Meeting Information and Speakers

This meeting featured a presentation by Heart to Heart, a non-profit that strives to provide equitable access to healthcare around the world, particularly during times of crisis. Many of our members will do a service project with them in Kansas City on April 4.

Our Meet the Member was Emily Leitzinger, who introduced herself with a creative poem.

View the recording here.

Melanie DeLuca presented an update on our Global Grant in Colombia. Judy Huff presented the results of our February Socks & Skivvies Challenge. The Meet the Member was Jack Comstock. Watch the video here.

Member Jelan Heidelberg reviewed the group’s recent trip to Ethiopia and Kenya and described four grant opportunities for members to consider.

View the video here.

Mike DeLuca and our various trip organizers provided an overview of the many upcoming trips that our club is planning. David Detwiler was our Meet-the-Member.

View the recording here.

Jan Remme described her experience in Uganda seeing the gorillas. She was also the featured “meet the member.”

View the video here.

Meg Lowe from the Excelsior Morning Club presented the Bolivia Well Project. Our club is a partner on this grant. 

Segundo Velasquez talked about Mano a Mano and the upcoming Rotary trip to Bolivia.

Meet the Member was Jocelyn Bonner.

Watch the video here.

Oops!  We forgot to hit record during this meeting, but our club president Melanie DeLuca recorded a summary of the meeting. In addition to hearing about the Danube cruise and meeting member Ingrid Bolding, we spent a few minutes in breakout sessions getting to know our fellow members.

View Melanie’s recording here.

Gunjan Sharma and Sandhya Gupta presented the grant that our club is sponsoring to educate and motivate STEM teachers in the remote Chhattisgarh region of India. We also met new member Dan Keyport. View the meeting video here.

Our member Lisa Bellamy is also a member of the audit committee for The Rotary Foundation. She updated us on our well-respected, highly effective foundation and the importance of all Rotarians as supporters. We met new member Tim Connelly. 

View the video here.

Member Brenda McGuire described her experiences attending multiple Olympics around the world. Lenet Compton presented the new Ecuador trip planned for fall 2025. We met member Jack Comstock. 

Watch the recording here.

Member Phyllis Webster discussed her passion for permaculture. We met member Sylvia Johnson, got a polio update, and earned about two upcoming in-person socials. View the recording here.

Elizabeth Kirby from DACdb provided an overview and demonstration of our club’s new softtware. Barb Hanson presented our fall service initiative “Let’s Talk Trash.” Maryjane Westra was our featured “meet the member.” 

Note: Unfortunately, we had to edit out most of the DACdb demonstration because it contained identifying information (phone number, address, etc.) about members. YouTube doesn’t allow that, for good reason.

Watch the video here.

Member Jan Ellis shared the amazing story of “adopting” a Venezuelan family at the border and helping them settle in Washington state. View the video here.

Member Elana Levens-Craig was joined by members Amy Nicholson and David Abramsky to talk about their experiences participating in the literacy global grant in Guatemala. View the video here.

Our new 5950 District Governor Sharon Bloodworth brimmed with enthusiasm as she presented her vision for this fiscal year. She complimented our club on our st3llar growth, fueled by our unique approach. Watch the recording here.

Members Adam Hayes (Alaska) and Elana Levens-Craig (California) presented their experiences participating in the global grant project to build check dams in India. They both plan to participate again in November. 

View the video here.

An information-filled meeting focused on future events:

• A report on the RI Convention in Singapore in May with an eye on the Calgary convention in June 2025.
• Presentation of new trip to Eastern Europe with 2 departures in 2025
• General report on future trips (6 of them!)
• New Club President Melanie DeLuca’s discussion of our club vision for this year.

View the video of the meeting here. 

The meeting began with a video created by Paula Schwartz highlighting our club’s first 3 years. President Al Kowalcyck and committee chairs summarized our club’s activities during the past year. Nancy Davis, leader of the Egypt liver cancer grant reported on the recent trip to Egypt. 

View the meeting video here.

Don Stiles, Sue Steen, and Lynn Zdechlick from Bloomington Rotary presented the Uganda Birth with Dignity Project. Global Travelers is a collaborating club on this grant. You can watch the video of this meeting here.

Tim Mulcrone is District 5950 Polio Chair. View his presentation here.

Melanie DeLuca, leader of the Global Grant for the Colombia water project and organizer of the Colombia trip, presented an overview of this adventure.  Watch the recording here.

We voted to collaborate on a grant in Uganda, learned about a new trip to the Amazon, and heard a presentation by member Aur Beck on the Rotary Millions Solar Panel initiative.  View the recording here.

Maryjane described some of the volunteer work she has done in rural Zimbabwe and the opportunity for a potential service trip in early 2025. View the recording here.

Bill discussed the many water projects various Rotary clubs have done in Ecuador. 

Unfortunately, the meeting was not recorded.

District Governor JewelieGrape provided a wealth of information about the goals and priorities of Rotary International and of our District 5950, as well as many opportunities for education.

Watch the recording here.

Dr. Kristina Burrack from the Hennepin HealthCare Research Institute in Minnesota discussed the latest work on Malaria Immunology, plus a bonus discussion of women in science. Note: if you’d like to support Dr. Burrack’s work on encouraging women in science, you’ll find a QR code about 19 minutes into the recording.

Click the image to view the video.

Passcode = [email protected]

Click the image to watch the video replay of the meeting.

Rebecca Rothney, founder of the Pack for a Purpose non-profit, described their work and options for taking much-needed supplies when we travel.  View the recording here.

Marie Press, a Canadian Rotarian, described a recent service and grant trip to Nepal. View the recording here.

Angelina Amerigo: One Bottle, One Bag, One Straw At A Time. Watch the video.

Larry Schmidt presented the Venezuela Newborn Layette Project. View the recording here.

Meg Lowe of the Lake Minnetonka Excelsior Rotary Club will present her work with Guatemala Empowering Girls Project.

All the E-Clubs in District 5950 joined a Mega Zoom meeting.  We were joined by District Governor Jewelie Grape and our own Mike DeLuca. Our “meet the member” featured Dana Moog.

This meeting was not recorded.

Meggie Dumas discusses her experience as a Rotary Peace Fellow. Watch the recording here.

We celebrated our 2nd anniversary as a Club, thanked outgoing Club President Mike DeLuca, and welcomed new Club President Al Kowalchyk. 

• See the 2 year anniversary video
• View the meeting recording

Rotarian Irene Perbal

Updates on Kenya projects

Kenya Sanitation & Hygiene Report- Nancy Laible

Update on Small International Grant in Kenya- Nancy Laible

Days for Girls service project – Phyllis Webster

Library Space and Book Drive- Steve Laible