Tom welcomed Joe Weise as our newest member. (There is a section above your update welcoming Joe with a
photo)

 

Terri is looking for volunteers to help with the Festival of Trees event.

 

An ”Ely for Ely” leadership workshop is
scheduled for November 18. Looking for Rotarians to participate.

 

Date: Looking at August 2025 instead of May for the next Casino Night event due to planning needed and
timing for the event.
Terri is not chairing next year. Many thanks for her outstanding leadership for our flagship Casino Night Event. 
We are looking at restructuring the committee to include sub-committees such as prizes, marketing/advertising, Rotary games, Silent Auction, contractual duties, decorating/set up, etc. We will need a
chair person, co-chair and volunteers for the sub-committees. Tom is looking for club member reactions and
ideas.

 

Rotary Magazine: Each issue in the Trustee Chair's Message covers what Service Above Self means to our clubs and Rotarians. Check it out in your next issue of the Rotary Magazine. These are the qualities that make Rotary what it is as an organization. 

Board Meeting Update: 

Previous meeting minutes and financial reports were approved.

 

 

Youth activities supported by Rotary historically:

Scholarships (2):                 $3,000

Gil Letourneau Scholarship        500

Interact Club:                          400

RYLA Camp:                          1,600 (Plus transport costs)

Youth Exchange:                    3,000 

Total planned to date:           $8,500 

 

Note Youth Exchange Program:

($1,000 outbound/$2,000 outbound with more details on expenses to come)

 

The St. Cloud Rotary Club is partnering with several other clubs on a $90,000 water project for the Dominican Republic. Ely has budgeted $1,000 toward the project. Craig has applied for a match from the District. 

 

Clubs involved:

St. Cloud, Santo Domingo colonial, Great River (Sauk Rapids/Sartell), Ely, Mpls., Edina, Mound/Westonka, Districts 5950 and 5580.

 

Club members may participate in the project. Members cover their own expenses. Main expense is airfare of

$1,000 - $1200. Tom has participated in several of the projects. He states it is life changing, fun and hard work. Contact Tom for more information. 

 

New Treasurer: Heather Fitzgerald has agreed to take on the treasurer position in January 2025 after she has retired from her day job. Thank you Heather!

 

Membership: Tom is in contact with several prospective members who may be interested in joining the club. Stay tuned.

 

Membership Dues: If you have not paid your dues, please do so online or send in your check to Ely Rotary Club: P.O. Box 222, Ely, MN 55731. Membership dues are $200/year or you can pay $50/quarter and you will be billed accordingly. Thank you. 

 

SwipeSimple card reader continues to be tested by board members. So far so good. The credit card reader is very important with our fund raising sales as more people prefer to purchase with their credit card.

 

The District encourages partnering with other local organizations. One effort considered is a State of the City address. Heidi Omerza is considering and will get back to Tom after the November 5 election. 

 

Consider adding your photo to the member directory on Club Runner. You can edit your own profile or Tom or
Lisa can add your photo for you. This is helpful for new members to get to know others in the club. It is not
required.

Go to: ElyRotary.org

Click: About Us

Click: Member Directory

 

Three activities were prioritized - 

#1 - More hands on projects. We have done the following so far this year: 

#2 - One fewer meeting a month substituting a social gathering or other activity since July 2024. (See list above)

 

#3 - Gender Diversity - We have 14 men and 22 women members.

 

Thank you Tom. Great information to keep the club members informed. 

 

Respectfully submitted, 

 

Cathy Coombe