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President Smith called the meeting to order at the Lansing Center. The invocation was presented by Jack Bates and for a blessing to Lansing Rotary Veterans and all veterans of our country. The invocation was followed by the singing of America.
Guests were introduced with Dave Trumpie and included Jack Bates’ lovely wife Margaret.
Sandy Draggoo provided the Remembrance Report and she also thanked our veterans and had nothing to report.
President Smith drew attention to the list on the tables and in the Rotogram of the Club members who have served in our armed forces. Forty members have served in the Army, Navy, Air Force and Marines. We don’t have any Coast Guard members in our midst. Thanks again for your service!!
President Smith announced this year’s “Holiday Cheer” will be held on Friday, December 18 at the Crowne Plaza on Creyts Road from 4-7:00 p.m. A cash bar and appetizers will be available. There will be no Club meeting on that date.
Ken Beachler kicked off this week’s special music in which he led Club members in a tribute to our Veterans by singing each service song from our armed services.
Our Chair of the Day, Mark Alley, introduced us to Chuck Hadden, the President and CEO of the Michigan Manufacturers Association. Mr. Hadden has been the President of the MMA since 2008 but has worked for the organization since 1993. He is a graduate of Alma College and earned his Certified Association Executive certification in 2004.
Chuck represents manufacturers in the state of Michigan that are large and small. Most of their members are small, family run businesses. The association was founded in 1902 and represents 600,000 people in the manufacturing industry. A lot of their work is advocating for manufacturing to make it easier to do business in Michigan. The industry has created 138,000 new industry jobs since 2009.
Current challenges for the industry include finding talent to work in the high skilled jobs of today’s manufacturing and the challenge to have a reliable source of energy at a competitive rate.
The MMA was instrumental in the repeal of Michigan’s Personal Property Tax which takes effect next year.
The MMA likes to help promote local manufacturing initiatives such as the Michigan Manufacturers Connect, a partnership between WLNS TV-6, the Capital Area Manufacturing Council (CAMC) and a select group of local manufacturers. The initiative focuses on educating and promoting local middle-skills and skilled-trade jobs in mid-Michigan. See http://michiganmc.com/ for more details.
President Smith thanked Mr. Hadden and for his presentation and let him know a donation to the Bio Sand Filter project will be made in his name to provide pure water to under developed countries.
Our next meeting will be at the Lansing Center with a presentation by Rob Fowler from the Small Business Association on the topic “Small Business: Michigan’s Economic Engine”.
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As president/CEO of the Small Business Association of Michigan (SBAM), Rob Fowler is a registered lobbyist representing small business before the Michigan Legislature. He is a member of the Board of Directors of the National Small Business Association and serves on the board of the newly created nonprofit organization MiQuest, whose mission is to make Michigan the State of Entrepreneurship. In October 2013, he was appointed by Gov. Rick Snyder to serve on the Board of the Michigan Health Endowment Fund and currently serves as board chair. SBAM, which was founded in 1969, serves more than 23,000 member companies from all of Michigan’s 83 counties. A leading voice for growing the state’s entrepreneurial community through a strategy known as “economic gardening,” SBAM helps Michigan’s small businesses succeed by promoting entrepreneurship, leveraging buying power and engaging in political advocacy.