MARCH 10th MEETING-COURTESY AWARDS/INDUCTIONS

On March 10, the Courtesy Awards committee will be presenting awards to several outstanding individuals in our community.  Among others, learn about how one individual gave up his Christmas Eve and Christmas Day to insure that carpets could be well cleaned.  And how the extra ordinary service of another lead to almost 130,000 page views and "likes" from all over the world after his good deed was reported on a blog. 

ROTARACT NEEDS OUR HELP FOR HYGIENE DRIVE

The Rotaract Club would like our help in collecting items for the hygiene drive below. We will collect them at the March 10 Rotary meeting.  The most urgently needed items are laundry detergent, dish soap, paper towels, toilet paper, feminine care products, shampoo, diapers, baby wipes, liquid soap, unscented deodorant, soft toothbrushes (adult and child sized), and toothpaste.

ANNOUNCEMENTS

·         Rotary Shines is looking for bottles of wine for the cork pull.  If you are interested in donating a bottle please bring to the meeting and give to Megan Klubertanz or Amy Flanders.  Value should be around $20/bottle.

·         District Conference is May 15-17 here in Appleton at the Radisson Paper Valley Hotel.  A flyer is attached with details.

·         SAMP Packing- The board has decided to suspend our SAMP program for 6 months.  During this time a task force will be created to look further into this program and see how it can be improved. 

·         On March 2^nd the movie PILOT ERROR will be showing at the Appleton East Marcus Cinema.  Screenings are at 4 pm and 7 pm.  Pilot Error was filmed on location in Milwaukee and Appleton.  The Emmy award winning composer Garth Neustadter was a graduate from Lawrence University.  Our Foreign Exchange student, Flora Prada, also has a small cameo in the film.  Tickets can be purchased at marcustheatres.com.

AMERICA'S ENERGY FUTURE - DR. WINSTON PORTER

Dr. Porter is a chemical engineer (University of Texas and U.C. Berkeley) whose early experience included management of Bechtel Corporation’s environmental department, and later the master plan for the $30 billion Jubail Industrial City in Saudi Arabia.  He later served as an assistant administrator of the EPA with national responsibility for Superfund and other waste management programs.  Currently, he is an independent consultant specializing in the energy and environmental sectors.  He is based in Savannah, Georgia. Dr. J. Winston Porter summarized the current U. S. energy situation, including oil, gas, coal and nuclear energy, as well as renewables such as wind, solar, and biomass. He then described the very rapid increase in shale gas and oil production by “fracking.” Finally, he outlined “America’s energy future,” based on key technical and policy factors.  American Energy Usage is: 40% Electric power, 28% Transportation, 21% Industrial and 11% Residential and Commercial.  From the 1970s to today, our demand is leveling out.  The US demand is not growing exponentially like it once was.  We are doing things to lessen the amount of energy we need.  China and India are rising, similar to the U.S pre 1970s as they industrialize a bit more.  The good news for U.S Energy is that we lead the world in oil and gas production, thanks mainly to hydraulic fracturing, prices for energy are dropping, air emissions are decreasing and renewables are increasing.  The key to U.S. Energy issues are the future of renewable energy, rapid shale gas and oil increases, proposed clean power plan and oil and gasoline price reductions.  A positive thing about wind and solar energy are they are renewable and the costs and technology are improving.  The negative things are they need large amounts of land and require back-up power.  As far as the Clean Power Plan, thanks to shale gas, reduction is already 15%.  Each state has a target emission level and Wisconsin is 34%.  To improve America’s Energy Future we need to increase global market for U.S. energy, renewables need advanced batteries, we need to develop cleaner coal, steadily improve energy efficiencies and we need to use all our energy tools. 

MARCH 3RD MEETING-SHEN YUN PERFORMING ARTS

Shen Yun is coming to Appleton's Performing Arts Center on March 3 and 4th.  On March 3rd, Tim Gebhart will be here to explain what Shen Yun is about and its mission to revive classical Chinese dance and culture. A hallmark of Shen Yun is its unique philosophy behind success in the arts. They hold a belief that to show outward beauty, one must first have inner beauty. Audience members are often moved to tears watching Shen Yun.

ROTARY SHINES APRIL 17TH, 2015 AT FOX BANQUETS

This year’s beneficiaries will be:

Polio Plus Program

United Way Fox Cities PATH (Providing Access to Healing) for students program

Project Bharati: Rehabilitation and Empowerment for Girls Rescued Human Trafficking and Sexual Violence

Here are the Sponsors so far:

Presenting Sponsor                 Community First Credit Union

Supporting Sponsors               Associated Bank

Barb Merry

Bassett Mechanical

BOLDT

Goodwill Industries

Nicolet National Bank

Schenck

Friend Sponsors                      American National Bank

                                                             Curt Detjen Family Fund

                                                 Wichmann Funeral Home

                                                            Fiduciary Partners

                                                            Herrling Clark

                                                            Esker and Associates

                                                            Jeff Werner

ANNOUNCEMENTS

·         Rotary Shines is looking for bottles of wine for the cork pull.  If you are interested in donating a bottle please bring to the meeting and give to Megan Klubertanz or Amy Flanders.  Value should be around $20/bottle.

·         District Conference is May 15-17 here in Appleton at the Radisson Paper Valley Hotel.  Great events are planned and the cost to attend is only $15.00.  Sign up by going to the district website http://www.ridistrict6220.org/.  Click on registration tab on the right hand side.

LIVING A PURPOSEFUL LIFE-TOM BERKEDAL

HOW TO LIVE A PURPOSEFUL LIFE- TOM BERKEDAL Brooke Bronkowski was a 12 year old who wrote an essay which she titled, “Since I Have My Life Before Me.” I’ll live my life to the fullest.  I’ll be happy.  I’ll brighten up.  I’ll be more joyful than I have been.  I’ll be kind to others.  I’ll loosen up.  I’ll go on adventures and change the world.  I will be bold and not change who I really am.  I’ll have no troubles.  But instead help others with their troubles.  You see, I’ll be one of those people who live to be history makers at a young age.  Oh I’ll have moments good and bad but I will wipe away the bad and only remember the good.  In fact that’s all I’ll remember, just good moments nothing in between, just living my life to the fullest.  I’ll be one of those people who go somewhere with a mission, an awesome plan, a world-changing plan and nothing will hold me back.  I’ll set an example for others I will pray for direction.  I have my life before me.  I will do my best.  Brooke was a pretty spectacular 12 year old.  Unfortunately on October 22, 2000 Brooke and her friends were headed back from the movies when the driver of the car lost control and crashed in to a tree.  Brooke was pronounced dead the next morning at the age of 14, but her impact did not.  Her message went viral and thousands have shared Brooke’s message.  She lived a life that mattered.  She considered others over herself and she didn’t really care very much about what others thought about her.  She wasn’t concerned with the stress or disappointments of this life.  All she was concerned about was her mission on earth.  Brooke Bronkoswki lived a purposeful life.  Purposeful is defined in Webster’s Dictionary as having a purpose, determined, resolute, full of meaning, significant.  The question asked is that we all must ask is do our lives meet that criteria?  People don’t join an organization like Rotary unless they want to make a difference.  Rotarians are determined to have a positive impact on the world and we are succeeding.  Leading a purposeful life is not easy.  Our lives are about so much more than just Rotary.  We have family, obligations and most of all we all have work responsibilities.  Many Rotarians are involved in other non-profit organizations.  We are all pulled in so many different directions that it is hard for us to prioritize our daily activities…much less our life’s purpose. The word “purposeful” can be defined in many ways and the fact is that only you can define your purpose in your life and only you can determine your level of success in achieving that purpose.  So what does this all have to do with Rotary?  All of us are her because we made a personal decision to be a Rotarian.  The question is, How does being a Rotarian fit into our life’s purpose?  According to the most recent club survey over 70% of us are a Rotarian primarily because of the fellowship and networking opportunities.  Only about 18% are here primarily due to a desire to be of service to others.  Rotary’s motto is “Service Above Self” and it seems that when we define our life’s purpose most of us would list being of service to others ahead of fellowship.  As a general rule we tend to be more givers than doers in this club.  When it comes to our Rotary involvement we are all very thankful for the generosity of past and current Rotarians.  In the past seven months Tom has traveled to 42 clubs from our district.  How does our stack up?  Very well!  No other club comes close to ours in the terms of financial impact that we make in our community year after year.  Primarily through our great foundation and the proceeds from Rotary Shines.  In the last year our foundation gave away over $51,000 and over the past 10 years our foundation distributions have totaled over $534,000.  The foundation awards $15,000 in scholarships each year to high school students and post high school students, $2,500 in art scholarships, $3,000 to the World Service committee to fund an international project, over $20,000 to organizations involved with helping children with disabilities, $3,000 to the Community projects.  Add that to the approximately $30,000 in Rotary Shines proceeds and we give away over $80,000 every year and we should be tremendously proud of that.  Being proud doesn’t mean that we should not be looking for ways to be even better, to make a greater impact.  There is no better fellowship opportunity than one that involves working together on a project that makes a meaningful difference in someone else’s life.  As a club we need to guard against the thought that the foundation and Rotary Shines proceeds do so much good in the community that we as members do not really need to devote our time in service to others.  Rotary is like any other organization…the more we put into it…the more we get out of it.  Mahatma Ghandi once said, “to find yourself you must lose yourself in service to others.” Ghandi would have been a great Rotarian.  Other clubs do not have the kind of money our club has to donate to other organizations and individuals but they find the time to provide great service to their communities.  Throughout our district there are Rotary signs on playground equipment, park benches, beaches, roundabouts, stretches of highway that Rotarians have volunteered to keep clean all projects sponsored and serviced by Rotarians.  When you drive in to Appleton you do not see any sign that Rotary exists.  The Rotary Club of Appleton will be celebrating its Centennial year in 2017…wouldn’t it be great if our club would celebrate by originating a project in Appleton that would fill a community need, provide a fellowship opportunity through service to others and also create Rotary awareness?  It is much easier to volunteer locally than it is to be directly involved in a project overseas and yet the Rotary International Foundation provides many opportunities to participate in service projects all over the world.  A donation to the Rotary Foundation in an amount that is affordable to you helps to make all of the good works Rotarians do possible.  It is also important to diversify.  We all want to help our own communities, churches, schools, local non-profits and we should.  It is also important to donate money to the neediest of the needy in the world and if helping others and make the world a better place is a part of your life purpose there is no better way to do that than through an affordable annual donation to the Rotary Foundation.  So let’s bring you back to Brooke Bronkowski as a 12 year old who already laid out her life’s plan and purpose sadly Brooke’s life, although impactful, ended way too soon.  Life is fragile and unpredictable and too important to live by chance.  If you haven’t done so already create some quiet time and reflect on your life’s purpose.  Consider writing your own brief essay entitled “Because I Have My Life Before Me.?  As Rotarians we are fortunate to have countless opportunities to live our purpose by enhancing the lives of others.

VOLUNTEER CENTER/SERVICE ABOVE SELF

The Volunteer Center of East Central Wisconsin is the local connection to volunteer opportunities throughout the Fox Valley Region.  They connect volunteers with non-profit agencies and other community organizations in many different ways.  The Volunteer Center started in 1996 in the Thompson Community Center.  It serves volunteers and non-profit agencies in Calumet, Outagamie and Winnebago Counties.  They assist more than 100 area non-profit organizations by annually promoting their volunteer needs in the Volunteer Connections book.  They also have a comprehensive online service for recruiting and managing volunteers.  You can find it at www.volunteercenter.net then “Search Opportunities” to find a match right for you.  The Volunteer Center has many different programs reaching out to different people.  Retired and Senior Volunteer Program (RSVP) is a great way to volunteer and network with older adults who have an interest in serving our community.  RSVP invites adults age 55 and over to use their life experiences and skills.  The Youth program works with youth ages 12-18.  They participate in volunteer activities within their community.  The Volunteer Center also has a Youth Alliance Awards program.  This program is a great way to highlight the community service provided by our area youth.  One of their major events is the Human Race a non-competitive run/walk. This takes place on Saturday, May 2, 2015 at Thrivent on Ballard Road.  The Human Race is a unique way for individuals, families and businesses to work together to raise money for an organization or cause.  The Volunteer Center also partnered up with Badger Sport Park and starting on April 1^st you can purchase a gift card for Badger Sport park for $25 and it is worth $50.00.  As you can see there are a lot of opportunities in our community to volunteer and really make a difference.  The Service Above Self (SAS) committee would like to partner with the Volunteer Center and other organizations to get out and make a difference.  The committee is committed to find a variety of different activities that everyone can participate with.  In April the Old Glory Honor Flight is looking for volunteers before the event.  Nancy Leipzig, chair of SAS committee, will get more information for the club but would love for as many volunteers as possible.  Also, keep the date September 20^th open.  The Rotary Club of Appleton will be volunteering at the Fox Cities Marathon at a water station.  If you have interest in joining this committee please contact Nancy Leipzig.

ANNOUNCEMENTS

·         RYLA COMMITTEE is looking for 2 more committee members.  If you are interested in joining please contact Gary Hermsen or Marta Weldon.

·         Service Above Self Committee is looking for 2-3 committee members.  If you are interested please contact Nancy Leipzig, Dan Flannery or Jenni Eickelberg.

·         Rotary Shines is looking for bottles of wine for the cork pull.  If you are interested in donating a bottle please bring to the meeting and give to Megan Klubertanz or Amy Flanders.  Value should be around $20/bottle.

·         Save the date: April 17^th for our Rotary Shines event which will be held at Fox Banquets.  Tickets go on sale February 3 and are $100/couple.

ROTARY SHINES--APRIL 17TH--FOX BANQUETS

This year’s beneficiaries will be:

Polio Plus Program

United Way Fox Cities PATH (Providing Access to Healing) for students program

Project Bharati: Rehabilitation and Empowerment for Girls Rescued Human Trafficking and Sexual Violence

 

Here are the Sponsors so far:

Presenting Sponsor                Community First Credit Union

 

Supporting Sponsors              Associated Bank

Barb Merry

Bassett Mechanical

BOLDT

Goodwill Industries

Nicolet National Bank

Schenck

 

Friend Sponsors                      American National Bank

                                                           Curt Detjen Family Fund

                                               Wichmann Funeral Home

                                                            Fiduciary Partners

                                                            Herrling Clark

                                                            Esker and Associates

                                                            Wells Fargo Advisors

FEBRUARY 24th MEETING-AMERICA’S ENERGY FUTURE-DR.PORTER

Dr. J. Winston Porter will briefly summarize the current U. S. energy situation, including oil, gas, coal and nuclear energy, as well as renewables such as wind and solar. He will also discuss the rapid increase in shale gas and oil production by “fracking.”  Finally, he will outline “America’s energy future,” with emphasis on the next few decades.

FRIDAY FISH FRY--FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 20TH AT CIMARRON

FRIDAY FISH FRY-FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 20^TH AT CIMARRON

Rotarians are invited to gather for a FRIDAY FISH FRY, Friday, February 20th, 6:30 p.m. at Cimarron Bar and Grill in Menasha.

 

Cimarron is located just east of Oneida Street on Highway 10/114 on the north side of the highway.

 

Sign-up sheets will be at the check in table at Rotary meetings from Jan. 27^th through Feb. 17^th so we can complete necessary reservations with Cimarron.

 

Join us for an evening of fun and food and Rotarian good cheer!

FRIDAY FISH FRY-FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 20TH AT CIMARRON

Rotarians are invited to gather for a FRIDAY FISH FRY, Friday, February 20th, 6:30 p.m. at Cimarron Bar and Grill in Menasha.

 

Cimarron is located just east of Oneida Street on Highway 10/114 on the north side of the highway.

 

Sign-up sheets will be at the check in table at Rotary meetings from Jan. 27^th through Feb. 17^th so we can complete necessary reservations with Cimarron.

 

Join us for an evening of fun and food and Rotarian good cheer!

 

 

FEBRUARY 17th MEETING-SERVICE ABOVE SELF COMMITTEE/VOLUNTEER CENTER

None of us are alike, yet everyone is powerful beyond measure whether you realize it or not.  Join us on Feb. 17th when Tom Berkedal will discuss what it means to live a purposeful life

ANNOUNCEMENTS

·         RYLA COMMITTEE is looking for 2 more committee members.  If you are interested in joining please contact Gary Hermsen or Marta Weldon.

·         Rotary Shines is selling CHOCOLATES just in time for Valentine’s Day.  If you are interested they are $20 a box and you can sign up at our meetings. February 10^th will be the last meeting you can order!

·         Rotary Shines is looking for bottles of wine for the cork pull.  If you are interested in donating a bottle please bring to the meeting and give to Megan Klubertanz or Amy Flanders.  Value should be around $20/bottle.

Save the date: April 17^th for our Rotary Shines event which will be held at Fox Banquets.  Tickets go on sale February 3 and are $100/couple.

MILLENNIALS

Nancy Truesdell, Vice President for Student Affairs and Dean of Students for Lawrence University spoke to the club about the Millennial generation.  First she informed the club about the different Labels and Stereotypes.  If you were born between the years of 1925-1942 you are in the Silent Generation, 1943-1960 you are known as the Baby Boomers, 1961-1981 Generation Xers and 1982-2002 as the Millennials.  The basic trends that define Millennial generation are balancing the need for openness with the desire to keep young people (and the nation) safe. One example she spoke to us about was baby Jessica and how we watched every second of her escape from the well on TV.  Politically, these millennials have grown up seeing what they have determined to be ineffective government.  An example of this would be the relations between President Clinton and Monica Lewinsky and the possible impeachment. The political views have become more polarized at the expense of the middle.  There are fewer people in the middle which becomes an issue to get along with others.  Moving on to trends one of the largest with Millennials is technology.  They believe it is an extension of their arm.  This generation simply cannot live without it.  Another one of the biggest trends is increased parental involvement in children’s lives and closeness in family unit.  If you would ask a Baby boomer who their hero is they would most likely say a political figure.  If you ask Millennials they would say a parent, both parents and even a grandparent.  Nancy talked about defining characteristics of millennial students.  She started off with SPECIAL.  Boomer adults have been telling these millennials all their lives that they are special.  They want the millennials to feel good about themselves.  Another characteristic is sheltered/protected.  There are child safety rules - post Columbine, World of zero tolerance, parents have been organizing their children’s lives to give direction and millennials have come to rely on and trust authority.  Millennials are driven/achievement oriented.  They want to achieve quickly and move forward.  They have a general sense of optimism.  They believe they will do well and they expect themselves to do well.  They respect rules and are conventional.  They do not rebel against authority.  They are team oriented and want to get along and work together.  Millennials like to congregate as groups.  Being a member of a team takes some of the pressure off of the individual.  Also, if they encounter difficult people in their group, they are uncomfortable and want those in authority to handle it and make it right.  Millennials want to be sure that structure is enforced so they can count on the fact that compliance will be rewarded.  They have been pushed to be the best they can be and the need to please is strong, which perfectionism is sometimes the result.

FRIDAY FISH FRY-FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 20TH AT CIMARRON

Rotarians are invited to gather for a FRIDAY FISH FRY, Friday, February 20th, 6:30 p.m. at Cimarron Bar and Grill in Menasha.

Cimarron is located just east of Oneida Street on Highway 10/114 on the north side of the highway.

Sign-up sheets will be at the check in table at Rotary meetings from Jan. 27^th through Feb. 17^th so we can complete necessary reservations with Cimarron.

 Join us for an evening of fun and food and Rotarian good cheer!

 

 

FEBRUARY 10th MEETING-SERVICE ABOVE SELF COMMITTEE/VOLUNTEER CENTER

Service Above Self.  We have heard from many of you that one of the reasons you joined and belong to Rotary is to provide service to the community.  We have a newly formed committee called Service Above Self (SAS), which is headed by Nancy Leipzig.  On Feb. 10, Nancy along with Kristin Cates and Julia Drobek from the Volunteer Center of East Central WI will let you know more about this committee and how the committee will work closely with the Volunteer Center to provide our club with opportunities for service in the community.

ANNOUNCEMENTS

·         THE NEW WEBSITE NEEDS YOUR HELP!  The work is ready to begin on the new and improved club website. We are looking for three fellow Rotarians to join Mary, Jennifer, Deborah and Meghan as we identify features, establish page content and develop a new design for the site. To volunteer your time and talents to this important project please email Jennifer at jennifer@appletondowntown.org

·         RYLA COMMITTEE is looking for 2 more committee members.  If you are interested in joining please contact Gary Hermsen or Marta Weldon.

·       Rotary Shines is selling chocolates just in time for Valentine’s Day.  If you are interested they are $20 a box and you can sign up at our meetings. 

     Save the date: April 17^th for our Rotary Shines event which will be held at Fox      Banquets.  Tickets go on sale February 3 and are $100/couple. There is a cork pull for  this event.  If you could donate a bottle of wine or know any contacts that could help please contact Megan Klubertanz with that information.

ADDICTIONS IN THE FOX VALLEY

There is a growing number of substance abuse in the Fox Valley.  At our meeting we had three great speakers come in and inform the club on what is going on in the Valley.  Our first speaker was Officer Sean Kuether with the Appleton Police Department and he is also with the Outagamie County Drug Court and on the leadership team for the Fox Valley Substance Abuse Coalition.  He informed us that the biggest substance that causes the most problems in Appleton is alcohol.  Heroin and Meth are the next biggest issues and is a growing concern in our area.  In 2011 the police ceased 20 grams of heroin, in 2012, 47 grams, in 2013, 80 grams and in 2014, 112 grams. In 2009, 6 people were arrested for heroin and in 2014, 96 people.  Jane Zarnetzke, Intake Coordinator with the Mooring Program, spoke to us about inpatient treatment.  She helps people get in to inpatient treatment and deal with the addictions that have taken over their lives.  Their addictions affect their family members, employment, legal issues and most importantly their health.  The Mooring program help families heal and they work with all kinds of substances.  Half of the people that come in have an alcohol addiction the rest are addicted to meth or heroin and some marijuana.  Each person is treated differently due to their substance addictions and their withdrawals.  Usually they have patients stay from 1 month to 1 year depending on what works for them.  Our last speaker was Kathy Flores.  Kathy is with the City of Appleton as the Diversity Coordinator and on the leadership team for the Fox Valley Substance Abuse Coalition.  Most importantly, Kathy has a daughter, Amanda, who had a substance abuse addiction.   In junior high Amanda started using marijuana at the age of 16 and by 18 was using crack cocaine.  Four years ago she started using heroin.  Amanda lived a very dangerous life and was arrested in 2013 for manufacturing drugs and was sent to jail.  Kathy believes this saved her life.  Amanda had to detox in jail and face her consequences.  She has started rehab and is on the track to rebuild her life.  Over the years when Amanda was using she lost friends, family and most importantly her children.  Kathy’s advice to the club was that you need to take care of yourself first if you have a loved one that is going through this.  If there is shame it will halt the healing process, you cannot have control over everything and most importantly you are not alone.  There are others in our community that either are going through the same thing or went through similar experiences.  Seek out help from friends, family, police officers and share your story.