Discussion: Bill Leske opened the meeting with a discussion about the incoming Rotary International President, Jennifer Jones. Moha has met her, and she was helpful on the Moroccan project Moha led for the Rockford Rockford Rotary Club. Jennifer will be at PETS training (President Elect Training), so our incoming co-prezes Patti & Barb will meet her soon.
Announcements:
David Grant announced that our Club Foundation Committee has awarded Community Grants to 8 non-profits. There is an opportunity in the next two weeks to make additional charitable contributions to our Foundation on behalf of any of the 8 recipients, which will then be matched. See the enclosed story for more info.
Bob Sanfilippo thanked the Foundation for the Community Grant this year. He also announced the Winnetka Thrift Shop annual spring sale is on March 3 – next Thursday.
Happy Bucks:
Bill Leske is happy about the fantastic job Rich Lalley is doing with our hybrid meeting format.
Patti VanCleave is happy she will be visiting Grandchild #3, Bennett, in Cincinatti.
Rich Lalley is happy that he learned he will have a Granddaughter soon.
Chuck Norton is happy to be down in Florida where people are not wearing masks.
Barb Tubekis contributed $203 to honor three members of her family who have passed away recently; a dollar for each year beginning with her 95-year-old Mother-in-law, Mary Jane Tubekis.
Marie sent a big zoom hug to Barb acknowledging her losses.
Marie also announced that she has just been promoted to a Quality Assurance Editor at her publishing company.
Speaker: Rich Lalley updated us on our Club’s current Global Grant Project in Ecuador. Just this week he attended a virtual meeting with our co-sponsors of this project and the Host club sponsors, Jose & Lilly, from Quito, Ecuador. We support the CINCA farm just outside Quito. The farm teaches indigenous people about sustainable farming. The farm will be economically sustainable, will improve living conditions in the area, employ soil conversation, organic fertilizers, and is pesticide-free.
The Winnetka Northfield Rotary Charitable Foundation Board has awarded Community Grants to the following organizations this year:
Blues Kids Foundation
Counseling Center of the North Shore
Open Arms Mission
Operation North Pole, Inc.
Saroj Gandhi Sue’s Pantry
Special Gifts Theater
Women's Exchange
Zacharias Sexual Abuse Center
The committee has set aside $2,000 to match additional donations by our members. If you would like to make an extra personal donation to one of these organizations, the Foundation will match it and include the extra funds in the checks which will be sent to the organizations early in March.
Please email Rich Lalley by March 3 with the amount of your donation and which organization you are supporting. The Foundation match will be awarded on a first come, first served basis, and is capped at $250 per member and $2,000 total. Contact Rich or David Grant if you have any questions.
One of the nice features of meeting virtually is that our meetings can be recorded. This of course depends on your meeting host (me) remembering to start the recording (sometimes I'm a bit late in starting it).
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