College City Cogwheel | January 7, 2021 (Jan 06, 2021)

THIS WEEK'S MEETING

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THIS WEEK'S PROGRAM

Trisha Duncan

Trisha Duncan, Classification, "A Lifelong Learner with Family Happiness." Hosted by Kristi Pursell.

BIRTHDAYS

Tony Huettl (1.1); Meredith Galdeen, Jim McLees and Fred Rogers (1.4); Ron Linde (1.5).

MEMBERSHIP ANNIVERSARIES

Rich Lorang-15 (1.1.2006); Dave Wolf-18 (1.8.2003); Emily Fulton-Foley-2 (1.9.2019); Timothy McKone-1 (1.9.2020).

RCAT CORNER

Our Rotary Climate Action Team (RCAT) is dedicated to making climate change a strategic priority and to raising awareness, providing education and encouraging individuals and businesses to act in the interest of our planet.

Our Climate Action Statement - Read our climate action statement here.

For additional information about our club’s Rotary Climate Action Team chair, Alan Anderson, at 507-371-4673 or luckyduck49@gmail.com.

LAST WEEK'S MEETING

Thanks to last week's Cogwheel Reporter, Meredith Galdeen.

HOLIDAY FUN

Northfield Rotary “To Tell the Truth”

Pat O’Neill yet again led the club in some holiday fun! We played a little more “To Tell the Truth”.

In case you missed it from December 17th’s meeting, the game works this way - each person tried to convince us that they were telling the truth with their story. Storytellers were very, very complete and creative in their tales. Deciding who had actually experienced it in real life was no easy feat. [Editor’s note: truth tellers are in blue.]

Story #1 - One summer my brother and I left home and took a bus 1400 miles to Miami, FL. From there, we hopped a flight to Lima, Peru and stayed with our aunt and uncle who lived there. I was 15 and my brother was 13.

Was it Jim Loe, David Wolf, or David McKee?

Story #2 - My father played on a basketball team that defeated the Harlem Globetrotters.

Was it Richard Schulte, Todd Thompson, or Scott Richardson?

Story #3 - I am the oldest of six kinds and grew up in a town that is the birthplace of Osteopathic Medicine…

Was it Brad Frago, Rachel Morey, or Charlie Cogan?

Story #4 - On a fishing trip to Canada, we were lost and separated from our party. We found a bar in the middle of the forest. We found a bull moose in our path. We found the river and launched our canoes. We got lost again. We survived because we had all the food. The other party survived because they had all the beer.

Was it John Stull, Janice Lehmhuhl, or Dan Stager?

Story #5 - I scored the first goal in my high school varsity soccer team’s history.

Was it Chris Weber, Jean Wakely, or Matt Hillman?

Story #6 - postponed to another time…

Story #7 - After a lecture in the middle of the week, about 100 audience members came to my apartment where we introduced High Balls. The last guest left at 3:30 am leaving behind 13 empty bottles of Jim Beam and all the ginger ale in the house.

Was it Bruce Morlan, Yogi Reppmann, or Richard DeBeau?

Jim Pokorney also wowed us with his card trick talents! And Richard Collman played us out once more on his harp, named Sarah.

The entire December 31st meeting can be viewed here.

COMING UP

Holly Schoenbauer

January 14 — Holly Schoenbauer, Project Friendship: From Yesterday to Today. A brief look at Project Friendship and where we are today. How we have weathered the COVID storm and are emerging stronger and more defined than ever before. Hosted by Rick Estenson.

Maggie Milano

January 21 — Maggie Miland, Rotex, Graphic Recording: Building Equity and Community in a Virtual Age. As a community builder, has this past year left you feeling disconnected and Zoomed out? What if there was something that could help us reconnect in a meaningful way? Graphic recording, or visual note-taking, is a powerful tool that puts people and their voices at the center of every conversation.

Cecilia Cornejo

January 28 — Cecilia Cornejo, At Home as a Perennial Outsider. Artist, filmmaker, and educator, Cecilia Cornejo, will share her experience as an immigrant living in Northfield, her residence since 2010. Drawing on her ongoing project, The Wandering House, Cecilia will discuss how she finds both a sense of purpose and belonging in a community-engaged artmaking practice. Hosted by Jean Wakely.

Vicki's Vision

Vicki Dilley, President

Happy Better Year!

This is my favored way of greeting people into 2021. I am not only wishing you another year, but a Better year.

This time of the year we often look back and then we turn and look forward. In terms of our Rotary club I think we have a lot to look back and be thankful for.

Barry brought us into 2020 with a zeal like Barry is noted for. I appreciate his ever-ready-up-beat-attitude and that attitude paved the way for us to stick to our intentions, move into a pandemic and a new thing called Zoom.

We did not get the opportunity to have much of a good bye with our five inbound exchange students — Diogo (Brazil), Mark (Hungary), Sophie (Germany), Ara (Paraguay) and Oliver (Slovakia). Likewise, the 12 outbounds all came home before their time had fully matured. Those planning on going out in 2020 were cut short and were asked to find that flexibility and resiliency we often talk about in youth exchange training and apply it to the present day. I think when I look back, this brings me great sadness. Kopano has gone back to Zimbabwe and we are left with no inbound students for at least another eight months and it is not a given that they will arrive in August or outbounds will go out.

Fundraising events became distanced and virtual, but it seems to me the same dedication was put into planning them as there ever is. Remember the fun 4 Way Taste in people's outside facilities? Or the great Covid tshirts produced for the DJJD bike tun or the free range Turkey Trot? The Rotarians working on this worked hard to make sure the event and Rotary's work was not forgotten in 2020. Thank you to all who worked to make this happen!

In 2020 we welcomed new members Tim McKone, Ann Richards, Don Stager and Melissa Hansen. We are so thankful that they are fellow Rotarians!

In 2020 we, unfortunately, had several folks have to leave the club, for various reasons. I would like us to remember them too — Larry Defires, Shelley Holden, Doug Crane, Candy Taylor, Karen Allawala, Julie Stoesz, Carl Behr, Reginaldo Haslett-Marroquin, John Sauer, Tim Peterson and David Koenig. We wish them all well and hope that, if they have the opportunity and desire in the future, they will find a club to join again. I appreciate that Doug and Regi often join us on our virtual meetings, all are welcome!

While our club did not bring the dollars from fundraisers like we have in the past, we redirected our lunch money to support Kahlo's, The Key, the CAC, Rice County United Way-Covid19 fund, Project Friendship, Northfield Arts Guild, CRWP, Health Finders, HCI, Ruth's House, Hope Center and Northfield YMCA.

Recently the Board voted to take $50,000 from our rainy days fund and give two thirds locally and one third internationally. While a decision for the international funds has not been decided yet, the funds will be distributed locally to the CAC, The KEY, Healthfinders, Laura Baker, Ruth's House, Hope Center, Northfield Retirement Community and the Three Links Care Center. (For amounts, see the December 17 Cogwheel).

The Literacy committee continued to work on the Little Libraries around town; the newly formed Diversity, Equity and Inclusion committee formed and is focusing on important work in this area; we became more familiar with Braver Angels; and the RCAT (Rotary Climate Action Team) continued to do some creative and forward thinking work. They installed another EV charging station with the partnership of the City.

Meredith led us further into the new website and ClubRunner (our database system), and I expect we will continue to peel back the layers of this tool and become even more adept in it's many ways to serve our needs. Rick Esse transitioned us nicely into a more environmentally friendly Cogwheel with the Cogwheel being delivered almost like clock work at 5 p.m. on Wednesday via email. I see no need to go back to a paper form .. .that is so 2019!

Change has happened, some good and some not so good, but we have been as flexible and resilient as we expect those exchange students to be. I am certain I am forgetting something ... almost without exception, I send this weekly note off to Rick to put in the Cogwheel and I wish I added or changed something. Most times I just let it ride.

Now, moving forward, I will ask you ... are you engaged in the ways you want to be in your local Rotary Club? What are your passions and interests? Do you feel like getting involved in something new? If so, please reach out to a Board member, to me, to Barry and let us know. We are here to help you find that sweet spot in 2021! We have much to look forward to! Thank you to all who have brought us to this time in the important work of the Northfield Rotary Club!

Onward to a BETTER Year!

Vicki

P.S.

Carrie Carroll invites all of us to Northfield Shares an Evening of Entertainment, virtual event on January 23, 2021.