Introductions
The Rotary meeting for May 31, 2022, which followed Memorial Day, began with the “Star Spangled Banner,” the pledge of allegiance and an invocation by Nelson Burns honoring military service members who have made the ultimate sacrifice. The song was “Happy Days Are Here Again.” There were no visiting Rotarians, but Kathy Myers introduced Denise Baba as her guest.
Announcements
- Kathy thanked the gazebo cleanup crew who helped maintain the downtown landmark.
- Amanda Senn thanked everyone who has donated to the baby food drive, helping to support families in the community get through the difficult infant formula shortage affecting our nation.
- Roger Sidoti announced the programming for June, which is traditionally the last month of the Rotary year. June programs will reflect the theme of looking back and planning for the future. Will Underwood will talk about his year of being a bus driver. Michelle Hartman, interim executive director of the Kent Area Chamber of Commerce, will talk about reinventing the chamber after Covid. Kent Police Chief Nick Shearer will describe changes that have occurred over the past year. And finally, Kathy Myers will induct new officers.
- Rotary night at the Guardians game will be July 13. Tickets are available at rotarydistrict6630.org.
- June 18, they will be launching the new Story Walk in downtown Kent. The story is Share Your Rainbow.
- Kathy was given a thank you note from the Great Trail Council thanking the Kent Rotary Foundation for its gift that supported a camping event for girls in scouts, which included 35 girls and gave them a memorable and impactful experience.
Program
Mary Beth Harper introduced speaker Carol Crimi and Matt Carroll, who presented the annual report on the Rotary Foundation. First, they explained that our club’s foundation is not the Rotary Foundation, which is affiliated with Rotary International and was founded in 1917. Rather, the Kent Rotary Foundation was established under the leadership of Glenn Saltzman in 1980-81 and became a registered nonprofit under the presidency of David Dix. The main source of funding for the foundation is the annual auction. Its general purpose is to “promote and serve the charitable and educational needs of the greater Kent community” and is governed by a board of trustees who are elected to seven-year terms.
Any charitable or educational organization can apply for grants as long as they have a Rotary member to sponsor the application. Grants are intended to meet specific, one-time needs rather than to provide general-purpose or ongoing revenue to organizations. Those needs should reflect the values of the Four Way Test.
The following were grants allocated June 2020 - May 2021:
- Rotary Club of Kent - $5,000
- Portage County United Way COVID Relief - $1,000
- Kent Social Services - $4,900
- Coleman Health Services - $1,500
- Kent Historical Society - $3,360
- Portage County Insurance Association (Coats for Kids) - $1,500
- Davey & Walls Schools - $3,316
- Axcess - $2,500
- Open Recovery - $5,000
- Portage Parks - $600
- United Christian Ministries - $5,000
- Glenn Saltzman Award (Habitat for Humanity) - $500
- TOTAL - $34,176
The following are grants allocated so far this year, for June 2021 - April 2022:
- Rotary Club of Kent - $5,000
- CoCoDa - $3,000
- Coleman Health Services - $1,500
- Edible Kent - $1,115
- Educational Artistry - $2,700
- Great Trail Council - $1,000
- Kent Historical Society - $5,000
- Let’s Grow Together - $2,250
- TOTAL - $21,565
Carol showed photos of the events and programs funded by the Foundation, including girls enjoying scout camp, produce for the community grown by Edible Kent, Portage Park District plantings at Towner’s Woods, the Kent Historical Society digitizing its archives, and Tree City Preschool’s new playground equipment.
Carol thanked outgoing trustee Dr. Steve Belli for his seven years of service on the Rotary Foundation Board. She also thanked the auction committee: Stacey Richardson, Lauren Talion, Dr. Randy Smith, and Dave Sommers. And she recognized Scott Flynn for providing pro bono legal services to the Foundation.
“I think you can see that in the past two years you have accomplished an awful lot in this community,” Carol said.
