Club President Ron Auxier
"Listen before you speak. Think before you speak."
District 6040 Governor Jodi Sundaram
Zones 30/31 Director Brian Hall
Rotary International President Francesco Arezzo
The Rotary Club of Saint Joseph met with a solid crowd of about 30 present this Wednesday, June 17 at the beautiful Albrecht Kemper Museum of Art. Marci Bennett's mom, Neva Bennett-Williams, was in attendance.
Spanky and Buckwheat's catering provided a spread of barbecued meat, potato salad, rolls, cole slaw, and baked beans.
Black Bowls donations for this quarter (4/1 to 6/30) go to Camp Geiger Scout camperships. The 6/24 meeting will be the last day to support this. Members can contribute on our Square site online or bring the cash to meetings.
Meals on Wheels delivery assignments:
June 25 will be Faith Parker with Josh Middendorf, and Sarah Meierhoffer (solo).
Shoes for Orphan Souls Update (for 2026-2027 Campaign):
We have approximately 100 pairs of shoes so far, unofficially. The warehouse team at the Spaeth facility has begun the fun task of boxing up our shoes, already, and we are still in the 2025-2026 Rotary year! Please be on the lookout for any deals, and bring the shoes to Rotary. A deal is anything really under $8, but any shoes under $5 are a screaming deal.
Be sure to check out the article in the articles section below about our Inaugural Rotary Club of Saint Joseph Annual Dinner.
Wednesday, 6/24: Rotary Club meeting at Noon at the AKMA... speaker is Rick Lipira of Pivotal Point
TBA, early July: Rotary Club of Saint Joseph 2026-2027 Officer Installation (at a regular club meeting)
Thursday, July 16: July Rotary club social at Il Lazzarone from about 4:30 to 6:30 p.m.
Save the date... Friday, November 6: District 6040 Rotary Foundation Dinner at the Carriage Club in Kansas City... event chair is Saint Joseph Rotarian Shelly Hulet
The Annual Fund-SHARE exists to empower Rotary clubs and districts with implementing impactful district grants, global grants, and scholarships.
Participating in the Rotary Foundation board is an easy way to contribute as we close out the 2025-2026 Rotary year. Our club has matched up to $144 per member's donations for this Rotary year for all members who contributed.
Or if you prefer to send a check, we can assist with the details of this. Please talk to Don or Erik if you have any questions. Any 2025-2026 contributions should be sent in or made online prior to 6/25/26.
The final results are in for the 2026 Purple Pinkie Polio Eradication Fundraiser, and I am thrilled to share that together we raised $1,200,788 for Rotary's End Polio Now campaign.
Every dollar will support the fight to eradicate polio worldwide. Thanks to the dedication of Rotary members, partners, and supporters, we are now down to just two endemic countries. The finish line is in sight.
Over a dozen Rotarians from Argentina arrived in Kansas City for the FIFA World Cup as part of a friendship exchange program through the international organization.
Rotary families from KC metro clubs are opening their homes as part of this program
The travelers were greeted by their host families at Kansas City International Airport, where the reunion was anything but a meeting of strangers, despite many coming face to face for the first time.
The Rotary Club of Saint Joseph's 2025-2026 District Grant project has been to install an accessible outdoor area for the new Day Program at Life Unlimited's St. Joseph location.
The following Rotarians shared Happy Bucks at this week's meeting:
Heather Weddle for her birthday week
Jim Dierberger for a great trip to California
Hod Symes for leaving tomorrow for a 4 month trip to Vermont... and he has an open invitation for any Rotarians to visit
Micah Carter for moving into a new residence
Shelly Hulet for her and Scott's 20th wedding anniversary and a trip upcoming to Eureka Springs
Louie DeLeon for remembering that Rotary day is now Wednesday
Patricia Williams for the Rotarians who have donated clothing to the Salvation Army
Dianne Dewey for catching a raccoon at her house
Ryan Jones for summer school being over
Josh Middendorf for only having 1 kid at home this week
Matt Porter for his kids volunteering at a muscular dystrophy camp and for an encounter with a black snake
This Week's Program
Brandon Johnson is the chair of the St. Joseph Human Rights Commission.
The purpose of the Human Rights Commission is to promote the fair treatment of all persons and to discourage discrimination, especially as it pertains to housing, employment, and public accommodations. Regular meetings of the commission are open to the public and occur the 3rd Thursday of each month at 5 p.m., normally at City Hall in the 1st Floor Conference Room.
About once per quarter, the commission holds a community listening session in various community locations in place of regular meetings.
This is accomplished through holding programs in the community, such as a recent youth mental health listening session in partnership with Family Guidance, as well as through working closely with the elected city council about human rights issues.
The cool thing about inclusion and human rights is that when we are inclusive, we all benefit. Bias, however, is a natural part of human psychology, and everyone has it in one form or another.
He shared updates about the Commission, which is a chartered city board with members appointed by the City Council for 3 year terms.
