Stillwater Sunrise Rotary had a very active Earth day 2021. A group led by Tim Troonian installed a wood border at the Ramsey Grove Pollinator Garden. Tim displayed his excellent skills as foreman first by arranging beautiful weather for the work, and then by keeping everyone organized so the project was accomplished quickly. Helpers included Nancy, Roger, Ed, Brent, Del and myself. Jon photographed our efforts - you can see the pictures by clicking here. Stop by to see the garden, and/or join us on May 1st for weeding. Later in the day Lenny led a group of 19 Rotarians and friends on a walk to Lumber Jack Landing. We met at the gazebo in downtown Stillwater where Lenny shared information on the history of stillwater and the new park. The group then walked down to the area where we got to see the existing house, old trout pond and had a nice stroll through the woods along the Saint Croix River. Once again we had lovely weather. Thanks to Lenny for organizing this great event. We have some fun pictures of the event that you can see by clicking here.
Today a group of 22 consisting of club members, friends and family completed our spring cleanup on Stonebridge and Norell, north of Stillwater. We've kept this 2.5 mile stretch of road clean for 30 years now, since 1981. Our adopted highway includes Stonebridge Trail (along the golf course), then past Stillwater Township hall and north on Norell Avenue North to near Myeron. Today, it only rained for 15 minutes, then it turned into snow! But this cheerful, enthusiastic and well-organized group had it done in about an hour. Apparently, it's not the weather, but what you're doing and who you're doing it with, that makes for a good time.
Our Stillwater Sunrise Rotary team volunteered on April 17 at Respectacle in Hudson. Jennifer Cherry, her daughter Alia, Jim Meier, Greg Otsuka, his daughter Mia, and Jon Stillman categorized, described, and photographed over 400 pairs of glasses that are now ready to be sent to people who need them. People who need glasses can enter their prescription, find good matches, and select a pair for only a $5 shipping charge. This is a perfect volunteer event that is enjoyable for all ages. Stay tuned for more opportunities to volunteer at this great organization.
At today's meeting, Rotarian Brett Emmons shared some of the fringe benefits one can gain from adopting sustainable habits.
Eating more (but not necessarily exclusively) vegetarian meals:In addition to the sustainability benefits, you gain health benefits from a more vegetarian diet. Adopt a goal (say, twice a week vegetarian) and share your favorite recipes!
Exercising by traveling with your bike or on foot: The excercise benefits are obvious, but you might not think of the other benefits of slower travel - being able to interact with things around you and visit with people on the way. You can set a goal here, too, and benefit in multiple ways. Then, share something you saw.
Grow your own vegetables, flowers, or native plantings: Here you can gain multiple benefits of healthy food, low-energy beauty and help restore balance to our local environment. Set some goals, and share a plant you're trying out along with your reason for trying it.
Thanks to everyone again for their participating in Hoops for Hope, our basketball pool which benefits our district's Fast for Hope initiative which currently is focused on a water project in El Corozo in Nicaragua. Our top 3 finishers (Rick H; Brent V; David W) have all graciously returned their winnings to Fast For Hope, which will make a total contribution of $1,000 from our bracket challenge this year!
Today we had another group at respectacle. Margie, Sara, Greg with daughter Mia, Del and his wife Marilyn, Lenny and myself managed to process more than 400 pairs of glasses. Jake Ballard was our host for the day. He thanked Stillwater Sunrise Rotary for a recent $500 grant that they will use for computers to help in the processing of glasses. Check our photo album on our website home page for some photos from the day.
A small group of masked and mostly vaccinated Rotarians convened at the International headquarters for Respectacle this Thursday morning in Hudson. We were met by Jake Ballard who got us settled, gave us some background and soon had us all working on our smart phones with surprising ease. Present were Tim Trooien who worked diligently photographing glasses so they could be viewed online by potential recipients. Jack and Jeanne Matlock along with Lenny Snellman and myself (Wendy Heck) worked on describing donated glasses. This information was entered into the phone and then we used our phones to scan a barcode for each pair. The system appeared to be organized and efficient. Once we finished Jake gave us a tour. They have thousands of glasses already cataloged, and thousands more in need of processing. We have another volunteer time scheduled for our group on Saturday March 6th. Due to Covid-19 we are limited to 8 volunteers, and everyone needs to stay masked and socially distanced.
Our club has a new video available that describes our Strive mentoring program. Click on the icon, below, to see the video:
Service Above Self
Stillwater, MN 55082
United States of America