On December 14th, 2018 Rotarians gathered at the Crowne Plaza for the annual meeting. President Fliehman called the meeting to order promptly at 12:30 PM EST. In his usual frank tone, Dennis politely asked us all to silence our cell phones. Then spritely, Julie Durham led the invocation which was quickly followed by Kenneth boasting out the patriotic song. Lisa Smith introduced the guest, which was Pam Miklavcic’s daughter. Next order of business was the health of the club. Diane Sanborn let us know the health of the club was good and that Pam recently had surgery on her hands, which is why her daughter was here. Holding to a tight schedule, President Fliehman moved swift to announcements. He reminded us all that when we gather, to check in at the attendance table and give Bob our names, as Cathy will be on a much deserved and well-needed vacation. We moved directly to the presentation of Red Badges. We all congratulated Jacob Sabins and Nanci Yeadon. Jacob is Principal at Clark, Trombley, Randers and was sponsored by Todd Gute. Nanci is the Senior Event Coordinator at Breslin Center and was sponsored by Julie Pingston. Moving as quickly as we could, all of these was completed in under eighteen minutes. Of course the hustle was to provide time for the two Blue Badge presentations and the annual business meeting of the club. Jason Brunette was first of two to address the Club. He is from a land famous for peaches and remarkably is a triplet. His undergraduate degree was completed in Physics from Furman University in Greenville, South Carolina. He went on to earn a graduate degree in Construction and Engineering Management from North Carolina State University. He began working with CBRE in Atlanta, home of the nicest Waffle House I have ever eaten in. He moved to Lansing May 2015, still with CBRE. While being here for three years, he is still adjusting to winters and has learned the value of a snow blower. Julie Durham, who also led the invocation, was next to present. She is the Resource Development Director for Capital Region Habitat for Humanity. Being born and raised in Lansing and a Sexton High grad, she is proud to have moved back home. Her favorite thing was to travel. As an adventurer, she also took a risk in moving to D.C. for an internship at the Kennedy Center. She also lived in Wisconsin, which she loved, for six years. She got married there and had a daughter, who was delightfully born on Christmas. But Julie experienced unforeseen complications that threatened her life. It was at that moment she realized she wanted to move home. Move home they did. President Fliehman quickly rose to close the regular meeting and begin the annual business meeting of the Club. Darwin Brewster delivered the report for the nominating committee. They confirmed Nick Heriford, Michelle Reynaert, and Al Yambor as Directors-Elect each of whom will serve three-year terms. Past President Brewster also announced Julie Pingston will be our next President Elect beginning July 1st, 2019. Again, moving as swiftly as Dennis could muster, he announced the Treasurer’s report. The Club is anticipating a clean audit, we spent $185,000, and revenue is healthy. Expeditiously, current President Fliehman asked if there was any new business to come before the club. President Fliehman had been doing so well, moving quickly to get everything needed into the meeting. We all thought he would ring the bell quickly. But Rocco Rucinski answered Dennis’s call for new business. Rocco took on the character of Buddy the Elf. He led us all in a festive song, while we all hoped no one told David Berenbaum. Happy Holidays and Have a Happy New Year! |