When Rotary was established by Paul Harris and three others, each person came from a different walk of life. This diversity is a cornerstone of Rotary. The intent is to have a cross-section of business and professional experiences in your community.
For decades Rotary International listed a range of professional “classifications” and restricted how many representatives of each could be in a club. This ensures that each club reflects the community in which it serves. It also reminds us to not have one profession as a dominant voice in our club. Over time, these restrictions have pretty much given way, but your classification continues to be of great interest to your fellow club members. That’s why your Rotary badge carries your name and your classification.
Classification talks help us learn about the life experiences and professional backgrounds of our members.
Lunch this week: Braised chicken with caramelized mirepoix over pasta, with a croissant
Coffee, water, ice tea, and milk provided.
Guests are ALWAYS welcome! RSVP in advance to Niki Pohnl if know you are bringing guests but last minute invites are also welcome!
Hospitalizations
Chuck Hanson is having major back surgery this week at Mayo Clinic. He will be out for at least 2 weeks, and up to 6 weeks. He asks that you keep him in your thoughts and prayers.
Congratulations Travis Bordeau and fiance, Britton,
welcomed Future Rotarian,
Jakobi Travis, on 2/8/24
Club Social - February 21, 5:30-7pm
The February Club Social will be held on Wednesday, February 21st from 5:30-7pm. $15/person will cover food, beverages, and a tour. Feel free to invite your significant other, spouse, or friends.
PLEASE RSVP by February 20th!
Fee can be paid by cash, check, Venmo, or club account.
Our team will assist with packing toys for moving and the Toys for Tots storage site. We will be working from 9am-1pm at 1701 Main Street in La Crosse. We appreciate any help you can give during that time period.
Our club will be the ushers for of The Odd Couple performance. Volunteer opportunities include taking tickets, helping with seating, handing out programs, 50/50 raffle ticket sellers, and Will Call ticket distribution. Attire: Rotary volunteer t-shirt. Volunteers see the show for FREE this evening!
District 6250 announced there will be 16 inbound exchange students (plus one Ukrainian student living in Poland) next year. If you are interested in hosting an exchange student for 3 – 4 months or know of an interested family, please contact Julia Behrenbeck at 507-254-0983 or jbehrenbeck@gmail.com. Being a rotary member is not a requirement. See flyer below to help get the word out!
Julia Behrenbeck has agreed to be YEO (Youth Exchange Officer) and we need more YEC’s (Youth Exchange Counselors). Contact Julia if you would like more information. Working together, we can make this successful for our exchange student and club.
Building and Maintaining a Welcoming Rotary Club Through the Four Way Test - Follow Up
On January11th, in lieu of the regular weekly program, the Rotary Club of La Crosse held roundtable conversations regarding the club’s weekly meeting practices and activities.
The purpose was to engage members in a discussion about building and maintaining a welcoming meeting environment. It is also intended that the roundtable approach will result in a better understanding of how to
respond to issues with diverse viewpoints.
The board has reviewed your feedback wanted to share it with you. There are two documents to review if you wish:
Moving forward, we are encouraging all committee chairs to look for themes that might pertain to their area an bring recommendations to the board as they see fit. President Restel will be discussing potential meeting changes with the Executive Committee.
We encourage you to share your take-away with the board through the link below.
We are looking for 1-2 members to help with New Member Orientations. Orientation happens about once a month before a regularly scheduled meeting. A short power point and script to follow along are provided. Please contact Alex Lueck,Rob Palmberg, or Niki Pohnl if you are interested or would like more information. Thank you for considering!
TriCon - April 18-20, 2024
Discounted Registration through February 15
As a member of the three represented districts (6220, 6250, 6270), we invite you to come together for a weekend of lively discussion, educational sessions, and tons of fund and networking. Come and be inspired by the plenary speakers and be exposed to the true breadth and depth of Rotary International through the many breakout sessions.
The Rotary Peace Fellowship is designed for leaders with work experience in peace and development. Our fellows are committed to community and international service and the pursuit of peace. Each year, The Rotary Foundation awards up to 50 fellowships for master’s degrees and up to 80 for certificate studies at premier universities.
Through academic training, practice, and global networking opportunities, the Rotary Peace Centers program develops the capacity of peace and development professionals to become effective catalysts for peace. The fellowships cover tuition and fees, room and board, round-trip transportation, and internship and field-study expenses.
Since the program began in 2002, the Rotary Peace Centers have trained more than 1,700 fellows who now work in over 140 countries. Many serve as leaders in governments; NGOs; education and research institutions; peacekeeping and law enforcement agencies; and international organizations like the United Nations and the World Bank. CLICK HERE for more information on Rotary Peace Fellowships!
Let's Celebrate!
Active Rotarians
182
Honorary Rotarians
11
Rotary Attendance
94 between in person, guests, Zoom
Welcome to Week 2 of RI’s Month of Peace and Conflict Prevention/Resolution.
…And the day after Superbowl LVIII….
The news this week is from the Northeastern State of Assam, in India, where the
health minister, Keshab Mahanta, inaugurated three state-of-art facilities — a blood
bank, an eye hospital and a physiotherapy unit — at the KGMT Hospital,
Guwahati, in the presence of DG Nilesh Agarwal, PDGs Manas Chaudhuri, Kalpana
Khound and Debashish Das.
The facilities were set up by RID 3240 at around ₹2 crore ($240,876 USD)
through a Global Grant project with RID 3282, Bangladesh, as partner. During
his tenure as governor in 2019–20, PDG Das initiated the project with $30,000 as a
Directed Gift to form a seed fund for the GG project. PDGs from the United States
and other Rotarians from all the eight clubs in Guwahati contributed to the success of the medical project.
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