Meeting Minutes - March 29, 2012 and March 15, 2012

18 Rotary Club of Millcreek members met to discuss our service projects and ensure the group came to consensus on where we wanted our focus to be going forward.

In attendance: Christine Casper, Miriam Kramer, Laurie Summers-Pisani, Jason Collier, Peter Ingle, Mustafa C. Celebi, Annie Nielsen, Julie Bateman, Sarah Grant, Margareta Vlasic, Ladd Tanner, Kim Rothwell, Linda Book, Jenna Ferguson, Marlin Clark, and Sandra Clark.

Miriam Kramer facilitated the meeting and opened by setting objectives. She asked for input on volunteerism and where we should focus. The following members had ideas and shared with the group:

• Peter Ingle - discussed articles on blog from March 27. Suggested a focus on sustainability and ensuring the club defines the value/benefits of chosen projects.



• Susan Marks - Reviewed requirements for Presidential Citation. All in attendance felt we should strive to receive this award next year and need a volunteer to keep running track of the requirements we have met.



• Miriam Kramer - presented information on World Refugee Day on June 16. Rotary Club of Millcreek can work with Bhutanese refugees to have a booth, etc.



• Ladd Tanner - gave an update on Interact kids and their desire to help with our projects.



• Margereta Vlasic - suggested we check in with Millcreek Community to ensure our club is aligned with community projects and needs



• Marty Gelman -shared success he experienced with bringing in meals for homeless families through a Methodist Church Program. Marty will work with Mark Cantor to bring information to an upcoming meeting.



• Linda Book - identified a need for families staying at Ronald McDonald House to have support and a friend to help them feel welcome, navigate the city, spend time with their kids that are not sick (Ladd thought this might be a great program for Interact kids)



• Chris Casper - shared experience at Alliance House tutoring schizophrenics to get their GED



• Martin Clark - stressed importance of literacy and possible alignment with America Reads



• There were many other ideas and suggestions made for our focus in 2012/13 and beyond.

After all the brainstorming the group agreed we need to define a vision for who we are and what we want to do before we commit to a focus and long-term project. The group agreed to have a retreat in May to work on vision and a long-term plan/project list for service. Kim Rothwell volunteered to facilitate the session. Once vision, mission and goals are set, the club will determine our long-term volunteer plan.

Our 90 Day Plan is to continue with our quick hit projects such as: US Citizenship tutoring with Bhutanese refugees, etc. In April, our focus will be literacy and looking to help out on Autism Month and tutoring. For May, we will focus on the garden and food to sustain those in need. In June, we will create a booth for World Refugee Day on June 16.

Actions Needed by You:

• Review meeting notes and provide additional ideas or research on projects you have suggested to Miriam and Megan.



• If you have a cabin/home/office etc to volunteer for a day for our retreat, please let Miriam know. We are trying to do the retreat in May and are looking at a Saturday for 4-6 hours. Our club has 30 members with an average of 15 attendees at each meeting.



• A survey link will be sent to vote for a preferred date - please respond.



• The Rotaract mentoring program e-mail was re-sent. If you haven't volunteered to be a mentor, take a look at the e-mail and student profiles and respond to Laura.

Our next meeting will be Thursday, April 5, at 5:15pm at Cafe Madrid. See you then!

Meeting Minutes - March 15, 2012

15 members in attendance

Welcomed guest: Shannon Tilly, Rick Cambra District Gov.

Introduced new members: Sandra Clark and Kim Williams. Presented pins to new members.

Rotaractor, Jerika, told about fundraiser and passed order form for 1/2 cases of oranges ($20) $ put toward the MEXICO TRIP (note: oranges arrived at March 29 meeting and are delicious)

Rotaractor, Dana, told about Adopt Me Society Fun Walk--April 7 @ Liberty Park 9:30-12:00 Adopt Me Society is a local non-profit organization run by volunteers with a mission to rescue animals.

Laurie Summers-Pisani reported on the money from the Sorenson Grant for parks and rec.