Last week Jennifer Jirak-Brungardt introduced us to new member Valerie Smedlund.   

 

Valerie works for Security National Bank as a First Vice President Development Market Officer and has been with the bank for 26 years. Her home branch is at Aksarben Village.  She assists customers directly with opening new accounts, loan requests,  and is the primary contact for opening, and maintenance issues with Health Savings accounts.

 

Besides these responsibilities she assists and covers all our Security National Bank branch locations with staffing shortages at the banker’s desk.    Her brief case and phone follow her wherever she goes.

 

Valerie has been in banking for 43 years and started out with a family-owned bank just like Security National Bank called Bank of Millard.

 

She has two grown sons and 7 grandchildren.  She loves spending time with her family and going to school and sporting events and family vacations.  They have done Disney a couple of times together and did a cruise. She is not afraid to embarass herself by dancing and going down waterslides to entertain her grandchildren. 

 

As you can tell family is important to Valerie.  She also has 3 dogs and 2 cats and is a softy for animals. 

 

Valerie enjoys serving and helping others.  For the last 18 years she’s assisted with Operation Christmas Child with gathering and filling items for the shoeboxes that are shipped out all over the world.  She also volunteers for the Salvation Army Night watch every year.  Each year they have set up a drive from bank our employees to collect coats, hats, gloves, socks and blankets for the less fortunate.  

 

Salvation Army takes the mobile canteen out and serve food from December 1^st through the first week of March every year and hand out the outerwear to those in need. She’s also been part of the Disaster group of the Salvation Army where they've been called out in the middle of the night for a fire to help the victims or First Responders. 

 

Valerie looks forward being part of Rotary since serving and helping others is so dear to her heart. Welcome, Valerie!

 

Rotary District 5650, which includes clubs in Eastern Nebraska and Western Iowa, is seeking to gather much-needed medical supplies for hospitals and medical clinics in Ukraine. District Governor Carol Horner is urging members of the clubs in the district to contact medical centers, hospitals, emergency personnel (such as fire departments and police departments), and any others that Rotarians can think of and ask if there are any medical supplies available that could be donated and shipped. We have learned from doctors and medical professionals in Ukraine and those connected to them in the United States that they need the following:

 

 

In an emergency meeting on Monday evening, March 21, club presidents and other district officials gathered to consider the need and discuss how they could help. Those present began to talk of medical connections, transportation connections and other people who were members or knew people in their communities who could help with this project.

 

District Governor Horner has asked for volunteers to respond not only to the very specific list of medical supply needs, but for people in Lincoln and Omaha to identify possible collections sites where supplies could be gathered, trucking connections to help transport those supplies to Chicago and anyone with worthwhile suggestions to contact either her or district administrator Nicki Klein.

 

This project came as the result of a much broader undertaking involving ten Rotary districts throughout the Midwest seeking to raise funds to help pay for the transport of medical supplies from Chicago to Poland and Ultimately into Ukraine. The Ukrainian Medical Association of North America (UMANA) which is based in Chicago has worked with the Rotary International offices and ultimately with a number of Rotary districts in the central part of the country to help transport medical supplies. The UMANA members have managed to pull together more than 30 tons of supplies and they’ve arranged for the transportation of an initial shipment of 10 tons. Ten Rotary districts in the Midwest have each pledged $25,000 toward this initiative, with the involvement of people in the main offices of Rotary and the Rotary Foundation in Chicago and members of Rotary in Poland and Ukraine.

Rotarians, show your neighbors, show the people across the United States, show the people of Ukraine that you really mean it when you say Service above Self. Respond to Carol or Nicki with the following:

 

During our workout this morning, Kathy Rieger came up with the name for our project: OPERATION SUPPLY WHEEL! Let's get this wheel rolling! The magic of Rotary is real!

Name:  Bette Case 

Classification: Screen Printing/Promotional 

Company: Midwest Impressions
Proposer: Warren Whitted III

 

 

   Also-           The Bloody Mary Fest Raffle Committee is looking for donations- please contact Jill Slupe 

         Wine or Liquor

         Sports memorabilia

         Baskets, ribbon, etc. for the baskets

 

 

 

Monday:  Millard at Noon - in person, no reservations required at the German American Society 

 

Tuesday:  Omaha Morning at 7:00 at Happy Hollow- hybrid meetings. Click here to register. 

                  NW Rotary at noon- at Garden Cafe in Rockbrook 

 

Wednesday: Omaha Downtown at Noon resuming hybrid meetings.  

                       Council Bluffs Centennial 7am at HyVee on Madison upstairs