May 6th, 2021 Newsletter

 

“The thankful receiver bears a plentiful harvest.” – William Blake – 1757-1827 – Poet-Painter-Printmaker

 

“Nothing is a waste of time if you use the experience wisely.” – Auguste Rodin – 1840-1917 – Sculptor

 

“Everything has beauty, but not everyone sees it.” – Confucius – Chinese Philosopher

 

 

ANNOUNCEMENTS

(notes provided by the distinguished gentleman from Connecticut, Ed Perry)

 

Mary K noted that this month’s Bucket Bucks are going to “Feeding our Kids” and noted the plan for beginning in-person club meetings in June. Here are her email notes that she sent out after the meeting: 

 

The Board met yesterday, and we wanted to share our plans for coming back in person on June 3.  We’ll be meeting at Lodgic, but at the big room at the back where we held the Christmas party in the past.  There will be round tables where we can spread out a little more.  That being said, we would still hope that only those that are fully vaccinated would attend in person.  Masks are still required when coming into Lodgic. We will keep the Zoom space going for those that would like to keep attending virtually.

 

To start we won’t be having a buffet but instead pre-wrapped individual meals.  For that reason we will need to make reservations.  We’ll send a sign-up out every week to find out if you’re coming and whether you would like a vegetarian option.  The meal price will be $12 a week.  However, while we’re all getting into the routine, the Club is taking care of the cost for the whole month of June.  That will give us 4 meetings to get feedback and continue working with Lodgic to see what will serve our members best.

 

Starting with the new Rotary year on July 1, we will ask members to prepay the meal price by quarter or year if they can.  The Club must pay Lodgic for a minimum of 20 members each week.

 

Speaker schedule for June:

June 3—Theresa from Lodgic

June 10—District Governor, Mike Step and Paul Harris recipients

June 17—Jon Seydl, Director of the Krannert Art Museum

June 26—Pass the gavel

 

Please contact Mary Kay if you have any questions or comments.

 

 

PROGRAM

 

Mary Hodson introduced Winnie Stortzum as this morning’s speaker. Winnie is a Charter member of the Arcola Rotary club, a past president and remains very active in Club and District Rotary offices and activities.

 

Winnie’s program was about her trip to Portugal in February and March of 2020. She, her husband, and part of their family spent 11 days in Portugal, 9 of which was with Global Travels and 2 days on their own.

 

They traveled throughout Portugal and her presentation was not only informational but beautifully presented with photographs and commentary. They landed in Lisbon and traveled by bus northward along the coast, headed east, then south and then returning to Lisbon. They stopped in towns such as Tomar, Fatima, Coimbra, Evora, and Algarve and some of which had UNESCO sites. 

 

She shared with us the beauty of the country, its history, and the influences in their culture and architecture by the ancient Romans, Moors and Christians. Portugal’s has a rich history of explorers and ocean navigation and as a result, Portugal’s influence can be seen in many parts of the world.

 

Her photographs captured exteriors and interiors of historic buildings, monuments, churches, monasteries, castles, cobblestone streets and residences. Her description included comments about the food,  how tile is used, cork processing, sardines, and this author’s