News

A Message from Our President

A message from Robin Ginner, our President –

Given the statewide shutdown through April 24th (and likely to be longer), at this time we are extended our meeting suspension until at least May 4th. The Rotary Club Board will meet for a virtual meeting on Monday to talk about the situation, as well as our upcoming events, and any updates will be sent to you via email next week.

I hope everyone is staying healthy and sane during the shutdown, and that your businesses are not suffering too badly. I hope we will be back to normal before we know it, and can all look back at this with a shake of the head and a shrug of the shoulders.

I miss you all and look forward to seeing you soon.

Kindest regards,
Robin Ginner

In-Person Meetings Postponed

Hello Fellow Rotarians.

Our club has made the decision to postpone meeting in person until at least Monday, April 6th.

We’ll keep you updated here and thru emails.

 

From Our Rotary International President:

March 14, 2020

Dear fellow Rotary members and friends,

The COVID-19 coronavirus is affecting every aspect of our lives in real time, and this puts Rotary members in an unfamiliar place.

As #PeopleofAction, we are most comfortable when we are fully engaged in the world – moving freely, meeting openly, and offering helping hands. These are very difficult times for people who, like us, are at our best when we are learning, growing, and serving—together.

We are also leaders in our communities, and these times call for leadership. In many ways, this also is our time. We have proven abilities to reach out and collaborate to offer immediate help to people in need at a rapid pace. These are precisely the skills needed all over the world today. The global effort against COVID-19 depends on actions taken in every country. Rotary has the unique ability to help improve those efforts in every community and every country.

Using all the technology we have at our disposal, we as Rotarians can continue to reach out and collaborate on big projects with Rotary clubs, Rotaractors, and Interactors. There are a number of examples where Rotary clubs are helping health authorities communicate best practices or provide needed equipment or support that have been shared with our leaders around the world.

As Rotary’s president and president-elect, we have been thinking of these issues very seriously in regard to upcoming Rotary events. As you may be aware, we have made the difficult decision to cancel two Rotary Presidential Conferences honoring our relationship with the United Nations – one in Paris, another in Rome. In the near term, we recommend that Rotary districts and clubs cancel or postpone meetings or events following the advice of national and local health officials.

We know that clubs and districts are seizing the opportunity to become leaders in their communities and are making better use of technology in this time of need. For example, a Rotary e-club in Italy held a live online session about COVID-19 awareness, a Taiwan club worked with companies and a pharmacy association to donate 1,600 bottles of hand sanitizer to the city of Ji-Long, and Rotary clubs in Sri Lanka helped upgrade software and hardware for the health promotion bureau to assist its social messaging.

We cannot know quite yet what path this virus will take. We know we can play a role to help “flatten the curve,” reducing the number of cases in the short term to allow our health systems to address this issue. If the collective global effort helps bring the situation under control, then we hope to re-embrace our core values at the 2020 Rotary Convention in Honolulu, Hawaii, USA. Our time together will have greater meaning and purpose than ever.

Please know that we are taking a close, continuing look at our plans for the convention in June to make sure all attendees’ safety will be protected. We are following the lead of the world’s most trusted sources, including the World Health Organization (WHO) and the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), for their guidance. We want you to be able to make decisions about what is best for you and your families in terms of attending this year’s event.

In the meantime, this is an opportunity for us to demonstrate that Rotary Connects the World in innovative ways. We should be closely following the advice of the WHO and local health authorities. Again, this includes canceling Rotary club events and meetings in the short term to reduce unnecessary interactions that could cause infections. We can put a greater emphasis on the work we do in our communities by helping our less fortunate neighbors cope with the effects of isolation and fear, or by supporting our health authorities to address this situation.

We are dealing with this situation in real time. Please visit our COVID-19 response page at http://on.rotary.org/covid-19 for ongoing updates.

This is an unprecedented challenge for nearly all of us. But it is also an opportunity for Rotary members to find new, meaningful ways to lead individuals and communities to connect and do good in the world.

We have never been prouder to be part of an organization that does so much to protect and strengthen our communities, at home and across the globe.

Kindest regards,

Mark Daniel Maloney
2019-2020, President, Rotary International

Holger Knaack
2020-21, President, Rotary International

January 2020

It’s not uncommon for ordinary Rotarians to find themselves in extraordinary circumstances. No matter what our profession is, we all contribute mightily to the world and our local communities when we conduct our work with integrity. We always adhere to The Four Way Test, writes RI President Mark Maloney.

People from all over the world have multiple reasons for joining Rotary. Many believe it is a great way to benefit their career. It helps build relationships and demonstrates to potential clients and associates that we are serious when it comes to living up to high values and standards.

In an effort to reach younger new members, we want to see a Rotary that does not ask members to choose between being a good Rotarian and being a good parent, business owner, manager or employee. When we ask busy young people to join us, we should not be asking them to give up their time and freedom, Maloney said. We should be rewarding them with an experience that makes everything they already do even more inspiring.

As members of Rotary, together we learn. Education fuels innovation and progress. We encourage lifelong learning: exchanging ideas and inspiring generations of problem solvers. We learn together to explore what’s possible—that’s what people of action do.

If you want to know more about Rotary, and how Rotary can be of value to you in 2020, send me your name and number at bjaym3@gmail.com.

New Members – January 2021

Welcome to our New Members Kathy Huber (left) and Jackie Weight (second from right), who were inducted into our club on Monday.

Please contact any Rotarian about joining.

Our Club Named Business of the Year by Chamber

The Rotary Club of Eagle River received Business of the Year for 2019 from the Eagle River, WI Chamber Of Commerce.

President Robin Ginner accepted the award on our behalf.

We are extremely honored!

Donation to the Eagle River Recreation Association (Dome)

From the Vilas County News-Review:

The “Save the Dome” capital campaign to raise funds to replace the failing artificial ice plant, concrete, and piping in the historic Eagle River Sports Arena got a big boost when the Eagle River Rotary Club donated $50,000 to the fundraiser Monday.

It is the largest donation to date for the Eagle River Recreation Association (ERRA) project estimated at $1.5 million. The campaign kicked off the last week of December.

Jerry Burkett of the ERRA board, who is leading the campaign, was ecstatic when he received the check from Rotary President Robin Ginner and club board member Martha Geiseman.

“It was manna from heaven,” said Burkett about hearing the Rotary was giving the ERRA $50,000 for the project. “It’s important because this project is going to happen and now it’s starting to take off.

“This is small-town Eagle River taking care of its own. This is just so wonderful,” said Burkett. “I thank the Rotary from the bottom of my heart.”

Ginner said it was an easy decision for the Rotary Club members to support the ERRA project.

“The Dome, it just doesn’t benefit one group. It benefits the entire community,” said Ginner. “People that come in for the hockey tournaments that go on here and the public programing like the figure skating and the different events that go on here. It really benefits the entire community, not just one small group.”

Ginner said Burkett made a presentation on the importance of the project to the Rotary Club members two weeks ago.

“Luckily, we had a board meeting today (Monday) and we felt it was important enough for our next really big project, so we were able to move on it,” said Ginner. “It got passed by the board and then by our club as a whole today at lunch time and here we are a couple hours later giving them a check.”

Ginner said the Rotary Club, which has supported other community projects including Silver Lake Beach, the historic railroad depot, and landscaping, and restrooms at Riverview Park, may be able to gain even more funds for the ERRA.

“We are going to be submitting a grant application for a district grant, so our hope is to increase this by another $7,500, but we will find out more about that this spring,” she said.

The Rotary’s largest fundraisers are the annual Wine and Cheese Tasting in July and the Antique Show in August. Rotary members also man the food booths at Northwoods Beer Fest in June, the Muskie Alliance Tournament in August and Cranberry Fest in October.

The Rotary Club also donated $25,000 to the Olson Memorial Library building project in Eagle River and $15,000 to the Demmer Memorial Library project in Three Lakes, as well as giving tens of thousands of dollars to bike trail development in the area.

Burkett said Monday it’s the largest donation so far and he is hoping it will trigger more in the next month or two.

“We have verbal commitments from many entities that haven’t come in yet, but this is the largest by far,” said Burkett.