The Rotary Club of Ankeny's 2023 fundraiser, "Raise the Stakes for Community", was a great success!! This was all made possible due to the involvement of many members for ticket sales, obtaining auction items, and volunteering. Of course, this would not have been possible without the ideas, leadership, and many hours of service by our co-chairs, Laura Luetje and Stacey Koeppen. We cannot thank them enough.
The committee would ask that each member send a thank you note to each of their guests and anyone that they obtained an auction item from. Also, if you feel any of your guests have a passion for serving, and you believe they would make a good Rotarian, invite them to attend a meeting as your guest.
There are still a couple bills to be received, but it appears our net income will be approximately $87,558 and $11,698 more than the net income realized from our casino night in October, 2021. Here is an estimate of our final numbers.
Bikers and walkers are invited to meet at the Ankeny Market Pavilion (AMP) parking lot at 1:30 p.m. on Sunday, May 7, 2023. Bikers will ride approximately 4 miles north on the High Trestle Trail and walkers will walk 2.5 miles south to the Ankeny DMACC campus. After completing your walk or ride, join us at the uptown Trailside Tap to enjoy fellowship, drinks, and food. The club will pay for the appetizers.
Donations will be accepted before the Ride/Walk begins. Rotarians and guests are encouraged to donate $25 per person to Polio. Checks may be made payable to the Rotary Club of Ankeny, and you can bring the money the day of the event or mail to Treasurer, Jim Ramsey at 911 N. Ankeny Blvd., Ankeny, IA 50023. Rotarians donating $100 or more will be recognized as a PolioPlus Society member and will be matched with Paul Harris recognition points. All donations will be contributed to Rotary International's PolioPlus campaign and will be matched 2-1 by the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation - $100 becomes $300.
For more information contact Steve Wieneke at swieneked6k@gmail.com or 515-250-0507.
Registration for the 2023 "Rotary Youth Leadership Awards" conference is now open!! RYLA is a six-day conference for current high school sophomores and juniors and will be held at Grinnell College, Grinnell, Iowa, from July 16-21. RYLA (Rotary Youth Leadership Awards) is a life-changing leadership training program for youth where leadership skills and principles are taught in an atmosphere of trust and respect. The purpose of RYLA is to assist potential youth leaders in methods of responsible and effective leadership. A subtext of the RYLA program is the development of confidence and self esteem. Many participants have said, “It was the best week of my life!”
The Rotary Club of Ankeny is committed to providing a $500 scholarship to cover the cost of the conference for students wishing to attend. Applications may be submitted on-line at www.iowaryla.org. The deadline for applying is May 31, 2023. Contact Ben Digmann atben@caliberiowa.com with questions.
The Rotary Club of Ankeny was well represented at the 2023 District Conference. Not only were there 40 noon and evening clubs in attendance, and our own Steve Wieneke was the current District Governor, but presented a Rotary Inspirational Moment, Todd Eipperle was recognized as a Guardian of Integrity Award winner and Brian Tiernan was a door prize winner!
At the West Des Moines session of the District 6000 Conference on April 29th, Todd Eipperle was named one of sixteen Rotarians in District 6000 who were nominated by their clubs to receive the Paul Hellwege Guardian of Integrity Award. This award honors individuals who have made contributions in business, media, academia or government and who have by their actions, writing, policies, and public pronouncements strengthened and fostered development of integrity and ethical practices, and who have made sacrifices and/or undertaken risks to uphold Rotary's Core Value of integrity.
Todd is the Director of Annual Giving for the Mid-Iowa Council, Boy Scouts of America and has served his country for 36 years first as an Iowa National Guardsman and now as a Sergeant Major in the U. S. Army Reserve. His service has included three deployments overseas including an assignment to an Afghan National Guard Army unit where he was involved in an ambush. Although wounded himself, he returned fire, killing the attacker and likely saving the lives of other members in his unit. Todd has earned numerous awards while serving his country including the Bronze Star for his heroism and a purple heart for his wounds. Since Todd is currently on deployment in Kuwait, his wife, Julie, accepted the Guardian of Integrity Award on his behalf.
Each of the 66 clubs in District 6000 had the opportunity to nominate one member each year to receive the Guardian of Integrity award. Ankeny is one of only two clubs in the District to have a recipient of this award in each of the past eight years.
The Rotary Club of Ankeny has reserved a booth at the upcoming "Engage Ankeny Nonprofit Fair" to be held on May 11th at the Ankeny Market Pavillion from 4:00 P.M.- 7:00 P.M. This is an opportunity for non-profits serving Ankeny to raise awareness of the services they provide and connect with volunteers with opportunities to give back to the community. If you can help set up the booth or take a turn manning the booth please contact Nate Burnham.
The annual Ankeny Cleanup Days will be held again this year on the weekend of May 20-21 at Ankeny Sanitation, located at 7002 SE Delaware Avenue. The cleanup site will be open from 8:00 AM to 4:00 PM on Saturday and Sunday from noon to 4:00 PM on Sunday. The Rotary Club of Ankeny has been asked to provide volunteers to assist city personnel in unloading unwanted materials and debris from vehicles. Signup sheets will be available at Club meetings for the next several weeks. Members are encouraged to sign up for a two-hour shift, bring gloves, and wear their Rotary shirts. Anyone 16 years of age and over can help if you wish to bring another family member. Members will be credited with a make up for each shift they work. Contact Todd Wehr if you have any questions.
The Rotary Club of Ankeny agreed to sponsor a satellite club in Ankeny to meet on Tuesday evenings in November, 2012. The first three members were inducted into the satellite club November 21, 2012. They were Kristofer Orth, Steve Wieneke, and Amanda Rosman (Daughter of current Rotarian Sue Gibbons.) The club grew slowly for the first several years but now has 30 members.
The Evening club has submitted their application to charter on April 12, 2023, to Rotary Internatinal and it was immediately approved. Their official name will be Rotary Club of Ankeny Evening and their charter date will be July 1, 2023. There will be a "Charter Night Celebration" on July 11, 2023, at Magee's Irish Pub & Eatery, 1610 Southwest Main Street, Ankeny. Social time will begin at 5:30 PM followed by a short program at 6:15 and then more social time. Put the date on your calendar and plan to attend and join in this memorable event.
As part of the celebration for the Club's 50th anniversary the Club applied for a District Community Service Grant. The grant was approved, and the Club received $5,000 to be matched by the Club for the purchase of 50 trees to be planted along the High Trestle Trail bike path just south of the Ankeny Market Pavilion. The City is now unsure of what they want to put along the bike path and decided to plant the trees purchased with our funds in three new parks in Ankeny, Centennial, Bellagio, and Aspen Ridge. We are currently in discussions with the city regarding some form of recognition for the Club.
The guest speaker at the noon meeting on Apil 11th was Iowa State Athletic Director Jamie Pollard. Jamie, in his 18th year leading the Cyclones, is the longest-tenured Director of Athletics in Iowa State history and fourth-longest tenured at their current Power Five institution. He was honored as the 2019 Athletics Director of the Year by the National Association of Collegiate Directors of Athletics (NACDA).
The banquet room was packed with nearly 60 guests in attendance. Jamie touched on many topics regarding Cyclone athletics and Iowa State University including CyTown, NIL, Big 12 Basketball Tournament, recruiting, NCAA Men's Basketball Tournament Selection Committee, current competitiveness of many ISU sports teams and more. Thank you Jamie for your leadership at ISU and for speaking at the Rotary Club of Ankeny.
On Tuesday June 13th, all Rotarians are invited to Principal Park to watch the Iowa Cubs play the Indianapolis Indians on "Rotary Night at the Iowa Cubs". The first pitch is scheduled for 6:38 PM. Tickets are $13 each with $5 being donated to PolioPus. This is also $1.00 hot dog and bring you pup to the ballgame night. More details to come but save the date on your calendar.
Gabriel and Shevaughn Moore were inducted into the Rotary Club of Ankeny Evening on April 11th as the club met on the patio at Smokey Row. Both are employed by Action Coach Vanguard. Shey is the Business Development Manager and Gabe is the Firm Owner and CEO of Action Coach Vanguard. Steve Wieneke proposed them for membership. Welcome
The following note has been received from Sharlene Dunlap:
I want to tell you that over the years Danny always looked forward to our socials and he loved being a part of this Rotary family! I hope that you all know how much your prayers and kind words have meant to me! Sharlene - The prayer plant is lovely!!
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