Rotary Informer

Petoskey Rotary Noon Club NEWSLETTER

April 6, 2022

1921 – 2021          100 Years of Service Above Self

Welcome to the Rotary Club of Petoskey via Zoom on the world wide web and in-person from here on out if God willing and the creek don’t rise. President Elect Jeff Wynder officiated the meeting. If you did not get the chance to attend, you can watch it from this:  Recording

Pledge/Anthem:  Georgia Abbott played “God Bless America”

4-Way Test:  Melissa Thompson

Invocation:  Jean Frentz

"A strong nation, like a strong person, can afford to be gentle, firm, thoughtful, and restrained. It can afford to extend a helping hand to others. It is a weak nation, like a weak person, that must behave with bluster and boasting and rashness and other signs of insecurity."

Jimmy Carter

Calendar Winners:  Read off by Lyle Peck

Calendar Winners April 6, 2022

Visiting Rotarians:  Bill Ahrenberg from Cheboygan, Jeff Hansen from Cheboygan

Guests:  Bart English, Prospective Member

Life Events: 

Ashley shared that she visited Wibby Brewing while in Colorado.

Birthdays: 

Jane Millar

Anniversaries:  

None

Singing/Song:  We sang Happy Birthday and Row, Row, Row Your Boat (in a round)

ANNOUNCEMENTS

Roadside Cleanup Chair Needed:  Thank you to Tim Kaufmann for his many years of organizing our club's semi-annual roadside cleanups. Due to recent health challenges, Tim needs to step down from this role. Our club is looking for a new chairperson to take over this activity! Please contact Christian Smith if you are interested.

Support for Ukraine, Part 1:  Chris Etienne shared that our district is participating alongside 9 others for a matching grant opportunity with the Rotary Foundation. Our district has been connected with a doctor in Chicago who runs the Ukrainian Medical Association of America. He is working with Rotary to coordinate shipment of 60 tons of medical supplies to Poland, to support Ukrainian people.The cost to ship is $250,000 -- so each of the 10 districts (including ours) is applying for a $25,000 grant.

Upcoming Rotary happy hour:  Save the date! On Wednesday, April 13 we'll gather from 6:00 - 9:00 PM at the Barrel Back Restaurant in Walloon Lake. Our very own Rotarian Jeff Wynder will be performing music that night alongside fellow musician Pete Kehoe. Word on the street is that Jeff might be part of the second set, so arriving fashionably late would probably be okay. Link

Jump for Polio:   Grand Haven, Michigan June 25, 2022 8:00 am – 5:00 pm. All District 6290 Rotarians plus family and friends are welcome to come to Grand Haven on June 25 to skydive to raise money to fight polio worldwide.

Our very own Betsy Newton has volunteered to jump as skydiving has been on Betsy's 'bucket list' for a long time. Please support her with a donation! If you also wish to join her in jumping, as we can have two jumpers per club in District 6290, please see our club president. We are seeking to procure donations of at least $1,000 per jumper.

Voting in Emmet/Charlevoix County:  Jean Frentz reminded us that on May 3^rd you have the opportunity to vote for the Char-EM Career Technical Education. Two questions on the ballot. Please get out and vote!!

Crooked Tree Information:  Crooked Tree is bringing back Swirl and is being catered by Sarah McDonell.

Park Grant Members Needed:  Ashley is looking for members who would like to be on the committee to select the upcoming Parks Fund Grants. If you are interested, please contact her.

Thirsty Thursday:  Next Thirsty Wednesday will be April 13^th at the Barrel Back from around 6-8pm (Ashley)The word on the street is that our very own Jeff Wynder might be there playing.

PROGRAM 

Our guest today was Amy Beach (Health Coach) from Pellston Public Schools, who works in the Culinary program. (Known as the healthy mom) Pellston wanted to revamp the lunch program to make the food healthier and to make more food from scratch, so they hired Amy to take over the program. They requested a grant from the Petoskey Harbor Community Foundation and received a grant for $100,000 to start up. Amy has connected with many of the local farms to receive fresh local produce during the summer months. She also has taught the students what it means to eat locally. (The USDA has a different philosophy and anything that says Whole Grain is reimbursable.) Amy has overhauled the menu at Pellston to get rid of the unhealthy foods and make the menus healthier. Another big change was to add protein to the breakfast menu. So why does it matter to us? Our culture has created this food industry to eat quick, eat fast and cheap. This unfortunately is based on from generation to generation. It is the hope at Pellston that they can teach students how to eat healthy and that there is another way to do things. Amy hopes to make a difference for her students. Pellston also offered a cooking class for Freshman and Seniors to teach them how to cook. This was a six-week class to assist students. They are also working on making the concession stands healthier. Very interesting program. Making a difference for kids.

Next Week’s Program:  Nikki Devitt – Petoskey Chamber