At our June 14 meeting, Bill Kempiners introduced a presentation by Passion Hood, one of the dynamic high school students that we sponsored for the 2021 Rotary Youth Leadership Awards (see story below and service opportunities).
When a business wants to persuade people to try one of its products it gives away free samples. Last week’s Club Meeting brought that to mind.
Bill Kempiners sent a note that the ”… meeting showed our guests what our club is all about. We covered a lot of ground about our fundraising and contributions to the community and the world.” Well stated, Bill.
Our guests saw us give away grant money to two elementary schools and heard how the recipients will use the funds. Enhanced literacy with a smart board and backpack weekend meals projects were described by the two schools. In the image to the left Principal Ken Gilmore accepts a grant check for Ridgely School (see story on Grant Presentations below). Then we had Rotary Youth Leadership Assembly attendee Passion Hood share ideas for service to homeless and elderly members of our community (see articles below). Our club members embraced the ideas as partners.
Free samples. One of our guests asked if she could help with our upcoming fundraiser among the Springfield clubs even if her work schedule prevents her from joining. Absolutely!
Free samples. Our club grew by nine members this year. And the new members are already volunteering for our service projects for this coming year.
Free samples. People asked to be included in our Citrus Sale in October as the Flag was being placed in their front yard. They know why we do it.
We have many members of our Club who continuously give out free Rotary samples. Our growth has come from many sources, with invitations to attend meetings to see what we are all about. The Club provides the welcome meal at no cost to the attendee so they can assess for themselves if they want to be a part of our group. And the answer often is YES!
Who do you know that would benefit from a free sample? Bring them with you!
Picnic!
Last year, we wanted a safe way to be with each other after hunkering down for months. The solution: an outdoor picnic, and Tony and Jan Williams opened their new home and yard to our club (image to right). It was very hot, the rain held off, and we had a great night to celebrate Vicki Megginson’s presidency year and kick off mine. It was a great night.
Jan and Tony are graciously opening their home again, and Tony has added grilled burgers and brats to the party. The party starts at 5 p.m. on Monday, June 28. Food is served at 5:30 and the program starts at 6:15ish. Barry Tobias will be installed as Club President that night as the highlight, and other fun is planned.
Please bring your own chairs and any beverages you wish. Bottled water will be provided. Maldaners will provide picnic food, including pulled pork.
Meals are $15 and meal tickets can be used. Spouses and significant others are welcome. Please RSVP to me at dkromphardt@yahoo.com. Please come for an evening of fun!
Join by video system, application or Skype for business Dial 1862276905@webex.com You can also dial 173.243.2.68 and enter your meeting number. From the Cisco internal network, dial *777* and the 9-digit meeting number. If you are the host, enter your PIN when prompted.
If you are a host, click here to view host information.
Now that we are back to full capacity, we will no longer announce the menu for dining at Maldaners Upstairs or for curbside pickup. The meal will be Chef's Choice as it was prior to the pandemic.
Please continue to make reservations for in-person meals so we can estimate our seating needs and for curbside meals so Maldaners knows you are coming. The deadline for reserving dinner for the June 21 meeting is Saturday, June 19 at 5:00 p.m. Please use the following link to make your reservations for the meal for indoor dining or curbside pickup by clicking:
Contact Dave Kromphardt at dkromphardt@yahoo.com only if you have a late change.
For curbside users, please place your meal tickets or cash in an envelope with your name and “for Sheila Mack” on the outside of the envelope and give it to the Maldaners staff member that gives you your food. They will get the envelopes to Sheila Mack. Curbside pickup is between 4:45 and 5:15 p.m. To pick up food, turn into the alley behind the building and pick up the food at the back door. It's easy to pick up your food and the meals are delicious.
One year ago, Karl Barnhart, Executive Vice President and Chief Marketing Officer for Brandt Co., previewed his vision of how agriculture changed and would continue to change during the Covid-19 pandemic as part of our New Normal Series. Join us as Karl revisits his vision of the new normal of agriculture as the state reopens for business. He will join us in person at Maldanders Upstairs. You may also enjoy his presentation online if your are unable to join us. Don't miss this one!
Our Club sponsored three High School students in Springfield to participate in the 2021 Rotary Youth Leadership Awards (RYLA) program. One of those students joined us at our June 14 club meeting. When Bill Kempiners introduced Passion Hood (lead image and image above), he noted that she lived with her grandmother who is credited with being a great influence on Passion. Bill was disappointed that her grandmother was unable to attend our meeting, but was happy that Passion's Great Aunt Debra Richards (image below, third from left) and the Assistant Principal at Southeast High School, Iola Jackson (image below, far left) were able to join us for dinner and Passion's presentation.
Passion told us that she was a sophomore at Southeast High School when she participated in the 2021 RYLA program, which was held online because of the Covid-19 pandemic. She commented on how much she learned from the RYLA program and that she especially enjoyed the two facilitators and the games. She happily reported that she will be a rising Junior at Southeast High School during the coming school year and that she has a 5.2 grade point average. Way to go, Passion!
Passion noted that she loves helping others. She described a service project that the RYLA students developed and invited our club to participate in this project. They plan to assemble "Bags of Hope" for the homeless over the summer and distribute them in the fall. These bags would include items such as masks, band-aids, wash clothes, small clothing items, tooth brushes and tooth paste, and nutritious snacks. Passion noted that club members could help procure the items for the bags. They are planning to partner with the Salvation Army, Homeless Shelters, Lincoln Land Community College, and we suggested the Springfield Police Department to distribute the bags. She spoke about other projects they brainstormed about such as developing gardens at nursing homes, and several projects they would like to do in school, such as donating canned goods to play in basketball game and creating mental health boxes so students can list their problems. I think all club members would agree that Passion was aptly named. She is clearly passionate about helping others. To volunteer for the Bags of Hope project, see the article below on Service Opportunities.
At our June 14, 2021 club meeting, Springfield Rotary Foundation President Rod Buffington and Foundation Board Member Vicki Megginson presented grant checks to two recipients of 2021 Springfield Rotary Foundation Grants. They presented the first grant check to Ken Gilmore, Principal at Ridgely School, to support Bulldog Backpacks for targeted students at the school. Every Friday, these students will be given a backpack loaded with nutritious food to ensure that they have food over the weekend. Ken (image on left, second from left) happily accepted the check and thanked Club members for the support for the backpack feeding program and for all the other things we do for our adopted school, including the micropantry, tutoring, school supplies, dictionaries, and for the little library that we will be installing soon.
The second check was presented to Kris Cavanagh, Development Director, of St. Patrick School (image to right, second from left). Kris thanked our club for the grant and commented that the grant monies would be used to purchase a SMART Board for a new classroom. She noted that SMART Boards are computer-interactive white boards that play an important role in both teaching and the way students learn. Jan Williams, Principal at St. Patrick's School, also attended the meeting and announced that she is leaving St. Patrick School at the end of June to serve as Director of the AmeriCorps program.
Principal Ken Gilmore shared with us Monday that our Ridgely Food Pantry (image above) is being used like crazy and now that Compass for Kids has begun, they expect it to be used even more. As a volunteer, your job is to check it once a week and add to its supply of food, cleaning supplies and hygiene items. A few treats for children are welcomed items too.
Volunteers are needed for:
First half of August
Second half of August
First half of September
Second half of September
First half of October
Second half of October.
Chamber Golf Outing July 22 and July 23, Piper Glen
Volunteers are needed to greet golfers at our Club sponsored hole. We will have a tent for shade and goodies to give out to the golfers, including an invitation to join us for dinner on a Monday evening. It is a lot of fun. We will want 3 people for each time period. Parking directions will follow once our hole location is confirmed.
July 22 Thursday A. 11:45 am-2:15 pm B. 2:00 pm-4:30 pm
July 23 Friday A. 11:45 am- 2:15 pm B. 2:00 pm- 4:30 pm
RYLA Bags of Hope
We are joining with our RYLA youth to help them fill Bags of Hope for the homeless. These dynamic leaders designed this project during their RYLA experience and have identified local organizations to receive the bags. Supporting our tradition, some of the bags, will be given to Springfield Police for distribution. Please begin collecting dental items, masks, Band-Aids, socks, gloves, hats, hygiene items, water, and small treats for a fall distribution. A meeting date will be identified at the end of summer for you to bring your items to a Monday meeting. RYLA youth make great Rotarians. Let's show them why they want a future with Rotary.
Rotary Little Library Coordinator Needed.
Schedule members to restock the four little libraries. Book boxes are already assembled. If you can design a simple and efficient plan, you are the one we need.
Daily Bread, Senior Services
DELIVER A DIFFERENCE
Volunteers are needed to help with the delivery of hot, nutritious meals to our seniors of Central Illinois.
Volunteers are needed Monday through Thursday 10 a.m.-12 p.m.
Volunteers are provided with lunch daily and mileage reimbursement.
What do we need you to deliver?
Hot, nutritious meals with a smile
Please give Senior Services a call and let them know that you are with the Rotary Club of Springfield if you are interested in volunteering to help make a difference in your senior community!
Senior Services of Central Illinois
Daily Bread Program
701 W. Mason St.
Springfield, IL 62702
Autumn Osborne
Volunteer Coordinator
(217) 528-4035 ext. 123
CONTACT megginson.vicki@gmail.com to let her know your preferred times to monitor Ridgely Food Pantry, help out with our Rotary tent at the Chamber of Commerce golf outing, or be our needed Little Library Coordinator.
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 Membership Application in a new window. You can also download a 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 illinoisdelta@hotmail.com. We look forward to hearing from you!
Our guests saw us give away grant money to two elementary schools and heard how the recipients will use the funds. Enhanced literacy with a smart board and backpack weekend meals projects were described by the two schools. In the image to the left Principal Ken Gilmore accepts a grant check for Ridgely School (see story on Grant Presentations below). Then we had Rotary Youth Leadership Assembly attendee Passion Hood share ideas for service to homeless and elderly members of our community (see articles below). Our club members embraced the ideas as partners.
Last year, we wanted a safe way to be with each other after hunkering down for months. The solution: an outdoor picnic, and Tony and Jan Williams opened their new home and yard to our club (image to right). It was very hot, the rain held off, and we had a great night to celebrate Vicki Megginson’s presidency year and kick off mine. It was a great night.
Please continue to make reservations for in-person meals so we can estimate our seating needs and for curbside meals so Maldaners knows you are coming. The deadline for reserving dinner for the June 21 meeting is Saturday, June 19 at 5:00 p.m. Please use the following link to make your reservations for the meal for indoor dining or curbside pickup by clicking:
For curbside users, please place your meal tickets or cash in an envelope with your name and “for Sheila Mack” on the outside of the envelope and give it to the Maldaners staff member that gives you your food. They will get the envelopes to Sheila Mack. Curbside pickup is between 4:45 and 5:15 p.m. To pick up food, turn into the alley behind the building and pick up the food at the back door. It's easy to pick up your food and the meals are delicious.
At our June 14, 2021 club meeting, Springfield Rotary Foundation President Rod Buffington and Foundation Board Member Vicki Megginson presented grant checks to two recipients of 2021 Springfield Rotary Foundation Grants. They presented the first grant check to Ken Gilmore, Principal at Ridgely School, to support Bulldog Backpacks for targeted students at the school. Every Friday, these students will be given a backpack loaded with nutritious food to ensure that they have food over the weekend. Ken (image on left, second from left) happily accepted the check and thanked Club members for the support for the backpack feeding program and for all the other things we do for our adopted school, including the micropantry, tutoring, school supplies, dictionaries, and for the little library that we will be installing soon.
The second check was presented to Kris Cavanagh, Development Director, of St. Patrick School (image to right, second from left). Kris thanked our club for the grant and commented that the grant monies would be used to purchase a SMART Board for a new classroom. She noted that SMART Boards are computer-interactive white boards that play an important role in both teaching and the way students learn. Jan Williams, Principal at St. Patrick's School, also attended the meeting and announced that she is leaving St. Patrick School at the end of June to serve as Director of the AmeriCorps program. 
Please remember to report your service hours and related contributions. Just follow this link:
