Following the encouragement from Homer Nye to honor the beauty not only of our scenic surroundings but using service-above-self principles to draw out people’s inner beauty; Dave Milross, with a rhythmic assist from John Racine and Mike Meindertsma, orchestrated a rousing rendition of the “Canoe Song”. This was obviously most appropriate given the presentation’s subject of the Boardman River; but with lyrics such as “dip,dip and swing” perhaps this was also a lead in to the announcement of the results of the Rotary Golf outing which are listed later.

Dan Rickard’s announced there were no visiting Rotarians, which it was conjectured might have been because of advance awareness of the day’s song selection.  Mike M. sent out congratulations to Rob and Kim Lovell on the birth of daughter Alexandria and the following save the date reminders were given:

Monday, September 19th, at 5:30p for the 13^th Annual Gourmet Dinner at the TC Golf & Country Club.

Monday, August 22^nd  6pm for the Boating Social Gathering at Power Island. Susan Krause  encouraged all those who are commitment phobic to sign up as soon as possible with her so somewhat of an accurate guess can be made regarding how many boats are needed. Let her know as well which departure point you would like – Clinch or Bowers Harbor or other Old Mission locations. It’s BYO and bring a snack to pass if you want. There are both power and sail options for boats, and while the intent is to stay on the island for about an hour, there is a possibility for those who would like to extend the evening with a little more cruise/sail time.

Lisa Pointe requested assistance for backpack stuffing, and suggestion it is a family/kid friendly opportunity to be of service to the community. And John Noonan requested help this Thursday 9am for a workbee at the Discovery Dock; which by the time you read this newsletter will have already taken place.

Mike Buday and Mark Echkoff announced the winners of the various events at the golf outing, completely stunning the team of Cindy Ruzak, John Racine, Kat Phillips and Herb Lemcool with the announcement they’d won Low Scrabble. Cindy then used her cash earnings to purchase a Friends of the Boardman pin which Michael Richmond has available for sale at $10 to support the Gourmet Game Dinner Committee’s efforts this year, and plans to wear it every day until the dinner to peak other peoples’ interest.

Other golf winners were Susan Krause for longest putt, Jay Hooper for closest to the pin (on the correct hole), and Mark Newhouse won low gross with an 82, Syd Van Slyke had the straightest drive showing the skill that then led to his achieving low net of 70 (or as many suspected his handicap might be a bit inflated), and least longest drive was the affable (or is that laughable) Al Zielinski.

Trevor Tkach handedly won $41 in the 50/50, and then it was on to the main presentation.

Running with the Milross noise making theme, Tim Burden introduced speaker Steve Largent with a few blows on whistles and duck calls declaring the upcoming event to be 3F – Fun, Fantastic Food, and Fast. Funds from the dinner have provided $150,000 so far toward the completion of a number of projects that have enhanced the Boardman and Brown Bridge areas specifically for public use.

Where that money went include:

2004 – Update inventory of flora, fauna and fish

2006 – New exhibits

2007 – Sustainable access

2008 – Streambank restoration and recreational trail signage

2009 – Scenic overlook and access steps

2010 – Nature Center recreational access

2011 – Stream Crossing improvement

2012 – Brown Bridge Dam plantings

2013 – Planting 6,000 trees and shrubs

2014 ongoing through 2016 plans for and building of a Signature Bridge.

This is the 4^th year of soliciting funds for this walking bridge at Brown Bridge, and funds from the Gourmet Dinner will go directly to supporting this project.

Steve talked about ongoing projects to reconnect the river’s flood plain by pulling back banks, putting in shallow wetland. He gave a bit of the history of Brown Bridge as a mill and stage stop, but encouraged buying the book  “Currents of the Boardman” for more information. And of course a visit to the website www.friendsoftheboardman.com is always recommended.

Already a significant (count last time was 10 versus 160 now) increase in trout has been witnessed in conjunction with the cooler water (about 9 degrees) after the removal of the dam.

The Tim and Steve show ended with some down home tales of Tim’s teenage lean toward delinquency throwing rocks at the abandoned dam building, but with the clear message of how important this resource is not only to anglers but to everyone who loves the great outdoors. So please buy a pin, make a donation of goods or services, be a dinner sponsor at $250 and up, and then come to the dinner and bring friends. That’s September 19^th at the Country Club.

CURRENT CAREER – Semi-retired, part-time consultant, automotive safety

 

EDUCATION –Ed.D., Doctorate in educational leadership.

   

FAMILY- Wife Carolyn, a daughter and two sons.

 

FAVORITE DESSERT -  Hot fudge cream puff.

 

FAVORITE ACTIVITY –Landscape planning amd maintenance.

 

LAST BOOK READ – “Killing Reagan” by Bill O’Reilly.

 

FAVORITE MOVIE – “Das Boot,” a German submarine novel.

 

FAVORITE SONG – Battle Hymn of the Republic.

 

LIKELY KNOWS – I worked on the first U.S. satelite space launch.

 

LIFE ROLE MODEL – My Dad

 

MOST SIGNIFICANT ACCOMPLISHMENT –  Developing the first child safety seat.

 

PROUDEST MOMENT -   Graduation from Western Michigan University with a doctorate degree.

 

FUNNIEST THING THAT HAS EVER HAPPENED TO YOU -  Kids stole my clothes at a swimming hole and I walked home naked along city sidewalks.

 

SECRET AMBITION - Be a multi-millionaire.

 

IF YOU COULD BE ANYONE IN THE WORLD FOR A DAY (present or historical),  WHO WOULD THAT BE---AND  WHY? King Arthur, my namesake, and lead the round table knights into battle.

 

MOST FAMOUS PERSON MET -  Werner Von Braun, the German rocket scientist who led our space program.

 

ANYTHING ELSE YOU WANT TO SHARE – It’s great to be a Rotarian, especially in Traverse City.

Chris Peregrine & John Goense both passed away on August 10th.

Chris's visitation will be on Friday, Aug. 12, 2016, from 5 to 8 p.m., at the Reynolds-Jonkhoff Funeral Home. A memorial service will be on Saturday, Aug. 13, 2016, at 11 a.m., with visitation one hour prior, at the Presbyterian Church.
 

John's service will be Monday at St. Francis Catholic Church at 11:00. He was a past president of the club and a board member of Rotary Charities and Camps. He was 90.

 

Both families are being cared for by the Reynolds-Jonkhoff Funeral Home, may they rest in peace.

 

 

 

 

This Tuesday, Rotary Charities Vice President, Elaine Wood, and Executive Director, Marsha Smith, shared with the Club how Rotary Charities is evolving to meet the changing needs of the region. They would like to hear from you. What do you think about the change? Click on the link below to share your anonymous thoughts. If you choose to share your name, someone from Rotary Charities will follow up with you.    

 

Link to Listening Box: https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/WeAreListening2016

 

So if you give $250 to your chosen local charity they could end up with $500.00 thru the match.

 

USE this amazing opportunity please! Click here for form, or get one at the next club meeting.