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Meeting Responsibilities
October 24, 2024
Greeter - Brian DeBenedetto
Invocator - Liz Dickinson
 
October 31, 2024
Greeter - Warren Heinke
Invocator - Mike Donnelly
 
November 7, 2024
Greeter - Earl Dotson
Invocator - Cynthia Drollinger
 
November 14, 2024
Greeter - Laura Eakman
Invocator - Jeff Fahrenwald
 
November 21, 2024
Greeter - Taylor Carlin
Invocator - Pete Rundquist
 
December 5, 2024
Greeter - John Fridh
Invocator - Helen Hill
 
December 12, 2024
Greeter - Jennifer Furst
Invocator - Monica Glenny
 
December 19, 2024
Greeter - John Goddard
Invocator - Lori Gummow
October 24th Program
 
World Polio Day
 
"Keeping Our Promise to the Children of the World"
 
     Eradicating polio has been a major goal of Rotary International for the past several decades. In 1988, Rotary joined in partnership with the World Health Organization, UNICEF, and the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention to form the Global Polio Eradication Initiative.
     When this project launched, there were 350,000 cases of polio in 125 countries every year. Last year, the number of cases of the wild poliovirus was down to just a handful in two countries, Afghanistan and Pakistan.
     The incidence of polio has plummeted by more than 99.9 percent. That’s the good news. The bad news is that polio cases have increased to 19 in Afghanistan and 17 in Pakistan this year.
     Laura Kahn began her Rotary journey when she joined the Rotary Club of Dunwoody on September 24, 2004, having been proposed and sponsored by Marion Bunch. She resigned from the Club on June 30, 2018. The Rotary Club of Dunwoody elected Laura to honorary membership in 2018.
     Laura is now a very active member of the Rotary Club of Princeton, Illinois which she joined July 1, 2018. The Princeton Club is celebrating its 100th Anniversary in 2020. Laura serves on the Board of Directors and is also chair of the annual Rotary Auction for the club’s centennial year in 2020. In addition, she serves on the 100th Anniversary Committee, the Community Service Committee, and the Rotary Foundation Committee.
     Both Laura and her husband Charles (Wick) Warren worked for the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).  Upon Wick’s retirement in December 2014, they moved from Decatur, Georgia to Princeton, Illinois to be near Laura’s mother and father. Soon after moving to Princeton in November 2014, Laura’s father, Douglas Kann, passed away in March of 2015.  Douglas was a member of the Rotary Club of Princeton for over 40 years.
     Laura currently serves as the Zone 29 Polio chair and her duties include speaking to local clubs to make sure we continue to support Polio Plus so we can eliminate this disease from the last two countries in the world. 
     This will also be an excellent opportunity to bring a guest or prospective member so that they can learn about Rotary. 
     President Mike will introduce our presenter and act as Rotary Host.
Read more...
October 31st Meeting
 
Annual Governor's Visit
 
     One of the traditions of each Rotary District is for the District Governor to visit each club in the district and discuss the goals of not only Rotary International but also the goals that District 6420 has in mind for Rockford Rotary.
     District Governor John Hurley is no stranger to our club having visited us on many occasions as a member of the Loves Park Rotary Club.
     John most recently served as Assistant Governor for Area 1 for three years (2-17-18 thru 2019-20), and as District Trainer in 2020-21.  He has also served on the District Literacy Committee, and the District Nominating Committee.
     John joined Rotary in 1992 as a member of the Machesney Park club, servicing two terms as club President (1995-96 and 2001-02).  He later joined the Loves Park club, again serving as President for two terms (2011-12 and 2014-15).  John is a member of the Paul Harris Society.  He has attended five Rotary International Conventions (New Orleans, Atlanta, Toronto, Hamburg, and Singapore).  He and his wife Marta hosted a Rotary International exchange student from Belgium.
     John and Marta live in Rockford.  Most of John's professional experience was as an educator in the Harlem School District in Machesney Park.  He served as principal in two different schools and later as the Superintendent of the Harlem School District.
     John will discuss the various goals of Rotary International for this Rotary year and also what District 6420 has in mind for Rockford Rotary to achieve this year.
     In the past our club has been a little lax when it comes to attending the District Governor's visits so we would encourage our members to mark October 31st on your calendar and make an effort to attend and support the District Governor.
     This will be an opportunity to bring a guest or prospective member to attend in person at Memorial hall or via Zoom so they can learn more about Rotary.
     President Mike will introduce the District Governor and act as Rotary Host.
Read more...
Two Service Project Collections
 
 
 
    - Cereal collection - please bring cereal for the Rock River Food Pantry. The barrel will be in the west entry through the month of October. THANK YOU!
 
    - Candy Collection - River Bluff indicated that they have children Trick or Treat there. The residents need about 10 buckets to hold candy. Also, we volunteered to provide some candy, so pick up an extra bag if you see one. Please be sure it is individually wrapped. Thanks again!
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President's Message
 
President's Message
 
Hello Rockford Rotarians,
 
     Thanks for all the hard work from our committee leaders.
     
     I hope to see you all in the next two weeks for Rotary End Polio day and our District Governor John Hurley's visit.
 
     Don't forget to share our End Polio now link and flyer https://cfnil.fcsuite.com/erp/donate/list/grant?grant_cycle_id=1132
 

Smile, you are important.

 
 
Thank you
 
Mike Forman
President - 2024-2025
Mike.Forman@outlook.com 
 
        
Read more...
Rockford Rotary Needs &
and Volunteer Opportunities
Club Needs & Volunteer Opportunities
 
     Our Club has a number of volunteer opportunities, but some very specific needs that have been identified are listed below, along with the contact information for the person leading the effort.  Please let them know if you would be willing to help in any of these areas.
 
Other Service Projects Coordination
 
Basic Responsibilities – Serve as project organizer/coordinator for other club service projects such as the following:  providing a meal for guests at Carpenters Place or the Veterans Drop In Center, including determining date(s) to provide a meal, buying the food, publicizing the volunteer opportunity and getting club members to sign up to help with serving the food.
 
Keep Northern Illinois Beautiful in conjunction with the Environmental and Sustainability committee - coordinate and get volunteers for a collection event (could be done on a continuing basis).  
 
Rockford Family Peace Center flower planting.
 
Other Events such as July 4th, City Market, etc. as they come up.  
 
CONTACT for more info or to take on coordination of one of these projects – Becky Rundquist, becky.rundquist@gmail.com
 
The Service Above Self Awards – Program Date, March 13, 2025
 
There are a number of parts of the whole.  This may involve a few meetings to be determined by those who want to be involved. 
 
     First, we need a good pool of candidates. According to program rules, candidates must be nominated by a member of the Club. Only a few may be Rotarians themselves. The rest must be from the Rockford community. If you want to help, please talk to the nonprofit organizations with which you are familiar. Who are the outstanding volunteers in their organizations? Let’s see how wide we can cast this net. Try to include both large organizations along with smaller ones.
     When we have compiled a good number of applications, there needs to be a committee to review the applications and select the winners. For those who nominate a successful candidate, they will do the introduction at the awards ceremony.
     The applications for both individual candidates and the Mary Stuart Carruthers award are available on our website. Look under the Membership tool bar near the top of the home page.
 
     Second, we need to involve the media, not only in covering the event, but also in announcing that the awards are available.
 
     Third, we need volunteers to plan and run the lunch and program on March 13, 2025 which includes many individual elements such as:
 
     Determining & Executing Program Elements.  Like last year for the ceremony, Mayor McNamara was invited to attend, say a few words, and hand out the awards.
 
     Getting flowers for each of the award recipients.
 
     Order, proof, and ensure plaques for each recipient are on site the day of the event.
 
     Track of reservations so we have enough food.
 
     Ordering Food and arranging pick up or deliver on March 13, 2025.
 
     Clean-up at the end of the program on March 13, 2025
 
     CONTACT for more info or to take on one of these pieces of this event – Dave Byrnes,   david.byrnes941@gmail.com
 
PRESIDENT ELECT 
 
     Yes, this volunteer position is in preparation for becoming Club President next year.  There ia a conference you would attend to train for the President’s position, learning about Rotary International and Rotary Districts and how our Club works within that structure. 
     If you’ve ever even thought about this as a possibility please talk to Mike Foreman, Pete Rundquist, Eric Moe, Linda Johnson, or any of our other previous Club Presidents and they can give you insight into what would be involved.       This is a great opportunity for anyone looking to serve the community and further your leadership skills at the same time. 
 
     CONTACT – Mike Foreman Mike.Foreman@outlook.com
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Future Programs
Future Programs
           
10-24-24 - "World Polio Day - Keeping Our Promise
                    to the Children of the World"
                    PDG Laura Kahn, Polio Chair Zone29
                    Host: TBD
 
10-31-24 - DG John Hurley Official Visit
                  Host - President Mike Foreman
 
10-31-24 - 5:30PM - After Hours Social
                  Carlyle Brewing Company
                  215 e. State St.
 
11-07-24 - Youth Exchange Program
                  YE Student Timeo
                  Host - Paul Van Driska
 
11-14-24 - Post Election - What Happens Now
                  Dr. Ron Lee
                  Host- Mary Ann Norwood
 
11-21-24 - Committee Meetings 
                  Thanksgiving Meal
 
11-28-24 - Thanksgiving - No Meeting
 
12-05-24 - A Country of Traumatized Children
                   The Children of Kosova
                    PDG Elise Cadigan
                   Host - TBD
 
12-12-24 - "Midwest Preparedness:
                    We are not Ready"
                    Diane Logsdon IPEM, CHEC
 
12-19-24 - Multi-Cultural Holiday Celebration
                  Rockford University Choir
                  Tim Adams, Choral Director
 
12-26-24 - Holidays - No Meeting
 
01-02-24 - New Years Travel - No Meeting 
Read more...
Weekly RI Foundation Message
 
Each week we will be publishing a message from the Rotary International Foundation.  This week's message is:
 
HOW SUCCESSFUL HAS THE EFFORT BEEN TO ERADICATE POLIO?
 
Because of Rotary’s support, nearly 3 billion children have been immunized against polio and are protected for life against this crippling disease.
 
Rotary and our partners reduced the number of wild polio cases from 350,000 in 1988 to 140 in 2020. Twenty million cases of paralysis have been averted through this global effort.
 
The wild poliovirus is now endemic in just two countries, and we won’t stop our effort until we’re able to give children a polio-free world.
 
Learn more and help The Rotary Foundation make history at endpolio.org. 
Read more...
Rotary Links
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Oct 31, 2024
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Nov 07, 2024
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Nov. 19, 2024
 
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Birthdays & Anniversaries
Member Birthdays
Lynn Momberger
October 14
 
John Anderson
October 17
 
Jim Powers
October 18
 
John Torrence
October 18
 
Brian Martin
October 23
 
Daniel Ross
October 30
 
Bob Presman
October 31
 
Join Date
Alex Stagnaro-Green
October 9, 2014
10 years
 
Dick Lunde
October 16, 1975
49 years
 
Cynthia Drollinger
October 25, 1991
33 years
 
Jeff Smith
October 27, 2016
8 years
 
Tyler Smith
October 27, 2016
8 years
 
Darlene Furst
October 28, 1994
30 years
 
Karl Jacobs
October 28, 1971
53 years
 
Meeting Responsibilities
Meeting Greeters
 
September 5, 2024
Rundquist, Becky
 
September 12, 2024
Braffett, Jay
 
September 19, 2024
Buchmann, Frank
 
September 26, 2024
Cadigan, Elise
 
October 3, 2024
Capriotti-Angileri, Lisa
 
October 10, 2024
Carlson, Larry
 
October 17, 2024
Coffey, Jim
 
October 24, 2024
De Benedetto, Brian
 
October 31, 2024
Heinke, Warren
 
November 7, 2024
Dotson, Jr., Earl
 
November 14, 2024
Eakman, Laura
 
November 21, 2024
Carlin, Taylor
 
December 5, 2024
Fridh, John
 
December 12, 2024
Furst, Jennifer
 
December 19, 2024
Goddard, John
 
Meeting Invocators
 
September 5, 2024
Berger, Suzanne
 
September 12, 2024
Brynteson, Mark
 
September 19, 2024
Byrnes, Dave
 
September 26, 2024
Coffey, Jim
 
October 3, 2024
Foreman, Michael
 
October 10, 2024
Carlson, Larry
 
October 17, 2024
Johansson, Russ
 
October 24, 2024
Dickinson, Elizabeth
 
October 31, 2024
Donnelly, Mike
 
November 7, 2024
Drollinger, Cynthia
 
November 14, 2024
Fahrenwald, Jeff
 
November 21, 2024
Rundquist, Pete
 
December 5, 2024
Hill, Helen
 
December 12, 2024
Glenny, Monica
 
December 19, 2024
Gummow, Lori
 
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Rockford Rotary - Our 109th Year - www.rockfordrotary.org