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Expectations ran high for President Rebecca Bahar Cook’s second meeting and we weren’t disappointed. We nailed the 4 Test better than an 8th grade social studies quiz. Todd Gute challenged us with a Reflection fit for a TED talk. What’s keeping you from stepping on a plane, destination unknown, outcome uncertain, exploring the world in all its glory? Hari Kern always delivers at the piano and this week it was The Star Spangled Banner. Our club has so much talent! Guests? We had guests. And not just ordinary guests. We had the best guests. We had Assistant District Governor Mark Rodge of Eaton Rapids (the only Eaton Rapids on earth). We had Ben Rathbun’s intern and she’s excited about insurance which speaks volumes about how excited Ben must be about insurance for it to be contagious. Moneyball ProAm was in the house and made sure everyone was invited to their 2024 ProAm; for more info about how to see high quality basketball competition, check this out: https://moneyballsportswear.com/moneyball-pro-am/. Oh, and Todd Gute’s wife was in attendance and she knows how to play the piano. I’m hoping she heard Todd’s Reflection and that there’s nothing stopping her from providing some Special Music at an upcoming meeting. Speaking of Special Music, Rebecca told us it will be back in August! Our main event today was Sophia Cavalao, our Rotary Exchange student. Michelle Lantz introduced us to Sophia, who took 6 flights to get from her home in Sinop, Brazil to get to Lansing. I’m guessing one of the stops wasn’t Casablanca (Best movie. Ever. Period. Full stop). Sophia gave us a full tour of her home state of Mato Grosso, located in Brazil’s mid west region. She regaled us with a full tour of the rest of Brazil and the foods special to her region, complete with photos of the AgroBusiness Party (sounds like a fun time), and the abundant waterfalls in Brazil. Her city of Sinop is home to 196,000. Margie Haas, from Rotary District HQ, presented as well about the benefits of Rotary Exchange Students and she had flowers for Barb Whitney and Michelle Lantz for working on Rotary Exchange. Rotary Exchange is part of Rotary’s peace building and generating initiative. Margie had Peace lilies and other plants as symbolic gifts for Barb and Michelle. Michelle Carlson, Executive Director at Lansing Art Gallery gave her blue bade presentation. So much we didn’t know!  Michelle hails from Minneapolis, vacation on the North Shore of Lake Superior, hiked, camped, swam, cross country ski’d, ran and hockeyed her way through school. She was a decorated athlete and donated her HS letter jacket to her HS’s Alumni room where it is proudly on display. Michelle also did a Rotary Youth Exchange in Spain and the Canary Islands and she made lifelong friends in the process. Married for 32 years, Michelle had babies while at the University of Minnesota, University of Wisconsin (baby and a puppy), Salt Lake City and Oklahoma State. Her family dresses for the occasion in Packer and Lugnut apparel on game day. Last up at the podium was Ben Rathbun, who along with Sue Hansen will be co-chairing the membership committee for the Club. I’m glad to see Been lead the next generation of humorous Rotarians (the pressure was intense). Despite being co-chair for only 7 days, Ben was able to fill 5 minutes of stage time with a list of accomplishments and future goals that will lead to rejuvenate the Club. Goals included: increasing the coolness factor of Rotary and 20 new members one of which may or may not be a belly dancer. President Rebecca finished out the meeting with the ever popular Ring My Bell. Email for Kevin Schumacher: schumacher@glassenrhead.com |
