The theme for the 2023 Ankeny Rotary Christmas social for both the noon and evening clubs is "Rotary Santacon" in honor of our former member and long-time Santa, Gary Welch. The social will be held at the Briarwood Golf Club, 3405 Trilien Drive on Monday, December 11th. There will be a social hour beginning at 6:00 PM with dinner to be served at 6:30. Each member may bring one guest. The charge per person is $35.00 which will be added to the member's January invoice. Everyone is encouraged to come wearing a Santa suit, hat, or their best Christmas outfit.
The votes are in for the paddle raisers for the club 2024 fundraiser, "Rotary Runs for the Roses". The top two vote getters are Starts Right Here and the Ankeny Service Center. These two non-profits and the other 11 that were not selected will be contacted this to advise them of the results. Thank you to the Rotarians that submitted a nomination.
The Rotary Club of Ankeny was honored to have as their speaker former Iowa Governor and Ambassador to China Terry Branstad on November 14th. He talked about his family, The World Food Prize, his experiences in China and his upcoming trip California to meet with Chinese President Xi Jinping. The meeting was started 15 minutes early to let him speak first so he could catch a plane to California from the Des Moines airport at 2:00. President Steve SchraderBachar presented Mr. Branstad with an Ankeny Rotary banner for him to give to President Xi.
In January, 2023, the Rotary Club of Ankeny celebrated it's 50th anniversary of receiving their charter from Rotary International. On December 19th, the Club will celebrate the completion of our 50th year. Plan to attend the noon meeting and help celebrate and share a piece of celebritory cake.
Did you know the Rotary Club of Ankeny has a Facebook page? Check it out at at www.facebook.com/rotaryclubofankeny. Thank you to Jenny Fields for posting articles and keeping it up to date.
Del Mohler donated Paul Harris recognition points to make William Holmes/aka Will Keeps and his wife Jamie Holmes Paul Harris Fellows. President Steve SchraderBachar presented each of them with a pin and certificate during the meeting on November 14th. Will is the founder of Starts Right Here, a program designed to serve youth in a supportive, empowering environment since all young people deserve a chance to rise above the circumstances they were born into and to reach their mental, emotional, physical, and economic potential.
The Board has approved an application from Paul Romanelli to transfer his membership in Rotary from the Rotary Club of Janesville, Wisconsin, to the Rotary Club of Ankeny. Paul is a retired Orthodontist. He has been a Rotarian for 33 years, a past President and has participated in two overseas service projects.
Comments regarding this prospective new member may be forwarded to any Board member.
Amy Ratekin, the Founder and CEO of Spread Your Wings, was named an "Honorary" member of the Rotary Club of Ankeny on August 29, 2023. At that time, Amy was an Active member of the Des Moines AM club but had been regularly attending meetings in Ankeny but did not wish to transfer her membership from the Des Moines club since she wanted to maintain the relationships she had built there. She has now decided to go ahead and transfer her membership and has submitted an application to become an Active member of The Rotary Club of Ankeny, which has been approved by the Board.
Comments regarding Amy's change in membership status may be forwarded to any Board member.
During the November 14th meeting, Mark Martin was recognized for his commitment to PolioPlus. By joining the PolioPlus Society, Mark has committed to contribute at least $100 each year until Polio is irradicated in the world. President Steve presented Mark with a certificate and lapel pin in recognition of his commitment. by
The 2024 PolioPlus night at the Iowa Wolves will be Friday, February 23rd at 7:00 PM at Wells Fargo Arena. The Wolves will be playing the Rio Grande Vipers that night. The tickets are discounted to $20 each with $10 from each refunded to the Club to be donated to PolioPlus. More information will be provided later but "Save the Date".
Rotary International will have a float in the 2024 Rose Parade for the 44th consecutive year. The theme this year's parade is "Celebrating a World of Music - The Universal Language". The theme for Rotary's float is "Clean Water - The Music of Life". Tune onto the Rose parade and watch for the Rotary International float.
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