Recent Club Highlights
Hello Rotarians!
 
We had a pretty good crowd last week, especially with 13 members joining us via Zoom. This is a great way to stay connected to the Club even if you cannot attend in person.
 
We reward attendance at the meetings with a drawing for Free Lunch at an upcoming Rotary meeting. Last week Dale Bradley was the winner, and this week we'll award another Free Lunch vouchers.
Remember you must be present to win!
 
Our greeters were Bill Wolf at MCC and Bill Muir on Zoom.
Dr. Roger Reitz accompanied us to sing 'My Country Tis of Thee.'
 
We had Christine Benne of the Konza club as our Rotarian guest and our speaker, Kathleen Hoss Cruz. Continue to invite your friends to visit Rotary - our goal is 160 members this year, and visitors are the best way to reach that goal.
 
February CUP Money goes to Common Table whose mission is to ensure no one goes hungry by supplying free, hot meals with dignity and peace. Operations from several churches have been consolidated to one middle school in town. February's theme is Peace Building and Conflict Prevention.
 
Last week the Community Cares Chest was closed due to the weather. We hope it to be open again this Wednesday 2/19 8:00-10:00 AM and 1:00-3:00 PM. Thanks to all that volunteer each week.
 
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I was pleased to recognize Vern Henricks, President and CEO of GMCF as the Chamber's 2025 C. Clyde Jones Citizen of the Year Award.
 
 
Vern has contributed countless hours and resources to philanthropic causes. He was instrumental in facilitating the Flint Hills Community Accelerator, a Chamber priority in 2023 and 2024.
 
Next, President-Elect Chris Culbertson, Dean of the College of Arts & Sciences at KSU introduced Kathleen Hoss Cruz, PhD, K-State faculty member in food, nutrition, dietetics, and health and co-director of the Guatemala International Service Learning Program that focuses on improving the lives of underserved populations in the western highlands of Guatemala.
 
 
 
Dr. Cruz gave an overview of Guatemala, population statistics, poverty level, and activities of students completing the program. About 40% of the population is indigenous. There are 23 spoken languages in Guatemala. About 80% of the population lives in poverty on less than $2.00 per day. Three out of five women are illiterate.
 
The program works with numerous universities on topics such as education, gerontology, cultural preservation, and business to name a few. The requirement is for students to live and work in Guatemala for six weeks and are placed based on area of interest. Students pay about $3700-$3900 for fees, plane fare, housing, food, etc. The challenges for these students are funding, language, and time.
 
Students who are not fluent Spanish speakers are placed with students who are. Dr. Cruz answered questions about the water supply, soil, conservation, nutrition, number of students completing the program, and more.
 
The Manhattan Rotary Club, with permission from District 5710, will be providing district grant funds for a student or students to participate in the program in the summer of 2025
 
In Kathleen's honor, we will donate the children's book "Jovita Wore Pants: The Story of a Mexican Freedom Fighter" to the Theodore Roosevelt Elementary School.
 
 
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Thanks to Bill and Bill for greeting, Dr. Reitz on piano, Chris for introducing, and especially Dr. Cruz for sharing the impact of KSU and Rotary on the lives of those living in Guatemala.
 
Our next meeting will be at the Manhattan Country Club this coming Thursday, February 20, 2025, from 12-1PM.
 
We will have Jeff Sheldon of the Kansas State University Library updating us on Sunderland Innovation Lab.
 
The Greeters for the next meeting will be John Armbrust and Jason Yoxall.
 
Please wear your name badge and leave it on the tray as you go. Sign in and be sure to register your guests too. Get a raffle ticket from the greeters or at the sign-in table.
 
Lunch RSVP:  Click https://manhattancc.surveysparrow.com/s/Rotary-Club/tt-deafc2 by midnight, Wednesday 2/19/2025.
   The $12 fee may be paid at the door. 
Lunch begins at 11:30AM.
 
    Meeting ID: 873 8749 9653 / Passcode: 280408
 
 
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See you this Thursday.
 
Yours in Rotary, 

Randy
 
Randy Peterson, President
(cell) 316-213-2252
randallpete54@gmail.com
 
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Opportunities to Participate:
 
Community CARES Chest - Wednesday volunteer shifts from 8-10 AM and 1-3 PM on February 19, 2025.
The location is at the rear of the AG Press building, 1531 Yuma Street, inside the east-side rollup door.
Please visit Konza United Way website: https://www.konzaunitedway.org/volunteer
If you're new, watch the video by Tara Claussen for how to sign up and volunteer: sign up video
 
KSU Rotaract Club
Rotaract will have its meeting on Wednesday 2/19 at 6:00PM in the KSU Student Union, room 206.
The meeting will be focused on Supporting the Schools.
Rotaract will have a guest speaker at their March 5th meeting.
 
Konza Rotary Meeting
The Konza Club will host Rachelle Banwart, Executive Director of the KSU Corporate Development, talking on "K-State is Open for Business" this coming Friday, February 21st. They meet at 7-9 AM at Meadowlark Hills.
 
CAAHT (Community Action Again Human Trafficking) Club MeetingsMeetings are held monthly at 12 noon on the 1st/3rd Tuesdays by Zoom.
For more info ask Sharon Sullivan or Patti Mellard: sharon.sullivan@washburn.edu / patti@keystaffing.com
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    Opportunities to Contribute:
     
    February Cup Money - Common Table
     
    Mail it to Manhattan Rotary Club, PO Box 331, Manhattan, KS  66505-0331. 
    1. Send a check to the Greater Manhattan Community Foundation, 555 Poyntz, Suite 269, Manhattan, KS 66502, with the memo saying, ‘Rotary Club Cup Money.’
    2. You may also contribute Cup Money via Venmo, using the QR Code:
     
    Rotary FoundationTo make contributions to the Rotary Foundation:
    1. Go on-line to www.rotary.org and click Donate and then Annual Fund. You will then sign in and pay.
    2. Write your check to Rotary Foundation and mail it to Rotary Foundation - 14280 Collections Center Drive, Chicago, IL 60693 or to Manhattan Rotary Club, PO Box 331, Manhattan KS 66505.
    3. Write your check to Rotary Foundation and give it to Liz Nelson or Janet Lowell at a meeting.
     
    USD 383
    Take books in good condition to Dusty Bookshelf in Aggieville. Announce they're for the Rotary USD383 account for elementary school students in our community.
    A limit of 2 boxes per trip. For more information contact Bill Richter. (wrichter@ksu.edu)
     
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    Opportunities to Show Rotary Pride:
     
    Purchase Rotary Products
    You can purchase official Rotary caps or hats, shirts, socks, or even chrome-plated license plate frames at the Russell Hampton website: http://www.bestclubsupplies.com to see a full selection of products.
     
    Document your Profile in My Rotary
    You can document your biographical profile in My Rotary. It is a wonderful way to share your contact and background information, your Rotary resume, information about any Rotary programs you have participated in, and your professional experience and areas of expertise. To create or update your biographical profile, go to https://my.rotary.org and click My Profile.
    Meeting Greeter

    Name

    Greeter Date

    Bill Wolf

    02/13/2024

    Hayden Wolf

    02/13/2024

    Jim Wright

    02/20/2024

    Jason Yoxall

    02/20/2024

    Cindy Wichman

    02/27/2024

    CIndy Zapletal

    02/27/2024

    Jill Zimmerman 03/06/2024

    Susan Adams

    03/06/2024

       
     
     
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