The final meeting of the Rotary year will be this Thursday, June 30. This is the transition meeting, where the presidency of the Rotary Club of Edina will transfer from Jennifer Bennerotte to Ann Platt. Outgoing club and foundation board members will be honored for their service, and incoming board members will be welcomed. Don't miss the chance to congratulate Jennifer on a successful Rotary year, and wish Ann luck in the year ahead.

 

At the meeting, outgoing President Jennifer Bennerotte will reflect on the progress the club has made in the last year. Jennifer will serve on the club and foundation boards next year as Past President.

 

Rotarians who have fulfilled their commitment on the club and foundation boards will be honored. They include: Jeff Ohe, Past President; Barbara Born, Club Service Director; Gary Pedersen, International Service Director; Josh Sprague, Membership Director—Recruitment; Mary Swendsen, Community Service Director—Local Projects; and Foundation Board members Joe Christensen and Paul Mooty. Thank you for your service!

 

Incoming President Ann Platt will go over her plans and goals for the new Rotary year. Her presidency will run from July 2016 through June 2017. The theme for her Rotary year is "Rotary Serving Humanity."

 

New members of both boards will be welcomed to their new roles, including Deirdre Kvale, Club Service Director; Ed Padilla, International Service Director; Kip Peterson, Community Service—Local Projects Director; Greg Yoch, Membership Director—Recruitment; and new Foundation Board members Scott MacDonald, at-large member; and Gary Pedersen, International Service. Good luck to all the Rotary directors and officers in the new year!

 

New members Jack Atnip and Kevin Strandberg will be officially inducted into the club at the meeting.

 

There is no Rotary Happy Hour in July! Join us for the next Edina Rotary Happy Hour/Vocational Development Group. Wednesday, Aug. 3, from 5:30 to 7 p.m. at The Mezz, located upstairs in Lunds & Byerly's at 7171 France Ave. S. in Edina. Access The Mezz from the entrance closest to France Avenue (SW corner of the store). Wine and craft beer is available at your own cost. A limited menu may be available, but you can also purchase food in the grocery deli and bring it upstairs.

The event will feature a short social period, with a "formal" program beginning at 6 p.m. Each person will have a brief opportunity to introduce themselves and make new connections. A featured presenter will have 15 minutes to share information that is relevant to his or her profession followed by a short Q&A period. The speaker at the Aug. 3 happy hour will be Edina Morningside Rotary Club member Dr. Casey Moore. 

Rotary Happy Hour is a collaboration between the Rotary Club of Edina and EMRC. Renee Harberts has recently taken over the planning of the speakers from Kip Peterson, who started the monthly gathering back in 2014. 

 

A full house of Edina Rotarians and guests gathered together in friendship and purpose to congratulate President Jennifer Bennerotte on this next-to-the-last meeting she will be leading, to be privileged to hear our guest speaker, to be brought up to date on what’s happening in our Club and to share valuable time with our friends.  

President Jennifer was again the recipient of her customary applause from our membership as she brought our meeting to order at 12:35 p.m. She thanked greeters Patti Solheim and Ron Erhardt; front desk, Deirdre Kvale and Jen Garske; invocation, Scott Neal; guest introductions, Mary Swendsen; speaker introduction, Heather Hansen; and thank-you to speaker, Tom Ries.

Jennifer focused her opening comments by stating next week she would be acknowledging the contributions to our club by our current board members and officers but that Community Service—Local Projects Director Mary Swendsen would be unable to attend next week. In her always thoughtful way, she recognized and thanked Mary for her leadership in so many ways, including the new literacy program for third-graders. Mary followed by thanking all of her committee members for their outstanding service and support.

Scott Neal delivered a most creative invocation, at the same time lamenting and extolling the extraordinary frustration and importance of road construction in our community, while offering a modified and timely version of St. Francis of Assisi’s "Serenity Prayer" that applied so well to our modern day experience with traffic and road construction.

Following Scott’s invocation our guests and Rotarians alike were amazed to see a walking/talking version of the statue of liberty and a reincarnated Yogi Berra walk through our dining room. These clever characters (Fundraiser co-chairs Leann Stessman and Sam Thompson) threw baseballs to the audience while "New York, New York" was playing loudly and raising our spirits! Leann reminded us that the annual Fundraiser will be taking place this year on Oct. 1 at the DoubleTree Hotel in Bloomington—SAVE THE DATE! Sam recited a dozen or more “Yogi-isms,” including a reminder that Yogi said he never said most of the words he said. As he continued quoting Yogi, it seemed to this writer like deja vu all over again.

Jim Ryman represented the Community Service—Local Funding committee in presenting Cornerstone Advocacy Services with a grant to purchase a work station and printer for their client’s use. He proudly stated that our club this year has donated some $50,000 to 13 different organizations. 

 

Chanhassen Rotarian Tim Mulcrone, Polio Eradication Chair for District 5950, reported that globally, last year there were only reported 17 cases of polio in two countries. He was here to present an award to Tom McNellis for his generous gift to The Rotary Foundation for polio eradication in honor of Tom’s brother, Jerry, a childhood victim of polio who died this past year.  

Once again our club was honored to induct a new member—Andrea Thompson Miller. She was sponsored by Josh Sprague and inducted by Past President Steve Slyce. Andrea’s classification is Employer Consulting. Welcome, Andrea!We look forward to getting to know you in the years ahead. 

At precisely 1 p.m., Heather Hansen stepped to the podium to offer a heartfelt and informative introduction of our special guest speaker, Sister Mary Madonna Ashton. Her introduction was so good and complete that Sister Mary Madonna quipped that she probably wouldn’t have to say anything beyond what’s already been said about her!!!!!

We were the recipients of hearing about one of the nicest success stories that had more “forks in the road” for our speaker than most of us ever encountered or could ever imagine encountering. She referred several time to the fact that “God writes straight with crooked lines,” and how trusting in God has guided her path through life in such a special way, time and time again. She said it isn’t easy to “let go and let God,” but that when we trust in Him and turn the outcome over to Him, things have a way of working out. A child growing up in an Episcopalian family, “forks in the road” brought her to a Catholic high school, later to the College of St. Catherine, becoming a nun, later obtaining an MHA from the U of M and MSW from St. Louis University.   

Among Sister Mary Madonna’s many accomplishments include serving as president and CEO of St. Mary’s Hospital in Minneapolis. She was appointed by Gov. Rudy Perpich as Minnesota Commissioner of Health, from 1983–1991. After that experience she joined the Sisters of St. Joseph to establish what is now St. Mary’s Health Clinics, located throughout the Twin Cities, serving those who have nowhere else to turn for medical care.  

Sister Mary Madonna, now 92, is the oldest living recipient to be honored as a National Women’s History Month Honoree. She received this prestigious national award March 19, 2016, in Washington, D.C., joining the ranks of such previous recipients as Susan B. Anthony, Clara Barton, Hillary Rodham Clinton, Dorothy Day, Eleanor Roosevelt and a host of others.

After a remarkably inspirational talk, at 1:25 p.m. Tom Ries thanked our speaker with his usual aplomb, and Jennifer reminded us to go about our days being a "Gift to the World!" The meeting adjourned with all of us being better for having attended!

 

The Rotary Club of Edina’s Board of Directors recently approved the applicant below for membership:

The Rotary Club of Edina now accepts credit cards for payment for meals at meetings. Members and guests can pay for lunch at the door using credit cards, in addition to the usual cash or check. 

 

Club Administrator Jennifer Garske will be using Square, which gives the club the ability to swipe magstripe cards and take chip cards at meetings, and use a point-of-sale app to charge customers. There is an additional $1 service charge on each meal, so you will be charged $20 for each lunch if you pay by credit card ($19 if you pay with cash or check). Please see Jen at the front desk if you wish to pay by credit card. A receipt will be emailed to you after purchase. 

 

Please let Jennifer Garske or President Jennifer Bennerotte know if you have any questions. Thanks!