The Rotary Club of Kirkland held an in-person meeting December 1, 2025, at the Kirkland Eagles Club.
The meeting was called to order by Rick Walter at 6:15 p.m. Rick stood in for the absent Kate Koslosky. Rick led us in the Pledge of Allegiance and the Four Way Test.
Members Attending: Bob Auslander*, Margie Auslander*, Roger Clarke, Susan Cohn*, Don Dicks*, Jocelyn Ellison, Isabelle Kalisa, Chris, Kelly-Storbeck, Rick Ostrander, Rémy Pairault, Angela Pritchett, John Pruitt, Daniel Sada Caraveo, John Storbeck, Rick Walter, and Wendy Yang. *Attended via Zoom.
Guests Attending: Santa Dan Bartel, former Rotarian and our speaker, Peggy Ostrander, guest of Rick Ostrander, Janet Schmitt, guest of Angela Pritchett and potential member, Jay Franklin, visiting Rotarian from the Rotary Club of Kirkland Downtown, and Alesha Khun*, prospective member. *Attended via Zoom.
Rotary Moment:
Rick recounted that he attended a whisky tasting for 6 which was won at the Auction & Gala by Rick Ostrander. The event was hosted by former Rotarian Brandon Honcoop at his home. Attendees were Rick Walter, Dave Aubry, John Pruitt, Rick Bergdahl, Cody Baker, and Rick Ostrander. It was a fun night of food, drink, and fellowship.
Program:
Dan Bartel, Real Bearded Santa and former president of the Rotary Club of Kirkland, was our speaker. He described how, prior to Covid and after the annual gift shopping, the Rotary Club of Kirkland would host a breakfast for the children. One year, Joanne Primavera suggested that Dan be Santa for this event. This was the trigger that sparked Santa Dan bringing holiday cheer to children and adults for the past 10 years! Santa Dan spoke about many touching, meaningful, and funny moments throughout his Santa career. He also explained many of the practical aspects such as suit dry cleaning, Santa conventions, general rules, boundaries, and background checks.
Dan brought a certificate and medallion to present to Kate Koslosky certifying her as officially being on the Nice List. Rick Walter accepted it on her behalf and promised to give it to her when she returns.
Reminders:
The HEROHouse Roaring 20's Anniversary Gala is on Thursday, December 4, from 4:30 p.m. - 7:30 p.m. For those who have already RSVP'd, please bring a check, card, or cash for $50 per person.
The next social will be held at Prosecco on Monday, December 8, at 5:30 p.m.
Holiday shopping will take place Saturday December 13, at 8 a.m. at the Totem Lake Fred Meyer. Attendees will be given bags to separate the items for each child while shopping. This is an effort to keep items organized during the gift wrapping. If you have volunteered to shop online or separately from the main shopping event you should receive an email from Cody with your assignment.
The Annual Meeting and Holiday Potluck will be held at St. John's Episcopal Church at 5:30 p.m. Joanne has all the gift-wrapping supplies. You may wish to bring your own pen to write the tags. If you have RSVP'd, then you have been assigned a dish to bring. Please check with Rick Walter if you have any questions.
Inductions:
Two new members were inducted: Roger Clarke and Wendy Yang. Rick Walter welcomed the new members with a ceremony emphasizing the values of service, fellowship, and commitment to community. The new members received membership folders.
Announcements:
Daniel is preparing to evaluate Students of the Month and is requesting volunteers to assist with the process.
Happy Bucks:
Rick Walter won a stay in New York during the Auction & Gala in September. He used it to visit family and have a real Thanksgiving this year.
Joanne told us how this was going to be her last year cooking turkey. However, a 5-year-old child told her how happy they were to see her because she makes the best turkey ever! Now she must rethink her plans to retire from cooking for Thanksgiving.
Daniel told us about his recent job offers. He has many great opportunities lining up for him.
Raffle:
The raffle tickets are missing, again. Rick Walter used a deck of cards and creatively made sure we still had a raffle. Rémy's card was called first, and he chose the bottle of wine. Rick Ostrander's card was called next, and he chose a puzzle, Joanne’s card was called last and she chose a wine vacuum top.
The meeting was adjourned about 7:30 p.m.
Respectfully Submitted,
Angela Pritchett, Acting Scribe