This Week at Rotary
By Michelle Buria – Chair of the Day
We will meet at noon
Wednesday, November 27, 2019 at
The Great Lakes Ballroom
67th Joint Thanksgiving Meeting with Kiwanis
Dr. Barbara McDonald
President, College of St. Scholastica
Speaker
Dr. Barbara McDonald became the 13th President of the College on August 5, 2019. Come and hear her life journey and her plans for the College. This will be our 67th joint Thanksgiving Meeting with the Kiwanis Club of Friendly Duluth.
Highlights from Last Week’s Meeting
By Rob Hofmann
“There is nothing so American as our national parks. The scenery and the wildlife are native. The fundamental idea behind the parks is native. It is, in brief, that the country belongs to the people, that it is in the process of making for the enrichment of the lives of all of us. The parks stand as the outward symbol of the great human principle.” – Franklin D. Roosevelt
Boston may have Boston Commons, New York may have Central Park, and San Francisco may have Golden Gate Park, yet none compare to Duluth’s 11,000 acres of green space, with 6,834 acres of parkland and over 200 miles of recreation trails! On this Thursday, we leaned just how special our Duluth parks are maintaining a healthy and vibrant community.
President-Elect Dean Casperson called us to order and we began with Rotary’s Four-Way Test followed by Dan Maki and the Rotary Reflection. He spoke of the many hours he has enjoyed in our parks and trails seeing fellow community members and even a visiting Olympic Athlete who was utilizing the trails for training. Pulling double duty, Dan Maki offered up the Rotary Fellowship Report beginning with introducing our guests: From C.W. Technologies, future Club 25 member Tess Sevastiades was hosted by Dean Casperson (and yes, she is his step daughter); Anne Hamann from VisitDuluth was guest of Stacy Oltmanns who noted that both have daughters named Ayla! Skeeter Moore brought Mike Ward who works as Race Director for Northshore Inline Marathon and Skate Fest.
Dean Casperson read a letter from the Damiano Center to thank the Club for our grant to Kid’s Kitchen which helps in the feeding, sheltering, and clothing some of our most vulnerable kids. He also spoke on behalf of Past President John Baumgarten to remind us of our annual food drive which has a $3 for $1 match thanks to Miner’s Foods and their suppliers. Jerry Pelofske announced Club 25’s annual Salvation Army Bell Ringing campaign will be held on Wednesday, December 4 and again on Wednesday, December 11. Bell Ringers are to meet at the Rotary Office at 11:30 to pick up aprons, kettles and bells. Lunch at the Lyric to follow. Past Assistant Governor Phil Strom presented Past President Tricia Bunten a Paul Harris Pin with two rubies, which represents a cumulative gift to the Rotary Foundation of $8,000.
Past President Tricia Bunten with Past Assistant Governor Phil Strom
Chair of the Day Jenny Peterson introduced our speaker, Duluth Parks and Recreation Manager, Jessica Peterson who is a familiar face to many Rotarians. Ms. Peterson is a UMD graduate, a mother of two, and has worked at The Hills as Director of Community Services. The work that Ms. Peterson undertakes is done by a staff of 15 FTEs, along with the City of Duluth Property and Facilities Management department, and numerous seasonal staff. Their work is guided by the mission: To promote the health and well-being of our community, environment and economy by facilitating recreational opportunities and coordinating the enhancement of our parks, facilities and natural resources now and into the future. Ms. Peterson spoke about two key areas: Planning and Stewardship – seeking additional financial support through grants and assessing the condition of parks, equipment, and facilities. Yet most of what we enjoy is under the area of Program and Operations – Youth, Senior and Volunteer programing. Youth programing served more than 13,000 participants this past year where kids of all ages enjoyed activities such as Youth Flag Football League, Open Skate, School’s Out Adventures and more. A new program recently introduced Group Programs and Mobile Recreation which offers “To-Go” activities outside of the park setting. As no kid or family should be left out, Duluth Parks and Recreation has provided $6,000 in fee assistance! Senior programing offers a rich menu for activities at all levels. Senior programs are operated out of three community centers: Morgan Park Community Recreation Center, City Center West / Evergreen Community Recreation Center, and Portman Community Recreation Center. Seniors may take advantage of Day Trips such as the December 18th Christmastide with the Celtics Sounds of SimpleGifts with Billy McLaughlin that includes a motor coach bus and a buffet lunch. Closer to home there are numerous exercise programs and social gatherings where a game of bongo or a movie may be enjoyed. Duluth Parks and Recreation needs volunteers to meet the many challenges it faces – such as invasive species. Those who wish to help may sign up as a member of the Duluth Invaders who work May to October ridding our parks of buckthorn and tansy. There is the Clean and Green program that runs from April to November that work in teams for the upkeep of parks and trails. Ms. Peterson thanked Rotary Club of Duluth for our past support including the lighting of Enger Tower, trail work and tree planting in Hartley, and more.
Jenny Peterson, Speaker Jessica Peterson, PE Dean Casperson
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