| Posted by Michael-jon Pease on Mar 07, 2017 |
President Chuck Whitaker, Whitaker Sports and Classic Cars, called the meeting to order at 12:15. David Laird, MN Private College Council, led the group in God Bless America in the key of F with a special call out to the Irish tenors and Sopranos of any background to lead on the high notes. Dr. Bob Jones, D.D.S., polished the ivories.
Nancy Brady, Neighborhood House, offered as an inspirational minute the story of Leo, an immigrant who came to this country at the age of twelve and went on to achieve the “American Dream” in Minnesota. In his words “I may love this country even more than you, because I love it when it doesn’t love me back.”
Thanks to Linda Mulhern, Collins Electric, for warmly greeting and scanning members at the door. Today’s scribe is Michael-jon Pease, Park Square Theatre.
Trixie Goldberg, Lifetrack Resources, introduced visiting Rotarians and guests.
Thursday’s Fellowship speaker will be The Honorable John Guthmann, sharing his hobby of Civil War reenacting. He will bring uniforms along to illustrate his talk!
Think membership! Every meeting is a good one to invite your friends to. Don’t forget – if one becomes a member, you both get cases of Summit Beer!
Lindsay Weir, MN Wild, pitched our upcoming foundation fundraiser at the Wild on April 4. They’re hot now! Your ticket will have even more “street value” than what you pay. Don’t forget a portion of your fund night out goes to support our Rotary Foundation.
Trixie Goldberg collected a whopping $7 in happy dollars - $2 from Jim Hart’s wife Maureen in honor of their grandson who made it to state tournaments and Rotary’s fight to eradicate Polio; and $5 from Steve Young in honor of his grandson who made it to state wrestling tournaments. Trixie was hoping for more dollars for the foundation in honor of recent warm weather travel. We’ll try better next time (and maybe more members will be BACK from those trips!)
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Jim Hart, U of M School of Public Health, introduced today’s speaker Marvin Anderson, retired MN Law Librarian, and former resident of St. Paul’s Rondo neighborhood.
Rondo: A Thriving Community Mislabeled as a Slum
Marvin started his talk by asking who attended or had family go to JJ Hill, John Marshall or Central schools in Saint Paul. He went to those schools as well, but while his white class mates went home to Highland or Mac Groveland, he went home to Rondo – a three-mile stretch between Rice and Lexington that was home to a thriving African American community with hundreds of neighborhood owned businesses, local schools, its own football team and drum corps, and its own debutante balls and galas. In 1935 the state demographer names it one of the city’s largest slums “full of Negroes, Mexicans and Jews,” an untruth that set the stage for its future destruction.
Of the many historic photos from Rondo that Marvin shared, one that stood out was of a group of 36 Union Depot “red caps” who made 10 cents for every bag they carried. Because the management didn’t want travelers feeling like they had to remember any of the red caps’ names, they were all known as “George.” The Rondo Association knows the history of 24 of those 36 red caps in the old photo. All those were men with real names, their own homes and families, some with their own small businesses. At home in Rondo, they had the dignity and identity that the “outside world” often denied.
The Highway Act That Created I-94
The 1956 Federal Highway Act signed by President Eisenhower created an unprecedented incentive for states and municipalities to build the nationwide network of highways: the federal government would pay 90% of the local estimated costs for construction. If the project came in under budget, the city would get to keep the difference! This unfortunately set the stage for the local effort to build I-94 to value money over people. By putting the highway through Rondo, they could offer less than market rate to purchase 700 homes and 150 businesses and demolish them for eminent domain. The Twin Cities Negro Building Corporation had built a series of well-made row houses in 1948 with a $200,000 loan – the largest loan ever given to an all-black corporation. When they were purchased for demolition, the valuation was far below market rate citing “inferior construction.” In truth, the buildings were so well built, that the city sat on them, then resold at a profit to a local white developer, who moved many of the buildings to other streets where they stand today. Marvin’s father built those “inferior” structures that still house families 69 years later on Carroll and Maryland Avenues.
Opposition to the Rondo Path for I-94
Two routes were proposed for I-94. Five separate groups opposed the Rondo path, including downtown business owners and the Catholic Church. The difference between then and now is that these different groups didn’t form a coalition to fight the plan and Rondo was split in two by the highway. The only compromises to the community were putting the Rondo portion of the highway 30’ below grade and connecting the remaining halves of the neighborhood with bridges.
Learning from the Past: Building Coalitions
Fast forward to the recent Green Line construction and Rondo was once again being passed over. This time, however, the Hmong, Somali, African American, Hispanic and disabled populations created a coalition to demand the addition of stops along the old Rondo neighborhood. “This will not be another Rondo,” they declared.
Now, the coalition is bringing the community together to decorate the eight bridges over 94 to capture the spirit of the neighborhood’s varied immigrants and residents. Each of the bridges is named for a different core value of the Rondo Neighborhood – from “faith” to “home ownership” to the “value of education” and the “dignity of work.” The last surviving empty lot from the old Rondo neighborhood is being turned into a commemorative park with a landmark, history panels, landscaping and wind chimes.
A New Vision
A new vision for the old Dale Street bridge – the one original (read: “un-renovated:) bridge remaining from the 1968 completion of the 94 corridor – would turn it into a land bridge with green space and pedestrian paths. This type of green “lid” over an existing expressway is being created around the country, most notably in Dallas where the former expressway blight now hosts museums and concert halls on either side of its unique land bridge. This exciting vision with its modern and green aesthetic would be fitting tribute to a neighborhood that remains vibrant for all who knew it and create a new pedestrian feature for the whole community.
Respectfully submitted,
Michael-jon Pease
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| Posted by Jodi Erickson on Feb 28, 2017 |
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In 2007, the leadership of our District was audacious enough to challenge us to create a model for eliminating extreme poverty in the developing world. At last year’s District Conference many of you had the opportunity to meet some of the remarkable women we are working with in El Corozo, a small, poor, rural community in Nicaragua. The program will provide an update on our progress in achieving this goal as well as a reflection of some of our accomplishments, challenges and lessons learned.
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Dave Newman has been a Rotarian since 1981. He is the past President of the Fridley Rotary Club and for the past fourteen years has been a member of the Stillwater Sunrise Club. Dave has held a variety of leadership positions in our Rotary district, including for the past several years he has been the Chair for Fast for Hope. Dave has made 12 trips to Nicaragua. He is the recipient of the “Service Above Self” award from Rotary International and is a major donor to the Rotary Foundation.
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| Posted by Pamela Chandler on Feb 23, 2017 |
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Jerry Faletti (standing in for President Chuck) called the meeting to order at 12:15. David Laird led the club in singing America the Beautiful, accompanied by Bob Jones on the piano. Jason Bradshaw led the club in prayer for the Inspirational Minute. Kristin Montpetit introduced visiting Rotarians and guests.
Carly Stuber and Bo Aylin introduced all of the new members who have joined the club in the last 6 months. They are: Mark Moores (Moores Insurance Management), Segundo Velasquez (Mano a Mano), Ruth Watkins (Greater Twin Cities Youth Symphony), Josh Windham (Union Gospel Mission), Jean Vukas-Roberts (Hazelden), Litton Field Jr. (Bearance Management Group), and Lindsay Weier (Minnesota Wild).
Carly and Bo reminded the group that our goal is to have 15 new members by July 1 and announced that the member who sponsors the most new members by 4/15 gets two free tickets to La Boheme at the Minnesota Opera. The Summit Beer membership promotion is still ongoing.
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President-Elect Faletti promoted next week’s meeting, which will be Fast for Hope. Lunch will the light (soup and breadsticks), but money saved on lunches will be donated to Fast for Hope. Please attend this meaningful meeting.
Todd Nicholson introduced the program, which focused on the literacy partnership between Boys and Girls Clubs and Groves Academy, and featured Terryl Blumm (CEO of Boys and Girls Clubs) and Jim Meinen (Senior Director of Business Operations at Groves Academy).
Terryl and Jim talked with us about their organizations’ compatible missions.
Boys and Girls Clubs Mission: To enable all young people, especially those who need us most, to reach their full potential as productive, caring, responsible citizens.
Groves Academy Mission: We build confidence, success and purpose through transformative learning experiences.
The two organizations have partnered together to help build literacy amongst Boys and Girls Clubs participants. The partnership launched last September and is already off to a great start. Groves is working with students at 5 Boys and Girls Clubs with a goal of improving literacy by 1.5 levels by the end of the school year. Midyear assessments indicate they are on track to meet their goals. The partnership represents a $300,000 investment by Boys and Girls Clubs and the hope is to expand it to more locations in the coming years.
Respectfully submitted,
Pam Chandler
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| Posted by Jodi Erickson on Feb 21, 2017 |
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Boys and Girls Clubs Literacy Partnership with Groves Academy
THE NEED
76% of Minneapolis and St. Paul Public school students who receive free and reduced lunch are NOT reading proficiently by third grade. These children are at risk of performing poorly in school. Poor school performance can contribute to possible behavioral problems, repeating grades, and possibly dropping out of school altogether. The Department of Justice states, &The link between academic failure and delinquency, violence, and crime is welded to reading failure.Over 70% of inmates in America's prisons cannot read above a fourth grade level.
Groves Academy changed the face of literacy education for all students in higher education seeking to become licensed teachers in the State of Minnesota. Their methodologies for teaching reading are of the highest standard.
OUR GOAL
Reading proficiently by the end of third grade is often a predictor for future academic and life success. Through third grade most students are learning to read, but in fourth grade they begin reading to learn. In other words, by 4th grade students are reading in order to gain information and think critically in all subject areas. Groves Academy is implementing their research based reading education and data proven methodologies into The Boys and Girls Clubs environment. The goal of the program is to improve members’ reading level by an additional 2 years of full grade-level growth for every year they participate. This project began in September 2016.
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Terryl Brumm, President & CEO for the Boys & Girls Clubs of the Twin Cities (‘The Club’) is a dedicated nonprofit leader with over nineteen years’ experience serving youth in Minneapolis and Saint Paul. Brumm believes that an essential component of the Club’s vision for the future is continued investment in program expansion tied to revenue growth. The organization is focused on providing an optimal Club Experience that assures success is within reach of every young person, with all members on track to graduate from high school with a plan for the future, demonstrating good character and citizenship, and living a healthy lifestyle. Under her leadership, the organization has established a strong partnership with Groves Academy to implement a research-based literacy program. The Club also activated a comprehensive teen pathways initiative that ensures middle and high school youth are on track to graduate with a fully developed and meaningful plan for post-secondary. Brumm received a BS degree in Child Psychology from the University of Minnesota and an MBA from the University of Phoenix.
Jim Meinen is currently Senior Director of Business Operations at Groves Academy. Prior to Groves, Jim spent 33 years in the technology sector and has held leadership positions which
includes bringing a company public on the London Stock Exchange resulting in a global integration, a partner in a software startup and has led a management buyout. Directly prior to Groves, Jim was partner with a global strategic management consulting firm. He served 6 years on the Board of Trustees
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| Posted on Feb 21, 2017 |
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Join us for MN Wild Night with Club 10 on April 4th! A link to purchase tickets directly from the Wild will be sent via email.
$100 Lower Level Ticket Includes:
Donation to St. Paul Rotary Foundation
5:00 pm Happy Hour Event
6:30 pm Fundraiser Check Presentation
7:00 pm Wild vs. Carolina
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| Posted by Jason Bradshaw on Oct 04, 2016 |
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Hello Club 10 Rotarians,
We need your help! Every week we have 7 volunteer positions at each of our meetings to keep our meetings lively, engaging and running smoothly.
- 2 greeters
- An Introducer of Guests/Happy dollars person
- Someone to give our Inspirational Minute/Invocation
- A scribe
- Song Leader
- Musician
We are working now to fill each of these positions for every week through the end of the year. As promised today in Rotary, I will donate one Happy Dollar at next weeks meeting for each position that has been signed up forbetween now and the end of the year (by next weeks meeting). That’s around 80 volunteer positions and 80 potential Happy Dollars!! This is a great way to get involved and meet people.
So, if you have not used Signup.com before and you are ready to sign up for a volunteer role, simply click on the link below. You do not need a password or username, you just need your email address to sign up. Click the orange “Sign up!” button for whatever works in your schedule and that is it. The program will automatically send a reminder email when your sign up date(s) get close…it is really cool!
http://signup.com/go/MSPJ5f
Thank you for all your help and participation! See you at Rotary!!
All the best,
Jason Bradshaw
Sergeant at Arms
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