Many thanks to Ken Hola and his family for hosting a lovely, memorable holiday gathering in December! It was nice to renew acquaintances with spouses and guests, as well as spend a little time relaxing with club members we may not get a chance to visit with often. While many around the globe have expressed relief to see 2016 come to an end - and it certainly did have its frustrations and challenges - we shouldn't forget that many good things happened too and as Rotarians, we continue to take positive action toward promoting peace and justice in this challenging world. December marked my 20th Rotary year and this is what keeps me coming back. That and the great weekly programs our members continue to produce! Happy New Year!!
In the past month two of our members have lost the spouse. Just before Christmas, Jerry Peterson's wife, Lea Ann, died from Huntingdon's disease. A memorial service will be held on February 11. More details will follow at an upcoming meeting. Dick Rademacher lost his wife, Lorna, just after Christmas. I don't know the funeraal arrangements, but will let our members know at our January 3 meeting.
We start 2017 with an excellent variety of programs in January.
On January 3 we have a Club Assembly. It’s good to talk about important club activities such as membership and fundraising every 3 months.
Then on January 10 we will have two speakers. Mounds View High School student Shantunu Sabine, who has an interest in Business and Marketing will tell us about his experience at Rotary Camp Enterprise last fall. Terry Schwerm will tell us about the Shoreview Commons Master Plan.
On January 17 we will host a very distinguished guest speaker: Barbara Müller, Honorary Consul for Federal Republik of Germany. Frau Müller is a resident of Arden Hills and one of 35 official, Honorary Consuls assisting Germany and its citizens in the US.
Bob Freed and Miriam Zachary will give Classification Talks on January 24. My conversations with them at meetings suggest they will have fun and informative stories and facts.
Finally, on January 31 Brooks Clifford will educate us about Bitcoin - Cryptocurrency and peer to peer payment systems. This is the newest thing in financial cyber security. Bitcoin is Mr. Clifford’s hobby; his job is owner of Big Red Dog Solutions, a web design firm.
Thank you to Bill Kiehnbaum for arranging Frau Müller and Brooks Clifford to speak.
Our bell-ringing for the Salvation Army pulled in a whopping $3040.46 on Thursday, Dec. 8th, to go with another $586.50 gathered on the 7th. Did anyone notice who might have made the major deposit on Thursday (see anyone stuffing hundreds of ones, or even a couple dozen $100s)?
The library has our Rotary grant in hand and the pre-school literary items have been ordered. They should all be in place in time for our next off-site gathering at the new library on March 15th. (Highlight that date on your calendar!)
The club welcomed visiting Rotarian Ron Hughes from the Excelsior Club and honorary club member Irene Meinen. The Club also welcomed Kathy Johnson who is the representing the new host family for Exchange student Jiui Youn.
The guest speaker was our Rotary Exchange student Jiui Youn from Gwangju, South Korea. Gwangju is the 6th largest city in South Korea. She indicated that there are five people in her family. Her Dad is an IT professor at a university and her Mom runs a local coffee shop. She noted that her Mom is a great cook. She has two brothers - one at the University and her younger brother in 5th grade. She noted that Kia Motors has a large auto plant in her community. She discussed the climate in her City noting that they did have four seasons, but it is not nearly as cold as Minnesota. She also provided some background on the Korean alphabet.
The Club welcomed visiting Rotarian and frequent guest Ron Hughes from the Excelsior Club. Honorary member Vern Moore and Nora Keenan. Mark Stange reported that more than $3500 was donated during the Rotary bell ringing times for the Salvation Army.
The guest speaker was Chuck Moe who was discussing the Applewood Pointe senior cooperative developments. He noted that the number of older adults (65 and older) is expected to double between 2010 and 2030. At that time, more than 20% of the population will be over 65. This is directly related to the baby boom generation getting older. He reviewed different types of housing options for seniors and focused on the differences between single family, rental and cooperative living arrangements.
He specifically discussed the Applewood Pointe senior cooperative developments that have been constructed by United Properties including several in the area including Roseville, New Brighton and Shoreview. There are now 10 Applewood Pointe developments and United Properties anticipates constructing more throughout the metropolitan area. Chuck said that he lives in an Applewood development and appreciates the great work that was done by Vern Moore when he served as President of the Applewood Pointe in New Brighton. Chuck went into great detail about how a cooperative operates and the benefits of living in a cooperative.
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017 with an excellent variety of programs in January..jpeg)