President David Eardley opened the virtual meeting with the Pledge of Allegiance, then we recited the Four Way Test. Lunch was served.
Ron Lichtle gave the invocation to our club today.
ATTENDANCE
There were 45 Rotarians present, and 2 guests Cindy Purdy and Mary Modetz as well as the illustrious team from the Mayor's office.
15th HANDSHAKE
President David announced to the club Ron Diliddo. Congratulations Ron!
HAPPY BUCKS
Our club had so much to be happy about this week:
Ron Lichtle is happy it’s hunting season!!
David Eardley is happy the Lions were winning for one whole hour of the game!!
Bryan Barnett is happy that the city received the Michigan Municipal League Award Trophy for the Auburn Road Project!! And also reminds everyone to vote.
ROTARIAN OF THE WEEK
Ethan Hoffman will be holding onto the Rotarian of the Week award for another week.
ANNOUNCEMENTS
Dick Gorges passed away on Sunday September 26th. We are keeping his family and friends in our prayers at this time. There will be visitation at 10 a.m. on Thursday, September 30th from 10-11 a.m. at St. Paul’s United Methodist Church in Rochester. His funeral service will follow at 11 a.m.
October 23, 2021 is the park clean up for Rotary Park. Make sure to sign up to ensure your assistance.
The Shred It For Polio Event will be held October 18th between 9 and 12 in the Bordine’s parking lot. Please sign up if you would like to volunteer on the pickup service.
BIRTHDAYS AND CLUB ANNIVERSARIES
We had 4 club anniversaries this week, Mark Tisdel 8 years, Mo Sayed 18 years, Jay Eastman 21 years, and Christine Hage 29 years. Thank you Rotarians!!
SHERIFF'S REPORT
PROGRAM
Bryan Barnett led us on a journey from the concept stages of Innovation Hills to the real life magic it creates in our community every day.
Innovation Hills Park’s location was once 110 acres of undeveloped land located in a part of Rochester Hills with no parks in sight. Its idea came from a school project where students were tasked with the challenge of creating a park with that space. The finished projects were proudly displayed at City Hall where they caught the eye of a fellow community member. He asked if $1,000,000 would help to bring these dreams to fruition and Bryan was quick to put that support to work. He had a wildly supportive team around him and the unmatched dedication of the community to bring the park to life. As of today, $12,000,000 has gone into the creation of Innovation Hills, $4,000,000 of which were direct donations from the community.
Rochester Hills is not your average community. As the leading manufacturer of robots in North America, where 57% of the population hold Bachelor’s Degrees, 30% hold Master’s Degrees and over 400 patents are acquired every year, Rochester Hills is innovative by nature thus giving our new park the title Innovation Hills. To keep with that spirit, every detail included from the family style swings to the Clinton River shaped water play area is uniquely designed to be enjoyable to patrons of all abilities and give a nod to our local nature. With his Disney background in mind, it was Bryan’s goal to capture the heart and mind of anyone visiting the park from the time they enter until they leave. As it stands today with its glow in the dark sidewalks, Animal Kingdom style tree, and cardboard surfing slides, Innovation Hills has been deemed a park for the new generation.
The team from the Mayor’s Office and the Parks and Natural Resources team are far from done. They continue to attend the park incognito to assess the daily changes that will improve the experience from trash can location to sand containment bumpers while also moving forward with big exciting phases. Fully funded phase 2 will grow the playground by 30% and will include a "we go round” for children of all abilities. Phase 3 will include an adventurous rope bridge over Clinton River unlocking 48 acres of natural beauty.
Today the park attracts over 5,000 patrons every weekend. The Rotary Pavilion with its living roof provides the perfect place to gather with friends and family.
Yes, this is a challenging time. But, we are Rotarians, we will rise to the challenge, and our resilience and power of adaptation will prevail over this. Thanks everyone, have a great week.
