The meeting was online via Zoom and had 24 members. We were opened at 12:20 PM by President Chuck Norton followed by the pledge of allegiance. The Thought for the Day was given by Todd Stephens. Krysten Warnes provided our Dig & Grin and regaled the assembled multitude with three Christmas “How To” anecdotes.
BIRTHDAYS & ANNIVERSARIES : President Chuck noted he had a birthday to be celebrated but was mum on which one. This week’s anniversaries included Roger Morris (48), Mary Lou Bilder-Gold (25) Amy Skalinder and Krysten Warnes with one year each.
ANNOUNCEMENTS: President Norton noted he is still seeking someone interested in being a co-President next year. He also noted grant applications for our Foundation need to be in by Dec. 31.
Tony Kambich said he has uncovered some possibly valuable Rotary historical material in his garage that seems worth saving He asked if there was still storage space in the WCH Rotary closet
Rich Lalley was pleased to confirm that, after 2½ years the Rotary Foundation has approved grant funding for the farming project in Ecuador
HAPPY BUCKS: Julie Tye noted the Hadley School reached 25,000 enrollments which is triple the normal level. This was the result of significant re-structuring of their curricula and cost structure. She will throw in something less than a buck for each enrollment.
SPEAKER: At 12:40, John Thomas introduced today's speaker, Andy Drendel. He heads the Trust Department at the Byline Bank and was recommended by Bill Leske. With over 40 years of wealth management experience, 20 of which have been in Chicagoland, Andy Drendel has extensive expertise in trust administration, estate planning, asset protection and fiduciary practice management.
He started by outlining what Trust Services from a bank entail. He then explained in some detail the factors that suggest having a bank be Trustee for estates of moderate complexity. He added commentary on what might be the disadvantages of professional trust services.
A spirited Q&A followed for almost 30 minutes led off by David Birkenstein as well as Eric Birkenstein,. Both are active in advising clients in that area. Keith Reed also had some legal-oriented questions
The meeting was closed at 1:25 with a recitation by all of the 4-Way test.