During the June 22, 2022 RCAA Luncheon Meeting, Lauren Heinonen, our outgoing Director of Public Image (2020-2022), made the following remarks on her time serving in our club. 

When I first found Rotary, I was 22 and fresh out of college. I had been coming to the Union to study, not for Rotary meetings in the Anderson Room.

The first RCAA meeting that I attended was around Halloween, 2017. If you know anything about our club, you know that that must have been an interesting day. Many people were dressed in orange, there were quite a few costumes, and the infamous “Joey D” in a biker outfit was performing some skit at the podium — I had no idea what was going on, but this certainly seemed like a lively group.

As the meeting continued, people like Ingrid, the past mayor of Ann Arbor, and Greg, a retired FBI agent, were pointed out to me. All I knew was that I was not nearly as interesting or experienced as they were. I found myself asking, “Do I really fit in? Do I belong here?”

Oh, and how could I forget, the singing! How odd. I had never been to a meeting that had singing like RCAA did!

As the meeting ended, I figured that this might be my first — and last — meeting here. However, I was approached by people like Ashish (very persuasive) and Agnes (kind and welcoming), and they reassured me that I was indeed a good fit and that they’d love to have me and my fresh perspective in the club.

I decided to join RCAA so that I could serve and give back. I had seen the 4 Way Test online on a Facebook post, and that made me realize that this was a good group of people with high moral standards and a good infrastructure for service. I immediately began serving as a mentor in STRIVE, as a volunteer at one-off service events, I was taking attendance, I was doing anything that could be of use to the club.

I started getting involved in Public Image when I saw an ad in the newsletter in the summer of 2018 that indicated there was a need for assistant webmaster. I didn’t know anything about running a website, or what a webmaster was. Literally, nothing. But hey, a 22 year old should have an easier time learning those skills than a 67 year old — the mean age of members at the club at the time — right?

Before I knew it, I was running the website, putting together the newsletter every other week, and posting on social media. Plus I was still serving as a STRIVE mentor, volunteering to take attendance and work at events, and generally helping out where needed.

I was shocked to be asked to serve as Director of Public Image in the summer of 2019. I hadn’t been a member for very long, only officially just over a year, and I didn’t have the leadership experience that most members around me did.

Again, I was asking myself “Is this the right fit? Is this for me?” I was working full time and loving my role in Rotary. Could I possibly be a good leader? Would I have time? Did I have a vision?

Who knows, but I said yes anyway. My view of service and of Rotary had changed over my first year or so as a member. Serving is not just doing hands-on projects and attending meetings. Service is helping the club grow and perform well, which then allows it to have a better impact on our global and local communities.

I heavily leaned on my mentors, like John White, Lori Walters, Steve Schram, and Tom Millard, to learn how to lead efficiently and effectively. I more carefully watched how each President led before and during my term — Rosemarie, Joanne, and Susan — and often asked myself “WWRPD?” That is, “What Would the Rotary President Do?” It usually led me to the right answer.

Public Image decided to focus not just on improving communications within the club, but on enhancing awareness and engagement with the public, which in turn has helped increase interest in Rotary. That was certainly no easy feat during the pandemic.

But it’s not because of me that we’ve been able to accomplish so much in the last few years. It’s because of the members of the Public Image Committee, who have led projects like the biannual Waste Warrior Trash Pickups on I-94, to Music at the Playground 2 weekends ago, to the weekly newsletter, to maintaining updates online.

Thank you to:
• Tom Millard
• Anne Glendon
• Dan Romanchik
• Michael Field
• Cyril White
• Carlos Valderrama
• Pattie Katcher
• Agnes Reading
• Ellen PutneyMoore
• Jennifer Fike
• Sara Maddock
• Trevor Soranno, Rotaractor
• Fanfan Zheng
• John White
• Steve Schram
• Lori Walters
• Fred Beutler
• Mary Steffek Blaske
• Marlena Studer
• Kathy Waugh
• Steve Pierce
• John Sepp
• Susan Froelich
• Charlie Koopmann
• Edwin Portugal
• Eric Lipson
• Christina Ferris
• Yolanda Whiten
• Dennis Powers
• B Yawson
• Sofia Nordenstam
• Barbara Eichmuller
• Carol Senneff
• Downs Herold
• Marsha Chamberlin
• Paula Brown
My apologies if I missed anyone! You can see it’s a long list of people who have served in Public Image and I’m grateful for each one of you.

I thank you all for your patience, support, and willingness to teach and serve. It’s been a pleasure to serve you.

Now, I ask that you take a few stickers from your tables, give them out to others, wear them, put them on your devices. Remember that this logo of the Rotary Club of Ann Arbor is a symbol of Service Above Self, and that you too can have an impact on our community, no matter how large or small.