Rotary 13 members and guests gathered in The Kill Devil Club at 14th and Main with select individuals participating remotely via Facebook Live. President Eric Bubb brought the assembly to order at 12:13pm with the clang of the club bell. The meeting started with the Pledge of Allegiance, and then Chris Meikel’s invocation reminded the group of the obligation to love our neighbors.
Mandy Sheldon identified Visiting Rotarian Sara Lissauer from the Overland Park South club and meeting guest David Fritz, District 6040 Asst. Governor. Club 13 also observed one member anniversary this week: Ted Higgins, 2 years. Thankfully no club members were in sick bay at present.
Club board candidate introductions followed, with those nominees in attendance standing to be recognized. The slate includes Kristy Bayer, Jessica Block Stewart, Kara Croniser Feitz, Bill Madsen, Dan Nenonen, and Robert Thompson. Paper ballots were distributed to meeting attendees as they departed after lunch. Those members still in need of ballots should contact Mandy, with the reminder that all ballot envelopes need to be signed by the club member before returning them.
Two projects supporting Westside CAN are underway and require club participation. Lee Brummit spoke to the toy drive for the youngsters who rely on the community action network—those gifts of toys are due by 4 December. Pete Sotta explained the need for winter coats and hygiene kits for the day workers affiliated with CAN; that deadline for donated materials is 23 December. President Eric reminded the group that seasonal bell ringing in support of the Salvation Army still has signup slots open. He further called attention to upcoming club events:
- 11/22—Rotary After Hours at Project C.U.R.E., sponsored by The Satellite Club
- 12/8—Club Holiday Party, Drexel Hall
- 12/15—Program Committee Meeting prior to lunch meeting downtown.
At 12:23pm, President Eric introduced the day’s guest speaker, Jonathan Shorman, Lead Political Reporter with the Kansas City Star. He leads reporting on state-level politics for both Kansas and Missouri, after previous work experience covering both Topeka and Jefferson City for regional newspapers. A graduate of the KU School of Journalism, he is lauded for his investigative work around Wichita city politics and shares a George Polk Award for that coverage.
Mr. Shorman began with summary comments about the 2022 mid-term election results earlier this month, then moved into a generous question and answer session with meeting attendees. His key takeaways from the November balloting include:
- The absence of a Red Wave favoring Republicans, with the showing for the White House party as strong as G.W. Bush’s first midterm elections in 2002;
- State races in Kansas and Missouri also affirmed this;
- Big name incumbents did well in both parties;
- Statewide offices generally didn’t change hands between parties;
- The lack of a Red Wave should not be understood as a Blue Wave;
- Voters have calcified into two camps and shaking things up is now harder than in the past.
In sum, Mr. Shorman contended, that both parties came to the election as incumbents and both parties remained in about the same spots overall.
At 12:36, he opened the floor to questions, and heard from a good number of club members on a range of topics. The queries covered Speaker Pelosi’s changing role, the high funding level for the race in Kansas’ 3rd house district, and how ‘business gets done differently’ in Topeka and in Jefferson City. He shared his views on ranked-choice voting, noted that information on the youth voter turnout in MO/KS was not yet available, and commented on how cross-primary spending by the opposing party has caught on and seems likely to stick around. In response to questions, he indicated that national polling by the New York Times and Emerson College are presently the gold standard, but lamented that little independent polling, particularly for down-ballot races occurs. When pressed on whether democracy was at stake in this November election, he felt that given some of the candidates across the country, yes, it was.
President Eric thanked Jonathan Shorman for his remarks and encouraged all club members to stay engaged in local and state affairs.
Next week, the club will forego meeting in observance of the Thanksgiving holiday.
At 1:03, President Eric concluded the meeting by citing Milton Berle: “If opportunity doesn’t knock, build a door.” The 4-Way Test closed the session.
We will help Westside CAN provide winter jackets, gloves, hats and a hygiene kit to the men that participate in the 
Help us give a happy holiday to children in Kansas City! We have committed to 50 gifts for the Westside CAN Center, monetary donations are also acceptable via checks mailed or delivered, or given to one of the community service committee members to drop off. You can sign up at 
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