Rotary International asks us to Serve to Change Lives through its Focus Areas
This month Rotary International asks us to Serve to Change Lives by helping everyone learn skills that will allow them to become economically self sufficient. Explore the possibilities with us at our meeting Wednesday at noon at Wick Park or virtually via Zoom.
In observance of Vocational Service Month, two Rotarians will conduct live interviews with two other Rotarians about their careers. We will hear from George Nelson and Luke Politsky, and Shannon Tirone and Msgr. Robert Siffrin.
Also, the Nominations Committee will recommend to the membership a slate of officers for the 2022-23 year, as follows:
President: Sharon Letson President-Elect: Deanna Rossi Vice President-Elect: George Nelson Secretary: Gerri Jenkins Treasurer: Don Foley Immediate Past President: Josh Prest Rotary International Foundation Chair: Becky Davis Directors: Becky Keck, Gayle Catinella, Mike Latessa, Debora Flora
Last Week's Meeting
Vocational Service Month interviews between new and veteran club members continued with two new pairings: Dave Stillwagon and Stacia Erdos Littleton, and Elayne Bozick and Jessica Romeo.
While Stacia is a past member of the Lions club, she has been a Rotarian at heart, Dave observed. She is still known for her first career as a TV news anchor and reporter, including at WYTV in Youngtown and WPXI in Pittsburgh. She pursued journalism to make a difference, she told Dave. As priorities in her life changed, and after reporting on the work of many nonprofits, she was drawn to explore career opportunities in that sector. Her first interaction with Rotary occurred while she worked at the United Way of Youngstown. She introduced our club to Dolly Parton’s Imagination Library free children’s book program. She now works as regional development director with the nonprofit Coleman Mental Health Services. She is among the first members to volunteer for Rotary activities, he noted.
Stacia described Dave’s dual roles as a “father extraordinaire” and executive director of Community Corrections Association in Youngstown. With a nod to Dave’s past success as a baseball player, Stacia’s summary was full of sports terminology. For example, he struck out with the restaurant he opened in Austintown when he was age 24, but he got on base when he was hired as a caseworker at CCA in 2013. He misses some of the hands-on work he performed as a caseworker, but Rotary’s Operation Warm coat campaign fills some of that void, he told Stacia. She also noted that Dave stands out as a fourth-generation Rotarian.
Jessica found many things she and Elayne have in common. Their work days have to be very flexible to accommodate their work loads; they perform some work from home; and they enjoy meeting people. Both also enjoy painting with watercolors.
Elayne was operating her own graphic design firm when she joined RCY. She was looking for community service opportunities, Jessica said. Elayne enjoys helping people realize their dreams in purchasing homes and is “very kind,” she added.
As a community health educator at Mercy Health Services, Jessica organizes a variety of activities, including health fairs, demonstrations and screenings, Elayne said. She also teaches part-time in the dietary program at Youngstown State University. “Everything starts with food,” Jessica said. Her interest in dietetics began with her son, who has been diagnosed with Asperger syndrome. It is a sensory issue, but she wanted to understand the connection between food allergies and the autism spectrum, so she went back to school to earn a degree, Elayne noted.
Jessica was so eager to connect with Rotarians that she “borrowed” an invitation to Past President Samantha Turner’s year-end party last summer, Elayne said. That evening, Jessica met Rotarian Adam Lee, who became her Rotary sponsor.
Rotary Club of Youngstown Scholarship Fund was moved to the YSU Foundation last year to permanently endow a scholarship to support graduating seniors from Youngstown's public and parochial high schools. The $150,000 scholarship fund generates $6,000 annually to provide six (6) $1,000 scholarships. Applicants must be seniors at Youngstown Chaney, East, Rayen Early College, Ursuline, Cardinal Mooney or Valley Christian High Schools. Deadline to apply is February 1, 2022. If you know of any worthy students, please pass on the information below as soon as possible. Scholarships will be awarded at our meeting on April 20, 2022.
Log on to YSU.edu • On the far right, select the “Tuition and Financial Aid” tab • On the far right, select the “Forms and Applications” tab • Under the “Online Applications” section, select “YSUF Scholarship Application” • At the bottom of the page, log-in with your Penguin Portal I.D. and Password to complete the application
The city of Struthers honored the Rotary Club with a Proclamation that included our Operation Pollination commitment.
On behalf of Rotary International Foundation Club Chair Becky Davis, attached you will find a nomination form for 2022 Paul Harris Fellows to be awarded at our 107th Anniversary Dinner in March. In keeping with tradition (per-pandemic), the club will award a Paul Harris Fellow to an existing club member, and one community member. Please use the attached form to nominate a club member, community member, or both.
Thanks,
Becky Davis & the Rotary International Foundation Committee
Beerfest News
Beerfest Update
The beer is near! RCY’s Groundhog Beerfest will be Saturday, Jan. 29, in Stambaugh Auditorium. Sessions will be from noon to 4 p.m. and from 5 to 9 p.m., with the first hour of each session reserved for VIP ticket holders. This is our club’s major fundraiser, and proceeds are returned to the community as grants in support of the amazing work of local nonprofit organizations.
An often-repeated question is what attendees get for their admission. The general admission ticket ($50, which includes service fees) gives them three hours to sample beverages from 20 local breweries, enjoy live entertainment and chat with beer makers and beer lovers. VIPs ($70) get all of that over four hours!
The list of sponsors this year is “impressive,” Beerfest co-chair Kevin Chiu says. Ticket sales are building, co-chair Samatha Turner adds.
To volunteer at Beerfest, please contact Mike Latessa. Afternoon volunteers are especially needed. Volunteering is not limited to Rotarians.
Reminder to those who already have signed up to work: Enter Stambaugh through the service door, which is to the left of the main entrance.
All Rotarians can ensure the success of the event by liking and sharing Facebook posts. Also, encourage friends, family, and co-workers to attend! Sell those tickets! Thanks to all who made pretzel necklaces to sell during Beerfest.
Creating an account on MyRotary will not only give you great information about how you can maximize the impact of your Rotary involvement, it can also help Rotary International by giving them demographic information about you as a Rotarian. This is also how you get access to the Brand Center, which provides Rotary graphics and instructions about how to properly use them. Getting an account is simple:
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