Those who participated in the January 29 Social Night at the Scheels Sporting Goods Store came away with a wealth of information about ongoing activities in our Club. Here are just a few of the projects and ideas that members discussed.

 

Jim Applegate provided an update on the District Club grant that is providing refurbished computers for a computer lab at Helping Hands and some of the plans for continuing work with The Outlet.

 

Harry Mitchell appraised us the plans for our upcoming Foundation Night on February 26 where Paul Harris Fellow recognition will be given to club, community, and family members (see upcoming Programs and Events for more information). 

 

Bill Smith spoke about plans to continue to get the oranges for the annual citrus sale from California because they were of a higher quality than the oranges we have been getting from the Florida Grove. The current plan is to continue to get the grapefruit from Florida because they have consistently been of high quality.

 

Rod Buffington announced that we will have a Rotary Night at the Ball Park on July 13, and there will be 2,000 tickets to sell. He also noted that his baseball artwork will be featured in a Springfield Art Association exhibition in mid-July along the work of a another well known baseball artist, James Farentino.

 

Bill Kempiners reported that the two individuals affiliated with Goodwill that we previously recognized as Paul Harris Fellows have identified  two students who would like to go to the RYLA (Rotary Youth Leadership Awards) training. We are working with them to send these two students to RYLA, which will be held from April 12-14 at Lake Williamson, Carlinville. 

 

Vicki Megginson and others spoke about the January 26 performance of 12 Armenian youth dancers at Westminster Church. This event was sponsored by a Rotarian friend of Barb Malany (Vitaliy) and was promoted to all Rotarians in Springfield by Barb Malany and again to all our club members by Travis Magoulias. Three of the dancers (shown in the image below with Vicki Megginson) stayed with Vicki in her home during their time in Springfield. Vicki and the other club members who attended the performance said it was a wonderful cultural experience.

 

Katherine Turner and Dave Fowler spoke about a series of projects to distribute computers refurbished through Dave's business (Computer Banc in Springfield) and to provide technical training through internships in Dave' Educational Center in his facility. Dave also described a previous District Club Grant project where our club provided 100 refurbished computers to students at Ridgely Elementary School. The families had to contribute $50 to get a computer for their child to keep them invested in the project. He suggested it might be time to look into such a project with Ridgely School again. Katherine and Dave will be pitching an international project at the upcoming PETS (President Elect Training Seminar) in which other clubs could buy refurbished computers for projects. They also spoke about a project to bring in $125,000 in donations to expand the Educational Center at Computer Banc so they could support more interns. The need for IT Techs is so great that interns trained through the program would be hired by Hewlett Packard as soon as they graduate as has been the case for a current program at Lincoln Land Community College.

 

Jim Applegate described an organization that he recently joined and thought others might find of interest. The organization is called Third Act. It is a national organization that has state groups. He joined the Illinois Chapter. The group works climate issues and access to clean energy. It was recommended by National Geographic. 

 

Dave Fowler suggested that our club might consider going to a performance at Legacy Theater for one of our evenings out. 

 

Vicki Megginson described some international trips that will be coming up under the banner of the new WeCARe Rotary Club (chartered as Rotary World Citizens Alliance of Springfield, IL), including a trip to British Columbia in June and a trip to Poland and Romania in October. They are also planning a trip to Nepal. There may be spaces available on these trips for members of other Rotary Clubs.  There were numerous questions about this International travel club so we are planning to do a separate story on it in a future Newsletter.

 

We have asked all of these individuals to expand these topics and submit a story for the Newsletter.

Ten club members attended and greatly enjoyed the 2024 Martin Luther King, Jr. Breakfast hosted by our long-time partners Springfield Frontiers International. In addition to the Rotary table shown in the lead image to this Newsletter, we also had members at three other tables. Club members also purchased 12 tickets for UIS students to participate in the breakfast (See Loretta Meeks' article below).

 

We were pleased that such a large crowd (image above) was able to participate in the breakfast and hear the presentations despite dangerously cold temperatures and numerous winter illnesses in our community. Members were inspired to action by the keynote presentation by Wendi Will El-Amin (image below), M.D. and Associate Dean for Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion at Southern Illinois University School of Medicine. Dr. El-Amin is a professor in the Department of Family Medicine and provides care at the Center for Family Medicine in Springfield. In addition, to work to eliminate inequities and disparities in health and health care, her message spoke to the need to keep the dream going in the next generations.  

 

Thanks to Ken Gilmore for taking and providing the images for this article.

 

Twelve UIS students (lead image and images in this article provided by Justin Rose) attended the Frontiers International Dr. Martin Luther King Day Celebration Breakfast as a result of sponsorship by members of the Springfield Rotary Club. Six members of the Club worked together in an “impromptu” effort with Justin Rose, member of the Club and Director of the Diversity and Inclusion Office at the University of the Illinois Springfield to identify and sponsor twelve students. The students were representative of several majors and levels of academic preparation ranging from sophomores to seniors. 

The theme for this year’s event, “In Times of Challenge, We Will Stand,” provided an overview of accomplishments and challenges of the times as well as promoting the inclusion of new dreams, new journeys, and new dream keepers for the next generation of leaders. The keynote speaker was Dr. Wendi El-Amin, the Associate Dean for Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion at Southern Illinois University School of Medicine. She challenged audience members to concentrate on individuals and organizations that will encourage them on their journey and help to promote their dreams—a message that each of the students embraced. The Springfield Club’s sponsorship initiative did a lot to convey that we accept the charge and responsibility of supporting our youth and being encouraging “dream keepers.” 

Students commented on their appreciation for the Club’s sponsorship and support. They were uplifted by the message and the Club’s gesture and indicated it was an excellent opener to the upcoming spring semester. 

 

Attendance at the event is a tradition for the Club. Ten club members (lead image and images in story below) were able to brave the weather conditions and attend.  All members appreciate the dedication and mission of Dr. King, the efforts of Frontiers International, the University of Illinois Springfield and the sponsoring members.

 

Thank you for signing up for a  micro pantry volunteer shift. Your time and effort are greatly appreciated by the community we serve. Below are the details including your two week shift, location of the pantry, and suggestions on items to collect and distribute.  If you are unable to complete your shift, please reach out and we'll work on a better period of time to meet your needs. If you have suggestions for future volunteers, please let me know and we'll adapt the program along the way.

 

 Ridgely Elementary School 

 2040 North 8th Street

 Springfield, IL  62702

 Main entrance to the school (look for the yellow and purple pantry by the front  doors).

 

The image below shows the location of the pantry at the entrance to the school.

 

 

 

 These suggestions came from people who use food pantries to help feed their families. 

 

1. Everyone donates Kraft Mac and Cheese in the box. They can rarely use it because it needs milk and butter, which is difficult to get from regular food banks.
2. Boxed milk is a treasure, as kids need it for cereal, which they also get a lot of.
3. Everyone donates pasta sauce and spaghetti noodles.
4. They cannot eat all the awesome canned veggies and soup unless you put a can opener in too or buy pop tops.*
5. Oil is a luxury and needed for Rice a-Roni, which they also get a lot of.
6. Spices or salt and pepper would be a real Holiday gift.
7. Tea bags and coffee make them feel like you care.
8. Sugar and flour are treats.
9. They fawn over fresh produce donated by farmers and grocery stores.
10. Seeds are cool in Spring and Summer because growing can be easy for some.
11. They rarely get fresh meat.
12. Tuna and crackers make a good lunch.
13. Hamburger Helper goes nowhere without ground beef.
14. They get lots of peanut butter and jelly but usually not sandwich bread.
15. Butter or margarine is nice too.
16. Eggs are a real commodity.
17. Cake mix and frosting makes it possible to make a child’s birthday cake.
18. Dishwashing detergent is very expensive and is always appreciated.
19. Feminine hygiene products are a luxury and women will cry over that.
20. Everyone loves Stove Top Stuffing.

 

 

Time Commitment:   Two consecutive weeks (1-2 restocking visits per week)

 

 

 Volunteer Schedule for Winter 2023 - Spring 2024

 

 

Thanks to Bonnie Styles for stocking the pantry for the December 17-31 shift during the holiday season. Bonnie provided the image on the left that shows the special items she stocked in the pantry for Christmas Eve and Christmas. She restocked the pantry on December 27 and December 30 (image below) to be certain that it was ready for New Years Eve. Each time she checked the pantry, there were only a few canned goods left, including some green beans and chickpeas. This pantry continues to be heavily used during the winter months.

 

Thanks to Bill Sturm for stocking the pantry from January 1-14, which has included some extremely cold weather! Special thanks to Rod and Rosemary who have taken the next shift and encountered severly cold weather. Thanks to Rod & Rosemary Buffington for stocking the pantry from January 25-28.

 

Upcoming Schedule:

January 29 - Feb 11: Jim  Applegate

February 12 - 25: Harry Mitchell

February 26 -  March 10: Sheila Mack

March 11 - March 24: Ross Hodel

March 25 - April 7: Randy Erford

April 8 - April 21: Jason Huddleston

April 22 - May 5: Bill Kempiners

 

Micro Pantry Coordinator:  Allie Montney

Phone 217-494-6901 (for the quickest response, please text)

e-mail  OneDirtyMartini@gmail.com

 

            

Things I've noticed that may be helpful:  Stocking the pantry on a weekend or after 4:00PM during the weekdays means less people and easier to get a parking spot.  Ask friends and family to donate unused household items for the pantry that you can collect.  If purchasing bags of fresh fruit or veggies, stock them individually so that more in need can take what they need.  It's going to be freezing outside soon, so consider if the items will no longer be good if frozen.  ALDI grocery stores have prices that cannot be beat. 

 

 

 

We also need to help keep our newest Little Library at the old Firehouse well stocked with books (image below)! We thank Kathryn Harris for her work and promotion for this Little Library, which is right across the street from her home! If you would like to help stock this little library and any of the others we have installed in Springfield, please contact Jason and Allison.

 

 

We previously installed a Micropantry at Ridgely Elementary School (our adopted school) with support from a District Grant. At our October 23 meeting, Allison Montney volunteered to coordinate the stocking of this micropantry with food, cleaning, and toiletry items. She has implemented a system for volunteers to sign up to stock the pantry for a two week period. If you would like to volunteer to stock this important and regularly used pantry, please let Allison know (onedirtymartini@gmail.com) as soon as possible. More information is provided in Allie's article in this Newsletter. 

 

 

 

On September 12-15, Flag Service teams completed the last pick up of flags for 2023 following the commemoration of Patriot's Day (September 11). Teams picked up the flags and returned them to the warehouse. The teams consist primarily of Rotarians, but numerous family members assist Rotarians in this effort. Alec Tobias, son of Barry Tobias, often assists Barry. The image above shows Alec picking up flags in this final round for 2023. The image on the left shows Ross Hodel picking up flags, and the image below shows John Webb and Jim Theis returning flags to the warehouse.

 

 

At our September 18 meeting, President Travis extended a special thanks to all the individuals who participated in flag installation and pick in 2023. Please consider volunteering for the Flag Service project. There is much work to be done throughout the year. Bill Sturm relayed that there is a current need for volunteers to help replace faded flags with new ones and help transfer good flags from bent poles to new poles. If you are interested in assisting with this task please contract Bill Sturm (sturmdmd@hotmail.com). Please contact John Loftus (jlloftus@aol.com) if you would like to help with any aspect of our Flag Service project. It's rewarding and raises lots of money for our community grants program!  

 

As noted by our Warehouse Czar Bill Smith, this year's successful campaign had ended and has raised monies for our community grants program. We thank all the Rotarians who ordered and sold citrus, and all those who worked on the planning of the campaign and in the warehouse.

 

Please remember to report your service hours and related contributions. Travis Magoulias has added the 2023-2024 Rotary Year to the form. You will be able to enter your hours now and correctly assign them to the correct Rotary Calendar year. Just follow this link:

 

 

Please email images of service activities to Bonnie Styles at bonstyles@yahoo.com. It's easy to take pictures if you have a smartphone, but even an old style camera works just fine. Send me an email (bonstyles@yahoo.com) to let me know when you will be volunteering for a service project, and I will come out and take some images.

 

Be sure to turn in your hours for any volunteering that you do on behalf of Rotary.

 

Be sure to record the service you conducted over the holidays. The images below show Rotarians from our Club volunteering on holiday projects.

 

 

 

 

 

Keep up with the club communications by checking the website at www.spirotary.org, Facebook and LinkedIn. Be sure to "like" or "follow" us!