In what may well have been the most tightly packed 3-minute talk of all time, Kevin Langkiet told us a little about himself last week.
Kevin grew up in Oklahoma and spent a lot of time in Texas before coming to Great Falls to be the Director of Benefis’ Emergency Services. In that position, he has overseen the construction of a new and much-expanded emergency center, the Williams-Ario Trauma Center. It’s the 17th such construction he’s overseen during his career.
The scope of Kevin’s duties is quite broad, including Mercy Flight, ambulance services, rapid medical evacuation, and sexual assault exams.
Kevin has several grown children, as well as twin 9-year-olds and 6 grandchildren. He now has a blue badge as well. Congratulations, Kevin!
This week's bulletin bucks number is #64. If that's your number, contact Todd Neighbor for your $25 prize.
Next Week at Rotary
Next week at noon Chief Deputy Attorney for Cascade County Susan Weber will tell us about child abuse in Cascade County and what Toby’s House does to help. Join us at noon at the country club!
Evening Rotarians will hear about Paul Harris Points Foundation from Lacey Gallagher. The meeting starts at 5:30, also at the country club.
Last Week at Noon Rotary
Last week, Chief Master Sergeant Eryn McElroy and her husband Scotty told Rotarians about their respective duties on Malmstrom Air Force Base.
Scotty was an airman himself until 1996, when he chose to be a supportive spouse rather than a lonely one. The demands of their dual careers required them to be separated for long periods of time. Now he functions as a mentor for other spouses on the base, helping them get acclimated to MAFB and making sure their needs and interests are attended to.
Eryn used an interesting gambit to tell us about her work. She described it from the perspectives of the people who know her best. Her husband thinks she goes to meetings all the time (because she does). Her daughter thinks her job requires her to go out to dinners and parties in the evening, and there is quite a bit of that. Her friends think she likes to move. She’s relocated 5 times in 5 years and is hopeful she’ll get to stay a little longer in Great Falls.
The junior airmen think her job is to give out awards. She does that, but it’s all part of being focused on their success and needs. She regards herself as their voice on Base, and she’s a passionate advocate for them. The senior leaders thinks she asks questions a lot, which she does, but she also facilitates the process of coming up with answers. Finally, Eryn’s boss, MAFB Commander Jennifer Reeves, considers Eryn the Robin to her Batman. They are a team and Eryn enjoys advising and supporting her.
In other news, we celebrated the February birthdays last week and tried to be gracious as a visiting Rotarian from Kalispell won the 50-50 on his first trip to town! He very generously gave his winnings to Polio Plus.
How Can We Improve?
How can we become an even better club? The best way to find out is to ask.
In response to a request by President-elect Cari Yturri, evening Rotarian Zach Swartz has created a membership satisfaction survey to do just that. We're looking for ideas and opportunities to grow as a club. Please take a few minutes of your time to participate in the survey at https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/5ZVZQXB.
The survey will be live until March 22, but you know you're going to forget. Do it now.
News from Our Foundation
Judge Holter gave a brief report on our Rotary Foundation Board, which met last week. The board has decided to create a basketball court at Camp Rotary. Naturally, it isn’t as easy as that. They’ll need to get permission from the Forest Service and construct it, but when it comes to Camp Rotary, the sky is the limit.
The Foundation Board is buying trees to help beautify Great Falls and improve our health. You can support this effort by making a Trees donation to the Rotary Foundation. Think of it as "something green for something green."
Weekly Wit
Last week I braved the icy roads to defend myself at a confirmation hearing on my appointment to Montana's State Parks & Recreation Board. After the hearing, we prospective board members met at the Windbag to sample the local brews. A waitress approached and handled the complaint of one in our group about the use of plastic straws with such aplomb that we asked her name.
"Spring," she said, smiling. "I'm Spring."
We all beamed up at her in our turtleneck sweaters and wool scarves and mukluks and said in unison: "Spring! We thought you'd never get here!"
