Open Ceremonies started our meeting, and Doug Bullett was thanked for his two-part presentation. He has returned south for the winter, and will return in the Spring or Summer.

 

Nicole and Ed spoke of the New Year’s Eve event. It was a great evening and a fundraising success. Official numbers will come in the future, but Nicole spoke of the phenomenal job Caroline Earle did serving as the Blackjack dealer for the evening.

 

Ed announced the Santa project was also a great success with 125 gifts wrapped and delivered.

 

The Wheelock Project also moves forward, with some carpentry work to be completed with the help of volunteers. Rotary will likely have ribbon cutting to celebrate the project and open the room to receive donations.

 

The 501©3 renewal has been submitted and our paperwork continues to be in order.

 

Ed offered a reminder of the upcoming concert at the Barre Opera House featuring compositions by George Milne.

 

Elizabeth updated Rotarians on the distribution of dictionaries and thank you cards were passed around for Rotarians to read.

 

Joe Shadroui spoke on the Barre Partnership and adversities this group must overcome when speaking about the Barre area. Discussion was offered on the strengths and weaknesses of Barre, and several people offered their perspective on recruiting new residents, businesses and visitors to Barre. Additional conversation was offered on ways to further strengthen the community by addressing concerns about Barre’s image. Considerable discussion ensued, and Joe was fined in

 

Caroline offered a District report. Sponsorships are available for the district conference, and businesses are encouraged to apply for these in order to keep Rotary conference costs down. Interact students are meeting regularly at Spaulding, and one student is invited to attend the conference as a representative. If additional students would like to attend, additional scholarships may be available, and we are hopeful one or two Interact students from Barre will take this opportunity to learn more about Rotary through the Conference.

 

 

Happy Dollars were offered by Nicole in thanks to Caroline for her support at the NYE event, and by Caroline “right back at Nicole” for coordination of the fun event.

Ed shared a happy dollar in celebration of the prize won by raffle at the New Year’s Eve event, and then introduced Loren.

 

With New Year’s resolutions just kicking off, Loren reminded everyone to treat their brain to a resolution too, and to keep sharp, expand vocabulary, and increase short term memory reading is one of the best exercises available.

The full Prezi presentation can be found at https://prezi.com/view/t7FGGYdUQQfyiiKnwMyc/ . Some insights include:

 

After Loren’s presentation, Rotary invited guests Nancy Pope, the Aldrich Board of Trustees President, and Rob Spring, the Aldrich Board of Trustees Vice President, up to join Loren, Rotary President Ed, Rotarian Tony, and Loren. Rotary’s 2019 Heritage Breakfast invoices and donations have been settled, and Ed presented Loren and the Aldrich Board with a donation of the proceeds, totaling $15,369.15!  This money helps to support the library in its yearly operations, as Aldrich is responsible for raising almost $230,000 of its budget. Nancy and Loren thanked the Rotary club for its work in the community and loyal support of the library through this event, and several Rotarians voiced support for the great community work of the Heritage Breakfast as well.

 

A lot to cover in the first meeting of the year – but we have many more exciting events ahead in 2020! Don’t miss the next Rotary meeting, featuring guests from the Barre Partnership.

 

Respectfully Submitted,

 

Loren Polk, Rotary Treasurer