IMPORTANT: We are meeting at College of St. Mary this Friday, Oct 19th, not at Champions. Address is 7000 Mercy Rd.
The Rotary meeting will be at the Warde Conference Center located in Mercy Hall. It is best to take the Mercy Road entrance and you will see Mercy Hall as you drive down the road. Park anywhere since no permit is necessary. There will be minimal traffic in the parking lot due to fall break.
Presiding Officer: Dick Sturgeon
Secretary: Nick Rosenberry
Chair of the Day: Andy Shim
Invocator: Bill Sutton
Cashier: Butch Ethington
Sgt. at Arms: Bev Karrer
Greeters: Deb Neary & Michelle Schrage Speaker: Dr. Maryanne Stevens
Dr. Maryanne Stevens
President, College of St. Mary
Topic: State of the College of Saint Mary Update. Dr. Stevens will provide a brief review of how she was able to take an institution from the brink of failure to where it currently stands as a strong, vibrant institution for women in the Omaha area.
Last week, Past President John Morey presided the meeting. Kendall Scheer gave the Invocation. Tim Riewer & Bob Fell served as greeters. Gail Veitzer was Sgt. at Arms. Ric Miller was Cashier. Mark Ellsworth gave his vocational talk. Immediate Past President Nuzhat Mahmood presented the annual report which highlighted the many accomplishments during Rotary Year 2017-18. Rich Secor was Chair of the Day and he introduced our speaker, Joe Finnegan, Omaha West Rotary Foundation President. DG-Elect Mick McKinley and President-Elect Martie Cordaro presented Dan Lassek his blue badge.
L to R: DG-Elect Mick McKinley, President-Elect Martie Cordaro and Dan Lassek
Omaha West Rotary Club Secretary Report for October 12, 2018:
This past Friday, we had several guests! District-Governor Elect Mick McKinley came to present Dan Lassek's blue badge. John Marburger from the Downtown club joined us. Additionally, we had several visitors including, Emily Garden who was invited by Kim Kuhle. Joe Finnegan invited his wife Kjirsten. And Ric Miller invited Antonio Espejo.
We had several red badge members in attendance. We also had our club board members stand to be recognized.
Birthdays for October included: Steve Levinger (10/3), James Olafson (10/8), Keith Powell (10/11), Mike Morey (10/13), Bob Ames (10/18), and Steven Redler (10/24). Please wish them happy birthday!
All donations for the following good news were put in the Bloom Companion Care Lock Box. This past week was the last week for the naming rights. Please let me know if you would like to sponsor the next week or next month. Please keep Holly Gillespie in your thoughts and prayers as she recovers from surgery. Yolanda Hoffman’s daughter is in Austria. Bev Karrer shared that Brad and Susan Rohrig were in Prague. Kim Kuhle praised the good work of fellow member Mark Manhart Jr. for installing new hickory wood floors in her living room. Martie Cordaro had two items of good news – first the Storm Chasers were recently featured in a film about minor league baseball and second, the Storm Chasers were recognized as the Marketing Team of the Year. Vaughn Wiebusch’s grandson, Carter, was part of a winning soccer team that recently took home championships in Kansas City, St. Louis, and Denver. Laura Thomas just celebrated her son’s birthday at Valas. And Finally, condolences were expressed for Ron Niederhaus for the passing of his wife, Ruby.
Nick closed with a joke and wished everyone a good weekend.
Momentum is building as we launch a new fundraising event for the Rotary Club of West Omaha, and there are plenty of opportunities for Club Members to get involved. Tickets are now available by using our secure payment system here.
BLOODY MARY JAZZFEST Sunday, November 4, 2018, 3 pm to 6 pm Champions Run Country Club Ticket Price: $45 VIP Ticket: $65 includes Swag Bag and Perks.
Every ticket holder will receive a complimentary drink (Bloody Mary recommended) and Charcuterie Buffet. Adding to the atmosphere, we will have two jazz ensembles providing their best Jazz arrangements. Visit the Bloody Mary JazzFest website CLICK/TAP HERE.
Ken Thomason is Financial Advisor at Morgan Stanley. Ken is proposed by Brad Hess. Ken is a previous Rotarian from the Rotary Club of St. Andrews-Charleston where he was a very active Rotarian. As such, he was awarded Rotarian of the Year and the most coveted Service Above Self Award. Any objections to this proposal must be in writing to the Board of Directors at boardofdirectors@omahawestrotary.org by October 23.
Get ready with your loud outfit! Matt McKeever is hosting the 2nd Annual Ray Barr Loud Outfit Contest on October 26 at our weekly meeting. Awards at stake are Best Costume, Best Suit, and Loudest Tie. Last year's winner by popular vote was Dick Lerner. Here's the picture from last year.
The Rotary Club of Lincoln is hosting the awarding of Huskers Volleyball Coach John Cook, as the 2018 Nebraskan of the Year, on October 30th, 11:30 AM - 1:00 PM at the Embassy Suites in Lincoln. Please buy your tickets now, CLICK/TAP HERE.
John Cook is in his 19th season as the Nebraska volleyball head coach in 2018. He has led the Huskers to four of their five NCAA Championships, eight final fours, 12 conference championships and 16 top-10 final rankings since 2000. Cook currently has 692 career wins and is the fifth-winningest coach in NCAA history. Under Cook, the Huskers have achieved 52 All-Americans and 19 Academic All-Americans, both among the best in the nation. He is a two-time AVCA National Coach of the Year and seven-time Conference Coach of the Year.
The Skinner Magnet School Career Day is a very impactful event for the 4th/5th graders that attend. Just a few hours out of your day can make a big difference to these kids. Plus, you will have fun doing it!
The event will take place on November 1st (Thursday) from 1:00 to 3:30 at the Skinner Magnet School (4304 N. 33rd Street). If you haven’t attended this event in the past, below is some general information:
Format: You will be set up at a table where small groups (6-7) of 4th/5th graders will rotate every 5 to 10 minutes. There should be about 125 kids in total.
Attire: Wear the attire that you normally wear to work. This way students can get a feel for what you do and how you need to dress for your job.
Purpose: We ask you to show them the "tools of your trade" so they could relate to how this helps them earn a living, helps them to be of service to other people, research that helps humanity at large, etc. Our goal is to inspire them to do well in school, to understand why making an extra effort in their education is good for their future, and perhaps to believe that “I can do it, too”. Whatever you can do to help achieve that goal for these kids is very much appreciated!
Questions, please contact Nick Rosenberry at nrosenberry@navitas.us.com.
To find out about speakers at other Rotary Clubs in the area, you can conveniently see the list of Club websites here. Then click on the home icon to the left of the club name. The list of speakers are listed on their Homepage.
Momentum is building as we launch a new fundraising event for the Rotary Club of West Omaha, and there are plenty of opportunities for Club Members to get involved. Tickets are now available by using our secure payment system 
The Rotary Club of Lincoln is hosting the awarding of Huskers Volleyball Coach John Cook, as the 2018 Nebraskan of the Year, on October 30th, 11:30 AM - 1:00 PM at the Embassy Suites in Lincoln. Please buy your tickets now, 
