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newsletter may 15
Hello fellow Rotarians,
 
I was listening to the radio yesterday and there was a guest on the program talking about how difficult situations throughout history, whether war, pandemic, famine, economic uncertainty, etc, hold up a mirror to ourselves and the societies in which we live. Our current challenge with COVID-19 certainly does that, and it also holds up a mirror to Rotary. Of course, two months ago, the reflection held fear, uncertainty, and loneliness for many people all over the world. But that reflection changed fairly rapidly for Rotary. There has been so much support from both the RI and district level for our clubs and communities that has been essential in helping our individual clubs quickly adapt to the changing landscape. For instance, District 6250 immediately made the district zoom account available to any club that needed it, which our club used a few times before deciding to upgrade our own. When the call came out to find local recipients for disaster relief grants, over 30 clubs in our district mobilized in less than a week to place $25,000 into our communities in Wisconsin. I could go on, but then this newsletter would get quite lengthy! 
 
When I hold that mirror up to our club, I see people of action, as committed as ever to service. We’ve continued our volunteer commitments with Lussier, partnered with YP Week groups to make masks and bring awareness to local efforts, scheduled virtual fellowship activities, and supported each other with kindness.  And through it all, we continue to grow! Please help me in extending a warm welcome to our newest member, Ben Menke! And keep your eye out for a couple of other new members that our fantastic membership team has in the works as we finish out the 2019-2020 Rotary year :)
 
See you soon,
Erin Luken
Club President 2019-2020
 
Upcoming Events
 
Sunday, May 17th- Club Meeting, The River Food Pantry
Join us on Zoom, social at 6:30 pm, meeting at 7 pm
Join us for our virtual meeting on Zoom. Join the meeting
Join us as Charles McLimans, President and CEO of the River Food Pantry, shares how they are continuing to serve their community in the midst of the current health crisis and what we can do to help!  In addition to curbside pickup food pantry services, their MUNCH program continues to deliver pre-bagged lunches to children six days a week, and the River continues to work with NewBridge Madison and RSVP of Dane County to operate Food Bridge: a free monthly food delivery program for low-income older adults.
Please note: due to enhanced security starting April 5th, Zoom is requiring passwords for all meetings. You should be able to one-click through the link to join, but if you join manually or need the password, it is 267319. Meeting ID is 300-707-733.
 
Tuesday, May 19th- Virtual Trivia with YP Friends
Join us on a group zoom from 5:30-6:30 pm
Virtual Trivia night with our YP Week friends (Magnet, United Way linc, Connect Madison, Mad2son).  We will be forming teams, and the leader of the team will zoom into the event, but then have to use a separate device (phone call, separate zoom/webex/gotomeeting, etc) to communicate with their team. Let's see if we can get at least 2 teams of 4 for this! Let Erin or John L know if you'd like to participate and we'll organize from there. I understand there will be some gift card prizes, too.
 
Sunday, May 31st- 5th Sunday Brunch Club
10:00 am, place (virtual vs IRL) TBD
Keep your eye on the club calendar for an update if we will be able to meet IRL or if we will still need to Zoom. Depending on the status of the COVID order in Dane County, it may be possible to do a socially distanced picnic with a possible zoom set-up for members that would prefer to #StayAtHome.
 
Sunday, June 7th - Club Meeting, Wisconsin Literacy
Join us on Zoom, social at 6:30 pm, meeting at 7 pm
Join us for our virtual meeting on Zoom. Join the meeting
Our speaker this evening is Liz Fitzpatrick, Data and Communications Manager for Wisconsin Literacy, Inc. Wisconsin Literacy supports member literacy agencies statewide and advocates for more resources throughout the field of literacy. The Wisconsin Health Literacy (WHL) division provides health literacy programming in communities throughout the state.  Liz says “Everyday I get to be part of the transformative power of the written word. I hear and share stories about how accessing literacy opens doors to new possibilities and leads to a better life." 
 
Saturday, June 13th- Lussier Food Pantry
Lussier Community Education Center, 55 S Gammon Rd, Madison, 11:45 am- 1:00 pm
Volunteer with us at the Lussier Community Center Education Center food pantry. Four volunteers are needed to work from 11:45 am- 1:00 pm. Sign up here or email madisonrotaryah@gmail.com  Please keep an eye on the club calendar for any changes or cancellations.
 
Russell Hampton
ClubRunner
ClubRunner Mobile
Upcoming Events
ONLINE! Club Meeting: The River Food Pantry
Zoom
May 17, 2020
7:00 PM – 8:00 PM
 
Virtual Trivia with YP Friends
May 19, 2020
5:30 PM – 6:30 PM
 
5th Sunday Brunch Club
Baldwin Street Grille
May 31, 2020
10:00 AM – 12:00 PM
 
Lussier Community Food Pantry
Lussier Community Education Center
Jun 13, 2020
11:00 AM – 1:00 PM
 
District Conference: RotaryFest
Jun 20, 2020
7:00 AM – 1:00 PM
 
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