As members entered the meeting at the Lyric Conference Center, they could not have missed the “fellowship buzz” that created a welcoming first impression. Club 25 members were obviously enjoying being together again. Stories were there in abundance. Perhaps they were listening to Earl Rogers as he told a story about when, as a home-coming military veteran, he had the per-chance meeting with two very beautiful Hollywood actresses. Or possibly learning from Dr. Bill Himango about his adventures in South America gathering information for has soon to be published first novel. There was net-working, exchanging of information, gathering ideas, and even some business transacted. The lunch was delicious. Smiles were everywhere. The table-talk was as always, one of the highlights of the meeting.
President Michelle Buria, was reluctant to interrupt the “buzz”, never-the-less rang the bell and the meeting began at exactly 12:15 p.m. Members were invited to recite the Four-Way Test. Past Assistant Governor Phil Strom began the Fellowship Report by introducing five student guests from The Hills. Other guests were Gretchen Soetebier, guest of Past President Jack Soetebier, Riki McManus, guest of President Michelle Buria. Geiger Yount had two guests: Shanna Mullen from Zeitgeist and May Adams from Laura MacArthur Elementary School. Phil Strom put two of his UMD hockey tickets up for auction and that brought $50 to the Golden Can. Self-reporting Rotarians included Tom Wheeler (to honor his grandson), John Foucault (to express his joy over the new house that will soon be his on Shultz Lake) and Bill Abalan (to commemorate 45 years of married happiness with Barbara).
Earl Rogers came to the podium to eulogize Dan Mundt, a long-time Rotarian, now deceased. Good naturedly, Earl alluded to Dan’s proclivity for giving long invocations. Dan was one of the note-worthy attorneys in Duluth – a lovely man and a dedicated member of Club 25.
Geiger Yount came forth to encourage members to be busy with the Rose Sale. The deadline for sales is October 3. This will give the Rose Committee enough time to place the order for the thousands of roses to be distributed on October 11th. She then introduced Shanna Mullen who shared with us her appreciation for the financial grants her organization – Zeitgist – has received from the Duluth Rotary Club.
President Michelle’s guest, Riki McManus, Director of the Upper Minnesota Film Office, informed our membership about Catalyst Stories, a film-producing organization that will be making its home in Duluth. To learn more about this new business, Duluth Rotarians are invited to a just-for-Duluth-Rotarians happy-hour on September 25th at 5:30 at the Boat Club restaurant in Fitger’s. Riki says that, with Catalyst here, Duluth will soon become known as Hollywood North!
Chairperson of the Day, Past President Dick Carlson, introduced Chris Thomalla for his presentation entitled “How the United States was involved in the Russian Revolution”. His program was a shortened version of an 8-week
course from his class at UMD’s University for Seniors. We learned much about the multiple Russian revolutions that resulted in the assassination of several Russian Tsars – and the turmoil that preceded Russia’s involvement in World War I. As the war was winding down, American troops – the 339th Regiment (known as the Polar Bears) - were sent to the area that is now Czechoslovakia where they were briefly engaged against the Russian revolutionaries. Chris included a good number of pictures and videos to bring the people and events to life.
President Michelle, standing in for Secretary Jeff Bradt and for Immediate Past President and Chair of the Nominating Committee, Steve Yorde, called for nominations for the up-coming election of officers and directors. Those members eligible for nomination to leadership positions were included in a handout on the tables. The Nominating Committee will be meeting in early October and the election will be during our annual meeting in December. She asked that if a member, or someone else they knew, is ready to be part of Club leadership, please submit their name to the Nominating Committee Chair, Steve Yorde.
After awarding Tom Wheeler his winnings from the 50/50 drawing, President Michelle concluded the meeting with an expression of appreciation to our speaker Chris Thomalla and with a motivational moment: “If you feel like you’re losing everything, remember that trees lose their leaves every year, and they still stand tall and wait for a renewal.”
About Rotary
Rotary is an international service club composed of a global network of leaders who volunteer to provide Service Above Self. The Rotary Club of Duluth became the 25th club when it was founded in 1911. Rotary now has more than 35,000 clubs worldwide. For more than a century, Duluth’s Club 25 has been a destination for networking, community involvement, friendship, continuing education and local, national and international citizenship. We meet at noon Thursdays at the Holiday Inn in downtown Duluth.
Our annual Rose Sale is our largest fundraiser, providing resources for:
- Grants to local organizations that help children and less-fortunate individuals by providing food, shelter and clothing
- Community improvements, including the construction of parks and funds that helped light Duluth’s Aerial Lift Bridge and Enger Tower
- Activities for local children, including an annual fishing trip on the St. Louis River
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