President Rosemarie Rowney rang the bell at 12:28 and led the members in singing our National Anthem. Marlena Studer provided the Inspirational message in honor of our new members. She spoke of living the pledge of service above self. Following the inspiration, Don Duquette led everyone with the uplifting songs “Happy Days are Here Again” and “Sunny Side of the Street.”
President Rowney briefly discussed the effects the COVID-19 coronavirus and reminded members that we will not be shaking hands in the foreseeable future. We have chosen to provide a “Namaste” greeting for now. She thanked the luncheon team led by set-up experts Bob Dascola and Dale Ausherman. She also thanked our volunteers for the day: Don Duquette, singing and Tom Strode on piano; Inspiration, Marlena Struder; Greeters, Paul Izenberg and Larry Eiler; Attendance, Karen Gladney; Reporter, Kathy Waugh; Photographer, Fred Beutler; Audio/Visual, Bob Dascola, Wayne Colquitt and Mike Michelon; and mic runners Spaulding Clark, Rick Ingram, Bob Dascola.
We were reminded of the upcoming birthdays of Club members Edd Post, Andrea Darden, Sarah Jasinski, Mel Drumm, Henry Johnson, Karen, Kerry and Eric Lipson. Two lovely guests were introduced to the members as they joined our luncheon.
Homework Assignment for May 6th Speaker: Dennis Powers encouraged the membership to visit the University of Michigan Museum of Art (UMMA) current installation by Courtney McLellan – a Roman J. Witt Artist in Residence. The “Witness Lab Simulation” installation is built to resemble a courtroom in order to study the relationship between performance and law. The installation will host legal simulations from participating groups. For more information, visit the UMMA website for this installation here: https://umma.umich.edu/events?tid=18 (or go to the main website and click on “Happenings.”) Please note that due to the current coronavirus COVID-19 outbreak, the installations scheduled for March and April have been canceled. Check the website for updates.
Touch-A-Truck: This event went dormant last year due to the group sponsoring it going dormant. With the help of Ashish Sarkar, this popular kid-friendly event is being resurrected and will be held Saturday, May 16, 2020. Volunteers are needed to recruit trucks, contact organizations, procure vendors, publicize, and work the event. If can help, contact Ashish Sarkar before he contacts you! 734.834.4746 or adsarkar@comcast.net.
President Rowney continued her discussion regarding COVID-19 and how the Club will protect the health of our membership and the people we serve throughout this current pandemic. The average age of our membership is 69 years old. The Club intends to continue to provide continuity to this membership and keep the habit of our Wednesday noon sessions. Look for more information on other formats being considered, such as Zoom, Facebook Live Events and teleconferencing. Committees are also welcome to use the teleconference line if needed. We have lots of upcoming events and we are moving ahead logically and using valid resources.
President Rowney’s goal of recruiting 30 new members this year is getting closer with the welcome of five new members to our Club on Wednesday. Read additional short bios on each new member here.
- Andrew Brenner (Quantum Spatial) was introduced by Ashish Sarkar
- Greg Campeau (Research and test engineer) was introduced by Norma Sarkar
- Dayna Roe (Resident Services Social Worker at Glacier Hills) was introduced by Lauren Heinonen. Dayna was unable to attend the meeting in person so will be formally introduced in the future.
- Daphne Schalbetter (Business Consultant, Trainer & Coach) was introduced by Nishta Bhatia and Bev Seiford
- Doug Selby (Meadowlark Design+Build) was introduced by Susan Froelich
President Rowney ended the meeting by reminding the members of the “Rotary Fights Summer Hunger” Food Gatherers on-going project and inspiring us to “Lead into our Fears” by being a leader in the community. The meeting was adjourned at 1:20PM.
