President Tim Tholen welcomed all to the Club with the Camp for Kids on the cozy, 28th floor of the Crowne Plaza Hotel. We stood for the Pledge of Allegiance followed by a invocation of love by Lisa Hickok. One visiting Rotarian, one guest of a member, and one soon-to-be Rotarian were introduced and welcomed. The following Club anniversaries were recognized: Lon Lawton (38 years) and Leland Shurin (6 years). President Tim thanked the Camp Board members for serving as greeters and then delivered a message regarding opportunities to contribute to the Kansas City Rotary Club Foundation. Camp Fellows give $1,000 or more to the Foundation. For the month of October, a fellowship may be had for a donation of $800, which will be supplemented by $200 by an anonymous donor. Also, October contributions by sustaining members, those who give on a recurring monthly or other periodic basis, will be matched dollar for dollar up to $200.
Pete Sotta kicked off the holiday-giving season by announcing the commencement of the annual Bill Brown Coat Drive providing donations of used coats to Shelter KC. You can bring coats to any of the next few meetings and give to Pete or Lee Brumitt who will deliver to Shelter KC. Eric Burger, the Executive Director of Shelter KC, then took the podium and invited anyone interested to attend the screening of a new documentary, “Americans with No Address” at Shelter KC beginning at 11:00 a.m. on October 24. Williams Baldwin narrates the documentary which examines homelessness across the United States. President Tim reminded us that the 4th Thursday at Minksy’s on the evening of October 24 will be a fundraiser for World Polio Day, and we need auction items as well as members to bring guests. Please let Mandy know if you have an auction item or plan to bring a guest. The Holiday Party will take place on December 10 at Grand Street Café on the Plaza. The cost is $75/person and will feature dinner and dancing.
Brad Kleindl then introduced our guest speaker, Evan Verploegh, the Executive Director of the International Relations Council. Evan came to Kansas City from Wisconsin to become IRC’s Program Coordinator in January, 2020 and became the Director in 2023. The IRC’s mission is to strengthen Kansas City’s global perspective by engaging in informative, educational, civil, and empathetic conversations focused on world events, global issues, and their impact on our local community. The IRC is in its 70th year after its founding in 1955. Elliott Berkley served as the long-time Executive Director until his death in 2012. Evan reviewed the various programs offered by the IRC which include the following: (1) Roundtable discussions occurring every Monday evening beginning with a happy hour followed by a discussion; (2) the WorldQuest competition where teams of 8 answer questions on international topics. Next year’s competition is on April 10, 2025; (3) annual Berkley Lecture. Last year’s speaker was the individual who negotiated Brittany Griner’s prisoner swap with Russia; (4) Youth programming including Global Futures program for college and university students featuring, among other things, a career fair and study abroad opportunities and the Academic World Quest, a competition among metro high school teams, the top prize being a paid trip to D.C. to compete in the national AWQ; (5) Lecture Series - currently a 6-part series focused on climate issues; (7) the Global Honors Evening recognizing those in the KC area which have had a particularly strong impact on enhancing Kansas City’s global perspective; and (8) Great Decisions Group which is a monthly discussion of specific ideas to improve international relations.
After an interesting question and answer period, a member of the Rotary WASH E-Club took the podium to explain a global grant to benefit various water projects in northern Uganda which are administered by the “market women” of the community. For those of you who may not know, “WASH” stands for Water, Sanitation, and Hygiene and the e-club provides an opportunity for individuals from around the world to work collectively on WASH projects. The quote for the day was from Dwight Eisenhower: “The world must learn to work together, or finally it will not work at all.” We said the Four Way Test and the meeting was adjourned upon the clanging of the Rotary Bell.
The Nominating Committee Presents the Following Slate of Officers for the 2024 Rotary Election. Ballots will be available at the Nov. 21 Rotary meeting.
Secretary/Treasurer/President-elect Nominee:
Kristy Bayer
For Director (Three will join the Board):
Eric Burger, member since 2019, Serves on Committee Service Committee, Youth Camp Board
Patrick Donnelly, member since 2010 , PHF, KCRCF fellow, served on Youth Camp Board, Weekly Scribe
Wade Freeman, member since 2021, serves on Ecology committee
Charlie Huffman, member since 2002 , PHF, KCRCF fellow, serves on Youth Camp Board, Music Committee
Nick Pryor, member since March 2021, Chair of the Ecology Committee
Pete Sotta, member since Dec. 2000 (rejoined in 2021), Serves on the Community Service Committee
Come help prepare medical supplies for hospitals and clinics in need. Tasks include sorting and packing medical supplies. This is a fun, engaging, and hands-on experience. Click here to sign up!
Project C.U.R.E. was founded in 1987 to help meet the need for medical supplies, equipment and services around the world. Project C.U.R.E builds sustainable health care infrastructure by providing medical supplies and equipment that healthcare personnel need for their communities. Since its inception, Project C.U.R.E. has delivered medical relief to people in more than 130 countries
During your time at Project C.U.R.E., you will organize new inventory, sort supplies, and/ or perform whatever projects need extra hands . This is a fun, engaging and hands-on experience.
Please keep in mind:
Volunteers are required to wear closed-toed shoes in the warehouse.
Wear weather appropriate clothing, it can be very warm in the summer.
Some heavy lifting may be required.
Volunteers under 18 require a parent/legal guardian signed consent. This must be brought the day of service to be able to work in the warehouse.
The Rotary Youth Camp serves nearly four thousand campers each year and the Kansas City Rotary Club Foundation assures that will continue for years to come. The Foundation contributes to the Camp’s annual operating budget and helps fund improvement to the facilities and grounds.
Through the month of October there is the Annual Fundraising Campaign for the Kansas City Rotary Club Foundation with a special discount for new donors - contribute $800 and you’ll be a Fellow! If you prefer to be a Sustaining Member, you can make a series of smaller contributions over a period of time until reaching the $1,000 Fellow level. Through the month of October, all new Sustaining Members contributions will be matched $1 for $1 - up to $200. There are two options for the donation. The traditional option is to donate a minimum of $100 per year until you have reached $1,000. There is now a second option; that is, to use the Donate Now button on the Rotary 13 web site and contribute a minimum of $10 per month until you have reached $1,000. The donation can be through Pay Pal, credit card, or debit card plus there is an option that the donation will be made automatically each month.
All contributions to the Kansas City Rotary Club Foundation are tax-deductible as charitable contributions.
If you have questions or want to make a donation, please contact Foundation President Marc Horner at mhorner@aol.com or 816.985.8766 or Foundation Resource Development Chair Sally Bibb at Sallybibb@aol.com or 816.835.2088.
Please join the Rotary Book Discussion Group for the discussion of the book Bel Canto by Ann Patchett. The book discussion will be led by Vivien Jennings and all Rotarians and guests are welcome. The group will meet at J. Wilbur Company.
Date: Monday, November 11, 2024, 6:30 PM
Location: J. Wilbur Company
3242 Roanoke
Kansas City, MO 64111
About the book:
Somewhere in South America, at the home of the country’s vice president, a lavish birthday party is being held in honor of the powerful businessman Mr. Hosokawa. Roxane Coss, opera’s most revered soprano, has mesmerized the international guests with her artistry. It is a perfect evening – until a band of gun-wielding guerrillas takes the entire party hostage. But what begins as a panicked, life-threatening scenario slowly evolves into something quite different, a moment of great beauty, as guerrillas and hostages forge unexpected bonds and people from different continents become compatriots, intimate friends, and lovers.
Another week of bowling in the books. Quite a few absences so a bit quieter than usual! There were 24 total bowlers, only 6 Rotarians!!!!!
200 games:
Brady Clark-200
Matt Ho-224, 212
John Lawrence-217
Peter Ho-204
Adam Kaplan-202
Tucker Clark-203
Will Patrick-212
Splits and spares:
Blake Fry-4/5
Matt Ho-3/6/7/10
Youth Camp Update
Laurie Mozley, Camp Superintendent
Remember, if you are planning to come out this Saturday and work with the Leawood Rotary Club to get all the tents put away and other tasks left to do at the camp, let Laurie know so there sre enough donuts to go around!
The fall colors really showed out this week at the Rotary Camp! We had a group from Summit Christian Academy come out and hold a day of service and the Compass Academy home school group was here again to enjoy the perfect weather! This past weekend there was a Scout finishing his Eagle project and a Girl Scout Service Unit held their annual Halloween event. This year the theme was “Mad Science”.
Centennial Memory
Many different organizations have utilized the Rotary Youth Camp facilities during the summer months. Here are BuzzSaw articles from the summer of 1980.