Jennifer Bennerotte opened the meeting promptly at 12:32 p.m. Jennifer also announced some Edina Rotary anniversaries including Frank Cardarelle, who joined Edina Rotary in 1957 and was President of the club in 1969. Frank also distributed The Barker from 1969, which was signed by Hubert H. Humphrey when he spoke at Edina Rotary that year.
Melinda Inman helped at the front desk at the meeting, and we were greeted by Tom Bach, Toni Gerard and Stan Brown.
Luther Amundson provided an inspiring innovation, the pledge and Rotary’s Four-Way Test. Jennifer Bennerotte also introduced many guests including:
John Shevlin, guest of Brad Hepp
Don Johnson, guest of Marty Kupper
Marco Pavoloni, guest of Royce Pavelka
Kevin Stranberg, guest of Royce Pavelka
Brandon Azbill, guest of David Clynes
David Swan, guest of Ann Platt
Ian Colville, guest of Josh Sprague
Andrea Miller, guest of Josh Sprague
Youth Exchange student Jein Im, guest of Deirdre Kvale
Ann MacDonald, guest and wife of Scott MacDonald
Lois Cardarelle, guest and wife of Frank Cardarelle
Kay and Bill McReavy, parents and guests of Bill McReavy
Cynd McReavy-Seitz, sister and guest of Bill McReavy
Bill Milota, a member of the Community Service—Local Funding Committee, presented a check for $1,200 to Deb Sholl and Judy Mulvey from the Assistance League of Minneapolis and St. Paul. Deb explained the importance of Edina Rotary’s gift to the Assistance League, as it will be used to provide survival kits (clothes and personal accessories) for abuse victims in hospitals throughout Minnesota.
John Flynn announced that there was still time to sign up for the District Conference, which will be at Mystic Lake Conference Center May 12 and 13. There will be a golf event, dinner and reception on Thursday, followed by a full day of speakers, meetings and networking with fellow Rotarians on Friday, followed by a dinner event. This conference is especially meaningful for our club, as Tim Murphy has served as District 5950 Governor this year.
Tina Sletten, a Youth Exchange student from Norway, discussed her home in Tendsberry, Norway, including her family and experiences in Norway. She observed that life at Edina High School has been a great experience and that it was just the way she had thought it would be from the movies she had seen.
Lisa Walker gave her classification speech as a Residential Mortgage Lender. Lisa said that she had been an Edina resident for 18 years and prior to Edina, was a resident of New York and Florida. She earned a doctorate degree from Washington University in St. Louis. Lisa also belongs to the Junior League of Minneapolis and volunteers for the Northside Achievement Zone in Minneapolis.
Bill McReavy introduced the program speakers for the meeting. Randy Handel, the Associate Athletic Director of Development at the University of Minnesota, and Chris Werle, the Senior Associate Director of Strategic Communications, ably substituted for Beth Goetz, the Interim Athletic Director at the U of M who was ill and unable to attend. Randy discussed the new $166 million Athletics Village being built at the University, which would serve all 725 student athletes. He also mentioned that the University continues to emphasize the importance of education with the student athletes and that their graduate rate was 88 percent.
Chris discussed his prime responsibility as to develop student athletes. The difficulty the student athlete faces in time management has been a key concern of his, with student athletes juggling studies with practice, games, travel and sometimes part-time jobs. He discussed that although the media has focused on the disappointments in U of M sports, he pointed out that they had won the Division 1 Women’s Hockey Championship two of the past three years, then finished second in the Women’s Division 1 Volleyball Championship. Also, the U of M ranked high in the Directors Cup out of all of the Division 1 colleges in the United States.
Gary Pedersen thanked the speakers and Jennifer Bennerotte closed the meeting with a thought she had written when Beth Goetz was the planned speaker. The quote was from former vice presidential candidate Geraldine Ferrero, “Some leaders are born women."
Rotarian Paul Peterson will be the program speaker at the Thursday, April 14, Rotary Club of Edina meeting. He has been a member of our club since 2012. He will speak about "The Power of Music, the Business of Music." Peterson, a member of "Minnesota's First Family of Music," will begin touring nationally with Peter Frampton in May.
Some biography info from Peterson's website: Prince discovered Peterson, aka “St Paul,” at the age of 17. Prince enlisted him as a keyboard player in The Time for the movie “Purple Rain.”
Peterson took the lead vocalist spot in the Prince-produced group “The Family,” before becoming a solo artist and scoring hits for MCA and Atlantic Records.
He has recorded, toured or written with Steve Miller, Prince, George Benson, Oleta Adams, The Corrs, Kenny Loggins, and Morris Day and The Time to name a few.
His band, fDeluxe (formerly The Family) is celebrating the 30th anniversary of their Prince-produced record with a few select shows around the country.
When Peterson isn’t recording, he runs Peterson Music and Events, a music and event consulting service originally started by his father Willie Peterson back in the 1940s. He also has a 16-piece orchestra that plays at many of the top galas in the Minneapolis/St Paul area, appropriately titled the Paul Peterson Orchestra.
Also at the Rotary meeting, Libby Schmit will give her classification talk.
The Rotary Club of Edina meets at 12:15 p.m. Thursdays at the Edina Country Club. All are welcome. Cost for lunch and the program is $19 for adults and $12 for students.
The Rotary Club of Edina has learned that Honorary Rotarian Wally Houts passed away March 31. He was 88. Wally joined Edina Rotary in 1985.
A service will be at 7 p.m. Thursday, April 21, at the Richfield United Methodist Church, 5835 Lyndale Ave. S., with visitation one hour prior to the service. Memorials may be directed to the Boy Scouts of America. Cards may be sent to the family at 10210 Park View Circle, Minneapolis, MN 55431.
Please keep Wally and his family in your thoughts and prayers.
Honorary Rotarian Wally Houts passed away March 31. He was 88. Wally joined the Rotary Club of Edina in 1985.
Wally was born in 1927 in Rockford, Iowa. He was a Bloomington resident, and was a retired art teacher at Richfield High School. He and two other teachers formed a real estate venture called Ebbco. Wally was active in Boy Scouts, and proud to be an Eagle Scout.
He is survived by wife, Beverly; children, Rob (Lisa), Mary Jane Finley, Rick (Susie), Chuck (Teri), and Chris (Marci); and 13 grandchildren.
A service will be at 7 p.m. Thursday, April 21, at the Richfield United Methodist Church, 5835 Lyndale Ave. S., with visitation one hour prior to the service. Private interment at Dawn Valley Memorial Park.
Memorials may be directed to the Boy Scouts of America. Cards may be sent to the family at 10210 Park View Circle, Minneapolis, MN 55431.
Please keep Wally and his family in your thoughts and prayers.
Thank you so much for inviting me and Dick Crockett to the Rotary meeting last week. It was so nice to meet so many great people in your organization. I've been inspired by your "Service Above Self" mission and will continue to put it into practice.
Thank you for the generous grant for our Access students. I cant' wait to start ACT prepping! We'll keep you posted on the great impact you'll be making with our students.
Periodically we feature a newer member of the Rotary Club of Edina in The Barker. The Rotary Club of Edina welcomed Kenny Smith as a member in September 2015. Kenny's sponsor to the club was Joe Christensen Here is more about Kenny:
Name: Kenny Smith
Classification: Attorney
What was your first job?Edina Sun-Current delivery boy
Who was your first role model and why? It would have to be my dad. He always had time for our family and he played a very active role in our lives growing up. He also taught us how to work smart, leading by example as a hard-working and successful entrepreneur.
Why did you want to join Rotary? I recently moved back to the area and started a new job so I wanted to get active right away and get to know my fellow community members. I’m also a former Rotarian from a different club and had great experiences with it.
What do you like best about being part of the Rotary Club of Edina? It’s been so easy to meet different people and I’ve felt welcomed from the first day I visited the club. I’ve been impressed with how proactive the members are of getting to know the guests and new members and making them feel at home.
What one piece of advice do you offer other business leaders? Trust yourself, you know more than you think you do.
We are happy to have you as part of the No. 1 Club in the Universe, Kenny!
The Rotary Club of Edina seeks nominees for the seventh-annual “Chrysanne Manoles Women In Leadership Award.”
In honor of the first female Rotarian in our club, Chrysanne Manoles, each year the Rotary Club of Edina celebrates the work of women in the community. To nominate a woman for the prestigious award, submit a one- or two-page letter explaining how the person demonstrates the Four-Way Test and what she does in the community. Letters should be sent to Rotary Club of Edina, 4801 W. 50th St., Edina, MN 55424 and must be postmarked by Friday, May 6. The award will be given out at the May 26 meeting.
Click on the link for more information.
The Rotary Club of Edina seeks nominees for the seventh-annual “Chrysanne Manoles Women In Leadership Award.”
Reflecting society in 1905, the Rotary organization was limited to male members and remained so officially until 1989, when the Council on Legislation, Rotary’s parliament, voted to eliminate the male-only provision, opening up membership to qualified women across the world. However, the forward-thinking Rotary Club of Edina welcomed its first female member, Chrysanne Manoles, a year earlier in 1988. Manoles continues to be active in Rotary.
In Manoles’ honor and to celebrate the work of women in the community, the Rotary Club of Edina
established an annual women’s leadership award in 2008. Previous winners include Dr. Laurel Wills, Ann
Byrne, Donna Tilsner, Katey Taylor, Kim Foote and Kris Marshall.
Nominees cannot be current Rotarians and must live, work or volunteer in Edina. Female nominees must demonstrate Rotary’s “Four-Way Test” of the things we think, say or do: Is it the truth? Is if fair to all concerned? Will it build goodwill and better friendships? Will it be beneficial to all concerned?
To nominate a woman for the prestigious award, submit a one- or two-page letter explaining how the person demonstrates the Four Way Test and what she does in the community. Letters should be sent to:
Rotary Club of Edina
4801 W. 50th St.
Edina, MN 55424 a
Nominations must be postmarked by Friday, May 6.
The 2015 Chrysanne Manoles Women In Leadership Award will be presented at the May 26 meeting of the Rotary Club of Edina.
For more information about the award, contact club president Jennifer Bennerotte, 612-201-3467 or jbennerotte@EdinaRotary.org.
The Edina Country Club will serve members and guests Meatloaf with Mashed Potatoes and Gravy or Chicken Caeasar Salad at the Rotary Club of Edina's May 12 meeting.
The Rotary Club of Edina's Administrator, Jennifer Garske, works part-time Tuesday through Friday. To contact her, call 612-875-3109 or write to jgarske@EdinaRotary.org.
.jpg)
Bill Milota, a member of the Community Service—Local Funding Committee, presented a check for $1,200 to Deb Sholl and Judy Mulvey from the Assistance League of Minneapolis and St. Paul. Deb explained the importance of Edina Rotary’s gift to the Assistance League, as it will be used to provide survival kits (clothes and personal accessories) for abuse victims in hospitals throughout Minnesota.
.jpg)
.jpg)
.jpg)
Rotarian Paul Peterson will be the program speaker at the Thursday, April 14, Rotary Club of Edina meeting. He has been a member of our club since 2012. He will speak about "The Power of Music, the Business of Music." Peterson, a member of "Minnesota's First Family of Music," will begin touring nationally with Peter Frampton in May. 
The Rotary Club of Edina has learned that Honorary Rotarian Wally Houts passed away March 31. He was 88. Wally joined Edina Rotary in 1985.
.jpg){kind=logo}
The Rotary Club of Edina seeks nominees for the seventh-annual “Chrysanne Manoles Women In Leadership Award.” 
The Edina Country Club will serve members and guests Meatloaf with Mashed Potatoes and Gravy or Chicken Caeasar Salad at the Rotary Club of Edina's May 12 meeting.