Our March 3 Social Night at the Corner Pub was well attended and enjoyable (lead image). On March 10, we had a productive Club Assembly on recruiting and engaging members. Team leaders provided progress reports and we had time to meet in our teams. Please remember that we are not meeting on March 17 to allow you to celebrate St. Patrick's Day with friends and family. Join us on March 24 at Maldaners Upstairs to hear our Rotary Inbound Exchange Student Kyosuke Kawasaki speak about his background and his time in Springfield.
Twenty Rotarians participated in our Social Night at the Corner Pub & Grill on Springfield's West Side (Lead image). I heard the food and service were excellent! Conversations were great, but the extremely long table, which had to be extended twice, made it difficult to hear beyond those sitting adjacent to you (image below). We have had several recommendations for requesting clusters of smaller tables so it's easier to hear people at your table and even those at surrounding tables. Even though it was difficult to hear, we had a great evening filled with laughter and stories.
March 10 Club Assembly on Membership Action Items
I extend special thanks to President John Webb (image below) for filling in for me at the March 10 Club meeting. I hope he considered this an opportunity to practice for his upcoming presidency! This Club Assembly on Membership Recruiting and Engagement went well. Harry presided over the session and Team Members reported on their progress and had time to further plan their activities. Some teams are doing surveys and handed out lists for club members to consider. On March 12, Harry Mitchell sent out a ClubRunner email to all members on behalf of the Corporate Membership Launch Team. Harry and the Team request that you read and reply to this email and also copy the committee members in your response. One attachment to this email is a list of Corporate Member Targets for you to review. Please list key contacts you might have at these businesses and suggest other businesses to add to the list. Also let the committee members, know if it is okay to use your name when they reach out to the business. The other attachment to the email is a draft of a case statement about the value of Rotary that they plan to use to convey the value of Rotary membership. Please review this statement and share any suggestions and additions that you might have.
No Club Meeting on March 17
We will not be meeting at Maldaners on March 17 because it's St. Patrick's Day! We encourage you to enjoy your corn beef and cabbage with friends and family and participate in some of the community events.
March 24 Club Meeting Features Inbound Exchange Student
Please join us at Maldaners Upstairs on March 24 when our featured speaker will be Inbound Exchange Student Kyosuke Kawaskai. He will provide us with more information on his background and describe his experiences in Springfield thus far. Don't miss this chance to learn more about our Rotary Inbound Exchange Student. He is shown below with the Kempiners at our 2024 Holiday Party.
When we meet at Maldaner's, please submit your reservations for dinner! Click on the link embedded below and enter the date, your name, dine in/carry out and number of meals being consumed in the restaurant and/or carried out prior to each meeting. Preferably, everyone will fill out the form by noon on the Friday before the upcoming meeting. We have given Jesse at Maldaner's access to the view, so it will help him with planning. As always, we will direct him to have a few additional servings available for members who forget or last minute guests.
The same link will work for the entire Rotary year and will be shared within each Newsletter, so do not delete the Newsletter until you have submitted your dinner information. Please remember that the three most recent Newsletters can also be accessed from the Website Home Page (www.spirotary.org) so you can also access the link for reservations from the Website Home Page (www.spirotary.org).
Editors Note: Jim Applegate, Chair of our Club's Peace Builder Committee (second from right in image below), spoke about our Peace Builders Committee and the Social Justice Sewing Academy at our July 8 Club Meeting. At that meeting, District Governor Dan O'Brien (second from left) and past District Governor, Bill Durall (far right), presented President Megan Reynolds and Jim Applegate with a Rotary International Certificate recognizing our Club as a Rotary International Peace Builder Club (image below). We are very proud to be recognized for our peace-building efforts.
Our Club's Peace Builders Committee secured grants from the Healing Racism in Illinois Program (https://fieldfoundation.org/healingillinois) and the Rotary Literacy Grant program to create a partnership with the Social Justice Sewing Academy (SJSA) (www.sjsacademy.org) and The Outlet (www.theoutletillinois.org) supporting an SJSA academy for the African American young men and boys (as well as some of their parents, grandparents, and young girls) served by The Outlet. The Outlet largely serves youth in families without present fathers.
For three nights about 25 participants (a) talked about what it means to be an African American male in Springfield and America (b) worked with SJSA staff and experienced quilters to translate the ideas and emotions sparked by those discussions into visual images imprinted onto quilt squares and (c) created artist statements expressing what their squares meant to them (images above and on left provided by The Outlet). Each of the young men were given a copy of the book “Stitching Stolen Lives” authored by one of our SJSA partners (image below provided by The Outlet) and a picture of themselves with their square.
The insights and high level of engagement of participants was amazing to hear and see. One retired veteran teacher/quilter called it “one of the most meaningful things I have ever done.” Everyone involved from SJSA organizers to Outlet staff, to Rotary and quilter volunteers came away in awe of the young men’s work as well as energized and motivated to make sure their message was heard far and wide to spark change.
These squares have been transformed into a beautiful full-sized quilt by SJSA. With support from a second Club Grant from Rotary District 6460, the Peace Builders Committee is organizing community events where the quilt will be displayed, and recordings of the young men talking about their work will be presented to leaders and citizens across Springfield. The goal of these events is to spark community conversations about what Springfield needs to do to address the issues raised by these young men and their quilt and build greater peace in our community. The first event will take place at The Outlet, which will be the ultimate home for the quilt.
The Springfield Outlet-Rotary quilt will also be loaned for displays at national quilting expositions and museums along with the estimated 45 other community quilts created to date by SJSA to give voice to those who are often not heard by their communities and country.
Our Club's Paul Harris Fellow Committee selected Mark Forinash of Cafe Moxo as our 2025 Paul Harris Fellow and recognized his team for their service to the community. In his citation, Club member Bob Stuart (image on left) noted that "Mark and his team are rising stars in the community. He and his team epitomize Rotary dedication to the community through vocational and community service at it's finest." We presented a Paul Harris Fellow Certificate, Medallion, and Pin to Mark Forinash and also recognized the contributions of his team at our Annual RI Foundation Night on February 24 (images below).
Mark (image on left) and his Cafe Moxo Team have made numerous contributions to the community. In April 2020, Cafe Moxo started feeding breakfast and lunch to those in need from their Adams Street location in Downtown Springfield. It wasn’t long before they realized that there were more people who needed help than what they initially realized. After establishing a drive-through, pick-up system, Cafe Moxo later delivered meals to some who were homeless and staying in local hotels. Cafe Moxo also provided meals to The Salvation Army and local churches, even on Sunday’s when the restaurant was normally closed.
“This is an opportunity to really come together and put words into action. It’s all about giving back to the community that’s given so much to us [Cafe Moxo],” Forinash said about the food giveaways.
Mark Forinash, the owner of Cafe Moxo, sprinted down the sidewalk along East Adams Street with a replenished box of bagged meals as the restaurant delivered them to anyone in need on Sunday, November 15, 2020. Forinash, along with his wife Shawna, and general manager Brandon Hughes gave out 500 meals in twenty minutes on that day.
After the 2024 Adams Street fire forced their downtown location to close, Forinash noted that "Our goal is to keep every employee on staff....We are 100% taking care of our employees; that’s non-negotiable for my wife, Shawna, and I. These are the people who make downtown what it is.”
In response to the Adams Street fire, he and his team continued to serve the community. "We used those hours that were traditionally used in the restaurant to work at the Breadline, St. Martin de Porres, and Washington Street Mission." He pledged that “We’ll go around downtown and pick up trash and remove graffiti or paint, do things to really help out the city. There’s no reason why we can’t use this time efficiently. We’re going to put our people to work; these guys need something to do.”
The fire and structural damage and the demolition of the proximal building ultimately forced Forinash to make the decision to relocate the business from their down location. Fortunately they reopened this spring at their new location on Chatham Road. We expect that their dedication to the community will continue from this new location!
Please consider volunteering as part of the Rotary Club of Springfield Team for this event! Club members have enjoyed volunteering for this event in the past (image above and below)
The United Way Day of Action is always a great deal of fun and very well attended by Rotarians. The spring event will be on Friday, April 25, 2025, from 1:00-4:00 p.m. at various locations to be assigned closer to the day of service. This year, volunteers are invited to an appreciation luncheon beginning at noon at the Salvation Army. Participants will also receive a complimentary United Way t-shirt for volunteering. Please register as early as possible to designate on your form a t-shirt size allowing adequate time to have the shirts printed. In addition, your registration form also includes an action wavier which is the same as in the past. If you invite others to accompany you, a reminder the minimum age to volunteer is 8 years old for the day of service.
REGISTRATION LINK
United Way Day of Action Website (Go to for more information and to register):
Day of Action promotes volunteerism and illustrates what we can achieve when individuals, organizations, and businesses work together. Our Rotary Club will be assigned to one location so we can volunteer together.
-Ken
WEBSITE INFORMATION
Please read: The information contained below is from the United Way link. It is provided for you to preview before clicking on the link to register.
Volunteers:
-Volunteers may sign up as individuals or as part of a team by completing the registration here on Get Connected, which can be found by scrolling this page until you see "Spring 2025 Day of Action Volunteer Sign-Up!" Instructions on how to complete the registration process will be found there.
-Teams: all individuals must complete/"respond" to the sign-up on Get Connected, but will note their team and/or organization name, team leader name, and leader contact information on the sign-up.
-Individuals and teams will then be assigned a volunteer opportunity that best fits the information given on the sign-up form.
-Project assignments and details will then be emailed to participants at least one week prior to Day of Action. Examples of past volunteer assignments include painting, cleaning, outdoor spring cleanup, sorting files, making crafts/greeting card distribution to agency clients, stuffing folders for events, and other similar activities.
-Volunteers receive a Day of Action t-shirt to wear while volunteering and the feeling of satisfaction that comes from taking action to help out our community! There will also be a volunteer recognition lunch brought to you by PNC!
The global grant application has now been submitted to the Rotary Foundation for its review. The preliminary steps were time consuming in, pulling the initial application together in Nepal and then submitting the application for review by the Water and Sanitation Rotary Action group (Wash Rag). Wash Rag came back with Several significant steps and suggestions. The project now is more than just providing water from a source over an hour to two hours away, but also includes a plan to impose a fee upon recipients to build sustainability of the system. The village will maintain the system using the funds received by the fees and train individuals in proper maintenance of the system itself. As to the users of the system, the school and the village will provide water and sanitation training and education. Nepal is part of the Third World countries where open defecation occurs. This sanitary system hopefully will be a driving force to educate the population in proper use of water and sanitation
In addition, the women and young girls will not be required on a daily basis to walk to the source of the water and carry it back to the village. This allows the women to engage in micro-credit business, and the young girls to attend school for the full day.
Examination of the proposal by Wash Rag allows them to issue an additional grant in the amount of $2000 to assist with the project
To put it briefly, after extensive review, we have now submitted a detailed application to the Rotary Foundation, which will be the final step in the process of securing the grant!!!
The drinking water problem in Nepal is a multi-faceted issue that affects millions of people throughout the country. After the 2015 Nepal earthquake, the problem of drinking water became more severe as many old tanks got damaged and were not suitable for use. In many cases, the water source has dried up, which not only created havoc in society but also forced many people to migrate.
The Rotary International Grant Application for this project was prepared by the Rotary Club of Dhulikhel in Nepal. We will be working as a U.S. partner with them on the Dhakalthok Drinking Water Project. This village is in Mandandeupur Municipality of Kavre, Nepal. After the 2015 earthquake, the water system was damaged. The people in the area have been transporting drinking water from a distance of 1.5 km. Women spend around 40-60 minutes to fetch the water. The goals of the project are to provide sustainable access to clean drinking water for underserved communities in Nepal, build and rehabilitate the water supply system that ensures the availability of safe drinking water, promote community involvement and education on water management and hygiene practices, and reduce the prevalence of waterborne diseases through improved water quality. The project will include infrastructure development including construction of 50 water tanks (each holding 1000 liters) to provide drinking water as per World Health Organization standards and pipeline and tap construction to bring water to 50 households with 326 members. It will also provide community education and training, monitoring, evaluation, and formation of of a Water User Group and Mandandeupur Muncipality commitments to ensure sustainability. As noted above it also includes a plan to impose a fee on water recipients to build sustainability into the system.
On March 15, at the University of Illinois Springfield (UIS), we can take advantage of the opportunity to learn, share ideas, and connect with other clubs in our district at Rotary District 6460’s Spring Training 2025.
This day will enable each Rotarian to deepen their understanding of Rotary.
The day’s breakout sessions will include, but not be limited to, relevant topics such as: (1) Membership growth strategies, (2) Rotary Foundation initiatives, and (3) Leadership development.
Registration for this FREE event is VERY simple. Just click on the link below and it will take you go to the registration forms.
In addition to Saturdays program, I will be participating in Friday’s sessions that are dedicated to preparing presidents-elect, such as myself, for their upcoming term.
I encourage you to join me in this opportunity to further Rotary’s shared mission of promoting peace and good will, providing service to others, and encouraging integrity.
The Rotary Club of Springfield has agreed to host a Foreign Exchange Student for the school year 2025-2026. We are looking for at least two host families to serve one semester each of the school year, preferably with Springfield or Southeast High School boundaries.
At this point in time, we cannot tell what the student's gender or home country will be, but we can put in a request for a male or female if required by a potential host family. Preferably the family will have a high-school aged student, but that is not a requirement. Single family hosts are allowed pending approval by both the student and the student's parents.
Please think of family and friends you think may be interested in hosting a Foreign Exchange student, preferable three if you can think of that many. You or they may contact me for additional information. My email is bkemp1100@hotmail.com, or phone 217-494-7467.
Finding host families has become difficult, so I would appreciate any assistance you can provide. I am attaching a list of host family requirements. Please note that COVID inoculations are no longer required.
I sincerely appreciate any assistance you can provide.
At our January 27 Club meeting, Vicki Megginson announced that Springfield Rotary Clubs are helping with a group of Lithuanian Dancers who are coming to Springfield. This group has come to Springfield in the past and Rotary Club members have helped with their arrangements. Volunteers will be needed to provide homes for the dancers to stay in and transportation to where they are going the next day. If you are interested in opening your home to one more young dancers, let Vicki know. She noted that she previously hosted three young women dancers and had a blast.
More information on the schedule is available now. The Lithuanian group will arrive in Springfield on the evening of April 29 and will depart on the morning of May 1 after breakfast with their host family. The Springfield Coordinators for the event are Viktoria Legge and Asta Wilder, and The Rotary Club World Citizens Alliance of Springfield (WeCARe), including Vicki Megginson, Sandy Bellatti, and Claire Manning, is coordinating host families for the group for the evenings of April 29 and 30. Several more (2-3) host families are needed to accommodate the Lithuanian Director and Program Coordinator and the young male and female dancers, most of whom are 18 years old. Separate host families are needed for male and female dancers.
WeCARe is hosting a welcome dinner for the group on April 29. The Lithuanian group will visit Springfield attractions and give a community program on April 30. There are opportunities for our Club members to be involved by serving as host families, perhaps by sponsoring a pot luck dinner on April 30, and/or by attending the performance on April 30.
If you are interested in participating, please let Vick know.
Editors Note: On January 13, Bob Stuart shared this note from Rotary International Director Daniel C. Himelspach to other members of the Rotary International Board of Directors on how Rotarians are and may donate funds for disaster relief for the California fires.
From Director Himelspach:
My fellow Directors. There are now up to 10,000 structures destroyed in the Los Angeles area, 36,000 acres burned, 150,000 ordered to evacuate, and another 166,000 warned they may need to flee. Districts 5280 and 5300 are being heavily impacted. Both Districts are deeply engaged in organizing disaster relief efforts. Firefighters have come in from all over the US and Canada. Civil authorities are responding the best they can, but the situation at this point is out of control. And more high winds are forecast for the area. Our Rotarians are responding to the best of their ability, but many have been personally affected.
Our Rotary colleagues in the affected Districts - Districts 5280 and 5300 - have activated District Disaster Relief Funds to assist the victims of the fires. District 5280 (Los Angeles) has also created a Resource Directory and online spreadsheet for In-Kind Donations.
Please remember that we are including some social night meetings at locations other than Maldaners. Please pay attention to the meeting schedule listed in the Newsletter, on our website home page (www.spirotary.org), and on our Facebook, LinkedIn and Instagram pages for the dates and locations of the meetings. I am in the process of scheduling speakers now and will provide more details as soon as they are available.
March 17, 2025 No Rotary Club Meeting
Celebrate St. Patrick's Day with friends and family.
March 24, Club Meeting at Maldaners Upstairs, 5:30-6:45 p.m.
Kyosuke Kawasaki (image below), Inbound Rotary Exchange Student: My Background and My Time in Springfield
March 31, 2025 Club Meeting at Maldaners Upstairs, 5:30-6:45 p.m.
Carlos Ortega (image below), Downtown Springfield Executive Director: Downtown Springfield Inc. Programs and Services
April 7, 2025 Club Meeting at Maldaners Upstairs, 5:30-6:45 p.m.
Dan O'Brien: District Governor, District 6460
Learn about what's going on in the District!
April 14, 2025, Rotary Club Meeting at Maldaners Upstairs, 5:30-6:45 p.m.
Membership Club Assembly Facilitated by Harry Mitchell, Membership Chair
April 21, 2024, Rotary Club Meeting at Maldaners Upstairs, 5:30-6:45 p.m.
Romi Trujillo, Former Inbound Exchange Student and UIS Psychology Major:
My Experiences at the Rotary International Peace Conference in Istanbul, Turkey
April 28, 2025, Club Meeting at Maldaners, 5:30-6:45 p.m.
Speaker to be determined
May 5, 2025 Rotary Off-Site Social Night, 5:30-6:30 p.m.
Location to be determined.
May 12, 2025 Rotary Club Meeting at Maldaners Upstairs, 5:30-6:45 p.m.
Membership Club Assembly facilitated by Harry Mitchell, Membership Chair
May 19, Rotary Club Meeting at Maldaners Upstairs, 5:30-6:45 p.m.
Speaker to be determined.
May 26, 2025 No Club Meeting at Maldaners
Commemorate Memorial Day with family and friends
June 2, 2025 Rotary Club Meeting at Maldaners Upstairs, 5:30-6:45 p.m.
Rotarian Robert Stuart: My 50 Years in Rotary (image below)
June 9, 2025 Rotary Club Meeting at Maldaners Upstairs, 5:30-6:45 p.m
Distribution of Community Grants
June 16, Rotary Club Meeting at Maldaners Upstairs, 5:03-6:45 p.m.
Membership Club Assembly at Maldaners Upstairs facilitated by Harry Mitchell, Membership Chair
June 23, 2025 No Rotary Club Meeting at Maldaners Upstairs
June 30 Installation Picnic for New Club Officers
Stone Creek Club House, 2113 Brookstone, Springfield, IL 62711
Please join us at the Stone Creek Club House in Springfield for our catered, indoor installation Picnic. We will recognize our outgoing officers and install our new officers for upcoming 2025-2026 Rotary Year.
Little Libraries are free book exchanges that aim to expand book access within our communities. The prevailing concept of “take a book, share a book” reigns.
Our Club supports this literacy initiative and has helped build up the Little Library system in our community with support from a District Grant. We continue to help Little Libraries at five locations remain stocked with books. The locations are as follows:
1. St. John’s Breadline, 430 North 5th Street;
2. Springfield Firehouse No. 5/“The First Black Firehouse,” 1310 East Adams Street (shown in the image above);
3. Ridgely Elementary School, 2040 North 8th Street;
4. Enos Elementary School, 524 West Elliott Avenue; and
5. The Outlet, 3306 South 6th Street.
We have been visiting these Little Libraries and adding additional books to their existing stock. If you are interested in helping stock books, please contact Allie Montney at onedirtymartini@gmail.com. To keep the supply of books up-to-date, the club held a book drive to solicit book donations from club members on October 7, and a book drive for community members will be scheduled later.
Here's your chance to be a pantry superhero! Join John Webb and I in stocking the Ridgely Elementary School micro pantry for two weeks. Your commitment will ensure that families and children have access to essential items when they need them most. Whether it's a can of soup, a box of cereal, or toiletries, your contribution will brighten someone's day. Reach out to Allie Montney at onedirtymartini@gmail.com or call 217-494-6901 to become a beacon of hope for those in need. Every item you place on those shelves is a small gesture that collectively makes a huge impact!
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 the 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.
The image below shows a fully stocked pantry.
The image below shows me stocking an empty micropantry on June 4. Let me know if you are interested in taking a shift!
Micro Pantry Coordinator: Allie Montney with assistance from John Webb
Phone 217-494-6901 (for the quickest response, please text)
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 thank all the volunteers who gave and are giving generously of their time on service projects this Rotary Year. Work on our ongoing service projects continues, and we thank all who have stepped up to help coordinate these activities and especially Ken Gilmore, our Community Services Director for the 2024-2025 Rotary Year.
Stocking our Little Libraries
Allison Montney (onedirtymartini@gmail.com) and John Webb (jwebb.dr@gmail.com) are coordinating the stocking of our Little Libraries. We previously built a series of Little Libraries with a support from a District Club Grant and secured a large number of books that were donated by a group in St. Louis. The books are stored in the Computer Banc warehouse. To keep the books up-to-date, they have requested that club members bring in books to supplement the donated books stored in the Computer Banc warehouse. Contact them if you would like to donate books and/or stock Little Libraries.
The image of the Little Library at Ridgely School (to the left) clearly shows that this little library needs to be regularly stocked. Thanks to Allison and John for coordinating this project and ensuring that it is well stocked. Let them know if you would like to help.
Stocking of the Ridgely School Micropantry
We previously installed a Micropantry at Ridgely Elementary School (our adopted school) with support from a District Grant. At our October 23, 2023 meeting, Allison Montney volunteered to coordinate the stocking of this micropantry with food, cleaning, and toiletry items. She maintains a schedule of volunteers to stock the pantry for a two week period, and John Webb has also volunteered to help with this project. If you would like to volunteer to stock this important and regularly used pantry, please let Allison know (onedirtymartini@gmail.com) and check out her article on micropantry volunteers for more information on this service project.
Flag Service Work Continues after the last Deployment
The flags are now being stored in the warehouse.
The work on the flag project continues after the last deployment for the year. Bill Sturm needs at least two volunteers to assist with repairs for flags with bent poles and torn flags. Please contact him at SturmDMD@hotmaill.com to volunteer. John Loftus also has a small project that requires a few volunteers. Please contact John Loftus (jlloftus@aol.com) if you would like to help with this project or any aspect of our Flag Service project. It's rewarding work and raises lots of money for our community grants program, Honor Flights, and other community projects!
The flag service committee has announced that in 2025, we will only have one deployment of the flags before Memorial Day and one retrieval after the Commemoration of September 11.
John Montgomery Memorial Citrus Campaign
The 2024 John Montgomery Memorial Citrus Drive is over! Bill Smith launched the campaign in September and provided background on the outstanding Rotarian that the campaign is dedicated to (see Bill's articles in this Newsletter). If you would like to volunteer for the citrus committee, let Marty Michelson know. Thanks to all members for participating in the 2024 campaign. The proceeds from the Citrus Sale support our community grants program!
Do you know or are you someone who has a passion to give back to your community? The Rotarians in this image are helping pack essential items for the Illinois Police Department to give to homeless individuals in our community. As a Rotarian, you adhere to the principles of the 4-way Test., which are:
Is it the Truth?
Is it Fair to all concerned?
Will it build Good Will and Better Friendships?
Will it be Beneficial to all concerned?
If you find value in these ideals and want to be part of a great organization, right click on the attached link to open our online Membership Applicationin a new window. You can also click on this link to download an electronic copy of the Membership Application from our Club's website Home Page (www.spirotary.org) in the Download Files section. You can send the completed application to the Membership Committee at hmitchell11@comcast.net. We look forward to hearing from you!
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.
The image shows club members returning flags to the warehouse in September during the 2024 Rotary Flag Service Project.
These images show Rodd Hodel and his granddaughter Audra Hodel on the final 2024 flag pickup in September, 2024 (image on left) and clothing sorting for Safe Families for Children for the United Way Fall Day of Action on October 4, 2024 (image below).
No Club Meeting on March 17 
For three nights about 25 participants (a) talked about what it means to be an African American male in Springfield and America (b) worked with SJSA staff and experienced quilters to translate the ideas and emotions sparked by those discussions into visual images imprinted onto quilt squares and (c) created artist statements expressing what their squares meant to them (images above and on left provided by The Outlet). Each of the young men were given a copy of the book “Stitching Stolen Lives” authored by one of our SJSA partners (image below provided by The Outlet) and a picture of themselves with their square.
Our Club's Paul Harris Fellow Committee selected Mark Forinash of Cafe Moxo as our 2025 Paul Harris Fellow and recognized his team for their service to the community. In his citation, Club member Bob Stuart (image on left) noted that "Mark and his team are rising stars in the community. He and his team epitomize Rotary dedication to the community through vocational and community service at it's finest." We presented a Paul Harris Fellow Certificate, Medallion, and Pin to Mark Forinash and also recognized the contributions of his team at our Annual RI Foundation Night on February 24 (images below).
Mark (image on left) and his Cafe Moxo Team have made numerous contributions to the community. In April 2020, Cafe Moxo started feeding breakfast and lunch to those in need from their Adams Street location in Downtown Springfield. It wasn’t long before they realized that there were more people who needed help than what they initially realized. After establishing a drive-through, pick-up system, Cafe Moxo later delivered meals to some who were homeless and staying in local hotels. Cafe Moxo also provided meals to The Salvation Army and local churches, even on Sunday’s when the restaurant was normally closed.
Dan O'Brien: District Governor, District 6460 
Romi Trujillo, Former Inbound Exchange Student and UIS Psychology Major:
These images show Rodd Hodel and his granddaughter Audra Hodel on the final 2024 flag pickup in September, 2024 (image on left) and clothing sorting for Safe Families for Children for the United Way Fall Day of Action on October 4, 2024 (image below).
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