Over two decades ago, Rotarian Dave Crum was instrumental in forming a community group advocating for support of our public schools. Since then Kids Education YES! has evolved from a group re-activating each year to support mill levies to a group active year-round advocating for good schools that hire and keep good teachers and prepare kids for college, career and life. This week, KEY leader Jamie Marshall will bring us up to speed on the focuses of KEY during this difficult time.
We are promised that this week's Rotary Moment will be super-special, and there's much to discuss and get ready for at this week's meeting. Join us at noon at the country club or on Zoom! (And don't forget your silent auction gifts and shredding contributions! See related articles below.)
Shred Polio This Week!
Tomorrow is World Polio Day and in recent years we have used the occasion to raise funds to fight polio through Rotary's Polio Plus initiative. In our "Shred to End Polio" event, we encourage local Rotarians and and all of Great Falls to bring their sensitive documents for shredding to the country club parking lot, where we arrange for a shredder and add the funds generated to the funds individual Rotarians contribute to Polio Plus.
Kurt Baltrusch is heading up the event this year on Tuesday, Oct. 26, from 11:30 a.m. - 1:30 p.m. at the country club. With Art Taft providing the promotional materials and Tim McGonigal providing news coverage of the event, "Shred to End Polio" has never been more publicized. But please be sure to share Art's masterpieces on your social media.
And on Tuesday, bring your documents to the shredding event and/or a check to Rotary Club of Great Falls with the designation "polio" indicated!
Last Week at Rotary
We met last week at the Harold and Carmen Poulsen Legacy Housing site and learned about the project from Grant Bebee, Executive Director for the Great Falls Clinic’s Legacy Foundation. A native of Havre, Grant earned a B.S. in Business Administration and a B.A in Journalism from the University of Montana. After working 25 years in Great Falls for Northwinds Publishing, the Tribune, Spectrum and KFBB, he accepted the position as executive director of the Foundation because he believes so strongly in its mission and vision.
The vision for the Legacy Housing is to help patients and their families by providing free, comfortable living quarters for the families of patients getting medical care in Great Falls. The Poulsens' generous contribution got the project off to a great start, but the foundation is still seeking contributions for the finishing touches. Rotarians had the opportunity to tour the facility and it is beautiful! So many generous people in Great Falls, Montana!
Let's Get Ready to Howl!
With Harvest Howl less than two weeks away, we're in countdown mode now. Here's a to-do list:
Work Shifts. Have you signed up for a shift to set up, host, or clean up the event? Chelle Fried has created an online signup sheet that you can reach here: Sign up form link
Silent Auction. Please bring your silent auction item -- or a description of it -- to next week's meeting. We are unusually short of donations of wine (we have none and we usually auction off 130 bottles -- so bring vino, too, if you can!
Dessert Auction. In past years the Dessert Auction has brought in over $2000, and we'd like to exceed it this year. Please let Shim Abbasi or Cari Yturri know if you can bring a dessert. Homemade or professionally baked cookies, cakes, pies, or candies all sell like -- well, sweets. Email Shim at shim_javed15@yahoo.com or Cari at cyturri79@gmail.com.
Milestones
Last week we recognized the Rotarians who joined our club in October and celebrate double-digit anniversaries this month. This week we recognize two special gifts October brought us during the past decade: Lois Spencer, who joined the club 8 years ago, and Thomas Trunkle, who celebrates his third "birthday" this month. Thank you both for all you do to make this club great!
Reminder: Why We Howl
Over 100 years ago - 105, to be exact - the Great Falls Leader reported that a few Great Falls men had just returned from a tour of a site on the Jefferson National Forest. Several miles south of Monarch, it had great potential to be the boys' camp the men were interested in creating.
The rest is history. Rotary Club of Great Falls took over the project and Camp Rotary was born. Think of all the children - boys and girls - the camp has served over the years ... through the Roaring Twenties, the Depression, two World Wars, Vietnam, Watergate, energy crises, the terms of 19 Presidents - and counting.
Much has changed in our community, our state and our world since 1916. But one thing has not changed: every summer Camp Rotary welcomes hundreds of new campers to its idyllic environment, where they play, learn, heal and grow. Through good times and bad, we have kept Camp Rotary the most impressive Rotary project in the state. For over a decade now, we've raised the money required to maintain the camp through another successful project: Harvest Howl. Harvest Howl is the true bridge to Camp Rotary. It requires all our effort - and the effort has its own rewards, esprit d'corps perhaps the highest. Dig in. Be a part of history.
