President Julie Pingston pulled everyone in from their small group conversations and called the meeting to order on this National Talk Like Yoda Day. The invocation – a “Prayer for artists”, by Vienna Cobb Anderson - was provided by Courtney Millbrook. John Dale Smith was LIVE with the National Anthem. President Pingston welcomed new member, Jen Rostar. Announcements included a reminder that those interested in participating in Michigan’s redistricting process should let Cathy know. There will be a series of public hearings in May and June to solicit input from the public. Carmen Hall celebrated May birthdays by announcing $1330 raised to-date and mused on how the filling gets inside a twinkie, supported by a variety of creative Rotarians. Singing/lip syncing ensued. Kevin Schumacher wore a tie to remind Rotarians to consider giving to the Rotary Endowment at the Community Foundation via their annual giving and/or their future/estate planning, referencing impact of funds, tax benefits, and general jewels in your crown for being a generous person. President Pingston shared that June 11 we will meet outdoors at Rotary Park – no lunch, 12:30-1:30 –purely social. July 9th will hopefully be our first meeting back at the Lansing Center; stay tuned for more details. Chair of the Month, John Dale Smith, provided the introduction of Dr. Johnathon Smith, to provide some insight on “ What the Pandemic has been like for a professional musician”. Note: “Dr.” is NOT an abbreviation for “Drummer”. President Julie played 20 questions with the man, who had the audacity to show up in a U of M shirt. He talked about being in “the zone”, hauling percussion equipment all over the world, the hours he puts in to “target practice”, the history of drums across the world, playing in Aladdin on Broadway, teaching others, playing in the Toledo Symphony, life at Juilliard (which had a 6.9% acceptance rate in 2020) and more. His musical experiences are vast, and his parents – Janine and John Dale Smith - have much to be proud of. Remarkable videos accompanied several of his thoughtful answers. See his impressive BIO in Vol. 105, No. 46 of the Rotogram; find that and other archived Rotograms here. President Pingston thanked Dr. Smith, noting in lieu of a speaker’s gift, we give in celebration of our speakers to support a local organization through the Lansing Rotary Foundation which has, over the history of our club, supported more than $2M in needs for local organizations. The meeting adjourned promptly at 1:30pm. NEXT WEEK: We will NOT meet on Friday, May 28 due to the Memorial Weekend Holiday. We’ll ‘see’ everyone June 4th when guest speaker Michelle Massey will talk about “Lansing Built to Last”, as recruited by Nicole Baumer, Chair of the Month. Respectfully submitted by Michelle Reynaert, michelle.reynaert@sparrow.org |
or lunch since we are all excited to use the time to socialize and catch up with each other in person. Due to speaker commitments and technology needs, the other scheduled meetings for the month of June will be held virtually on Zoom. We are hopeful to be back to meeting in person following the Fourth of July holiday on July 9 dependent on restrictions on meeting capacities. We are looking forward to bringing Club members together again!
that level. You make a contribution of half the amount needed to reach the next Paul Harris, make sure Cathy has your donation. A form will be completed so the District will match your contribution with the available points. The "Earn a Reward" Points Match Challenge will continue until May 31, 2021, or until the pool of donated points is exhausted.