Finding Your Rotary Niche
On Monday, July 10th Margie Rask took over as president of the Coon Rapids Rotary Club. Margie’s term began on July 1st, although this was the first regular meeting of the club due to the July 4th holiday. Margie succeeds Nick Bednarcyzk, who served as club president for the 2016-2017 term. She began Monday’s program with a presentation on the importance of Rotary, not just in our community, but internationally. There are 1.2 million Rotarians around the world in 34,000 clubs. As many know, Rotary has played a significant role in nearly eradicating polio from the planet!
The lunch was described as a business meeting with the goal of asking members to sit at one of five tables organized around the club’s various service opportunities, including Membership, Service Projects, Public Relations, The Rotary Foundation, and The Rapids Sampler. Members dug in and had a robust conversation on ways in which the club can boost its effectiveness in these important service areas. More work is needed, so all members will have an opportunity in the future to find something that aligns with their skills and interests. Come find us or we'll come find you.
Thanks to Margie for her work in facilitating the discussion and to all members who attended and participated in the conversations. Our club’s strength is based on member participation and that means you! Feel free to contact Margie or any board member if you’d like to discuss ways to get more involved and find your Rotary niche.
Rotarian Visitors
Last week Ron Nordeen from the Anoka Rotary Club joined us for lunch. It was nice to have Ron in our presence and we encourage club members to make a visit to a nearby Rotary Club. It's a great way of building social connections and boosting our Rotary network.
Special Guests / Prospective Members
Also last Monday, Shelley Gunn joined the club for lunch. Shelley works for the Newport Group’s downtown Minneapolis office. Shelley has expressed interest in joining our club, so introduce yourself the next time you see her.
Welcome New Board Members
In addition to Margie Rask assuming the role of club president, the following individuals joined the club board for the 2017-2018 term:
- Letty Van Ert (Secretary)
- Kelli Halek (Treasurer)
- Matt Stemwedel (Programs Director)
- Erik Hegg (Service Projects Director)
- Nick Bednarczyk (Past President)
- Grant Fernelius (President-Elect)
- Dave McCauley (Club Administration)
The Board meets the 3rd Monday of every month at 11:00 AM in the same room as our weekly lunch program at Bunker Hills Event Center. Feel free to join us this week. Thanks to Brad Wise (former treasurer) and Mike Thorsland (former past president) for their involvement with the board during the 2016-2017 term.
This Week's Lunch Program
This week the club will hear from representatives with the Anoka County Veteran's Court, which was established in 2012. The Court is a collaborative effort between several Anoka County agencies including Veteran's Service, Public Defender's Office, Sheriff's Office, Attorney's Office and Court Administration. According to the federal government, there are 22,000 veteran's living in Anoka County and more than 355,000 in Minnesota. Please join us for an informative program.
Service Project Opportunity
On Tuesday, July 18th Coon Rapids Rotarians will join forces with Thrivent Financial and work on a Habitat for Humanity home under construction in Blaine. This is a great opportunity to work with your fellow Rotarians to fulfill our motto of Service Above Self. Thanks to Letty Van Ert for organizing the event. Click on the Events Page banner for more information.