in a Jet plane! Marty Skinner was the lucky winner and he recently he took off Fort Sask. Airport for his Jet Flight and made this Top Gun video!
Today's meeting was called to order by President Darcy Mykytyshyn.
Our inbound student Victoria gave us an update. She joined the badminton team at her school. Over the weekend she went to see Les Mis at Hunting Hills High School, helped out with the 50
-50 tickets at the Rebels game, and also watched a hockey game.
Janice Wing was our Sarge for the meeting.
Guests of Rotary were Michelle Sluchinski, Jennifer Clark, Maurice Russel, Kevin Erickson, Hazel Carson, and Grant Johnson.
Visiting Rotarians: Victoria (In-bound student), Wayne Miller
Happy/Sad Bucks included: Janice Wing with bucks for being so busy on Mondays with the organization of the RDC Athletics Breakfast, Marty Skinner had reminder bucks for Citizen of the Year
Gala tickets, get yours at the back of the room after the meeting. Parkland Fuel will sponsor the speaker for this year's gala. Bill McTaggart had some advertising bucks for tickets for a
trip to Tuscany sponsored by Peter and Kathy Lacey to benefit Camp Alexo to the tune of $50K. Tickets are $100 each. Morris Flewwelling had announcement bucks to tell everyone "Red Deer
is Ready" for the 2019 Canada Winter Games, share the word, and wear your pins. Grace Zhang had announcement dollars that it's time to contribute a bottle of wine or make a donation
towards the Citizen of the Year wine tree. They'd like to collect about 40 bottles. Dr. Robert Lampard had happy buck for two months in the Mexican sun and some family birthdays. Robert
Mast had announcement bucks for a Wednesday, March 26th fundraiser featuring Canadian Tenor Ben Heppner. Tickets are still available and there will be a champagne and dessert reception.
Craig MacKenzie had a happy buck to bring Hazel Carson to the meeting on her 85th birthday, and we sang Happy Birthday to her.
50-50: Maurice Russell had the lucky ticket, but didn't choose the lucky card.
The Sarge then fined anyone not wearing green for St. Patrick's Day, and anyone who missed a 50 50 shift.
Our Guest Speakers were Michelle Sluchinski and Jennifer Clark of Aspire Special Needs Resource Centre. Michelle spoke about fund development, and how the $7500 from Rotary is put to
fabulous use. Thank you so much Michelle for your presentation!
Darcy reminded everyone of Rotary International President Ron Burton's visit to Red Deer on May 2nd (tickets are available online), as well as the Citizen of the Year Gala on May 9th.
Next Meeting: March 24th, 2014 12PM Quality Inn, North Hill Guest Speaker: Red Deer and District 4H Beef Club
The club held its annual Christmas Social event at Parkland Nurseries on Monday, December 9, 2013. Here are some random photos taken by Ian Warwick of the event. To view the photos click here
TICKETS ARE STILL AVAILABLE FOR ONE OF RED DEER'S PREMIER EVENTS THE ROTARY BLACK TIE BINGO ON THURSDAY OCTOBER 24TH! DON'T MISS OUT ON YOUR CHANCE TO WIN $20,000 IN PRIZES INCLUDING A RIDE IN A JET PLANE!! FOR TICKETS PLEASE EMAIL Melody McKnight
On December 17th 2012, presentations were made to a number of local community groups, who were the main beneficiaries of the clubs fundraising efforts in 2012:
Join the Rotary Club of Red Deer for our annual Black Tie Bingo on Thursday, November 1st at the Sheraton Red Deer.
This year's theme is the Roaring 20's so be sure to dress the part. Special thanks to McBain Camera for providing free photos of you with our classic car.
If you need some inspiration, just click this following link HERE
This event is 95% SOLD OUT! If you would like tickets, please email Danielle at danielle.klooster@accessprosperity.ca
The first year of the club sponsored
Literacy Alive! project in Belize has finished the third phase of
activities.Plans for year two and year
three are underway and if you have interest in supporting, being part of the
decision making for the project,
or participating in the project activities
please come to a meeting on Thursday, January 19 at 7:00 at Montfort Centre
(Catholic School Board offices --directly west of the Village Mall).There will be a project update, complete with picture and data
to support the progress of the project
and then discussions regarding the next phase (grant changes, expansion of
Rotarian participation, funding,promotion etc.).Please let Lynne
Paradis know:lparadis@rdcrd.ab.caif you are able to attend.Moreinformation coming for those
interested.
Lynne Paradis (B.Ed, M. Ed. Ed.D)
Associate Superintendent of Learning
Services Red Deer Catholic Schools
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We welcome Tonya Wolfe, Red Deer Polytechnic Associate Vice President, Applied Research. Red Deer Polytechnic (RDP) is helping to build central Alberta through innovation and research. Findings from the 2025 Business Retention, Expansion and Workforce Development (BREWD) study by the central Alberta First Partnership show that central Albert businesses have identified that skilled labor shortages directly impact their ability to grow sales or production. Training and integrating new technologies takes time. Adoption of technology such as AII is progressing faster than businesses can adapt. Workforce data showed a need to gather data regarding skill needs across the region would assist in forecasting future employer demands. RDP is poised to assist businesses to solve these challenges, adopt new technologies, train people and help them grow. The Division of Applied Research helps partners explore, test, and validate real-world solutions.
Melinda shared information about The National Conversation, a major UK-wide public listening initiative, inviting people right across the country to share views on community life and the kind of communities they want to build together. It is an opportunity for members of the UK to have their say on what they would like their country to be. This study hopes to reveal what factors tear apart a community and what brings them together. Preliminary findings and general trends were also presented. This is timely as there may be many similarities between trends in both the UK and Canada, particularly as Alberta approaches the Oct 19, 2026 referendum vote.
We were privileged to hear from one of our newer members, Brian Blanchard. Brian was sponsored by Jerry Pasman. 
This year we presented the" Rising Star" Award to Debbie Valyear. 
We also honored Judith McIntyre with the “Rotarian of the Year” award. 
A story about The Rotary Clubs of Red Deer, Alberta, Canada, and San Ignacio, Belize’s collaborative efforts in a live-changing reading program. Major partners are the Belize Book Industry
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Today we heard from two ladies that are a part of our club. The first was Adele Poratto. Adele gave the Club her Vocational Presentation that started from where she grew up in Sudbury, Ontario, with details of her family and careers, and ended with her life in Red Deer and how she became a member of the Rotary Club of Red Deer. It's great to have you as part of our Club Adele.
The second young lady that spoke to our Club today was Anissa Toual. Anissa has been our incoming Rotary Exchange student for the last year. She did her presentation on her time in Canada, and expressed her love for our country and the people that she has met. She even has a cousin that was born in Alberta! Anissa is looking forward to getting home to Belgium after her time here, to see her family, her pets, her boyfriend, and getting started with her studies to become a lawyer. Good luck Anissa with everything that life throws at you! It's been a pleasure having you with us.
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Ever wonder what the youth of today will bring to the world? Aspen Heights School is modeling some innovative new ways of looking at education through their MicroSociety. Curious to learn more? 
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A thanks to Lynn Paradis for sharing the great success of this program. What a story of hope! 
It is our distinct pleasure to announce our 2015 Young Citizen of the Year. This individual’s nominator captured it most accurately in her application to describe our winner.
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The 2012 Black Tie Bingo was the 20th anniversary of the event and set a new fundraising record of approximately $140,000!!!