Northfield Rotary Club

The Club held a Youth Exchange fundraiser, dubbed To China and Back, at the Middle School last night.  See the album of 60+ photos or this slideshow:

The weather was freezing, the volunteers were nervous…but soon the runners started drifting toward the registration table for the 7th Rotary Turkey Day 5K Run, better known as the Turkey Trot. Within an hour, hundreds of people packed the Northfield Golf Club, then took to the snow-dusted streets. Just 16 minutes and 23 seconds later, Cullen O’Neill breezed across the finish line to take his third straight title. Megan Kelly won the women’s division in ??. The race is a holiday tradition, but this year it also is raising thousands of collars to help Rotary International’s initiative to eradicate polio in the world.

In all 325 people registered to run or walk the course, but due to our notoriously lax security measures, the pack also included several unregistered canine companion runners and a smattering of snowsuited toddlers bundled into strollers. There were high school runners, the veteran men and women that make it look easy, and newcomers like 8-year-old Nick Dempsey, one of many kids learning the sport from family members who ran with them and others who cheered them on. There were runners from the Cities who came just for fun, and neighborhood walkers clearly pushing to reach personal goals.

City Councilor and Rotarian Jim Pokorney surprised and delighted the crowd by showing up — and running the course — in an elaborate turkey costume. Jim says he had a burst of inspiration Wednesday night and whipped up the suit out of items scavanged from his house and garage.

Rotary members thank everyone who ran, who volunteered, and all the sponsors who provided prizes and donations for the event, and for the fight against polio. In the 1980s, 1,000 children were infected by the disease every day in 125 countries. Today, polio cases have declined by 99 percent, with fewer than two thousand cases reported in 2006.

See the photo album or this slideshow:

Here’s the press release from Robert Bierman (507-645-5848 or bierman1@frontiernet.net) on this year’s Turkey Day Run:

Northfield Rotary to sponsor 7th annual Turkey Day Run

Before you sit down to that big holiday dinner, before you flip on the TV for the big game, pull out your running shoes and join your neighbors in a different kind of Thanksgiving tradition. The annual Northfield Rotary Turkey Day Run is a 5K fun run/walk the whole family can enjoy. It starts at 9 a.m. at the Northfield Golf Club, with a route that winds through the neighborhood. There will be a time clock displayed at the finish, but this is a fun run, so there will be no official times. Awards will be given to the top male and female finisher.

All registered entrants will be eligible for raffle prizes presented at the finish of the race. The entry fee is $12 through Nov. 16, and $15 through race day. The first 250 entrants will receive long-sleeve t-shirts.  Race day registration begins at 8 a.m. (PDF registration form here.)

Proceeds from the race go to support Rotary programs. This year there will be a special contribution to Rotary International’s Global Polio Eradication Initiative. In the 1980s, 1,000 children were infected by the disease every day in 125 countries. Today, polio cases have declined by 99 percent, with fewer than two thousand cases reported in 2006. Two billion children have been immunized, five million have been spared disability, and over 250,000 deaths from polio have been prevented. Rotary has been a major force behind the polio fight, and many companies and organizations in Northfield are supporting the effort sponsoring the race and providing prizes.

• Northfield Rotary Turkey Day 5K Fun Run/Walk
• 9 a.m. Thanksgiving Day, registration opens at 8 a.m.
• Northfield Golf Club
• $12 before Nov. 16, $15 through race day
• First 250 entrants receive a long-sleeve T-shirt
• Prizes for top male and female runners
• All entrants eligible for prize drawings at end of race

See the 90+ photos in the album from the 2004 Turkey Day Run or this slideshow:

See the five dozen photos in the 2007 Jesse James Bike Tour photo album or this slideshow.

Songs of Hope, co-sponsored by the Northfield Public Schools Community Services Division, the Northfield Rotary Club, and the Northfield News, performed on Bridge Square on Thursday night at the end of Crazy Daze.

See the Songs of Hope 2007 photo album or this slideshow.

Here’s a video clip of the end of one of their many songs.

Click play to watch. 15 seconds.

From this Northfield News article:

“This is really a cool group of kids from all over the world,” said Mark Etzell, adult enrichment coordinator of the Northfield Community Services. Etzell has helped organize Songs of Hope the last few years. The children in the choir, who come from Turkey, India and Czechoslovakia, among other nations, perform traditional American standards. They also typically perform a song and dance from their native country. “The kids love coming to Northfield, especially on Crazy Daze,” said Etzell.

The annual Summer Social was held at Rick and Kris Estenson’s farm last night.

Above: the team that won the games competition. Click to enlarge and see the Summer Social photo album or this slidehow for the 60+ photos.

See the 42 photos in the album or view this slideshow of last night’s big Community Works celebration at Spring Creek Park.

Many Rotarians are pictured.

Rick Estenson sent me some new photos of the WINGS Oasis at the Amerman Pavilion so I’ve combined them with a few others to make a WINGS Oasis photo album, going back to a planning meeting at the Goodbye Blue Monday in January. Some photos are by Doug Grove, Grove Landscaping. I’ll keep adding photos to the album, culminating with those from the upcoming June 27th celebration/dedication. If you have photos to add to the album, contact us!

For the past few days, the Northfield Rotary Club has been hosting Group Study Exchange (GSE) Rotarians from the Rotary District 4400 in Ecuador. I took these photos at the Northfield Golf Club last Thursday night. Above left: Anne Bretts and Luigi Villacreses at dinner. Above right: Pat O’Neill and Jim Pokorney torturing the visitors with a magic trick.

L to R (click to enlarge): Mando Bastidas, Maria Belen Tello (with Northfield Rotary president Jim Blaha in the background), Liliana Andrade de Garcia, Pablo Ayala, and Luigi Villacreses.

See the album of photos or view this slideshow: