The May Rotary magazine has an interesting article about seven organizations that got their start because of Rotary----organizations including the Easter Seals (begun by the Rotary Club of Elryia), Shelter Boxes, and Little Libraries, stating: Rotary's positive influence on the world extends beyond its members and its clubs. Frommedical missions to disaster relief to combating climate change. Rotary plays a role in a vast array of initiatives that help humanity. The reach and impact of Rotary's work are a testament to Rotary members' leadership, passion, and drive to help others.
We are also able to "use our Rotary voices" in support of community organizations or initiatives, which we have recently done for the Western Reserve Land Conservancy and the Trail Advocates, who will be speaking at meetings in July and August.
What did Rotary Clocktower do in May?
May 12th--No meeting so members could attend Phil Leiter's pizza party at Zeppe's.
May 19th---We celebrated a couple of summer fun activities by hearing from two active groups in the Hudson community.
Phil Mikita, President of Friends of Hudson Parks shared a schedule of upcoming events planned for 2021. For details: friendsofhudsonparks.org website; or contact Phil at phil.mikita@gmail.com.
The year 2021 has been declared the Year of the Pollinators. The Friends, partnering with the US Fish & Wildlife Service, are converting six acres of Darrow Rd. park into a pollinator meadow.
Phil also mentioned that he had pollinator garden seeds which he has given to me. Let me know if you would like some of the seeds.
Jay Hudson, Manager, Hudson Farmers Market provided an update on what is in store this summer. Both greens will be used; one-way traffic, social distancing, and hand sanitizing stations. Masks will not be required. Coming back are more "ready to eat" vendor booths. Poster sales help fund the market. They are in need of board members and volunteers.
May 26th---We heard from Peter Jacobson, owner of Arlington Valley Farms, our May business of the month. Peter shared how the business came to be located in Hudson and provided information about its products. Thanks to John Murphy, we have a summary on our website giving additional details.
Our meeting speaker was Chris Banweg, a Lieutenant Colonel, U.S. Marine Corps Reserve. Chris is a civil affairs officer managing money and projects. He has had three combat deployments to Afghanistan and Iraq. His current employment is a Sr. Program Manager, Goodyear Tire & Rubber, primarily involved in global transformations in technology and operations.
Chris shared how service became important to him; opportunities arise thru service; and when opportunities arise go after them. Regarding service, be prepared; listen to determine what needs to happen (not necessarily what is being said); and most importantly, be clear in your purpose.
Our monthly segment of What is Rotary? consisted of our annual review of the Adult Harassment policy which was adopted in 2020.
The meeting concluded with a moment of reflection and remembrance as we were heading into the Memorial Day week with a reading of "Why is the Poppy a Symbol of Memorial Day?" In the war-torn battlefields of Europe, the common red field poppy was one of the first plants to reappear. Its seeds scattered in the wind and sat dormant in the ground, only germinating when the ground was disturbed--as it was by the very brutal fighting of World War 1. John McCrae, a Canadian soldier and physician, witnessed the war first hand and was inspired to write the now-famous poem "In Flanders Fields" in 1915.
Looking ahead:
June 2nd--11:45 a.m.---Val Renner, Assistant Director, Akron Civic Theatre will be our featured speaker. Thanks to Mavis for lining up Val!
We will also hear from Allison Lanzilotta, Executive Vice President, Fleet Response, our June business of the month.
June 9th--5:30 a.m.--- No Rotary meeting. Phil Leiter pizza party at Zeppe's porch.
June 16--11:45 a.m.--We are looking forward to welcoming our District Governor, Pat Myers to hear about her year!
June 23--11:45 a.m.--Mystery Guest.
June 30th--5:30 p.m. Rotary meeting at Zeppe's porch. Induction of John Laird, 2021-2022 President by District Governor, Pat Myers.
Dues reminder--Please send your 2021-2022 dues to Jake Jackson, Treasurer, by June 15th.
Update on pollinator garden at Ellsworth Hill Elementary School. The garden has been planted! Thanks to our members, John, Ted, and Denny for your work!
Our active Membership and Marketing committee members are working on a fun fundraiser, a Bourbon Trail, likely in early October. The next planning meeting will be on Thursday, June 17th at 1:30 outside Panera. Please join us if you would like to assist with this project.
I hope that you are finding some opportunities in Rotary!
Welcome to Hudson Clocktower Rotary!
Welcome to the Rotary Club of Hudson Clocktower! We embrace the ideals of leadership and service in the Hudson community and in the world. Our international theme for 2020-2021 is “Rotary Opens Opportunities”. This theme is perfect for our club which, because of its endeavors has provided many opportunities in the Hudson community.
We are the home club of Pat Myers, the 2020-2021 Rotary District Governor in Northeast Ohio. Congratulations and good luck Pat!
As Rotarians, we understand the importance of leadership resulting in our formation of Leadership Hudson which has resulted in the creation of many community projects benefitting the Hudson community, such as Taste of Hudson, the Farmer’s Market and the recent “State of Mind” focusing on mental health issues.
We are a club of action! We are dedicated to service in the Hudson community through our partnership with Hudson organizations and causes. Each year we participate in a project benefitting individuals in such ways to fulfill our mission of service above self.
Our meetings are informative with a group of community-minded individuals. We have an interesting speaker on a variety of subjects as grand in scope as world diplomacy to something more practical, such as how to properly set up your social media platforms for your business. Be sure to check our club news page for the latest information about speakers and club functions.
We are currently meeting by Zoom weekly on Wednesdays at 11:45 a.m. except for the second Wednesday of the month at 5:30 p.m. We hope that you will consider joining us for an informative and fun opportunity!
Naturally, we are members of Rotary International. And because of this, we are committed to the goals of Rotary, the largest of which is the eradication of polio worldwide through the Global Polio Eradication Initiative.
But if you attend one of our meetings, you’re likely to think we’re just a friendly group of people who live or work in and around Hudson who enjoy getting together for lunch once a week. This is true. But we’re much more than that.
The video you see here does a great job of capturing exactly what we’re all about. Enjoy it, and we hope you’ll decide to come to one of our meetings to see what we’re all about.
Are you ready to give back to your community?
We would love to have you in our club! You'll enjoy the experience and will help us achieve our goals, a few of which are described below.
- Maximize our relationship with Leadership Hudson
- Increase community awareness
- Promote club growth
- Work with the Hudson Community Food Bank
- Collaborate with the District on Rotary Day
We have positions open on a number of committees, and we welcome your help. We encourage you to come forward, attend up to three of our Rotary meeting lunches without obligation, and decide for yourself if Rotary is for you.