#905, Club Bulletin, June 26, 2023

Recap from the June 26, 2023 Meeting.
 
Meeting Run by: President Naomi DeWinter
 
Invocation: Kim Warren
 
Welcome to our members participating in our meeting through Zoom. Melanie Alexander and Carol Webb.  
 
Welcome our Guest- Police Chief Anthony Kies
 
Happy News/Announcements:  All Happy News funds go towards our scholarship awards.
Mike Ruby- Mike volunteered to drive a golf cart for Almost Fiesta Fest. There was an excellent turnout for the event. Mike attended the District Governor’s gavel passing in Marshalltown and enjoyed visiting with fellow Rotarians. Carolyn Levine- Thank you, Naomi, for representing Rotary and MCC in educating the community on Human Trafficking. Kim Warren- The first week of SPARK was eventful. Thank you to the many Rotarians helping with SPARK presentations throughout the summer. While transporting her son to and from USA swim practice, Kim ran into Rick Gosney, who sent his hellos to the club. Kim’s son qualified for state through his USA swim team.  Jessica Pfab- Jess was tickled when she learned, through a colleague, that Carolyn Levine walks her cat through her neighborhood. Bath Donald- 9U girls’ softball team had an outstanding tournament weekend and a successful gold outing fundraiser that brought in $18K. Rob Yant- Rob rode his motorcycle to St. Charles, MO, for a motorcycle rally over the weekend, and he was happy to avoid the rain on the way home. Karen Cooney- The Annual Art Center Ice Cream Social was a success. Karen enjoyed volunteering to cut pies the day before the event and help lead crafts during the event. Shane Orr- Shane received his son’s degrees from the University of Iowa. Kim Warren was recognized at the Iowa Women's Foundation's 10th annual "Ovation: A Tribute to Iowa Women and Girls.” Tony Kies- Happy to have his kids at home for the summer, one attending Iowa State. Taylor Thorpe- Thank everyone who supported Addington Place’s Dunk Tank fundraiser. $750 was raised for the Walk to End Alzheimer’s in September.
 
Please watch this video about the importance of Juneteenth. https://youtu.be/MR3WqY16wco
 
Club News:  
 
  • Follow the Rotary Club of Muscatine’s Facebook page, @MuscatineRotaryClub.
  • Our club continues to assist a Ukraine family with needed supplies to settle in Muscatine. The family consists of Mom, Dad, and two boys. Thank you to everyone who has donated to the family. We can still accept donations of pantry items and gift cards.
  • Thanksgiving in July Community-Wide Food Drive- Host a food drive at your office July 10-14. Rotary needs volunteers to help with food pick up the afternoon of Friday, July 14th, and food sorting Monday, July 17th, from 9-10 am.
  • Save the Date: Future Mobile Food Pantry distribution dates: August 8th, September 12th, October 10th, November 14th, and December 12th.
  • Almost Friday Fest- Rotary will have a food tent at Almost Friday Events on July 27th, August 24th, and September 28th.
 
Presentation-
A Year in Review- Naomi DeWinter and Board
 
Focus areas for the 22-23 year-
  • Membership: Expand Club membership to 70 members
  • Programs: 4 Off-site meetings at member businesses
  • Service: 4 service projects; 25 members participate
    • Align one service project with a community housing revitalization priority
    • Align one service project with food insecurity
    • Support a refugee relocating to Muscatine
    • Explore Rotary readers - Literacy
    • two members involved in the Rotary Action Group
  • Social Media: 12 posts; 4 media stories
  • Giving: $10,000 to Annual Fund; $1500 to Polio Plus
 
Support for Ukraine- Our club provided supplies and donations to help the Yuldiz family settle in Muscatine. Our club partnered with Muscatine Fire Department to increase their donation of medical equipment and supplies shipped to Ukraine.
Sarah Lande was awarded the Guardian of Integrity Award through District 6000.
Human Trafficking awareness and education were supported through meeting speakers, including the Secretary of State Paul Pate. Community events, including the poster contest, informational tables at the block party and internet security presentation, and representation in the RAGAS action group.
Membership- we welcomed nine new members this year and formalized a corporate membership option.
Fundraising- We raised over $1700 through fundraising events like the Almost Friday Fest food tent, Food Truck Fight beer tent, and Hancher ticket raffle. Look for these events to continue in the 23-24 Rotary year.
Programs- We offered a wide variety of programs thanks to all the connections provided by club members. This coming year we are looking forward to an offsite meeting at The Stanley Center for Peace and Security on July 24th, and a presentation about the Alcatraz prison escape on August 14th.  
Marc Hines and Barth Donald joined our board mid-year in Youth services and service projects, respectively. We look forward to the year ahead with a full board.
Upcoming volunteer opportunities include RAGBAI 2023- July 29th. Sign up to volunteer at https://tinyurl.com/MuscatineRAGBRAI23, and we will continue to support the Muscatine Community School District Mobile Food Pantry monthly on the 2nd Tuesday.
Foundation- Our club gave $8,630 to Paul Harris and $750 to Polio Plus.
 
Thank you, Naomi, for a wonderful year as President.
 
Upcoming Meetings-
 
 
Welcome to Week 4 of RI’s Month of Rotary Fellowships.
 
June is the month when Rotary clubs all over the world are swearing in new officers for the new Rotary service year. It is also when students everywhere are getting ready for a new academic session. Provision of quality education is one of the main avenues through which TRF hopes to advance world understanding, goodwill and peace, and this week’s Foundation Minute is dedicated to one Rotary Club helping improve the lives of young people through scholarships.
 
The Rotary Club of Stamford Connecticut this week awarded scholarships totaling around $100,000 to 10 Stamford students. Each year, the club provides community grants and academic scholarships. These grants and scholarships are awarded through the Stamford Rotary Trust Fund, which was founded in 1961. "As Rotarians, we want to make a difference in our community. We hope that by providing these scholarships, we allow high school students a better chance of success and help to shape our future community leaders," said Rotary Club of Stamford Scholarship Trust Fund Committee Chair Christopher Farrugio, in a news release. "Most of our scholarships were created in honor of Stamford Rotarians who date as far back as 1928. We are proud of the nearly 100-year history of the Rotary Club of Stamford, and look forward to many more years of serving and supporting our local communities," Farrugio added.
In Rotary,
Olabisi Gwamna, Club Secretary
Mount Pleasant Rotary,
Editor, Foundation Minute