Iowa City Noon Rotary

 
Judy Joyce, Executive Director, Take A Kid Outdoors (TAKO)
President Elect Usha Balakrishnan introduced Judy Joyce for today’s program on TAKO.
 
“Nature is not only elsewhere, it is everywhere.”
 
TAKO’s mission is to immerse participants in enjoyable activities to develop an attitude of joy, wonder, love, and respect for our natural world. Based in Fayette County, Take A Kid Outdoors began hosting events in 2006 and currently schedules outdoor events on a monthly basis with an emphasis on free-play and exploration for both children, their parents and people of all ages. The events are free, open to the public and held locally in Johnson County as well. Pre-registration is not required and a light lunch or snack is typically provided to the participants.  Some of the scheduled activities include Planting Days, Ice Fishing, Sledding, Archery, Maize Maze, River Weaving and Rockin Rocks. Because of their results and reputation, they were awarded the 2009 Governor’s Volunteer Award and the Iowa DNR has chosen their organization to lead the states outdoor outreach efforts.
 
The TAKO program would not be possible without numerous partnerships, sponsors, grants and donations. Ms. Joyce’s next focus is raising money to add a shelter to our local Rotary Camp off of Camp Cardinal Road in Coralville. City of Coralville has already committed to covering some of the costs to build the shelter but more money is needed to make this shelter a reality. Joyce mentioned that 40% of their events are cancelled due to cold and/or rain. This shelter would provide a space out of the rain, a stone fireplace to provide warmth during the event, and the opportunity to host more events year round.
 
For more information and upcoming events, please visit: http://takeakidoutdoors.org/ or contact Judy Joyce directly at: judy@takeakidoutdoors.org
 
 
MEETING
Singing:  Bob Crane led singing of America the Beautiful and R-O-T-A-R-Y with Maggie Mowery on the piano.
 
Ride the Goat: The club heard from two goat riders, Gordon Fischer and Dimy Doresca.
 
McNutt 4-H & Rotary Leadership Award Presentation:
 
John McNutt was on hand to present recipients Olivia Erenberger and Kara Schueler with their scholarship checks. Both young women have been very active in school activities and 4-H. Olivia is the daughter of Dan and Mary Erenberger and will graduate this spring from Solon High School and plans to attend Kirkwood Community College in the fall to complete general education classes. She will transfer to Iowa State, or another Ag college, to major in Agricultural Business and minor in Animal Science. Kara is the daughter of Darrel and Kerry Schueler and will graduate this spring from West High School. Kara plans to attend Purdue University in the fall with a major in Agricultural Education.
 
President Elect Usha had the following announcements:
 
As you may know, Brianna Wills son has been diagnosed with Stage 4 Lymphoma. Linda Farkas and Bryan Lawler are collecting donations to purchase gift cards for the family to help out in this difficult time. Sean McIntyre and Kristin Reynolds will be at the door after today’s meeting to accommodate members who did not have cash on hand last week. Please continue to keep the Wills family in your thoughts and prayers.
 
Dr. Resmiye Oral will be hosting a breakout session during the Trauma Care Symposium & Panel on Wednesday, April 27 which runs from 9:00 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. at the UI College of Public Health. No registration is required. As a follow up, Usha will be hosting a Fireside Chat on Thursday, April 28 at 1:00 p.m., after our regular Rotary meeting, to discuss Dr. Oral’s remarks, her panel participation and an overview of the program.
 
Please forward any newsworthy items and/or photos to Casey Kidwell to include in the weekly presentation. You can send information to: secretary@iowacitynoon.rotary.org or to: casey-kidwell@uiowa.edu. The pre-meeting PowerPoint is a great way to reach fellow Rotarians who may not be at the weekly meeting. 
 
For questions related to Club administration, please contact us at secretary@iowacitynoonrotary.org.
 
Guests and Visiting Rotarians
Sarah Richardson introduced Visiting Rotarians Judy Joyce (Coralville-North Corridor), Tine & Evert van der Stroom (Rhenen-Veenendaal, Netherlands) as well as guests Aly High (Wally Chappell); Katharine Marshall (Lynette Marshall); Richard Campagna (Joseph Dobrian); Travis Brockett (Christina Kimerle); Carrie Marshek, Dan Erenberger, Kara Schueler, Olivia Erenberger, Rosemary Erenberger, Mary Erenberger, John McNutt (Gene Mohling).
 
COMMITTEE ASSIGNMENTS
Program: Tom Cilek; Attendance: Nancy Droll; April 28 - Brad Johnson and Kristin Reynolds, May 5 – Scott Wilson and Greg Bell, and May 12 – Paul Pressler and Rives Bird.