President Jerry Faletti called the meeting to order at 12:15 pm. Jerry Faletti, guitar; Ed Coleman, drums; and Joe Kovarik, ukulele led the singing of an adaptation of Where Have All The Flowers Gone to promote the Rotary rose sale. Bob Cardinal read quotes from past Rotary International presidents. Beth Burns introduced guests. The greeters were Deb Katzmark and John Bradford; the scribe was Lynne Beck.
Scott Van encouraged everyone to start selling roses. Orders need to be placed by September 19 and they will be delivered on September 28. Order sheets and information are on the tables.
Jerry announced that Thursday’s Fellowship program will be a presentation about Protocal 46 by Tom Colosimo from Zenith Educational Group. Next week’s meeting will be hosted by the Paddelford Packet Boat Company. Lee Nelson, president of the barge company that handles all of the marine work in St. Paul will speak about the commercial value of the Mississippi River.
Beth Burns collected Happy Dollars from a number of Rotarians, including the speaker.
Jim Hart introduced Dr. Robert Veninga, retired professor at the U of M School of Public Health. His topic was The Remarkable Attribute Called “Resilience”! He asked: What keeps organizations and individuals resilient? The world and its inhabitants are remarkably resilient. Resilience is baked into the heart of the universe. Why are we concerned about it? We want our kids, grandkids, employees, etc. to be resilient.
How do we strengthen resilience? Dr. Veninga listed four strategies to achieve this.
Strategy #1
Become an unhurried leader. Listen clearly; take time to listen. Use your head as well as your heart. We remember about 10% of what we hear. Listening is hard work.
Strategy #2
Use two powerful words. Thank You! Say it often. When people don’t thank you, don’t assume they don’t appreciate you or care about you.
Strategy #3
Laugh often! Don’t take yourself too seriously. Lower your expectations of others and yourself.
Strategy #4
Focus … Focus … Focus
Focus on what is important in your life – the major, not the minor things.
Vice President Jerry Faletti led Rotary members in the Four Way Test and the meeting was adjourned at 1:13 pm.
Lynne Beck
Scribe