IMPORTANT: We are back at Champions this Friday, Oct. 26th.
Presiding Officer: Jill Slupe
Secretary: Nick Rosenberry
Chair of the Day: Rich Secor
Invocator: Laura Iliff
Cashier: Ron Nierderhaus
Sgt. at Arms: Brad Rohrig
Greeters: Michelle Kaufmann & Dwayne Brown Speaker: Past President Susan Thomas & TRF Chair Bonnie Gill
Susan Thomas
Past President, Omaha West Rotary
Bonnie Gill
The Rotary Foundation Chair
Topic: Past President Susan Thomas will present the District Grant approved Little Library Project, a literacy project of the Omaha West Rotary. The Rotary Foundation Chair, Bonnie Gill will present information about the global impact of your support to The Rotary Foundation with emphasis on how to become Paul Harris Fellow. These topics are very important to every Rotarian so make sure you will be at Rotary this Friday.
Last week, Past President Dick Sturgeon presided the meeting. Bill Sutton gave the Invocation. Deb Neary and Michelle Schrage served as greeters. Bev Karrer was Sgt. at Arms. Butch Ethington was Cashier. Andy Shim was Chair of the Day and he introduced our speaker, Dr. Maryanne Stevens, President of the College of St. Mary.
L to R: Professor Andy Shim, Dr. Maryanne Stevens and Past President Dick Sturgeon
Omaha West Rotary Club Secretary Report for October 19, 2018:
This past Friday, we had two guests! Lori Benton invited Armel MacDonald and Gail Veitzer invited Andy Shefsky.
We had several red badge members in attendance. We also had our club board members stand to be recognized.
We had a lot of good news this week! Jim Otis started things off by donating four Husker football tickets and a parking pass to be auctioned off. Gretchen Radler was the high bidder at $200. Dan Ferris stood up and welcomed Tara Bowne back! Denny Duer announced the birth of his second granddaughter. Dean Jenkins son, who has been overseas for 15 years, is coming back to the U.S. and moving to Boulder, CO. Starla Waite was just about to pick up her brand new Mary Kay car. And finally, Joe Finnegan’s daughter, Bridget, recently performed at the children’s theatre.
Nick closed with a joke about a new Uber driver and wished everyone a good week.
Maryssa Brown was born here in Omaha in the Mid 90’s. She went through the Omaha Public School system and graduated from Central High School. She has completed most of the Omaha Community Playhouse/Metro Community College Theatre Tech program. She continues to stay active at the “Lofte Theatre” in Manley, NE as well as singing in the Citywide, River City Mixed Chorus. She is currently working in the retail world of “Eileen’s Cookies”. Hobbies include reading, cooking, and the occasional road trip when possible. Welcome to Rotary, Maryssa!
Maryssa Brown with Dwayne Brown and Past President Dick Sturgeon
Last week, The Rotary Foundation Chair Bonnie Gill presented the Paul Harris Fellow (PHF) Awards to Rodge Bickerstaff, PHF + 3 and Russ Iwan, PHF + 3. Their combined total donation to The Rotary Foundation is $8,000. Thank you Rotarians for your generosity!
L to R: Russ Iwan, TRF Chair Bonnie Gill, and Rodge Bickerstaff
Momentum is building as we launch a new fundraising event for the Rotary Club of West Omaha, and there are plenty of opportunities for Club Members to get involved. Tickets are now available by using our secure payment system here.
BLOODY MARY JAZZFEST Sunday, November 4, 2018, 3 pm to 6 pm Champions Run Country Club Ticket Price: $45 VIP Ticket: $65 includes Swag Bag and Perks.
Every ticket holder will receive a complimentary drink (Bloody Mary recommended) and Charcuterie Buffet. Adding to the atmosphere, we will have two jazz ensembles providing their best Jazz arrangements. Visit the Bloody Mary JazzFest website CLICK/TAP HERE.
In collaboration with The Urban Bird & Nature Alliance, the Burke High School Alumni, Burke High School students, Omaha West Rotary, Suburban Rotary, and Omaha Southwest Rotary, planted 120 trees at Burke Stadium this past Saturday.
People of Action, The Rotarians at Work L to R: Jim Otis, Dwayne Brown, Yolanda Hoffman, Nick Rosenberry, Manny Paz, Laura Thomas, future Rotarian Grayson Thomas, Bob Fell, Larry McChesney, and Rod Anderson
Warren Whitted III is an Agent at Mutual of Omaha and he will be under the Insurance classification. Warren is proposed by Warren Whitted Jr. Any objections to this proposal must be in writing to the Board of Directors at boardofdirectors@omahawestrotary.org by October 30.
Get ready with your loud outfit! Matt McKeever is hosting the 2nd Annual Ray Barr Loud Outfit Contest on October 26 at our weekly meeting. Awards at stake are Best Costume, Best Suit, and Loudest Tie. Last year's winner by popular vote was Dick Lerner. Here's the picture from last year.
The Rotary Club of Lincoln is hosting the awarding of Huskers Volleyball Coach John Cook, as the 2018 Nebraskan of the Year, on October 30th, 11:30 AM - 1:00 PM at the Embassy Suites in Lincoln. Please buy your tickets now, CLICK/TAP HERE.
John Cook is in his 19th season as the Nebraska volleyball head coach in 2018. He has led the Huskers to four of their five NCAA Championships, eight final fours, 12 conference championships and 16 top-10 final rankings since 2000. Cook currently has 692 career wins and is the fifth-winningest coach in NCAA history. Under Cook, the Huskers have achieved 52 All-Americans and 19 Academic All-Americans, both among the best in the nation. He is a two-time AVCA National Coach of the Year and seven-time Conference Coach of the Year.
The Skinner Magnet School Career Day is a very impactful event for the 4th/5th graders that attend. Just a few hours out of your day can make a big difference to these kids. Plus, you will have fun doing it!
The event will take place on November 1st (Thursday) from 1:00 to 3:30 at the Skinner Magnet School (4304 N. 33rd Street). If you haven’t attended this event in the past, below is some general information:
Format: You will be set up at a table where small groups (6-7) of 4th/5th graders will rotate every 5 to 10 minutes. There should be about 125 kids in total.
Attire: Wear the attire that you normally wear to work. This way students can get a feel for what you do and how you need to dress for your job.
Purpose: We ask you to show them the "tools of your trade" so they could relate to how this helps them earn a living, helps them to be of service to other people, research that helps humanity at large, etc. Our goal is to inspire them to do well in school, to understand why making an extra effort in their education is good for their future, and perhaps to believe that “I can do it, too”. Whatever you can do to help achieve that goal for these kids is very much appreciated!
Questions, please contact Nick Rosenberry at nrosenberry@navitas.us.com.
To find out about speakers at other Rotary Clubs in the area, you can conveniently see the list of Club websites here. Then click on the home icon to the left of the club name. The list of speakers are listed on their Homepage.