In light of COVID-19 mandates, MT Sunrise Rotary will be hosting virtual meetings until further notice. Our next meeting will be 7:00 AM Friday (10/16).
Our program this week will feature Tom Wachs - Meteorologist Fox6 Milwaukee. (Scroll down for bio)
The virtual greeter will provide either the thought, a Rotary minute, share a family moment or a cultural tradition ... anything they would like to start off the day positive.
Upcoming "It's your Rotary moment" assignees:
Samantha Sousek (10/16)
Kenneth Stelpflug (10/23)
Lynn Streeter (10/30)
Jennifer Sutherland (11/6)
Note: If you are unable to act as "It's your Rotary moment" assignee when scheduled please arrange for your replacement.
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While some are familiar with Zoom, there are others for which this will be an opportunity to experience something new
It's as easy as one-two-three. Honest! (You may want to check off the first two steps in advance of the meeting start time)
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Click "Join Meeting" button below - Check
The “waiting room” will open at 6:50 AM with our meeting starting at 7:00 AM. Attendees should mute themselves when not speaking, or if they have background noise. Attendees can communicate with one another through the “Chat” icon. Click button below to join our Zoom meeting!
Where was I born? Two Rivers, WI! Though spending much time with my extended family in St. Augustine, FL growing up so I believe this to be my second "home".
Name of my company and position? Currently I am employed by Colliers International which is a real estate management firm. I am thankful to have Cindy Shaffer as my client and get to work with her as her Residential and Commercial Property Manager of Spur 16 and the Mequon Public Market.
Interested/Hobbies? I am an avid runner, volleyball and soccer player. I have played in a variety of competitive soccer and volleyball leagues throughout the greater Milwaukee area. Additionally, I have participated in a few half marathons when relocated to the Milwaukee area! When I am at home, I love spending time with my 5 year old Samoyed, Daisy.
Last Book I Read? Atomic Habits by James Clear.
Favorite Vacation? I was so blessed to get to spend two weeks sailing the British Virgin Islands a few years back. These islands were filled with such culture and beauty I very much look forward to returning someday.
I am very excited to get to know everyone as a new member to the MT Sunrise Rotary Club and being a part of such an amazing organization.
Editor's Note: I took this photo during a recent visit to Froedtert. Great to see this much needed project unfold!
After many years of planning, construction is underway to build a new, larger Kathy’s House near the Froedtert & Medical College of Wisconsin Cancer Center.
Our New Home for Healing will improve health equity in our region by helping twice as many patients access lifesaving care, regardless of geography, income or resources. The new Kathy’s House will serve as a national model in hospital guest lodging to support patients and their families—right here in Milwaukee, Wisconsin.
The new Kathy’s House is slated to open on the Milwaukee Regional Medical Center campus in summer 2021.
THIENSVILLE — The village of Thiensville completed a two-month-long project to upgrade the boat launch in Village Park with a ribbon- cutting ceremony on the evening of Oct. 6.
The improved boat launch is funded by the village and a grant from the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources that covered half of the $306,000 total project cost.
“The boat launch is a simple but effective and aesthetically pleasing upgrade to the park,” said Village President Van Mobley. “A big thanks go out to the taxpayers who funded it, engineers who designed it and construction workers who built it. We will all enjoy it for many years.”
The upgrades include a cove that protects the launching ramp from current in the Milwaukee River. A new kayak launch and boarding pier will serve the growing number of users of kayaks, canoes and paddleboards.
The project includes a variety of environmentally friendly landscaping improvements and stabilization features along the riverbank, which have deteriorated over the years. Several benches also have been added.
Improvements to the parking lot include a designated vehicle/boat trailer ADA parking space. Runoff from the parking lot will be directed into native prairie plantings, significantly reducing contaminants before reaching the river.
The boat launch is the latest improvement in Village Park. Others include the Port Washington State Bank River Stage, which was completed in 2019, as well as a new playground, comfort station and entryway feature.
Future fundraising goals for Village Park Reimagined include a splash pad, an upgrade to the pavilion and ice-skating facilities.
The following story reveals how Rotary Youth Exchange continues to change lives.
For Mother’s Day this year, Melody St. John’s husband, Paul, himself a member of the Rotary Club of Los Angeles, organized a virtual get-together with 20 people — all former Rotary Youth Exchange students who have stayed with the couple in their Los Angeles home. “They surprised me with a beautiful slideshow” of photos from their exchanges, she says. “We talked about how we’re doing and how we’re coping” with being in lockdown because of COVID-19.
The St. Johns almost didn’t become exchange hosts. “I was hesitant because we didn’t have kids,” Melody explains; she wasn’t sure they would know how to navigate integrating a teenager into their household. But when the couple’s first student, Federico, arrived from Argentina in 1996, everything clicked — and their lives changed. “We had so much fun with him,” she remembers. “It was such a joy. We took him everywhere, and he brightened our lives.” For the next two decades, the St. Johns continued opening their home to new students — some of whom were siblings of students who had stayed with them earlier. They even started organizing a cross-country train tour for all the exchange students in their district.
In 2018, they took a break from hosting as Melody prepared to serve as 2019-20 governor of District 5280 — but in the midst of the COVID-19 crisis, they opened their home yet again. “One of our former students, Pietro, lives nearby. He asked if he could shelter here with us,” Melody explains. “He also wanted to do the shopping for us, so we didn’t have to go out.”
The couple now can’t imagine their lives without Rotary Youth Exchange. “I was sad for a long time because I couldn’t have kids,” Melody says. “But now I’ve got over 20 of the coolest kids, and they all call me Mom. We’ve gone to our former students’ weddings; we’ve been to Poland for Easter and Spain for Christmas. We have family all over the world.”
Today's Meaningful Conversation program will feature a panel of three distinguished panelists who live in our community and have a Rotary connection. We are thankful to Errol Barnett, our club’s current President, Dr. Rene Settle Robinson, an outstanding Rotarian, and Erica Turner our most recent Paul Harris recipient, for accepting our invitation to be our first panel as part of the Meaningful Conversations program.
The panelists will be sharing their personal stories related to equity, inclusion and race relations experienced in our community. Our intent for this session is to listen, learn, and honor the reality of the panelists’ experiences.
The meeting is on Friday, October 23 from 7:00 – 8:00 am, virtually through Zoom. You can access the Zoom meeting by going to MTsunriserotary.org
What can you do to get the most out of each conversation ?
Look forward to an exciting, encouraging, insightful experience.
Review the Rotary Statement on racism, diversity, equity, and inclusion found in our web page.
View recommended videos, listed below, before or after our conversations. They will provide background and information to help us in making our conversations meaningful.
Actively listen and participate in each conversation with your fellow Rotarians
Name of my company and position? Currently I am employed by Colliers International which is a real estate management firm. I am thankful to have Cindy Shaffer as my client and get to work with her as her Residential and Commercial Property Manager of Spur 16 and the Mequon Public Market.
