The Rotary Club of Lansing gathered on Friday, November 10 at the Michigan Room on LCC’s campus. Following a warm meal and pleasant table conversations, President Nick rang the bell to gather our attention and called the meeting to order. He led us through the Rotary 4-Way Test; everyone passed except Chris Holman. As the meeting immediately preceded Veterans Day, Camron Gnass gave a reflection thoughtful of those who have served our country, including his uncle who was killed in Vietnam, his brothers, his daughter, and Rotarians who have served. The Club joined together in singing the National Anthem. Continuing in the recognition of Veterans Day, Mark Hooper led us in singing the Service Songs for each of the armed services. During each song, Rotarians from that service stood for recognition. Judi Harris circulated the microphone for the introduction of the several many guests in attendance. Several guests were specifically interested in the guest speaker’s topic. Julie Pingston let us know that our October book drive took in 225 books that were given to The Reading People, Capital Area Literacy Coalition, and also led to an additional 535 books from Michele Strasz from the Capital Area United Way. A surprised Sandy Dragoo introduced one of our grant recipients to give us information about their work. Melissa Keely is the new director of REACH Studio Art Center. REACH was founded 20 years ago by Alice Brinkman, who is the previous director and was in attendance. REACH’s mission is to provide equitable access to the arts. They provide low cost and free art opportunities for folks age 2 to 100. Melissa expressed her gratitude for the $6000 grant from the Rotary Foundation. President Nick gave an update on the 100th Childrens Holiday Party on December 15. Contact John Shaski or Kim Garland to get involved. He also announced a Mental Health First Aid training sponsored by a neighboring Rotary Club. Chair of the Day and Month, Nicole Szymczak, introduced our speaker, Adam Montri. Adam and his wife Dru own Ten Hens Farm in Bath. Adam Montri led us through the genesis and history of Ten Hens Farm. Both he and his wife graduated from MSU and went out of state to graduate school. They both accumulated various farming experiences the led them to a better understanding of agricultural practices. They decided to bring their experience back to Michigan where they have planted their roots in Bath. He talked about their hoop-house farming and how they are able to grow year-round without heating. He talked about how the different temperatures can impact food flavor – spinach plants concentrate sugar to protect from the cold, so winter spinach is incredible. He talked about how food networks work together to get food from seed to plate and consider economic stability, socially conscious, and environmentally sustainable. He talked about how different size farms fit into different food system. As a small farm they have an impact on our community. Ten Hens Farm has Farm Boxes available for pickup at various locations. For more information, visit them at https://www.tenhensfarm.com/. Email for Chris Swope: Chris.Swope@lansingmi.gov |