Rotary Informer

Petoskey Rotary Noon Club NEWSLETTER

November 9, 2022

101 Years of Service Above Self

Welcome to the Rotary Club of Petoskey. President Jeff Wynder officiated the meeting. If you did not get the chance to attend, you can read about it from this newsletter.

Pledge/Anthem:  Howard Richards led us in God Bless America

4-Way Test:  Joe Blachy  

Invocation:  Tim Dykstra

Well, the mid-term elections are over, even though some counting remains to be done.  Some candidates and issues will win; some will lose. As we respond to the results, just a small observation for us to consider:

“A pessimist sees the difficulty in every opportunity; an optimist sees the opportunity in every difficulty.”

Winston Churchill

Calendar Winners:  Read off by Tim Dykstra

Calendar Winners November 9, 2022

Visiting Rotarians: None

Guests:  Dr. Jeffrey Leslie – Prospective Member, Leslie Ender - Prospective Member, Kathy Petersen, Prospective Member

Life Events:  Betsy Newton asked us to please pray for her great nephew, who is having brain surgery on Monday.

Birthdays:  

Ron Snyder

Anniversaries:  

None

Singing/Song:  Howard Richards led us in Happy Birthday, Smile and 1970 Ray Stevens; “Everything is Beautiful.”

ANNOUNCEMENTS

Empty Bowls:  Manna Food Project's 'Empty Bowls' fundraiser is Nov. 21 at the Perry Hotel. Click here for more info.

Salvation Army Bell Ringing:  It's that time of year again!! On Friday, Dec. 9 and Friday, Dec. 16, Rotarians will ring the bell in front of Katy Did, which is next door to Grandpa Shorter's in downtown Petoskey. Online-sign up Link!

STRIVE Update:  Georgia Abbott announced that our STRIVE youth mentoring program is back in action! 20 Petoskey High School students are working with 20 mentors. STRIVE stands for Students Taking a Renewed Interest in the Value of Education.

Secret Santa:  Save the date! On December 12 from 6:00 - 8:00 pm, in the Reycraft Room of the Perry Hotel, we'll enjoy a Secret Santa gift exchange. Click here to sign up. You must sign up by November 27. In addition to purchasing your Secret Santa gift ($25 max) there is a $10 per person cost to cover food/beverage that night -- significant others welcome too! 

Pedal for Polio Update:  John Scholten shared that we've raised $1,435 through Pedal for Polio this fall. There's still time to contribute! With the Gates Foundation match, it amounts to $4,300 for polio eradication efforts worldwide.

Calendar Sales:  Mark your calendars! Calendars are due in 9 weeks. Please return raffle tickets and the funds collected to Karen Ragland. Each member is responsible for 10 calendars ($250). Thank you for your efforts!

Holiday Food Donations for Manna:  Parkside Deli (owned by Rotarian Sarah McDonnell) will be a drop-off location for those who wish to donate holiday-themed food to Manna Food Project (such as canned pumpkin, fried onions, stuffing mix, etc.)

PROGRAM: 

Today we had a delightful program, led by Rotarians Stafford Smith and Reg Smith, of Stafford's Hospitality. The father & son duo gave a brief history of two Stafford's Hospitality properties, the Bay View Inn and Perry Hotel. Stafford showed many historical photos and talked about his early days in the hospitality industry and how the pricing and room structure differed dramatically from the present.

Then Reg gave remarks on the state of hospitality today. He talked about how hospitality used to be driven by a strong food & beverage program (such as having a popular restaurant onsite). However, modern hospitality is more driven by real estate / property investment, marketing and room sales. 

Next Week’s Program:  Michael Swartz – Trivia Presenter

Transfer to Rotary Club of Petoskey:  We have a transfer from another Club coming into Rotary Club of Petoskey; Dr. Jeffrey Leslie from Harbor Country Rotary in New Buffalo, MI. He is the new superintendent to the Petoskey School system. We are going to have him attend our Fireside Chat so that he can find out what makes Rotary Club of Petoskey one of the best Clubs in this area.

Transfers out of Rotary Club of Petoskey:  We also had two transfers out of our Club; Vic George transferred to Grand Blanc and Joe Taylor transferred to the Rotary Club in East Jordan, MI