Rotary International asks us to Imagine Rotary through our Focus Areas
This month Rotary International asks us to Imagine Rotary by developing new members. Explore the possibilities with us at our meeting Wednesday at noon at Wick Park or virtually via Zoom.
October is Economic and Community Development Month. RCY will kick it off Wednesday with a presentation by Alexa Sweeney Blackann, interim CEO of Lake to River Economic Development. Four counties – Mahoning, Trumbull, Columbiana and Ashtabula – created a regional network within Jobs Ohio. Blackann’s focus is on retaining talent and attracting businesses to the Mahoning Valley.
Rotary After Hours returns this week, this time during the First Fridays downtown event. Meet from 5:30 to 7:30 p.m. Friday at the YSU McDonough Museum of Art on Wick Avenue. Penguin City Beer will be served at a cash bar, and the museum will offer light snacks.The McDonough also will host an artist meet and greet from 5 to 6 p.m.; live music by AIMLIS will be from 6 to 8 p.m. Park at the main library or in the YSU Wick Deck (fee $5). Go to www.firstfridaysyoungstown.org to see the complete list of activities at the Butler Institute of American Art, YSU Ford Theater, St. John’s Episcopal Church, YSU Ward Beecher Planetarium, The Public Library and more!
Rotary Last Week
Speaker Mark Canzonetta, accompanied on Sept. 25 by his friend Lauren Lindvig-Housel, said his restaurant can’t survive on downtown workers and residents alone. He also needs suburbanites, but “the optics around parking were challenging” after the Realty Tower explosion and during the ongoing road construction project. Still, Canzonetta hasn't given up. With Prima Cucina relocating to Austintown, he has rebranded Bistro 1907 in the Doubletree Hotel as Casa di Canzonetta, which will officially open Wednesday. Visitors will see photos of his family heritage amid a comfortable atmosphere and a menu of high-quality, made-to-order food “for all income brackets,” he said.
Terrific news from the Operation Warm committee – more than $30,000 has been raised to purchase winter coats and shoes for elementary school students in Youngstown! Congratulations to co-chairs Stacia Erdos Littleton and Dave Stillwagon for their efforts. Coats will be ordered this week, and distribution at schools should happen in mid-October. Volunteers will be needed.
Three Rotary Club presidents – George Nelson, Jane Perrett and Jamie Ciccone – weathered the rain at the Boardman Rotary Oktoberfest on Sept. 29 to distribute restaurant and bar gift cards to downtown Youngstown establishments. The cards were purchased with the money raised by the Austintown, Boardman, Canfield, Girard-Liberty, Warren and Youngstown clubs during their mixer in July. Special thanks to the Mahoning County Community Improvement Corp., Youngstown CityScape and Downtown Youngstown Partnership for supporting the project to stimulate downtown business activity.
OPERATION WARM ON FIRE
Operation Warm is getting a big push this year. Kudos to Committee Co-Chair Stacia Erdos on her heartwarming column in the Business Journal. You can read on our Facebook page if you missed it last week.
Stacia and Co-Chair Dave Stillwagon also have support from Richie Bernacki and Aspacia Lyras-Bernacki, co-owners of Penguin City Beer, who gave RCY space during the Night Market on Aug. 15 to accept monetary contributions. We’ll do that again on Sept. 21, during Penguin City’s Oktoberfest celebration.
The goal this year is to raise $20,000 by Sept. 1 to secure 1,000 coats for city school children in grades Kindergarten through six. Here are ways you can help:
Make a personal contribution or solicit donations from friends, family, employers, local businesses and more. The suggested donation is $20 per coat. Checks should be payable to The Youngstown Rotary Foundation and mailed to 201 E. Commerce St., Suite 450, Youngstown, OH 44503. Donations are tax deductible.
Visit the club’s Facebook page and share our messages within your social media circles.
Work a 2-hour shift at the RCY table on Sept. 21. Contact Stacia to sign up.
Talk about heartwarming – have you seen this thank-you note that Rotary received after last year’s drive?
SAVE THE DATE
Official Visit by District Governor Elayne Bozick, noon Oct. 23, Wick Park Pavilion.
Pints for Polio fundraiser, 5 p.m. Oct. 24, Penguin City Brewing Co., 460 E. Federal St.
ONE SWEET PROJECT
Oct. 16 is the deadline to order Purple Pinkie Project doughnuts. Each $20 donation for a box of 12 Purple Pinkie long-john doughnuts (made at the Struthers IGA bakery) will result in a donation to the End Polio Now campaign. Barbara Brothers has order forms. Orders will be filled on Oct. 23. For more information, visit endpolionow.org.
District Challenge Underway
As District Governor Elayne Bozick’s year of service began July 1, so did the qualification period for the Operation Pollination Challenge, in which Rotary clubs choose or create action items to support Operation Pollination and protect the future of the planet.
Have fun! There are many easy ways to win points, and the district environmental committee encourages you to get involved in any way you can.
Collaboration is encouraged. Join other clubs or organizations in their activities. Every effort will make a difference.
The club with the most points will win a $1,000 Paul Harris fellow. If there is a tie, a drawing will be conducted to determine which club will receive the fellow. This is a friendly competition. Your participation means we all win!
The challenge was designed to give Rotarians maximum flexibility. Every club, regardless of the number, age, or experience of its members, can find ways to support the environment and earn points.
For starters, create a club-level environmental committee and make a pledge to support Operation Pollination. (RCY has done both.)
See the list of awareness days in 2024 in the district’s Google Docs folder. A new one will be available in 2025. Celebrate and share these days on social media and/or the club’s website to build public awareness.
Spread milkweed seeds to increase habitat for monarch butterflies. Plant a pollinator garden to attract bees.
Clubs are encouraged to bring their own ideas to fruition. Contact Christine Cope, chair of the District Environmental Committee, to ask for the points that will be awarded for your club’s unique project or idea.
Also, when you self-report your club’s activities, you can earn bonus points for providing photos or videos in your club-specific folder on Google Docs.
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