President John Racine called the meeting to order and led us in singing God Bless America. After saying The Pledge of Allegiance, Gary Hogue gave our Invocation. Marsha Minervini was our song-leader and led us in singing a "moldie-oldie" in tribute to our speaker for the day (so she said) - "Witch Doctor". Were you sure about this selection, Marsha? (Were you really filling in for Cindy Ruzak?) Becky Ewing introduced Visiting Rotarians and Guests. Christopher Cox introduced our STUDENTS OF THE WEEK who came from Traverse City Christian. They were seniors Emma Holtvluwer and Levi Price. Alexis Juett introduced Sarah Kime as an IM Rotary Graduate. Allision Beers, our President in Waiting, gave a Recap of her recent trip to Little Rock, Ak., to attend the "Large Club" meeting.
ANNOUNCEMENTS: 1. Marica Billings encouraged everyone to get involved with Twilight Rotary Club's Super Bowl Raffle. There are lots of ways to be a winner.
2. Don't forget "Career Network Day" is 2-15-18 at Traverse City Senior High School. It's from 12:45 –2:45 pm. Rotarians with interesting careers about which they can share information with students can still sign up. Contact Sakura Raftery.
3. Win Big in the District 50/50 Raffle. Tickets are $20.00 and will be on sale at the Club Meetings until the end of February. Our "ooo eee ooo ah ah ting tang walla walla bing bang" song-leader, Marsha Minervini, was rewarded for her efforts by winning $48 in today's 50/50 drawing.
Steve Wade introduced our speaker, Dr. Roger Gerstle. Dr. Gerstle said he spoke to Rotary approximately five years ago about a Health Clinic he was involved with in Kenya. (ooo eee) He came today to discuss Traverse Health Clinic. He said he's been practicing Family Medicine for the past twenty-two years. He joined the clinical team at Traverse Health Clinic as a primary care Physician and Medical Director in 2016. Prior to this, he served as medical director of Munson Hospice, Palliative Care, and Home Care. Traverse Health was founded in 1975 when a small group of physicians began volunteering their services to people who could not afford to pay. It was originally known as the "Community Health Clinic." As demand for services grew, the clinic expanded into much more than a walk-in acute care clinic. In 2005, the clinic merged with the Grand Traverse Regional Health Care Coalition to provide a referral network which included approximately 400 physicians, nurse practitioners, physician assistants, podiatrists, optometrists, hospitals, and clinics. The name eventually changed to Traverse Health Clinic. Accepting Healthy Michigan Plan, Medicaid, Medicare, and Private Insurance, as well as offering a sliding scale for the uninsured, Traverse Health Clinic remains true to its roots as a strong community safety net and will never turn anyone away because of inability to pay. The Clinic is located at 1719 S. Garfield Ave. The Phone # is 935-0799. Dr. Gerstle said the Clinic served 3500 patients in 2017.
