Meeting Notice and Club News

Coming Up This Week

President Claude Kendrick invites you to a scheduled Hybrid Zoom meeting on Wednesday, April 24, 2024, at 7:30 AM.

Our speaker this week will be Rick Caron, Rotary Club of Windsor (1918), Discussing The Rotary Foundation, and Invocation by Larry Stephens.

The Rotary Foundation transforms your gifts into service projects that change lives both close to home and around the world.

In·vo·ca·tion

During our last meeting, the Invocation was given by Mike Ladwig. Thank you, Mike!

WE ARE ALWAYS ON THE LOOKOUT FOR VOLUNTEERS TO GIVE THE INVOCATION AT THE START OF OUR MEETINGS.

Rotary's First First Gentleman: Nick Krayacich

Nick Krayacich, spouse of 2022-23 RI President Jennifer Jones, sat for an interview about his experience as Rotary's first first gentleman. Nick shared some of his memorable stories on a recent Rotary Magazine podcast episode. Listen to Nick's story and many others at on.rotary.org/podcast.

Bring a Friend to Rotary

April 2024

Mike Ladwig, our Membership Chair, reminds us that April is our club’s “Bring a Friend to Rotary” month.

Member News

Kids Coalition Against Hunger

April 17, 2024

A Fantastic Regular Rotary Meeting

LAMR President Claude Kendrick chaired a great, action-packed LAMR Meeting, beginning with the Pledge of Allegiance and Invocation by Mike Ladwig. Tammy Bonifield presided over a big haul of “Happy Bucks.” 15 LAMR Rotarians and 3 guests (Mitsy Morris, Livonia Democratic Club; Patrick McNally, Clarenceville Engagement Coordinator; and Matt Collins, Livonia Lions & Past Livonia District Governor) were present “live,” and 3 “also alive Zoomers.” A crowd of 21, total! It’s still “Bring A Friend to Rotary” Month. Announcements: Greg Greene noted that Saturday, May 11th, 9-11 is our “Adopt-a-Road” project on Five Mile; park at the Senior Center. Dave Burton affirmed that Thursday, May 2nd is National Day of Prayer, with the 50th Anniversary Year Livonia Prayer Breakfast at 7:30 a.m. at St. Mary’s Cultural Center on Merriman, north of Six Mile Road, and with a member and his son doing the Scripture readings.

Clarenceville High School

Our first and briefer speaker was Patrick McNally. Patrick introduced himself and mentioned two events coming up at Clarenceville High School: Friday, May 17th, Career Opportunities Day presentations for career awareness, and May 29th, an end-of-the-year event. Rotarians are welcome to these. To volunteer or find out more information, you may contact Patrick at Patrick.McNally@Clarencevilleschools.org. He also noted that as Engagement Coordinator for community outreach and under his watch, absenteeism at Clarenceville has had a 20% improvement this past year. Our LAMR is also looking into the possibility of starting an Interact Club at Clarenceville.

Matt Collins and Kids Coalition Against Hunger

Our old friend and distinguished partner in Livonia community service, Matt Collins, thanked our Livonia A.M. Rotary Club for outstanding collaborative service in our city and world. Matt is “Lions-through-and-through,” having served many years as Livonia Lions Club President and recently as the Lions District Governor for their district. Matt mentioned the upcoming Kids Coalition Against Hunger (KCAH) meal-packing events, to which we can or are joining in:

Saturday, June 8th (Lions-sponsored), noting that we also, as the LAMR club, are doing Passport-to-Safety on the same date, 10 a.m.-2 p.m. at the LPD and Livonia Fire Dept. parking lots. Maybe some can do both!

Saturday, October 12th (LAMR-sponsored) KCAH meal packing event at St. Edith’s RCC gym, 9:00-11:30 a.m. Matt noted that in the decade-plus of our KCAH meal-packing events in Livonia, we are approaching the half-million meals mark!

Matt mentioned projects we have also done together (Lions and Rotary) in addition to KCAH, including Sleep-in-Heavenly-Peace (bed building for children) and during COVID the candy and flower distributions at St. Mary-Mercy Hospital (now Trinity Health) for nurses and other health workers. The Lions have been known for their service in providing eyeglasses, sending eyeglasses (including sunglasses) to MOST Ministries (in Ann Arbor) and Seedlings Braille Books for Children (in Livonia). Matt noted that the Lions would be doing diabetic-retinopathy screening at the Livonia Spree, and volunteer screeners would be needed. Lion Matt especially spoke about Diabetic Retinopathy, an eye condition that can cause vision loss and blindness in people who have diabetes and a completely preventable disease. Livonia Lion Daniel Rathbun has gotten a grant to study this disease. Matt suggested that vision screening could be done at the Touch-A-Truck (pending Interact Club approval). They have an ambulance and trailer to take D-R screening on the road. What a project! In short, Matt applauded our efforts to work together to help build a better Livonia.

We closed with the Rotary Four Way Test, but no Greg Greene jokes.

- Dave Stechholz

P.S. Tickets to the Livonia Civic Chorus “I Write the Songs” Spring Concert on Sunday, May 19th 3:00 p.m. at Stevenson High School Auditorium are available from Larry Stephen, Victoria Haltom, or Dave Stechholz. ($15 per adult).

Upcoming Meetings

04/24/2024 - Rick Caron, Rotary Club of Windsor (1918), Discussing The Rotary Foundation, Invocation by Larry Stephens, Board Meeting to Follow

05/01/2024 - Club Assembly, Invocation by Bob Carris

05/08/2024 - Holli Kerkhof, Community Choice Credit Union, Livonia First Citizen 2014, Invocation by Rev. Dave Stechholz

05/15/2024 - Therese Maggioncaldra, Human Trafficing, Invocation by Victoria Haltom

05/22/2024 - Ginger Wiechers, S.O.U.L. Food and Clothing Pantry, Invocation by Mike Ladwig

05/29/2024 - Member Spotlight, featuring John Clay and Nancy Darga, Invocation by Larry Stephens, Board Meeting to Follow

Upcoming Events

04/27/2024 - District Assembly 2024, St. Clair College, Windsor, Ontario.

05/03/2024 - District Conference, May 3-5, 2024, Amway Grand Plaza, Grand Rapids, MI, Registration HERE.

05/30/2024 - Livonia AM Rotary Carnival, May 30 - June 09, 2024, Details to Follow.

06/08/2024 - Passport to Safety, Livonia Police and Fire Department's Parking Lot, 10:00 AM - 2:00 PM.

Visit Our Club in Person

We meet at the

Livonia Senior Center Complex

15218 Farmington Road

Livonia, MI 48154

Every Wednesday, 7:30 AM - 8:30 AM

All Are Welcome!

Phone Access Option (929)436-2866

Meeting ID: 924 328 2286

Password: 4waytest

Past Meetings and Events

All For One

April 10, 2024

We had two guests at our meeting this morning, one by Zoom, Brian Morgan, and the other, in person, Tristen Bonifield. Welcome!

The speaker for today was Ishmail Terry with All for One located in Detroit. Their mission is to empower individuals and communities to reach their full potential as productive, caring citizens.

Our work stems from the growing need to empower those trapped in the cycle of poverty by providing educational tools, mentors, and community-building projects we inspire and present pathways out of poverty.

The non-profit started in High Schools in poverty areas with mentors working with kids, molding them into students. They teach the kids financial skills and knowledge of banks. If you don't have a checking account, getting paid for your work is difficult. The mentors also present

financial programs for the students.

The program takes place in High Schools, using mentors and school staff during their prep periods. They currently offer a $2,000 scholarship if a student goes into education.

Another aspect of the program is improving the areas surrounding the schools and in the community. All for One has worked on developing parks/playgrounds in those areas using the Kaboom playground group. They want the students to have good recreational facilities.

They have recently made improvements to two city parks in Detroit including the Ida W Jones Park with the help of area students and volunteers. Other programs are expanding such as Urban Farms.

The group has received many awards such as Brightest Star and has been recognized by PBS and United Way.

Ishmail's main focus was to ask our club to donate money to reach the goal of getting 850 new bikes for low income students in Redford, Detroit Cody Rouge, and Dickinson Educational area. These bikes will be given out on June 7th.

Susan Paluchniak

Club Donation for RYLA Weekend

April 03, 2024

Livonia AM Rotary is sending (5) student to the Rotary Youth Leadership Awards (RYLA).

RYLA is an intensive training program that brings together our youth, ages 14-18, to further develop character, leadership skills and to learn about Rotary.

RYLA 2024 will be on April 19-21, 2024 at beautiful Camp Copneconic in Fenton, MI. This program will focus on building the foundation for young leaders, and giving them the tools to find their own leadership ability and the confidence to go out and make positive change happen in their communities.

Club member Eric Ladwig has graciously donated (14) boxes of essential "snacks" for the students. The club has thrown in (9) cases of water.

Club Assembly

April 03, 2024

High Energy Meeting

President Claude Kenrick opened the meeting with the Pledge of Allegiance. Twelve members participated in person and five Zoomed in.

Invocation was given by Reverend Dave Stechholz by Zoom from Chicago.

Happy Bucks was handled by Tammy Bonifield.

Erin Dobbins thanked the club for publishing the flyer for the “Take Action for Peace,” a session being held on April 13, 2024, by Zoom. She pointed out that Rotary International felt the current discord across the world warranted a focused effort to foster peace.

Claude Kendrick reported about a special day his fraternity held with the Big Brothers and Sisters Organization in Detroit, whose mission is to ignite the potential in all youth through mentorship. They have supported over 47,000 youth since 1974. More than 175 kids are currently on a waitlist to participate in the programs. Claude’s fraternity held two workshops at a repurposed school in which the organization operates from, with the kids who are on the waitlist. One workshop was titled “What do you want to do”. They also played flag football with the youth. From Claude’s description of the activities, you could tell he was greatly touched by being with the kids.

President-Elect Training Seminar (PETS) by Reverend Dave Stechholz. A slide show presented on the PETS training indicated there were over 450 in attendance, including Jennifer Jones, from Rotary International (RI), and representatives from 7 Rotary Districts. The Livonia AM Rotary Team sold 57 soccer balls and received a shout-out for their efforts. The Rotary International theme for 2024-2025 is “The Magic of Rotary.” They have outlined seven areas of focus: Promoting Peace, Fighting Disease, Saving Mothers and Children, Supporting Education, Growing Local Economies, Protecting the Environment, and Polio Eradication. The theme for District 6400 is “Be the One,” this coming year. It was pointed out that LAMR will mimic District 6400 and RI goals about the seven areas of focus, but also include Rotary Public Image, Youth Exchange, and the Peace Initiative.

The training ended with Jennifer Jones giving what Reverend Dave described as a knockout, home run pep-talk. The smiling pictures of Reverend Dave and other PET participants showed a high-energy experience that greatly inspired our next President on what we can achieve as a club.

It was pointed out that we need to identify the next President after Reverend Dave.

Committee Report and Votes

Fund Raising Committee reported that they are looking for a program to replace the carnival when that event is no longer available. We have benefitted greatly from it but the last few years have indicated how vulnerable it is to being discontinued. The Committee proposed a Bowling Event coupled with a silent auction. It was suggested to enlist a celebrity and the Professional Bowling Association.

The Membership Committee pointed out that we need to attract young people to the club. Victoria Haltom suggested we invite young entrepreneurs to speak at the club meetings to attract young people’s awareness. Her suggestion received support.

Mike Ladwig reported that he has 3 months of speakers lined up. The members clapped and cheered Mike for doing an amazing job enlisting speakers. In his not-so-humble manner, Mike stood up and took a regal bow in which the group clapped even louder.

Progress on the Touch A Truck Event was given by Bob Carris and Bill Friske. The TAT organizing committee held its first meeting this past Monday. There were 11 Interact students in attendance and they presented a very detailed and impressive spreadsheet. Currently, there are 40 students enrolled in the Churchill Interact Club and they have created teams to work on different facets of the event. The spreadsheet was improved since last year, containing information and comparative data from past Touch A Truck events. Bill said it was the most sophisticated spreadsheet he

had ever seen. The kids doubled down on sponsorships and inserted useful past data.

The Giving Committee met on March 18, 2024, to review and make

recommendations for grant awards. The Committee proposed the following grant awards, Kids Coalition for Hunger, $1,000, LEAP Global Missions was paused. Friends of Livonia Arts, $ 500, Divine Mercy Academy $500. Tammy Bonifield moved to approve the awards; the motion was seconded by Mike Ladwig. The motion was unanimously approved.

The Grant Committee pointed out they need to collaborate more closely with the Giving Committee because of overlap with needing match funds. Currently, the Grant Committee is applying for two grants. They are applying for a $2,000 grant from the Rotary 6400 District Community Grant to purchase car seats for AAA Pregnancy Center. This grant requires a 50/50 match of $2,000. They are also applying for a collaborative grant from the District 6400 Collaborative Grant Program to raise money for the Clarenceville Cooler Project. Our club would need to match $1,000. A motion was made by Tammy Bonfield and seconded by Bill Friske to approve the grant applications. The motion was unanimously approved. Discussion followed about exploring developing an international project with Larry Stevens, a member, and his family Camps in Ecuador.

The Adopt A Road Team formally applied to Wayne County to sponsor a section of Five Mile between Farmington and Merriman. Greg Greene felt this was an important road section in that it is part of the proposed efforts to create a downtown for Livonia. It was also pointed out that the clean-up on the road is in line with the “Environment Focus,” of the seven focus areas of Rotary International.

Happy Birthday to Bill Fried and Greg Greene.

By Nancy Darga

Project SMART

March 27, 2024

Our meeting started with an Invocation by Bob Carris, who asked the group to pray for his son-in-law who had a heart attack this week. (Twelve participants were in person, and 7 Zooming in online.)

Happy Bucks by Tammy Bonifield. Rick Hart was welcomed to the meeting, the group was glad to see him in attendance. Bill Friske was particularly happy to announce he is training his nephew to take over his company for when he retires

someday.

Bring a Friend effort, was highlighted by Mike Ladwig. This month the club is concentrating on building membership. Mike extended an invitation to everyone to bring a friend to a meeting.

Adopt a Road Project was reported on by Greg Greene. Greg recapped a meeting he had with the core group on this project. They selected Five Mile Road between Farmington and Merriman as the road to sponsor. They felt the planning efforts to make location a “Town Center,” made this portion of the City’s road system meaningful. The Adopt a Road Group will order a sign from Wayne County and organize a clean-up day

Special Guest: Robin Persiconi, a Livonia Rotarian, spoke about her campaign to run for 35th District Judge. She is a lifelong resident of Livonia, married, and has two daughters. She has a degree from U of M and a law degree from Wayne State University. She started a law firm 21 years ago. She pointed out that her experience in litigation made her well-suited for the judge position she is running for.

Project SMART, a multifaceted initiative of the Rotary Action Group for Addiction and Prevention. (RAG for AP) was introduced to the club by Steve Ahles, a member of the Southgate Rotary Club. The RAP for AP is a group of Rotarians whose goal is to mobilize Rotarians to offer worldwide leadership to tackle problems as drug abuse and addiction in all its forms. RAP for Ap operates under the policies of Rotary International but is not an agency of, or is not controlled by Rotary International.

The project mobilizes Rotary Clubs in the U.S. to address opioid overuse from prevention to treatment. This program is currently running worldwide with 45 countries currently involved. Steve was reporting on the North American chapters.

After showing several articles about the program and the staggering number of deaths from opioid overdoses, he outlined what SMART stands for regarding the program’s actions.

1. School education and training. The “Drug Free America Program” is being introduced in schools. There has been an increase of 169% in teen deaths due to the use of fentanyl in the age groups of 14 – 18 years People are dying of overdoses, and they do not even know they are taking Fentanyl. Educating youth is patterned much like the former “Stop Smoking Campaigns.”

2. Medicine safe disposal, Examples of how to safely dispose of medicine using activated charcoal. Education efforts to the public focus on how our water supplies are being polluted by throwing medicines in the toilets, sinks, or landfills. Rotary is currently mailing out pill disposal bottles with activated charcoal and setting up disposal kiosks.

3. Awareness of Naloxone (common name Narcan or Kloxxado). To prevent overdose Rotarians have launched an active program to teach fellow Rotarians how to use Naloxone. This program is utilizing funds from lawsuit settlements against pharmaceutical companies. Currently Wayne County is llocating 100,000 dispensaries of Narcan.

4. Recovery Programs are being offered in partnership with other groups.

5. Treatment Programs use telemedicine outreach for easy access.

In closing Steve asked that a “Project SMART Committee,” be

established in our Rotary Club to join in the effort to curb the overuse

of drugs.

By Nancy Darga

Passport to Safety

March 20, 2024

After the Pledge of Allegiance, led by LAMR President Claude Kendrick, the Invocation was given by Larry Stephens, and Happy Bucks was handled by Tammy Bonifield.

14 club members and two guests were present, 9 “live” Rotarians and five “Zoomers (also “alive”)!

A couple of our members are attending tonight’s Rotary Grants Seminar.

Bob Carris noted that 56 of our soccer balls were sold at PETS (President-Elect Training Seminar) in Kalamazoo this past weekend. Bravo to Bob, Tammy, and Bill Friske for selling those “signature” soccer balls.

Dave Stechholz, at PETS as President-Elect, affirmed that PETS was an outstanding training seminar.

On behalf of District 6400 Governor, Russ Jones, Dave presented two banners and a citation for our Club’s outstanding 100% participation in TRF (The Rotary Foundation).

Mike Ladwig, our Membership Chair, mentioned that April is our Club’s “Bring a Friend to Rotary” Month. Let’s each try to bring someone to our non-Assembly April Rotary meetings, featuring outstanding speakers, such as we had today.

Several Club members attended the annual “State of the City” Address on the first day of Spring, March 19th at Schoolcraft College’s VistaTech Center, featuring our own Club member, Mayor Maureen Brosnan. A few of us watched Maureen’s presentation on live-streaming.

In view of today’s presentation, Susan Paluchniak has graciously stepped up to be Chair of our new Passport To Safety Committee.

Passport To Safety:

Our speakers, Cheryl Bowker, an All State agent and one of the co-founders of "Passport to Safety” in 1999, and Sgt. Jayson Scarantino of the Livonia Police Dept. (LPD officer in charge of community outreach events) presented on the annual Passport to Safety event.

This event is the largest safety event in the country!! 2,000 to 5,000 attend annually. The upcoming Passport to Safety event is Saturday, June 8th, 10:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.m. at the Livonia Police Department and Livonia Fire Dept. parking lots.

The Passport to Safety event helps

families to learn safety. For example, a family got out of their burning house without loss of life because they, especially the children, were trained at a previous Passport to Safety event. Kids, ages 5-11 have fun and learn. They each get a passport and get it hole-punched as they visit 10 “learning” stations.

Learning about proper 911 calling;
Car safety (such as children and pets not being left in a car that can be 160 degrees on a hot Summer day) and car seat fitting;
Bike safety (and with a free gift helmet);
Choking and poison;
Cell phone, phone (child predators), and internet safety;
Water safety; and so much more.

At each station, there is a “message” for the parents and one for the kids.

Gun safety may be a future topic for consideration. The event also features K-9 Police Dog and Jaws of Life demonstrations and drawings.

Cheryl and Sgt. Jayson’s talk and slideshow were simply great, and our Club’s Giving Committee has already approved a donation, subject to Board and Club approval shortly.

We closed with the Rotary Four Way Test and Greg Greene’s corny, par-a-dox-ical jokes.

Dave Stechholz, Scribe

A Rotary Thank You!

March 18, 2024

Dear fellow members of the Livonia A.M. Rotary Club:

Thank you! Thank you for sending me to PETS (President-Elect Training Session) this past Thursday-Saturday in Kalamazoo. I wish every one of you could someday go to PETS.

More later, perhaps in a Club Assembly. But for now, THANK YOU! I have a couple of banners to present to you, our Club, this Wednesday magic morning.

Rotary blessings,

Dave Stechholz

P.S. The photo above is Laurie Pohutsky and me, attached. Laurie is the President-Elect of our sister Livonia Rotary (noon) Club.

Member Spotlight - Tim Belanger

March 13, 2024

A Week of Memorable Dates

Invocation: Mike Ladwig named his invocation “Drift”. He noted that his new car

sounds an alert when the vehicle drifts out of its lane. He thanked the Lord that when he drifts spiritually, he brings him back on course.

Fun facts: Reverend Dave Stechholz pointed out that today 3/13/2024 was “313 Day,” established to celebrate Detroit based on their telephone area code. Tomorrow 3/14 will be PI Day celebrating the mathematical constant ratio of circles circumference/ diameter which starts with the numbers 3.14 established in 1988 by the San Francisco Science Museum to inspire students nationwide. Friday 3/15, the Ides of March, the day dictator Julius Caesar was stabbed by members of his senate and Sunday 3/17 is St. Patrick’s Day to honor St. Patrick who brought Christianity to Ireland.

Adopt A Road: Greg Greene proposed that the Livonia Rotary AM “Adopt a Road” This commitment requires picking up trash 3 times a year on a section of road chosen by the club. Wayne County provides trash bags, vests and a sign. After a discussion on how to get the Interact Kids involved a motion was made by Greg and seconded by Claude Kendrick to have Greg proceed in getting a list of road sections to adopt for the group to select. The motion passed.

Happy Birthday was sung by the club to Pat Zucal.

Touch a Job April 20, 2024: Brian Weiss thanked the Rotary Club for allowing him to use the Touch a Truck phrase for a project to introduce high schoolers to careers that do not require college degrees. The event will be held at Schoolcraft College Manufactures and Engineering Center at 13001 Merriman Rd. Livonia on April 20, 2024 from 9:00 am to 1:00 pm. Students will get hands on introduction to several trades jobs.

Walk in Cooler Project Clarenceville High School: Special thanks were extended to Dawn Margaretta from Schoolcraft College on the announcement a the college made a $10,000 grant towards the project. Fund raising efforts continue toward the goal of raising $30,000 for the cooler.

Member Spotlight: Tim Bellanger, an Ohio State Football fan, opened his presentation by singing the

Wolverine fight song as a result of a long standing bet he made with club members that the losing party of the Michigan versus Ohio State Football Game would sing the others fight song. He paid his debt now that he was at the Rotary meeting in person. Mike Ladwig added his own rub by wearing a very obnoxious bright yellow U of M shirt with giant M’s embroidered on it. Tim an early member of the Rotary Club and former President in 2000 took the heckling with good spirit.

Tim pointed out that he was the son of two high school sweethearts that had him in their teens while they were both in 9th grade. This rocky beginning resulted in his parents moving 21 times due to limited financial resources. They settled in Livonia and Tim earned a scholarship at Central Michigan but decided to go to college in Ohio where his mother lived after remarrying. He worked producing sports features at a local radio station and was soon promoted to sales.

In 1987, Tim’s Dad convinced him to return to Michigan and work for a painting company he started doing sales. The company evolved in doing “Construction Management,” specializing in medical facilities that require infection control on construction jobs. Ames Construction has been operating for 52 years and expanding to Pittsburgh in 2009 and expanded again in 2019 to Columbus Ohio.

He is married to Sharon and has three kids. His daughter Jesse has two children, son, Andrew, went to West Point and is currently in Germany doing air defense. Tim

plans on retiring in two years and hopes to spend more time with Rotary.

Nancy Darga

Churchill HS Interact Club and LAMR Joint Meeting

March 11, 2024

Several members of our club attended the joint meeting with the Churchill HS Interact Club this week. Club members David Stechholz, Claude Kendrick, Bob Carris, Susan Paluchniak, Tammy Bonifield, Victoria Haltom, Pat Zucal, Mike Ladwig, and Bill Friske enjoyed a great program from the club leadership.

We were introduced to the Interact Club's Board and members, and given an update on some of the incredible work the club has completed this year.

Joint Meeting Photos

Interact Club's 2023/24 Project Photos

Livonia Westland Chamber of Commerce Leadership & Awards Celebration Dinner

February 27, 2024

Livonia AM was well represented at the 2024 Leadership & Awards Celebration Dinner hosted by the Livonia Westland Chamber of Commerce.

Club members Susan Paluchniak, Tammy Bonifield, Nancy Darga, Dave Stechholz, Claude Kendrick, Mike Ladwig, Eric Ladwig, Greg Greene, and Bob Carris (on camera) are seen here having a great time!

This event is an annual celebration to honor those who make a difference in Livonia, making the community a great place to live, work, learn, and play!

Member Spotlight

February 28, 2024

Our club weekly meeting today was by Zoom only since the Senior Center was closed Monday through Wednesday for election business only so we had to resort to Zoom for our meeting.

Discussion was held about the value found in the Rotary magazine that recently arrived at member's homes. Please be sure to read a few of the articles.

The Churchill HS Interact Club along with the AM Rotary met on 2/27 at Forgotten Harvest to pack meals and sort donated food. The event was from 1:00 to 4:00 with 16 teens joining with President Claude and Bob Carris to do the work. The kids worked fast and their jobs were completed.

Several Rotarians joined Erin Dobbins (event host) at the Taylor Conservatory's Mardi Gras Fundraiser Party this past weekend. Photos show lots of costumes and even a dragon dancing. Looks like a fun time at the Mardi Gras event.

The Rotary Club of Mitchell Field (Wisconsin) came to town to purchase 25 soccer balls that their club will take on their work trip to another country.

The club program today is part of the Rotary Member Spotlight where members are highlighted. This week we have interviews with David Stechholz and Bob Carris.

David Stechholz started off saying he is healing well from his surgery but has to remember that he needs to slow down so he can heal. He is a 4th generation Luthern Pastor who was raised in a small NJ town. David started his career off in Oakmont, Pennsylvania in an old Church that was next to a funeral home. David, being friendly, made friends with the owner of the English Funeral Home, Dale English. That friendship between the two was the start of David Stechholz's Rotary adventure. Dale was President of the Rotary Club and asked David to come to a meeting. David joined the Rotary club. He served 3 years as secretary and the President in 1986-87. During this time women could no longer be barred from Rotary. David inducted 4 women during his term as President and only lost one member because of women being in the club.

Danville, CA was next for David where he joined their Rotary club for 3 years. The Stechholz family moved again to San Francisco were he accepted a pastoral call to serve West Portal Evangelical Lutheran Church and School. Dave served there for 15 1/2 years. He joined the San Francisco Rotary Club which happened to be the #2 club in the world and was founded in 1908. He served on the Board of Directors for his club.Then in 2006 Dave was elected bishop/ President of his church body's non-geographic diocese (English District-Lutheran Church-Missouri Synod).

The headquarters is in Farmington, MI which brought the family to live in Livonia. Dave joined the Noon Rotary but during COVID ZOOM meetings he found a better fit with the AM Livonia Rotary. Dave will be President next year of our Club.

He and his wife Janet have three children, a son and two daughters. Plus 5 grandkids. His hobbies include walking, working on model trains, writing (he's currently working on a book), singing, and working on crossword puzzles.

Bob Carris grew up in upstate New York where he attended the University of Buffalo. Bob was in

ROTC and wanted to attend grad school studying hospital administration, but the Air Force also wanted him. It was decided he could complete his schooling since it was a field the Air Force needed. He graduated and then was assigned to Scott Air Force Base where he checked the credentials of incoming medical service people. It was there that he met his wife, Teri, when Bob made a signal to the secretary that he wanted to talk to Teri. The rest is history, as they say.

In 1977 the Carris's moved to Michigan where Bob oversaw an operating room. He noticed the surgeon having great difficulty putting in a stint for a heart patient. The stint would pull off so Bob showed the doctor a trick he used from auto repair by putting a little suture in the tube they could pull the tube through. Bob's procedure is still used today.

When Bob moved to Livonia he worked for Edward Jones for 5 years. It was the custom of Edward Jones that their employees go to service clubs and pass out literature. This gave Bob a broad overview of the service clubs in the area. He joined our club and served as president of the club 6 times.

Dr Stanley Ngeyi was also a member of our club with family in Cameroon. The two men formed a friendship in part with their medical backgrounds. When the Dr. Stanley's village in Cameroon was attacked by a neighboring village, buildings were destroyed. The police said there was nothing they could do but would build a police station there. If the village was attacked again it would be against the government. The village felt safe that it wasn't going to be attacked again. Dr. Stanley would travel back to his village to help rebuild. Bob traveled to Cameroon to help with the rebuilding of two schools and a maternity hospital. The villagers treated Bob so well that they named him the prince of the village. They even gave him a cow which he regifted back to the village.

Bob was able to obtain an ultrasound machine that he's trying to get back to Cameroon along with someone that can train the villagers on its use.

Susan Paluchniak

Taylor Conservatory Mardi Gras Fundraiser

February 24, 2024

Club members Claude Kendrick (with friends Syndi and Laney) along with Tammy Bonifield and Event Host Erin Dobbins attended Taylor Conservatory's Mardi Gras Fundraiser Party this past weekend. This is an annual fundraising event attended by tons of Rotarians from around the district. Judging from the photos and videos folks are posting online, it looks like a great time was had by all!

More Photos

Divine Mercy Academy

February 21, 2024

The meeting was opened by President Claude; following the Pledge of Allegiance, an Invocation was given by Bob Carris. Since upcoming events were carefully reviewed, there was no collection of Happy Bucks. Our Club is willing to take the leadership for the Fall KCAH (Kids Coalition Against Hunger), with Tammy Bonifield heading it up and several volunteering for the KCAH Committee. We will reach out for help, as well.

Divine Mercy Academy (DMA) - Filling “A Gap”

Today’s speakers were Principal Barbara Brish and Teacher Louise Zilka from DMA. They shared a fine brochure, with the front picture of Sts. Genevieve & Maurus School on Jamison St. in Livonia.

This K-8 private school in the Roman Catholic tradition serves children and families with special needs of all kinds, many having emotional problems. Ten students are currently enrolled. DMA has been in existence for five years and receives no funding from the State or from the Roman Catholic Archdiocese.

Their presentation also tugged at our heartstrings, since many of the children have been “expelled” (or suspended, etc.) from public, parochial, or other schools where they cannot fit in.

DMA teaches social skills, as well as providing physical, speech, and emotional support. Each child has an individualized plan, with students entering the school at different times of the year.

DMA has joined St. Valentine’s RC School in Redford Twp. For a weekly chapel. The school is funded through tuition ($15,000/year), though many cannot pay the full freight, and through charitable donations. DMA has student teachers from Madonna University. DMA needs reading volunteers, please call (734) 855-4997 or email aramouni.dmaschool@gmail.com.

There are no coaches in the school; DMA is “bare bones,” but always with at least three teachers in the building. (See the attached video.) No traditional report cards are issued until 7th & 8th grades, though “brain mapping” and progress reports are given to the student’s parents. A helpful Q&A!

Dave Stechholz

Junior Achievement

February 14, 2024

Beth O'Conner, VP of Programs for Junior Achievement of SE Michigan, was our speaker for today's program. She explained that through JA, young people discover what is possible in their lives, helping them to connect what they learn in school with life outside the classroom. JA does this by using the personal life experiences of volunteers in finance to teach financial literacy and careers in finance. Other volunteers teach about the use of credit cards, interest rates, and setting up a bank account. (Detroit ranks as the 5th unbanked society in the U.S.) Students learn how to fill out job applications and interview skills taught and practiced.

Corporations in business, manufacturing, and medicine also provide volunteer leaders to mentor the students.

Beth told us how a group of students developed and made lamps that showed how much electricity was used when it was turned on. The students then sold the lamps to the public.

The programs are delivered by corporate volunteers, community-based organizations, and educators. The lessons, which are aligned with the State of Michigan educational standards, are designed to provide relevant experience and knowledge needed for vocational and personal success.

JA was started in 1949 and serves youth from 5 to 25. Classes are taught in schools, community centers, and libraries. Career fairs are held for the students to explore different fields available in Michigan. JA has programs in Livonia and Clarenceville Schools.

Through Junior Achievement, students learn that it's possible to invest in their future, get a better understanding of how the world works, and pursue their dreams.

Susan Paluchniak

JA of Southeastern Michigan 2023 Programming

Thank You From Guatemala

February 14, 2024

Dear Livonia AM: I bought a couple of soccer balls from your club on eBay last November to take to Guatemala on our service trip with the Lake in the Hills Rotary Club. These kids were thrilled with the soccer balls! They had an ancient rock-hard ball to play with. Soccer is a big part of their day during free time at the AkTenamit School in La Libertad, Guatemala. Thanks for making these soccer balls available. All the best, yours in Rotary.

Diana Mark

McHenry Area Rotary Club

McHenry, Illinois

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Wayne County Commissioner

Terry Marecki

January 31, 2024

Building Connections

The Invocation was done by Victoria Haltom. She pointed out that Pluto moved into Aquarius and that we should welcome change and focus on the gifts each member has to offer. She said this is a new era of connectivity.

Tammy Bonifield pitched in for Happy Bucks, since our Sargent of Arms, Sharon Pommerville is in the hospital with a broken shoulder. She is slated for surgery Thursday. Prayers were extended to her.

Reverend David Stechholz and John Clay were happy to be recuperating from their back surgery.

A guest from the Trenton Rotary Club attended the meeting, Bill Jasman. He was happy to be going to Africa in 2 weeks in Ghana putting in a well at a school.

Special thanks were extended to all the members who helped out at the Livonia Hockey Allstar Game with Redwing Alumni. Special cheers went out to member Eric Ladwig who skated at the game. The game netted over $10,000 for local charities. The Livonia Rotary PM group rented a room at the arena during the game for the players serving pizza.

Bob Carris announced that the club will be meeting with the Interact Club at Churchill High School on March 11, 2024 at 2:30. Nancy Darga will pick up snacks and Tammy is bringing water.

The Guest Speaker was Wayne County Commissioner Terry Marecki. She pointed out that the voting districts for Wayne County Commissioners were changed with the census and she now represents the west end (60%) of Livonia, Northville City, and Northville and Plymouth Township. She was first elected as Wayne County Commissioner in 2015. She listed all of the committees she serves on. Some of the affiliations she listed was being a member of the National Assoc. of Counties and the Planning Group for the Tri-County Summit. She informed the Rotary Club that each Commissioner gets to appoint a student to the County wide Youth Council. These students get to go to Lansing. Applications are open in September. She encouraged the club to nominate someone.

In speaking about current legislation pending, she stated that recently a Senate Bill at the State was introduced to add a $2.00 charge to all water bills to establish a fund for people who cannot pay their water bill. This fund would be overseen by the State Health and Human Services Department. She does not support the bill in that the administrative costs are estimated over 20% (12 million of 60 million to be collected). She pointed out that she helped Livonia secure 8 million ARPA Funds for a new Senior Center.

The biggest challenge Wayne County is facing currently is rebuilding the workforce. Wayne County is losing Sheriff’s and Prosecutors to other municipalities due to low wages, high workloads, and stressful work environments. Union contracts are being re-opened to introduce incentives to improve the retention rate of the workforce.

The new Criminal Justice Center on I75 and Warren will be opening. The next project is the Civil Justice Center. She expounded on improvements the County is making.

The County will be spending 5 million each year for the next 5 years in new technology to improve operations.

Commission meetings are Zoomed in and recorded. The public is welcome to make comments.

The Roads Division has set up a road call center for complaints. If anyone has a problem with a road call 1-888-762-3273. Do not call her office. Greg Green wanted to know how our club could sponsor a road like he does in Caton. She told him to call this road number.

Nancy Darga asked if she was still sponsoring a project for Rouge Rescue Day. She explained that the Friends of the Rouge do not do a single Rouge Day. She suggested our club contact the Friends through their website. Nancy agreed to do so.

The Commissioner explained that the Parks and Recreation Department have made great improvements to the parks. Their goal this year is to connect all their parks and waterways.

In closing accolades were made about the club setting up a text chain to keep everyone in communication about Sharon’s accident and need for assistance. Claude Kendrick offered to add everyone’s name in the phone chain as a way to keep everyone connected in real time.

Nancy Darga

Autism Alliance of Michigan

January 25, 2024

Our club was recently recognized by the Autism Alliance of Michigan.

Club members Sharon Pommerville, Bill Fried, Mike Ladwig, and Steve Alexander attended the dinner event held at the Great Lakes Culinary Institute in Southfield.

This event was the Autism Alliance of Michigan's first event to induct supporting organizations that donate to their cause/mission in the BRIDGE BUILDERS SOCIETY and the Founders Society.

Livonia All-Stars vs Detroit Redwings Alumni

January 28, 2024

On Sunday, members from both Livonia Rotary Clubs came out to help support the Livonia All-Stars vs. Detroit Red Wings Alumni charity hockey game.

Our club was well represented by Tammy Bonifield, Steve Alexander, Mike Ladwig, Bob Carris, Claude Kendrick, and Pat Zucal.

Club member Eric Ladwig was suited up and playing for the Livonia All-Stars team.

Laugh and Learn Austism Therapy

January 24, 2024

Smiles and Laughter Cut Through Fog and Rain at the Livonia Rotary AM Meeting

Despite the fog and rain, a large contingent of members attended the January 24, 2024 meeting both by Zoom and in person. Many of them wearing Detroit Lions Football gear as they savor the Teams’ victory over Tamps Bay Buccaneers, on January 21, 2024. This victory places Detroit in striking distance to the Super Bowl game. The current President, Claude Kendrick, wearing a Lions knit cap, and looking quite sporty, thanked Tammy Bonifield on behalf of the club for hosting a Lions game viewing party and taco bar.

Invocation: Larry Stephens asked God to give us wisdom. He asked for peace in the world. Prayers were extended to Rick Poppa and his son Nick who is struggling with MS. Reverend David Stechholz was sent intentions for his speedy recovery from back surgery.

Happy Bucks: Bob Carris reported that due to the efforts of Mayor Brosnan and her assistant Dave Varga, Sears will let us use the parking lot again for the annual carnival. Everyone cheered hearing the happy news.

Erin Dobbs reported that she is happy she will be attending a Rotary Peace Conference at the Richard Nixon Conference Center north of Los Angeles.

Mike Ladwig was happy that his son, Eric Ladwig, also a Rotary member, will be skating at the Livonia All-Star Hockey Game vs the Red Wing Alumni on Sunday, January 28th. Volunteers are needed at the Livonia Ice Rink from 10 to 2:30.

Correspondence: Claude reported that the club received a thank you letter from the “Restore the Horse,” for the donation from the Churchill Interact Club's, Touch a Truck fundraising event. The funds will go to the Wayne County Mounted Unit who participate in the event with their horses. A thank you letter was also received from M.O.S.T. Ministries, for their grant to provide optometric services to a poor region in Mexico.

Tammy encouraged members to sign up for the District Assembly 4/7/2024 at St. Clair College Windsor and District Conference

5/3/2024 in Grand Rapids. Registration is through the DACdb website.

Special Speaker: Karoline Kennville, the Director of Laugh and Learn Therapy for Autistic Kids, gave a presentation of their program to help children with developmental disabilities. She pointed out that the ratio for autistic kids used to be 1 in 36 and now has climbed to 1 in 6. Studies are trying to ascertain why the increase. Their program is private and they currently have two centers, one in Grand Blanc and one in Brighton. Their program offers learning through “Applied Behavioral Analysis.” They stress play as a learning experience and want to offer more outdoor play experiences. They are in need of outdoor play equipment and gently used toys and bikes for their clients. They have applied for a grant.

Nancy Darga

Post Meeting Thank You Note: Thank you for giving me the chance to speak today! Here is a picture of some of our staff with the ball. This is a new addition to our play area. Great for teaching rolling the ball back and forth for social and working on gross motor skills!

Karoline Kennville

Detroit Lions Watch Party

January 21, 2024

GO LIONS!

A pre-game gathering for the Lions Football Game on January 21, 2024, was hosted by Tammy Bonifield at her home, with a taco bar.

Club members Bill Fried, Greg Greene, Erin Dobbins, Nancy Darga (with Mike), Claude Kendrick (with Jeanne), Bob Carris, and Bill Friske (with Rose), enjoyed Tammy's hospitality and the Lions watch party.

Bob Carris brought his popular bean dip. Prior to the game starting, a "brainstorming discussion" was held on future fund-raising events or programs. The game was a nail-biter at times but this rowdy group cheered our beloved team to victory as well as Tammy’s two dogs and Erin's pooch.

Freezing Weather Meets a Heat Wave at the Livonia AM Meeting

January 17, 2024

This past week's meeting was held via Zoom only due to weather conditions. Thanks to the technical help from our member Bill Friske, who set up the regular meetings both in person and virtual, the group met by Zoom. The warm greetings and laughter shared by members in the Zoom warmed up the day and kept the cold at bay.

The Invocation was done by Bob Carris. In continuation of a conversation from the previous meeting, funding opportunities for the walk-in coolers for the Clarenceville Food Pantry were discussed. Erin Dobbs asked members who would be willing to help write letters, to contact her.

The special guest speaker was

Elana Voyles of Gentiva Hospice. She described their philosophy on giving personal care at a vulnerable time in people's life. Gentiva is a national service provider with three centers in Michigan, Southfield, Canton, and Flint. A heartfelt PowerPoint with video clips of patients describing how grateful they were for the care they received was presented.

Several members shared their experiences with hospice care for their family members, and how important it was during their challenging times.

Nancy Darga

Churchill HS Interact Club Presentation Of Checks

January 10, 2024

The Churchill HS Interact Club's leadership team met with Mayor Maureen Miller Brosnan at City Hall last week to present checks to groups that they are committed to supporting.

Club members Dave Burton, Bob Carris, Susan Paluchniak, Dave Stechholz, Pat Zucal, Eric Ladwig, and Claude Kendrick were on hand to share in the ceremony.

The gift recipients were - The Livonia Police Department, The Livonia Fire Department, Restore The Horse, VT Seva, and Shelter Box.

The funds were raised from this past summer's successful Touch A Truck event.

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RACCA Cancer Foundation

January 10, 2024

President Claude presided over the meeting today. Claude mentioned that the Churchill HS Interact Club will be presenting checks this afternoon at 4:30 to several recipients from the proceeds of the Touch A Truck.

Claude would like as many members who can be there to support the Interact Club as they make these presentations.

A brief discussion occurred with possible fundraising /grants for the coolers for the Clarenceville food pantry. Those interested in helping were asked to please stay after the meeting.

Reminder - the Rotary District Conference is in Grand Rapids, at the Amway Grand Plaza, May 3-5.

The January Rotary Magazine has several good articles, especially " The Race to Save Lives".

Jimmy Hill and Brandon Melin were our presenters on ZOOM for RACCA Cancer Foundation.

This foundation started with a group of friends, driven to raise funds and awareness, inspired in the name of our fallen brother, to benefit local members in our community affected with cancer.

They raise these funds by having a disc golf tournament at Blue Ribbon Pines in Minnesota. This has grown through the years to include 4 live bands, lots of food, and raffles.

We were having difficulty in showing their taped presentation and ran out of time for our meeting. They were invited back.

Susan Paluchniak

Club Assembly

January 03, 2024

New Year, New Outlook

Mike Ladwig gave the invocation. He stated that he would like to get back to basic civility and dedication to serve others be the focus in 2024.

Tammy Bonifield the past President, chaired the meeting as Claude Kendrick, the current president, was stuck in a traffic jam. Shortly after the meeting started Claude arrived to cheers from the group.

Treasury Report: Tammy Bonifield stated that the club was in a good financial position. She will bring in updated accounting reports at the next meeting.

Fund Raising: Nancy Darga asked what the status was of the carnival for 2024 in that it is the largest revenue generator for the club. Bob Caris reported that he talked to Clarenceville School District about using their parking lot for the carnival. He also talked to Burton Manor on the I96 service drive. It was

suggested that the club talk to Dave Varga who has a meeting with Shostak to see if we can use Sears one more time. Pat Zucal offered to speak with Sears. It was pointed out that the club needed a more permanent home for the Carnival. The Clarenceville School complex was voted the best site of the three being considered. A generous donation could be given to the school for hosting the carnival. Bob and Pat would follow through with negotiations.

Giving Committee: Bill Friske reported that the following organizations applied for grants from the Livonia Rotary AM Club:

Clarenceville School $1,400 for a 3D printer in their stem lab.

Livonia Ballet, $500 for a scholarship. They will be asked to speak to the club in April.

Divine Mercy Academy, $1,000 for science supplies for special needs children. They will be asked to speak to the club in February.

Reverend Dave Stechholz motioned to approve the recommended grant awards, Nancy Darga seconded. The motion was unanimously approved.

The Livonia Allstar Hockey Game

is fast approaching on January 28, 2024. Claude will set up a SignUp

Genius. It was agreed the club would volunteer at the event.

Rotary International has decided to eliminate separate "themes" in two years. They are going to have single branding. Separate themes and logos have proven to be confusing. Rotary magazine is distributed to 55 countries. A single branding campaign will provide a unified voice.

The Rotary Youth Leadership Award (RYLA) will combine youths from district 6400 plus 6480. The camp

is scheduled for April 19-21st. The theme will be “Imagine the Future.”

Tammy asked for ideas for a

meeting at the Seedlings Event in May. Greg Greene asked if the Rotary Livonia AM Club would like to “Adopt a Road.” This involves doing a cleanup four to five times a year on a section of road. A cleanup day could take four to five hours given

how many volunteers show up. It was pointed out that such a commitment would take a lot of time and physical challenges. Tammy would like the club to consider a “Service Day.” The annual Rouge River Clean

Up Day was mentioned. Nancy Darga will contact the Friends of the Rouge to see if a Livonia site is

Member Spotlight

December 13, 2023

The meeting of 12/13/2023 was focused on being a “Showcase of Members.”

Mike Ladwig started the meeting in that the current President, Claude Kendrick was stuck in traffic. However, he showed up shortly with a big smile and wearing a Santa hat. Reverend David Stechholz gave an invocation.

Victoria Halton, a concert violinist played a beautiful piece on her violin and then played Happy Birthday and we all sang to Sharon Pommerville.

Susan Paluchniak, the first speaker stated that she was born in Detroit. Her father was the pilot for the President of General Motors but joined the military. He was in charge of a base in Germany and eventually became a colonel working on the missile project introduced in the late 1950s. As a result of her father being in the military Susan lived in Germany, South Carolina, her mother’s parents' farm in Ohio, and then Florida. She met her husband who was from Dearborn Michigan and settled here teaching

Junior High School. They have a son, Jason, who lives in the Redford area.

Stephen (Steve) Alexander, our next presenter, also served in the military traveling to 15 countries. He used Taiwan as his home base. A graduate of John Glenn High School, his mother wanted him to become a teacher like herself, but he had an interest in science spurred on by his discovery of a science magazine. He worked for Ford Motor. He has a daughter, Audrey, 15 in Franklin High School and a son, Trevor, at Michigan State University studying physical therapy.

Victoria Haltom was the last speaker and she jokingly pointed out that she was not named after the queen, but a Ford car known as Victoria. She chose to become a professional musician, a career she

dedicated her life to. She was inspired to learn the violin when she was 8 years old after hearing the Detroit Symphony play at her school. Since Livonia did not have a string instrument program at the time her parents sent her to a special program but she came back to Franklin High School for her senior year before enrolling into the University of Michigan. She played for the New Orleans Symphony, spent time as a backup musician in Nashville, taught in the Bloomfield School district for 10 years, and the Metro Youth Program for 17 years. She went back to college in her 60s to be a social worker and now councils’ people. She is very active in several coral groups. In response to Rev. David's question about why she is so active in several groups, she pointed out that as you age your circle of relatives and friends shrink and you need to make an effort to expand your network of friends and enrich your life.

Sponsoring a Family for the holidays, an annual tradition with the Livonia AM Rotary was approved to spend up to $500. Reverend David contacted the Livonia Cares Program. They work with the Salvation Army to screen families.

He was made aware of a family from Livonia whose house had a major fire. He

will see if we can adopt this family.

Nancy Darga

Salvation Army Bell Ringing

December 09, 2023

Thank you to all of our club members who participated in the bell-ringing event for the Salvation Army last Saturday.

It was heartwarming to see members of the Churchill HS Interact Club

volunteering alongside our club members. The weather was perfect, and everyone had a great time while contributing to a noble cause.

Thank you ALL for your commitment to making a difference in our community.

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Membership Summit

December 09, 2023

On Saturday, December 9th, I attended a Rotary Membership Summit in Troy. The Summit was a hands-on event with Rotarians from 6 districts covering Michigan and Southwest Ontario.

Here is a message from DG Russ Jones as stated in the December D6400 Newsletter :

"Membership. It is a universal concern among all clubs in our zone and should be a priority for all Rotarians. Keeping ourselves and other members engaged and bringing in new members is vital to maintaining a vibrant organization. If you want a Rotary club that has an impact on your community and the world, you must be the one actively promoting the club and asking other leaders to join."

At the Summit, we worked on "developing an action plan to ensure we as club members increase our impact, expand our reach in the community, enhance member engagement and increase our club’s ability to adapt." I had the honor and privilege to meet in-person and learn from some very distinguished Rotary leaders; Rotary International President Elect, Stephanie Urchick, RI Directors Drew Kessler and Chris Etienne (Elect), Louisa Horne and Tom Gump.

Once again, I was very proud of our Livonia AM Rotary Club for doing things right and checking most of the boxes for being a vibrant, inclusive, diverse and equitable club; promoting Rotary in our community; and always working to increase membership.

RIPE Stephanie explained to us that Rotary was founded as, and remains to be, a membership organization. We are defined as a "membership organization with opportunities for service."

The emphasis of fellowship in Rotary at the Summit really struck home with me as the chairperson of the District 6400 Pathways to Understanding Committee.

Our first breakout session reminded me of the town hall our club had a few months ago (and that we should follow up with a "part 2" after the New Year.) During the work session, a member of the Grosse Pointe Rotary club stated that she really enjoyed the meeting format that includes the Pledge of Allegiance and an invocation. I was lucky to have a personal audience with RI Directors Drew Kessler and Chris Etienne during the next break. I took the opportunity to discuss the statement from the Grosse Pointe member while she was included in the conversation. The Directors were very decisive in explaining that prayer is inappropriate for Rotary club meetings and should be replaced with a non-religious "moment of inspiration". I explained that I am a Christian and that is a tough thing for me to promote as the District Chairperson for the Pathways committee. We left the conversation very peacefully with the message that religion, like politics, has no place in Rotary.

However, as a Christian and member of the Livonia AM club which has many Christian members, it has been a difficult struggle for me to be called to "shine my light" by Jesus but hide it under a basket by Rotary. After several months of prayer, contemplation, multiple bible studies and even one-on-one discussion with theologians, I came to my personal conclusion and wanted to share it with you:

Acts 15; 1-21 teaches about deference; respectful submission or yielding to the judgement, opinion, will etc. of another. Just as Paul and Barnabas showed deference in Judea about who can be saved, I can certainly show deference to Rotary, the greatest organization for good on Earth, by encouraging our clubs to relax on public prayer during meetings that are called in the name of Rotary in order to welcome those who are not yet working on their faith journey. I appreciate our club and value all the new friendships formed with our members. Thank you again for letting me be a part of the "cool kids"!

Erin Dobbins

Connection Church - Hanna and Hope House

December 06, 2023

Our speaker for this morning, Jeanne Henderson, spoke to the Club about a faith-based support housing located in Canton.

This housing is run by the Connection Church , which Jeanne and Claude belong to.

The church has two homes for residents, the Hana House for women and the Hope House for men.

Residents must be 18 or older, have a job, and transportation to work. No children or pets are allowed in the homes. The residents are required to attend services at the Connection Church and pay $500.00 per month with $100.00 put in escrow for them when they leave which can be used on housing.

While at the homes the residents are supported by classes in home maintenance and finances. Support is given in helping them find better paying jobs. Clients are allowed to stay for 18 months. This is not a transition home.

Club members were reminded to stop by Joe's Produce on Saturday to support our Interact members who are Bell Ringers for the Salvation Army.

Our Club still hasn't heard from The Methodist Children's Home about the need for gift wrapping.

Susan Paluchniak

Club Meeting

November 29, 2023

The speaker for this morning, Karoline Kenville, from Laugh & Learn Autism Therapy was unable to attend the meeting this morning due to illness, so instead we had a Club Assembly.

President Claude read several "Thank You" notes for donations from the Club.

The following items were discussed:

1. Tour de Livonia had 400 riders. Next year's event will be on September 15th.

2. Livonia Civic Concert is December 17th at Christ our Savior Church on Farmington Road at 3:00. Several of the singers are Club members.

3. Dec the Rec, We might be too late to sign up for this year, maybe next year.

4. Salvation Army Bell Ringers needed on December 9 from 10 to 3:00 at Joe's Produce sign up on Link .

5. Spaghetti Dinner was a big success with more people than last year. Place mats with the donor's name/logo was a good idea. Discussed making placemat two sided to increase sponsors.

6. Discussed the need for a freezer for Clarenceville Food Pantry. Possibility of getting a grant from Rotary Foundation as the type of freezer needed is in the $15,000 to $25,000 range.

Susan Paluchniak

Yum, Fun and More to Come at Schoolcraft College

November 15, 2023

At our meeting of November 15, we participated in a delicious treat as we had lunch at the new American Harvest Restaurant at Schoolcraft College in the Vista Tech Center. This special meeting was organized by Dawn Magretta, the Director of Schoolcraft College Foundation and a Livonia AM Rotary member. The President and CEO of the college, Glenn Cerny explained to us that the restaurant was a lab for students in the culinary arts program. It is open to the public by reservation.

Building the restaurant was part of an 11-million-dollar expansion referred to as Vista Tech 2.0. In addition, a Main Street Cafe and Craft Grille, which features crafted beers, were built. Margaret Fleming, the dining room instructor was introduced to our group, and she explained how the students are rotated between jobs from cooks to

servers.

Chemistry and cooking labs were part of the expansion. We learned that Schoolcraft College is held in such high esteem, the Nationwide Master Chef Certification testing is held at the college.

Dawn gave us a short tour of the Vista Tech Center. She explained the College offers programs that are responsive to the manufacturing and medical industries. They offer classes teaching trades, CAD drafting, accounting, health services, medical imaging, surgical technology, in addition to its core liberal arts program. She stated that that the college has outgrown its space and is looking to optimize their classrooms and offer hands-on experiences. Education facilities need more than traditional classrooms. There is a need to shift from classroom to training facility with actual real-life equipment. She hopes to engage community organizations in supporting their educational outreach efforts.

Nancy Darga

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Churchill High School Livonia Rotary AM Tour

November 08, 2023

Inspiration Behind Door 21

The Livonia Rotary AM Club met at Churchill High School for a private tour of the facility organized by Mike Ladwig a member of Rotary and former student. Little did we know that behind door 21, where we assembled, we would experience an environment that exceeded our expectations in the educator’s approach and aspirations to learning.

Paul Shepich the school district Superintendent and Melissa Carruth, the Assistant Superintendent were our tour guides, and their enthusiasm was contagious as they outlined the school’s curriculum and current project to build a Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math Lab (STEM). Computer-generated pictures of the built-out lab were shown and we learned that the Clarenceville School District is four square miles and consists of two elementary schools, a middle school, and a high school. The schools are in Wayne County, but they are designated as part of Oakland County Intermediate School District. The district is classified as a “Title One,” community meaning that the medium-income

level is below average.

Funding for the new lab was through corporate donations from MASCO and other sources. It was explained that many of their capital improvements are made through their own foundation and outside support. Annual fundraisers such as golf outings are part of their funding strategy. It became apparent that this small district was ready to hustle for the resources their students needed.

Currently, the school district handles 1689 students of which 48% live outside the school district boundaries and are enrolled through the “School of Choice Program.” Although most of their students are from Livonia a large group are from Redford, Detroit, and as far away as Southfield.

A testimony to their perceived success with students.

As we toured an Engineering Lab we learned that the teacher, Deb Krummer was a former mechanical engineer and her repour with the students was dynamic. Smiles crossed the faces of her students as she explained they taught electrical, mechanical, and chemical engineering in the lab.

A walk through the current STEM Lab we were shown “Tiny Houses,” built by students and their current project to design a colony on the planet Mars.

These classes went way beyond books in terms of critical thinking, working in teams, and using their creative minds and hands.

Melissa pointed out they needed more 3D printers ($620) and Robotic arms ($2,000) for the labs and were looking for sponsors. We also learned that the school has a partnership with OTC and Schoolcraft College for additional classes and access to their labs.

In addition to the STEM and Engineering Programs, the school had a curriculum in CAD, IT Coding, and Woodworking. On the cultural side of learning the school offered Broadcasting, Journalism, Choir, Theatre, Art, Ceramics, and Graphic Design Programs. A strong Athletic Program is supported by the district.

The food pantry was the last stop on the tour, and we learned that the pantry provides groceries to families who are in need determined by the Student Support Coordinator and Social Worker located in each school building in the district. The pantry is operated by cognitively impaired students as a means of teaching life skills. These students also grow organic foods such as zucchini in a garden on site. The zucchini was used to bake muffins served to our group with coffee in the cafeteria before we left. These students bake cookies and muffins for sale at their “Trojan Store,” located in the school. Melissa pointed out that the pantry needed a walk-in cooler for perishables items. This item could cost from $4,000 to $10,000 dollars.

As we left, the rain was falling but our spirits were rising thinking about the commitment and excitement the teachers and administration exhibited during the tour.

Nancy Darga

LSO Celebrates 50 Years of Beautiful Music

November 04, 2023

Club member Claude Kendrick (and Jeanine) along with David Stechholz attend the concert honoring the Livonia Symphony’s 50th Anniversary this past Saturday at Clarenceville Louis Schmidt Auditorium.

Great jazz at its very best.

The theme was Zonjic meets Motown, featuring Alexander Zonjic and his award-winning band, and Serieux performing a Motown Temptations Review along with the Livonia Symphony Orchestra under the direction of Volodymyr Shesiuk.

Meet The Candidates

November 01, 2023

The final two candidates running in this year’s Livonia election spoke at the November 1, 2023 meeting, Special thanks goes out to Mike Ladwig who arranged all of the candidates to speak about their campaign.

Martha Ptashnik, is running for Livonia City Council. She has two kids in Churchill Highschool. She was a teacher for sixteen years. She also has business experience as a buyer for Marshal Fields and other retail outlets. She serves on the Livonia Zoning Board of Appeals. She wants to keep Livonia taxes low and is concerned about the recent cost estimate to repair the current Livonia buildings and infrastructure needs. She wants to concentrate on the development of neighborhoods and supporting senior serves.

Mayor Brosnan was the next speaker and mentioned she had to leave the meeting after her presentation to testify to the full Board of Wayne County on a grant application the city submitted for 8 million to rebuild the Senior Center. This federal allocation was coming from the American Rescue Plan. With this grant, the city has raised 21 million towards the total estimated price of 21.5 million for the center.

The Mayor mentioned that the residents have told her they want a downtown. The city is working to develop multi-density housing along Five Mile. The residents also told her they wanted a safe community. She increased the fire and police staffing levels to 90% by bringing back defined benefits and allowing lateral transfers. She bragged about repaving seventeen miles of roadways under her administration. Having the lowest millage rate in Wayne County.

In regard to a 98 million dollar cost estimate to repair all of Livonia's facilities, the Mayor stated that if elected she would set up a “Brain Trust” to address entrepreneurial solutions to find the resources and needed funding.

Nancy Darga

Spaghetti Dinner Community Fundraiser SUCCESS!

October 25, 2023

Thank you for a great day Wednesday at our Annual Rotary World Polio Day Community Spaghetti Dinner. It was a very large crowd, though I'm waiting for more of the attendance and financial information. Last year 20 tables were set up; this year there were 24 tables, and all the tables were used, with more people added after tables were bussed and new placemats "placed."

My son Andrew and I delivered the left-over food - quite a lot! - to Family of God and Eglesia Pan de Vida Lutheran churches in the Springwells area of SE Detroit. The people who received it were so very grateful.

Many thanks also to Barb Moldenhauer (Our Savior Lutheran events coordinator) and the five men from the Church how helped out both yesterday and this morning - tables, chairs, canopies and lights; to the Interact students from Church Hill High School (11 of them); Thrivent and Rick Hart ($250 Thrivent grant for the food); and all of you who gave so much of your time, support, and efforts. Job well-done!

Many thanks to Rotary spouses and family members who also helped out, especially with clean-up. Interestingly, all 12 - I believe - of our candidates for elective office in Livonia were present and very respectful of our Rotary clubs (Rotary Club of Livonia [noon] and the Livonia A.M. Rotary Club) and the goal and singular focus on eradicating polio from the earth and immunizing all children world-wide. Many former Rotarians were also present, as well as Past District 6400 Rotary Governors Paul and Traci Sincock.

Two other bravos with two new "firsts" at the Spaghetti Dinner: To Livonia A.M. Rotary President Claude Kendrick, for pulling off the placemats and sponsorships, with Pat Zucal readjusting the placemat donor settings and then printing them; and Eric and (his Dad, Mike Ladwig) of Livonia's UPS Store, for printing and furnishing the costs for the outdoor and indoor display posters and End Polio backdrop. With the latter, many people got their pictures taken with the backdrop.

In Rotary Service, Dave Stechholz

I want to personally thank everyone for supporting this event year after year. This event is so much fun and our cause is so important! Let’s continue to show our support to eradicate Polio throughout the world, so awesome communities like Livonia are never affected again.

As you all know, printing, designing, website IT, location set up, scheduling, marketing, etc. comes from from some awesome Rotarians and their businesses. Honorable mention also goes to Friday Musings, Livonia Chamber of Commerce, Rotary District 6400 website, City of Livonia website, Livonia Noon Club website and our very own AM Rotary newsletter for helping spread the word.

I want to also thank the Spaghetti Dinner Planning Committee; David Stechholz, Tammy Bonifield, Deanna Gaffney, Nancy Darga, and Barb Moldenhauer for another outstanding year!

As we prepare for our debriefing; please send and share ideas with the committee for next year’s event. All Ideas are WELCOME!

YOURS IN ROTARY! Claude Kendrick

More Photos

Meet The Candidates

October 25, 2023

The meeting was another in the series of "Meet the Candidates" for the upcoming November City elections.

Scott Morgan is a current City Council member who is running for another term on the Council. Scott's background is a former Marine and Livonia police officer for 25 years. He served as a reserve police officer and a union representative for the police. Scott is a graduate of Madonna University.

Andrew Lendrum is running for the office of Treasure of Livonia. Andrew served as Chairman of the Board of Review and believes that each business that is behind in taxes should be visited to determine the reason they are not paying their taxes.

Andrew's background was running an Insurance Agency, then real estate and building two Livonia subdivisions, Fox Creek Meadows and Stone House Estates, along with several private homes.

Susan Paluchniak

Kids Coalition Against Hunger Meal Packing Event

October 21, 2023

Congratulations to the organizers and volunteers who made the Kids Coalition Against Hunger food packing event at St. Edith’s Catholic Church a big success! Matt Collins with the Livonia Lions Club shared a bunch of photos and said. “We raised more than $17,500 to cover the cost of the meals. 175 volunteers participated on Saturday, so we were able to fill 13 production lines with additional volunteers in support."

"At 11:30 AM, representatives of area food providers (food pantries, soup kitchens, etc.) stopped by to pick up more than 33,000+ meals (154 cases) to be delivered to the hungry in Livonia and our surrounding communities! The balance of the meals were returned to Kids Coalition Against Hunger for World Hunger donations."

"Thank you all SO MUCH for your continuing support of Livonia's Kids Coalition Against Hunger Meal Packing Event.”

Matt Collins

Club member Dave Stechholz said “The event was amazing! There was a very large group from our Churchill H. S. Interact Club! All the volunteers together packed over 30,000 instant meals! Bravo also to Thrivent and Rick Hart’s team and our sister Rotary Club of Livonia (noon). And to Lion Matt Collins and Michael Corwell of KCAH. A tremendous annual event.”

Dave was joined by fellow club members Nancy Darga, Tammy Bonifield, Greg Greene, Mike Ladwig, Rick Hart, and Bob Carris.

More Photos

Meet Nancy Darga

October 19, 2023

Reprinted from Friday Musings

Meet Nancy Darga, lifetime polio survivor, member of the Livonia Rotary AM Club, serving 12 years on the Northville City Council.

This back story on Nancy Darga, a member of the Rotary AM Club who last year shared her story with the club on the eve of the annual Community dinner in support of polio awareness, was printed on the City of Northville website and Musings is sharing with minor edits:

Once you meet Nancy Darga, you are not likely to forget her. She says what’s on her mind and asks probing questions when considering a matter before City Council, a role she served in for 12 years before choosing not to run in 2019. Her approach to problem-solving includes a deep dive into details and talking to people – on both sides of an issue.

She has taken on tough challenges to keep Northville unique, historic, and well-run as a City government during her years on the City Council and 20 years serving the Parks and Recreation Department in advisory capacities, primarily as a board member.

AAA Pregnancy Resource Center Fundraiser

October 12, 2023

Bob & Teri Carris, Pat & Lori Zucal, and Father Dave Stechholz attended the recent AAA Pregnancy Resource Center fundraising dinner featuring Dr Ben Carson as the guest speaker. This dinner was attended by more than 1700 people, over half of whom had never attended a AAA event.

AM Rotary has donated $2,000 a year for several years to AAAPRC which goes to the purchase of new car seats and pack-n-play cribs. Peggy Roberts, AAA CEO, noted that over 10,000 babies have been born to AAA clients in the 50 years the center has been operating, and 2,700 babies are believed to have been saved from abortion due to the support offered by AAAPRC.

Bob Carris

Meet The Candidates

October 18, 2023

Mike Ladwig gave the invocation. 17 members were in attendance, with 5 members on Zoom, and 12 live-including our 2 guest speakers. We had lots of happy bucks; thank you, Sharon Pommerville!

Upcoming service events are this

Saturday’s KCAH (Kids Coalition Against Hunger) meal-packing event, October 21st at St. Ediths at 8:30 a.m., and World Polio Day Community Spaghetti Dinner, Wednesday, October 25th, 5:00-7:00 p.m., though volunteers are needed before and after. All hands on deck! Dave Burton gave a most encouraging update on our

Churchill High School Interact Club, now with 47 members!! 35 were present at the Interact meeting he attended.

Our two speakers today were part of the Meet the Candidates series for the upcoming Livonia City elections.

City Clerk Candidate Linda Scheel shared the following:

She is coming to the end of her 8-year term as City Treasurer. She has served 20 years in service to the City of Livonia.

Linda has 33 years of experience in the mortgage banking industry.

She has completed the State of Michigan Clerk training and has reviewed the extensive work of the City Clerk’s Office.

As Treasurer, she served on numerous boards and committees, including President, VP, and Secretary of the Wayne County Association of Municipal Treasurers.

Her goal would be to run the Clerk’s Office with integrity, transparency, fairness, and continued cross-training of the Office’s staff. She welcomes questions that people have.

She assured us that protocols are in place in the event of COVID and flu resurgences.

She reported that it takes $97 million to maintain the current City buildings. The heating and cooling and leakage and flooding matters need serious consideration in the aging City Hall building.

Linda addressed questions about keeping accurate updates of voting rolls.

Linda has worked very closely with Susan Nash, the City Clerk.

City Treasurer Candidate Sue (Susie) Nash shared the following:

Sue’s term of 8 years as City Clerk is coming to an end. She has been interviewed on CNN and the Washington Post, always being transparent and accessible.

She has worked with every department of the City of Livonia as well as managing the Clerk’s Office budget.

Susie, if elected City Treasurer, would like to partner with local organizations to help local high school and college students in terms of learning personal finances.

She has been President and Vice President of the Wayne County Clerks Association and holds the high award of being a Certified Municipal Clerk.

As Treasurer, she would like to have City “town hall” meetings to address people’s concerns and would like to increase City engagement with the community.

Sue noted that in discussing Livonia’s taxes, the citizenry needs to address both the positives and negatives of Livonia having the lowest tax rate in Wayne County.

She has this attitude: “We will get it done,” in response to citizens’ needs and concerns.

David Stechholz

District 6400 Foundation Dinner Celebration 2023

November 09, 2023

Our District is holding a Rotary Foundation Dinner event, to be held Thursday, November 9th, at 6:00 PM at Crystal Gardens in Southgate.

It will be an opportunity to celebrate and thank foundation supporters, raise some funds, and have some fun!

Supporters who reach their next level of giving will be recognized that evening. More details HERE.

Just Released - Touch A Truck 2023 Video

October 07, 2023

Though we were unable to get our usual "Live Drone Video" for this year's Touch A Truck event, we were fortunate that Captain Todd Wesley, a Paramedic with Livonia Fire & Rescue stepped up to help. He was able to sort through the more than 300 photos that various of us took, to come up with the video referenced above.

Captain Todd did a great job and I know everyone in the club will appreciate his efforts. Please feel free to pass it along to others who volunteered.

Bob Carris

Churchill High School Interact Club Meeting

October 16, 2023

Club member Dave Burton joined the Interact Club at Churchill HS for their club meeting. Dave sent along this photo to help introduce us to their many members.

Meet the Candidates

October 11, 2023

New Sponsor for Meal Packing Event.

Madonna University was announced as the latest Sponsor for the Meal Packing, event on October 21, 2023. This financial support will now allow us to pack 50,000 kits.

The newest member of the Livonia AM Rotary Club, Steve Alexander was welcomed to his first official meeting.

Kathleen L. McIntyre, a Mayoral Candidate, and Jim Baringhaus, a City Council candidate were introduced.

Kathleen L McIntyre talked about her volunteer service that included being on the City Council, Planning Commission, Senior Services, Zoning Board of Appeals, the Community Foundation, Chamber of Commerce and Brownfield Authority. She also has been very active at St. Aidan. She worked at Ford Motor for 22 years at executive level dealing with international trade.

She stated her reason for running for office was to make Livonia an extra special city who supports the police and public safety services. Kathleen wants to focus on fiscal responsibility without increasing taxes. She feels the upcoming budget will present challenges. During the question period, she addressed concerns about the upcoming garbage services and the need to address the stability of the electrical grid system. She addressed questions about steps being taken to provide public transportation in the city now that Livonia has opted out of the SMART System and the need to find bus drivers.

Jim Baringhaus stated that he is running to make Livonia a safe, strong, and vibrant city. He pointed out that the police and fire associations have endorsed him. He has a long career working for Fiat Chrysler with dealerships and field operations. He has a long history of serving on the Greenleaf Commission,

Planning, and Zoning, the Livonia Vision 21 Master Plan development, and the Livonia Bike Walk Commission. He serves on the Livonia Emergency Response Team and on the Board of the Newburgh

Swim Club. He wants to focus on responsible development that is compatible with the neighborhoods.

Sustainability is an interest of his which prompted his work with Rotary to introduce recycling at the Touch a Truck Event. He is also dedicated to keeping the financial health of the city a top priority. During the question period, he pointed out that there are many things the city can do to improve the sense of place in the community as we look for ways to encourage the redevelopment of closed facilities.

Nancy Darga

Operation Pollination

October 04, 2023

Worked continued on our Butterfly Garden after our meeting last week. Thank you to club members Erin Dobbins, Sharon Pommerville, Susan Paluchniak, and Claude Kendrick.

The groundwork has been laid for a viable pollinator habitat. This is our club's effort to help increase pollinator habitat and ensure their survival. Pollinators like bees, butterflies, and bats help plants carry out reproduction by spreading pollen from plant to plant. Since 1985, the populations of a wide variety of pollinators have declined by more than 45%.

Club Assembly

October 04, 2023

We held our monthly Club Assembly this past week. Topics discussed were:

1. Presentation by Robin Persiconi, Livonia Chamber of Commerce, to the Rotary Club Of Livonia AM for 10-year membership in the Chamber of Commerce.

2. Financial Report- Tammy Bonifield reminded members to get their dues in. The Club is looking for speakers that are informative rather than ones that are looking for donations.

3. The Giving Committee approved a donation to Giving Songs a charitable organization that gives grants to families with disabled children money to purchase wheelchair accessible vans.

4. The Tech Committee needs help in the morning of the meeting to help set up for the meeting. This takes about one half hour - report at 6:45. Contact Bill Friske or Pat Zucal.

5. Tammy Bonifield is seeking help to rewrite the Club By-Laws. Please contact Tammy.

6. The Fund Raising Committee needs ideas to bring in extra funds to the Club. Currently, we have the Carnival, but the old Sears spot is not guaranteed. Ideas/ suggestions for new Carnival locations are needed. Contact Pat Zucal or Joanna Hardesty.

7. Newsletter article writers are needed to write a summary of what happened at the meeting for the newsletter. Several members agreed to take turns on this project. They are week 1 - Nancy Darga, week 2 - Susan Paluchniak, week 3 - Pastor David Stechholz. Week 4 is open... If you are willing to help, please contact Claude.

8. Approved membership to Steve Alexander.

9. Discussed Spaghetti Dinner Fundraiser.

Susan Paluchniak

The Rotary Club of Livonia AM | livoniaamrotary.com

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