Today’s Program | Thursday, April 20, 2017
Today: Margo Squire, Nuclear Non-Proliferation (R. Flaten)
Next Week: Wanzita Ally, (Barry Carlson)
Birthdays: Wayne Abdella (4/17) and Dennie Hanson (4/19)
Last Week:
Colombia is home to Nico Suarez Tolozo. His country sits on the northwest corner of South America and offers a wide variety of eco-systems, from its beautiful Pacific and Caribbean beaches to the humbling Andes Mountains and the captivating Amazon Rain Forest; all provide stunning, scenic views.
Nico was born in Bogota, but his family now lives in Fusagasuga. His mother is a dentist; his father works for a watch manufacturer. Oil is an important natural resource for the country, but electronics is a growth industry. Colombia is also known for its coffee production and beautiful flowers.
Food and festivals are on Nico’s “to-do” list when he returns home. He is pointing for the San Pedro Festival, a celebration of the customs and folklore of rural Colombia. Next year, he plans to return to the United States and attend college in Houston, Texas.
Mini-Classification:
Jan Stevens is now the longest-serving female member of the club. She joined because her son wanted an exchange experience. That was in the late 1990s. She’s been involved in the youth exchange committee ever since.
Forty-six years ago, she came to Northfield with her husband, Stan, and was the youngest faculty wife at St. Olaf College. They moved back to home territory in southern Illinois where Stan had developed a business while in graduate school at the University of Illinois at Champaign/Urbana. Jan finished her Ph.d in Agricultural Economics, and they moved back to Northfield in 1986. They raised three children here, all exchange students. Jan has been in real estate for 25 years.
Besides Rotary, her civic engagement includes 4-H, Northfield Youth Choirs, statewide women in agriculture organizations, Northfield’s Vintage Band Festival, and she has an insatiable passion for the Civil War.
Guests: District Governor Jim Hunt (Wakely), Chris Sullivan Kelly, Heather and Oscar Kuehl (Nico).
Scholarship Enhancement: John Stull
Announcements:
— District Governor Jim Hunt invited members to attend the district conference Thursday through Saturday, April 27 and 29, at St. Paul. Our club will underwrite two participants.
— President-elect Jean Wakely will host new-member orientation and lunch on Wednesday, May 3, from noon-1:00 p.m. at Community Resource Bank. Current members who’d like a refresher are also welcome. Please RSVP to Jean.
— Emma Nielsen, our inbound exchange student from Denmark, has returned home early due to a medical condition.
— Rotary will hold a party Thursday, June 8, at the Estenson Event Center to celebrate graduation for our exchange students. The fun will begin at 5:30 p.m. and go to 7:30 p.m. It will also be an opportunity to thank sponsors of our Turkey Trot and Bike Tour.
— Ron Linde pointed us to an opportunity to consider important end-of-life matters at an event called “Honoring Choices,” Tuesday, May 9, 6:30 p.m. at St. Dominic Catholic Church. MPR’s Cathy Wurzer will be the featured speaker.
Inbound students are:
Daniel Chien from Taiwan
Nico Suarez Toloza from Colombia
Eric Kwun from South Korea
Wanzita Ally from Tanzania
Matteo Lombardo, Italy
Our 2017-18 outbound students are:
Madison Asp — Finland
Joan Erickson — Argentina
Annika Fisher— South Africa
Bergen Hoff — Czech Republic/Slovakia
Emma Iverson — Spain
Alex Kovach — Japan
Joseph Kreis — Italy
Benjamin (Ben) Mohlke — Brazil
Piper Nelson — Germany
Jenna Olien — South Korea
Jack Overstreet — Brazil
Gregory Pelletier — Argentina
Espen Richardson — Norway
Elizabeth (Betsy) Schuerman — Denmark
Allison (Al) Weise — Thailand
2016-17 Outbound Students
Sage Brinton, Argentina
Caroline Hummel, Norway
Noah Klein, South Korea
Jane Ludwig, Colombia
Yizel Marcial, Germany
Daiki Nishioka, Taiwan
Liliana (Lily) Noble, Italy
Emma Prichard, Taiwan
Nathaniel Urke, Brazil.
Coming Up
May 4 — Gordon Marino, St. Olaf philosophy professor and boxing coach
May 11 — Bill Davnie, retired Foreign Service Officer, the Future of Europe (S. Flaten)
May 18 — Club Assembly, Five-Year Plan (President Lasswell and President-Elect Wakely)
May 25 — Pete Sandberg, St. Olaf Assistant Vice President for Facilities, Solar Panels (Covey)