If you could be there then you know what I’m writing about and if you were not, then you missed a great meeting on March 21st. It started with four scholarship students receiving their scholarships and giving a small thank you speech. I’m still amazed at the obstacles that are put in front of these kids and how they adapt and overcome to reach their goals. They overcome these things all while serving their fellow students and members of their communities.
After the scholarships, we heard from The Honorable Daniel M. Horrigan, Mayor of the City of Akron. The mayor spoke about many of the positive things that are going on in the city with the increased focus on residential building downtown, to the efforts to entice new businesses downtown. He also spent a good amount of time focusing on the challenges that we face as a community. From the sewer project, budgetary constraints put on by the continued decrease in federal and state dollars to our continued stagnant population growth issues. The Mayor then opened it up to take questions from our members and their guest.
The best part about having the mayor there was that he came to talk us, the Akron Rotary Club! As a club, we should always be striving to be the premier service organization in our region. When our elected officials seek the help of their people, our club should be one of the first places they think to come. Our goal should be to not only attract members with a heart for service above self but to seek out those who have character and influence (in that order). We all know and have seen the ramifications of influence without character and that is why I appreciate the guidelines of the Rotary four-way test. Also, important though is the influence that people have in our businesses and community. Many times, people have negative conations when they hear the word influence. The truth is though, that leadership is influence. If you don’t have it then you’re not a leader. Both characteristics are critical to the continued growth of our club. My hope is that we never stop striving for excellence in the areas of character and leadership as we continue to grow as a club, all while making a more meaningful impact on the city we serve.
The purpose of Rotary Cares is to show our support for Akron Rotary members and their families when dealing with the loss of a loved one, the hardship of illness and also to celebrate the joy of a new baby, job, marriage or other events in their lives. Please be sure to email me with any news you would like placed here.
Condolences to Jim Redmond and his family. His father, Roland Charles "Ching" Redmond passed away in February. Memorials may be made to the Akron Community Foundation, c/o "The Redmond Family" fund, 345 W. Cedar St., Akron, OH 44307, in memory of Ching Redmond.
Congratulations to fellow member and a Past Club President, Mark Krohn. Mark has opened The Law Office of Mark E. Krohn, Esq., LLC. His new firm is located in Akron at 1530 West Market Street, Suite G and the website is www.mkrohnlaw.com.
Our RYE student, Sky (Yi-Chieh CHEN) is doing well and is very happy with her experience in northeast Ohio. She has a good relationship with all family members, and has been enjoying especially having older sisters in the Laber family of Stow. Sky acknowledges that she needs to work more at school and cannot miss without an excuse. She acquired several absences to date because of Florida trip in December and Rotary meetings she has attended. Sky will attend Rotary the last week of March during her spring vacation.
Marcia Holcomb completed the 2nd month report for the host family, a procedure required by the U.S. Department of State to insure that all Rotary exchange students are in good hands. Marcia’s report was positive, although the family would like more notice in meetings and gatherings sponsored by Akron or the district.
Because Sky arrived in the middle of September and missed orientation at Rotary Camp, Sky participated in her 1st Akron Rotary Camp Overnight with district RYE students Feb. 18-19 (pictured). She had a fantastic time with interactive games, cultural exercises and just hanging out with other exchange students. One of her favorite activities.
Sky met her 3rd host family, the Carrolls, Jennifer and Richard, children David (17) and Audrey (15). They are a lovely professional family: Jen is an ob-gyn physician and Richard is a retired professor of pharmaceuticals. We expect to see Sky move around the 10th of April.
What an opportunity. Sky’s was able to participate in the Rotary sponsored Eastern Trip March 10-March 19. She and about 80 RYE students from all over the U. S. traveled by bus to Washington, D. C., New York and Boston during the 2017 March blizzard!! Sky maintained that she had FUN, but was extremely cold. She was very proud of her photos of the capital and Times Square. We owe a great deal to Host Mom, Laurel Laber, for arranging Sky’s transportation to the Eastern Trip meeting place in Columbus and return to Stow. While it appeared a logistical nightmare, our committee decided that Laurel Laber may have a future career as a travel agent.
Save the date: April 9. Sky’s American Elite (cheerleading) team performance is that evening. Sky has adopted a totally American phenomenon and she loves it, both the interaction with her teammates and the physical challenges. Sky will also present information about her country of Taiwan to the Rotary Club of Akron in April or May.
Have something to share? We want to hear from you.
Our weekly updates go out via email and are called Akron Rotary Minute. The weekly news is just that - something you can scan and read in a matter of a few minutes - weekly speaker info, event info, and communications that are time sensitive for the week.
Our monthly newsletter, The Akrotarian, goes out mid-month and includes more in depth information. Our President takes time to write a monthly story to keep you informed and provide inspiration. We also include updates from various committees, stories about Rotarian involvement and photos from past events and announcements of upcoming opportunities to get engaged with the Club, Camp, District and more!
But we can only share what you share with me! To submit your stories, photos, etc. simply email cawarren@neo.rr.com and put AKRON NEWS SUBMISSION in the subject line. The story should be sent in the body of the email or in a WORD document. Photos should be attached as jpg files. Please identify, if possible, the names of those in the photos you send.
Thanks for your help and service!
Birthdays & Anniversaries
Member Birthdays
Jim Merklin
March 1
Terry Link
March 1
Mike Soful
March 4
Alana Daveduk
March 6
James Castrigano
March 12
Steve Buie
March 17
Lynda Farkas
March 21
Johnna Economou
March 25
Jennifer Halcomb
March 27
Keith Doyle
March 28
Graham Reinke
March 29
Jonathan Phelps
March 29
Sandy Naragon
April 3
Jeff Fusco
April 7
Jack Harig
April 8
Dottie Achmoody
April 12
Amador Gonzalez
April 24
Rowena Wilkins
April 25
Samuel Lupica
April 25
Joe Swiatkowski
April 27
John Mogen
April 30
Vincent Munnerlyn
April 30
Join Date
Helen Farmer
March 1, 2016
1 year
Michael Gladysz
March 1, 2012
5 years
David Koly
March 6, 1984
33 years
Bill Lowery
March 8, 2016
1 year
Jim Durr
March 8, 2016
1 year
David Showers
March 13, 2001
16 years
Dan Sveda
March 15, 1988
29 years
Graham Reinke
March 15, 2005
12 years
Malcolm Costa
March 18, 1997
20 years
Brian Parana
March 22, 2016
1 year
Rick Rockich
March 26, 2013
4 years
Scott Manby
March 26, 2013
4 years
Bill Manby
March 27, 1973
44 years
Laura Duda
March 29, 2016
1 year
Joseph Horak
March 31, 2015
2 years
Katy Miller
March 31, 2015
2 years
Scott Kolligian
March 31, 2015
2 years
Charles Billow
April 1, 1952
65 years
Gary Knuth
April 4, 1995
22 years
Amador Gonzalez
April 11, 2006
11 years
Brian Chima
April 22, 2014
3 years
Chaz Billington
April 22, 2014
3 years
John Reyes
April 26, 1994
23 years
Ken Babby
April 26, 2016
1 year
Since 1914, The Akrotarian has been the
official publication of The Rotary Club of Akron, Ohio.