President Joyce rang the bell at 12:30pm and quieted the spirited conversations in the room. Jody Tull deSalis then played the “Star Spangled Banner,” and Ben Bolen delivered the inspiration. He celebrated his 40th birthday was this week, and he asked us to think about what we were doing 40 years ago. He told us that many of his friends think 40 is a slippery slope into old age (aka irrelevance), but he has learned in Rotary the meaning of the phrase, “Age is just a number”.

President Joyce made several announcements. She noted that the club administrator job description is on the website, and she urged each of us to send it to people who may be interested. She also reported on the recently completed leadership class and awarded certificates of completion to those leadership graduates in attendance.

Kathy Waugh took the podium to remind us that Rotary Night for Wine, Women and Song is coming on Wednesday, April 9. Tickets are available by calling the House: 734 769-2999. Wine is served at 7:00pm with the show beginning at 7:30pm.

Kathy also announced that the membership survey will be coming in the next two weeks and reminded us to RSVP for the meeting on April 9, at which Michigan Basketball Head Coach Dusty May will be our speaker. Since we are expecting many guests for this event, we ask that you note whether you’re coming alone, with guest, and equally importantly, if you are NOT coming. Click here to RSVP for this special meeting.

Incoming President Dawn Johnson reported on her experience at the recent President Elect Learning Seminar (PELS), which focused on the membership experience this year.  She has brought some new ideas and ways of thinking but was particularly struck by speakers who asked the “Why” question – Why did you join Rotary and Why do you stay? She will challenge each of us to answer that, and to share it with friends and colleagues to interest them in joining us. She also reported on the Strategic Planning session completed just before this meeting.

Keeping young people out of the justice system

Don Deatrick introduced our speaker, Sheriff Alyshia Dyer. He noted that Sherrif Dyer is one of two female sheriffs in Michigan and has extensive experience in law enforcement and in mental health counseling and social work. 

Sheriff Dyer joins County Prosecutor Eli Savit and AA Police Chief Andre Anderson in their emphasis on keeping young people out of the justice system as much as possible. She believes that restorative justice can often satisfy the victim and result in learning and growing by the miscreant. This keeps young people who made poor decisions from a lifetime of arrest records that keep them out of schools and jobs.

Her department is working with the court system and community groups to locate the many diversion programs available in this community. She is training her deputies to have personal contacts in the communities they serve, to be sensitive to personal trauma, and to deescalate tense situations. She says that many confrontations between children and adults occur because adults do not listen to youth. She wants us to listen, both to understand their frustrations and concerns, and to involve them in solutions to problems. She emphasized that the department is focused on safety issues above all else and mentioned that speeding is the number one complaint of county residents.

To end the meeting, President Joyce led us in reciting the Four Way Test and then rang the closing bell.