Speaker: Dr. Katherine Halverson

 

 

 

 

On a rather chilly and wet Thursday, Rotarians from far and wide gathered in the Great Lakes Ballroom at the Holiday Inn for a busy Club #25 lunch and program. President-elect Michelle Buria warmly welcomed us as she rang the Rotary Bell calling us to order. We rose and sang America the Beautiful accompanied by Past President John Baumgarten. Beth Storaasli prefaced her invocation by previewing today’s program from guest speaker Al Hodnik, calling us to remember that we live in a land rich with water. Citing a recent Smithsonian article, we find many unexpected ways of securing energy from water: capturing vibrations from rain drops, hydrogen fuel, bacteria and thermal methods that create electricity, sea water jet fuel, and other non-water sources such as solar-wind hybrids, geothermal and bio-fuels. We were reminded to be mindful of our natural resources and to work toward preserving them for future generations.

Past President Michael Orman offered the Fellowship Report. We were introduced to visiting Rotarian Eji Johansson from Poland, guest of and former coach not only of his host Tom Wheeler, but also Swedish Hall of Famer Skeeter Moore! Also visiting was International Rotary Youth Exchange Student Natalka Pron from Poland. Elizabeth Simonson, a past and now prospective Club #25 member, was hosted by Past President Tricia Bunten and Rob Hofmann. Marilyn Weber attended as the guest of Kelly Weber, and Rob Stenberg attended as the guest of Dave Holappa. Soon-to-be Club #25 member Katherine LaFluer attended as the guest of Robin Pestalozzi. The Golden Can was “kicked” quite a bit today: Scott Frankovich (an all too familiar sight this Rose Sale season) was “upstaged” and fined on behalf of his wife who was seen in the Duluth News Tribune previewing some new foods that can be had at the DECC. The Grand Avenue Nordic (Cross Country) Center had its multimillion-dollar groundbreaking, and fined for this honor were all Rotarians who are Spirit Mountain board members, sponsors or contractors for this project. Beth Storaasli’s law firm has merged and is now known as Dryer & Overom located in the second floor of the Sellwood Building. Dave Holappa has a new office location too, 2009 London Road #101. Jeff Bradt was featured in The Duluthian for a story on the new Woodland Hills campus in East Bethel, MN. Their new campus sits on 37 acres and will host a large number of residents and staff. The project is under the management of Kraus Anderson, drawing a fine from Dan Markham. Present-elect Michelle Buria (and other numerous Rotarians who are graduates of Leadership Duluth) were fined to commemorate the 30^th Anniversary of Leadership Duluth.

Podium Announcements included a final call for Rose Sale tickets from the politically oh-so-incorrect Rose Man, Rose’ (aka: Scott Frankovich) who encouraged all to turn in cash and tickets before the final order is placed! Additionally, Rose’ asked for all available Rotarians to help with distribution on Friday, October 12, and for a short period on Saturday, October 13. New Generations Chair Marc Seigar had Rotarian liaisons introduce our October Junior Rotarians. And finally, 20 Rotarians have birthdays in October, and all who were present were subjected to an honest rendition of Happy Birthday Dear Rotarians.

Our Chair of the Day Paul Helstrom introduced our program speaker Al Hodnik, Chairman, President and CEO of Allete. Mr. Hodnik, a product of our Iron Range, joined Allete in 1981 and has led it since 2009. Under his leadership, Allete and its growing roster of energy-related companies, remains a good long-term investment for those who hold its stock. Additionally, Allete is a good community citizen as expressed through their philanthropy to area nonprofits, a scholarship program for promising high school students, and civic engagement led by many Allete employees who give great amounts of time in service. Mr. Hodnik illustrated a number of ways that demonstrate Allete’s commitment to clean and renewable energy, while acknowledging there are challenges associated with every source of energy. For example, the staple that was coal remains an inexpensive but “dirty” source. So although he remains cognizant of the dynamic of jobs vs. environment, many coal-powered plants are closing and being replaced by natural gas burning plants under Mr. Hodnik’s leadership. In our area, Minnesota Power is implementing an EnergyForward strategic plan to provide significant reductions in emissions by diversifying its electricity generation mix to include more renewables and natural gas – a mix of two-thirds renewables to one-third coal. Minnesota Power is a partner in the Nemadji Trail Energy Center proposed for Superior that will generate as much as 550 megawatts of power. Allete has invested $200 million to acquire U.S. Water, enabling industrial users to conserve water and energy in more efficient ways. Mr. Hodnik cited a Colorado customer, Coors Beer, and California customer, Del Monte, as two examples of meeting expectations of both users and consumers. Mr. Hodnik, while stating that he along with his energy colleagues continue to be vigilant, closed his presentation by sharing his confidence in Allete’s ability to meet any threat to our grid; specifically, cyber threats being an unlikely concern due to the “closed system” between Allete and its customers.