I'm new at this, so I don't know know that I'm getting all of my facts right. But here's how I understand the facts:
Our club goal for Foundation contributions from July 2017 to July 2018 is $5,500.
Our total contributions for the year is $3,550 (plus my measly $25.00 contribution today)
If I'm reading the reports correctly (which I acknowledge I may not be) the full $3,550 in contributions came from 5 members! Thank you to those 5!
I mentioned my measly contribution, because I would like to encourage a whole lot more measly contributions. It took me less than 2 minutes to make my contribution (it was easier than ordering a pizza).
So why can't we all take two minutes to make a small (medium or large) contribution? Here's the link: https://www.rotary.org/en/donate. If you need help, give me a call and I'll come over.
While you're at it. Go ahead and make that a monthly, quarterly, or yearly contribution. Admittedly, this will add 4-6 seconds to the process, but will save you 2 minutes every month, quarter, or year, plus the headache of remembering. Further, if everybody signs up for monthly, quarterly, or yearly contributions, I won't post stories like this all the time (which I reserve the right to do).
Together, we can blow this goal out of the water!
As an aside, and without board authorization, I will personally give a pat on the back to anyone who makes a contribution before the end of June.
Shawn Kison, General Manager for the Lakeshore Chinooks spoke to our Rotary Club at Tuesday's meeting. Shawn is a Cedarburg high school graduate, with a degree from La Cross college, Majoring in Sports Management. This is Shawn's first year as General Manager for the Lakeshore Chinooks. In the 7 seasons of Chinooks baseball, they have provided countless opportunities to front office interns who have gone on to work in all levels of many major sports. They have additionally hosted many players with professional ambitions, including between 50 and 60 players who have been drafted my major league teams, and 4 players who made it to The Show in 2017, including Andrew Stevenson, who debuted for the Washington Nationals, Zack Granite who debuted for the Minnesota Twins, Brian Anderson who debuted for the Miami Marlins, and Harrison Bader who has already made a name for himself being a thorn in the side of the Milwaukee Brewers since debuting for the St. Louis Cardinals.
The players are brought in from all over the country, as well as a significant portion of local players. The players look to prove they are able to handle a major league schedule by playing 72 games in 76 days, in hopes of gaining the recognition of Major League scouts who attend each game. The Chinooks take pride in treating their players and opposing players like professionals, by providing the local amenities from local restaurants and hotels. Chinooks players often stay with host families, in which they are always looking for volunteers.
Single ticket sales will first be made available to the public on April 28, when their leading sponsor, Port Washington State Bank, will be hosting an event at its Thiensville location.
The Thiensville-Mequon Rotary Club will also be holding our annual outing to take in a Chinooks game at Kapco Park on August 9, 2018. We hope to see you there.
Thiensville-Mequon Rotary Club is looking for volunteers to fill the Board positions of Club Service Director and Youth Services Director. For information about the positions, please visit the District website at rotary6720.org.
For additional information or to volunteer, please talk to Club President Tim Vertz.
Melissa Schneyder, the woman without a title, from U.S. Bank spoke to our Rotary Club on Tuesday on how U.S. Bank is playing an active role in our community and communities across the country. The U.S. Bank foundation gives back around $24 million every year, including $5.5 million in Wisconsin, to local charitable organizations. U.S. bank encourages it's employees to volunteer their time to serve our communities, by offering incentives and making contributions to organizations their employees support. When it comes to deciding what organizations to support, an employee's commitment to the organization is number one.
U.S. Bank has additionally used its position in the community to help connect entrepreneurs with non-profits that can assist with starting a business when conventional lending is not an option. It has taken the initiative to lobby in Madison to pass bills encouraging schools to teach financial literacy, and has gone so far as to go to Washington to help determine how banks could be used to identify and stop human trafficking.
Not only is the Milwaukee North Sunrise Club offering to deliver a dozen roses for just $15, but it is also for a good cause (benefiting the scholarship fund). Talk to Greg Sommersberger for details or an order form. Orders should be placed no later than May 1st, with checks made out to Milwaukee North Sunrise Club.
Rotarian Maureen O'Leary presented a thumbnail sketch to the Club at Tuesday's meeting. Maureen is an attorney and shareholder at Willms, S.C., a law firm in Thiensville with expertise in the practice areas of Estate Planning, Business Law, Tax Law, and Elder Law. Maureen grew up in Brookfield Wisconsin and completed her undergraduate degree at Carroll College. She then attended Marquette University Law School prior to joining Willms, S.C. after graduation in 2008, where she became a partner in 2014.
Maureen told the miraculous story of the birth of her daughter Jacqueline, who was born at 23 weeks weighing around one pound. After being told by every doctor that her daughter would not survive or would have significant disabilities, Maureen and her husband Jeremy continued to have faith. Two and a half years later, Jacqueline is a healthy toddler with no signs of disability or delay. Maureen shared photo albums from the hospital to put into perspective how small a one pound baby really is, and the true miracle that is her family. Maureen additionally shared that she and her husband are expecting again in October.
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