Please find a substitute if you are unable to fulfill your assignment; Just call or e-mail a fellow member and ask him/her to sub. Tom Evans - tom.evans527@gmail.com- who chairs the service committee, will confirm assignments. Sgt. at arms helps set up and store our stuff, please come 15 minutes early and be prepared to stay a few minutes after the meeting; Greeter greets and announces names of visiting Rotarians and guests; Thought of the Day can be spontaneous or read from a script; Dig 'n Grin can make us laugh or think seriously.
Thirty-four members attended the April 24 meeting. In addition to our speaker we had three guests including the speaker’s wife, Dr. Renita Jackson, visiting Rotarian Roland Catencci from the Wilmette Noon club and potential new member Mike Malloy, a guest of Luvie Owens for the third time.
Due to the spring rummage sale held at the Community House on the second weekend of May our weekly meeting for May 8 will be held in Glencoe at the Takiff Center located at 999 Green Bay Road, just north of Dundee Road.
A joint meeting with the Wilmette Noon Club will be held on May 15th at 6:00 p.m. at the Winnetka Community House. This meeting will be in lieu of our regular noon meeting. The speaker will be David Snyder, the associate publisher of Crain’s Chicago Business. Please mark your calendars!
Rotary “Fireside Chat” was announced for the evening of May 29th at 7:00 p.m. It will be held in the Board Room at the Park District’s Nielsen Tennis Center located at Hibbard Road and Elm Street. This event is open to all members of our club and is especially beneficial for new members. It is an opportunity to learn more about how our club operates and the activities we support.
This week’s Moment to Shine featured Jake Ieuter who was born and raised in the Township where his entire family currently resides. In 2009 he joined his father and two brothers in the family business, Secure Futures, a full-service risk management firm located in Northfield. He has been active in coaching his children and has remained a part of the Wilmette Youth Baseball Association.
Bob Jackson, our speaker, is the Executive Director of the Roseland CeaseFire Project in Chicago. He spoke about their Community Violence Prevention Program where they work with 14 to 27 year olds and their parents in an attempt to break the culture of violence in their area. Many of their clients started life as “crack babies” and have had problems with how to deal with their anger, which often results with incarceration. Most of the young people they work with have been referred to their organization by the court system of the county and state. He reported that most of the former organized gang leaders are now in prison and ‘cliques’ have replaced the ‘gangs’.
The state and county regularly audit their programs, both for program effectiveness and financial soundness. Bob also told us that the “Safe Passage” program instituted in Chicago following the closing of numerous schools to increase safety of children having to travel in new areas is a Federal program and that the use of a gun in a Safe Passage zone is a Federal crime.
P.S. The Chamber’s “After Hour” event that was sponsored by our club on the 17th was a wonderful success. Our club had super attendance and the great food and drink contributed to a delightful evening.
The 2013-14 Rotary Year is nearly over, and our club has accomplished much. Our membership is growing; our Operation Warm, Kids Against Hunger and Community Grants programs were all great successes. We have much to be proud about our club, and about being a part of the greater fellowship of Rotary.
One goal we have yet to reach is our contributions to the Annual Program Fund of The Rotary Foundation. Through April 14th, 14 members of our club have contributed $4,504 to The Rotary Foundation's Annual Programs Fund, or 52% of the goal set by President Eric and our board. We thank these 15 Rotarians for already making their annual contribution, especially those in bold who are Paul Harris Fellows:
Wes Baumann, Eric Birkenstein, David Grant*, Lousie Holland,Mark Kotz, Marie Kulpers, Rich Lalley, Bernie Michna, Rodger Morris*, Lee Padgitt, Randy Reeves, Fred Schwimmer, John Thomas, Patti Van Cleave, andRebecca Wolf.
* signifies a Major Donor.
There are many reasons to give to the The Rotary Foundation:
Contributions support humanitarian and educational projects initiated and run by Rotary Clubs and Districts in six areas of focus- Disease prevention and treatment, maternal & child health, education & literacy, water and sanitation, economic & community development and peace & conflict resolution. Learn more by reviewing the Foundation’s annual report.
Contributions come back to support projects of our club, like our coats for kids, Kids Against Hunger and International grants projects like the water well project we helped fund for an orphanage in Kenya and the digital x-ray/community health clinic project organized by District 6440.
Charity Navigator gives The Rotary Foundation its highest “Four Star” rating, giving it a score 68.57 out of 70.
Giving to The Rotary Foundation is an easy way for you to participate in Rotary’s service work beyond our club, providing you a personal connection to this great organization and the good it does throughout the world.
It’s easy to give. You can donate with a check or credit card at lunch; you can send a check to “WNRCF” (mark TRF in the memo line) to our club at 620 Lincoln Ave, Winnetka; you can donate via PayPal by clicking here, or you can donate directly to The Rotary Foundation at www.rotary.org or by calling 866-976-8279. One very convenient way to give is by making a recurring monthly gift on your credit card, which you can set up on Rotary’s website.
If you have any questions about The Rotary Foundation or how to give, contact Rich Lalley.
