This week's presentation, with the intriguing title of "Under the Thundering Sky," will feature the History Museum's Jim Meinert. The 50-50 pot runneth over! Join us at noon at the country club!
Evening Meetings Debut
Approximately a dozen young professionals gathered at the country club Thursday evening to kick off the evening meeting option for new Rotarians.
The chatter was lively and the group highly congenial as veteran Rotarians introduced themselves and explained their roles. In addition to officers Cari Yturri and Dean Boyle, Rob Rezek, who is heading up the evening project, introduced himself and explained how being a Rotarian meshes so well with his passion for community service.
Mike Rausch told the prospective members about how he became interested in Rotary. He too was engaged by the service mission of the club, and as a lawyer spending his days working with his mind, he enjoys the physical projects of highway clean-ups and Camp Rotary fix-ups. Mary Moe introduced herself as the newsletter editor and said that what she has enjoyed the most about the club is its diversity. The members, by design, come from all walks of life, all adult age groups, and a broad range of experiences and interests.
Mike Wier and Tom Nelson then introduced themselves and devoted the rest of the program to the Harvest Howl - what it is, what it does, and what it takes. The group was highly engaged and will be a great asset to the club. Thanks to all the noon Rotarians who took a little extra time out of their day to help these newcomers get a feel of who we are as Rotarians.
A Little More Background on Rotary Evening
Rotary Evening has 4 planned meetings in September and October. The planned schedule is the 2nd and 4th Thursday of each month from 5:30 p.m. to 7 p.m. The meetings will be held at the Meadowlark Country Club.
These are preliminary meetings and most attendees will be prospective members. The first 30 minutes will be allocated towards social/networking, then 30 minutes for an overview of a Rotary Program, and the final 30 minutes towards framing future evening meetings and recruitment.
Rotarians are encouraged to attend if interested, but please RSVP in advance so we can plan space accordingly. Prospective members are welcome to attend. To RSVP, please email rrezek@dadco.com
Next meeting: September 27 — 5:30pm to 7:00pm — Meadowlark Country Club
Last Week at Rotary
Last week we heard from Community Choir Director Cynthia Stevens and Great Falls College's Heather Palermo about the choir's summer trip to Italy.
Coordinated by the College's Center for Lifelong Learning, the opportunity brought 30 local people - 23 of them singers and 7 along for the ride - to Europe's "Bel Paise" for ten days. As a musical opportunity, it couldn't be topped. The choir joined choruses from throughout the world to perform John Rutter's "Requiem," directed by the world-renowned John Rutter himself in the beautiful Basilica di Santa Croce. Judging from the video played last week, they sounded fantastic!
While you're under the Tuscan sun, you might as well see the sights, right? The trip was the college's first travel abroad opportunity though Lifelong Learning and the travelers took full advantage of it. In addition to the performance, travelers visited historic churches, toured the Florence Duomo and participated in Italian cooking classes. They toured not only Florence, but also Verona, Venice and Lake Garda.
"It was an amazing and memorable experience for choir members and community members," Palermo said. "Studying history is one thing, but seeing that history and the historical places you've studied brings learning to an entirely different level."
No Bylaws Changes Planned
After contemplating several bylaws options for creating a new category of active membership for spouses/partners of members, your Rotary board ultimately decided not to go that route. They concluded that the best course of action was to encourage spouses and partners to join the evening meeting group, where the dues, meetings, and expectations are roughly the same as what the board had been hoping to create.
So ... there will be no bylaws changes proposed in the near future about that option. The Bylaws Committee, consisting of Bill Bronson, Mike Rausch, and Mary Moe, will be meeting soon to review the bylaws for how current they are, how well they align with Rotary International's guidelines, and how well they guide the club. This level of review hasn't been undertaken for nearly five years, so it's time.
Milestones
Birthday greetings this week to three wonderful Rotarians and community assets! Tomorrow Kevin Clark and Sherrie Arey blow out the candles and Wednesday, it's Beth McFadden's turn. Best wishes from all of us to you three!
Today's winning "bulletin bucks" # is button number #120. See Todd Neighbor to claim your $25 cash card!
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