The Rotary Club of Kirkland held a joint meeting, Ukraine refugees fundraiser, and social event with the Rotary Club of Kirkland Downtown on March 29, 2022, at the Flatstick Pub in Kirkland, and began at 5:30 p.m.

 

Attending from the Rotary Club of Kirkland were: Brian Tucker and wife Joanne, Bill Taylor and wife Sandy, Amy Mutal and husband David, George Anderson, Pete Anderson, John Storbeck, Dave DeBois, Dave Aubry and wife Anna, Bob Auslander, Rich Bergdahl and wife Nanette, Shellie Gehring, Rick Walter, Monica Fratita, Joanne Primavera, Rick Ostrander, Jim Meniketti, who also collected the money, Steve Shinstrom and wife Patty, and Margie Glenn.  Potential member Carron Cherndrieff, back for her second visit, pronounced us a fun group.

 

The event, organized by Monica Fratita, included some guests/spouses/significant others of members.  Not all the guests’ names were recorded, but many were.  A great time was had by all, and we raised just over $1,000 for Vital Solutions, a Kirkland-based non-profit which is working in Rumania to assist refugees as they cross from Ukraine.

Dave DeBois, the president of the Rotary Club of Kirkland, began the meeting proceedings at about 5:40 p.m. by having us hear from Ben Sterciuc, the founder of Vital Solutions, who is back from Rumania.  Mr. Sterciuc gave us a quick run-down on what is occurring where he has been working, and thanked us for our support.  Everyone attending tonight paid $35 per person for the pizza, veggies, and cookies meal, including a fee for the venue.  Participants also availed themselves of the numerous local beers on tap, or a glass of wine.  Most folks added extra funds to the $35 fee with the results noted above.

A few of the attendees played the available mini-golf, but most folks were content to spend time catching up socially.  Some people began leaving about 7:45 p.m., but many others were still enjoying themselves in a convivial atmosphere that we have all sorely missed.

President Dave DeBois reminds club members that the 2022 Duck Dash would be held during Kirkland's Summerfest , which is planned for July 29-31, 2022 this year.  Rotarians will want to save the date, Sunday, July 31, 2022, which is now confirmed by the Summerfest organizers.

 

Duck Dash 2022 preparations are now underway.  Scott Becker has begun gathering commitments from Kirkland businesses and club members for Duck Dash sponsorships.  Rotarian Brett Johnson has again made space available for the annual Racing Duck Branding Party, which will be held this year on Monday, July 25, beginning at 6:00 p.m. at the Lee Johnson Auto Family campus. President Dave and Mr. Becker are asking for club members to step up to answer the call for assistance with coupon sponsors and prizes. Please contact Dave or Scott with your commitments or referrals of commitments.

The Rotary Club of Kirkland website offers club members and community members an online donation platform to contribute to Rotary projects and programs. The page is accessed by clicking on the DONATE link on the club website home banner. As a result of recent club focus on raising funds to support refugees from the war in Ukraine, an additional option was added to the donation page. The donation options are now:

After completing the personal and credit card information, donors select the amount and use the drop-down menu to select the designation. There is also a dialog box for typing in special instructions for the donation. For example, if there are two project to aid Ukrainian refugees (e.g., truck purchase, food for children), the donor should include a message identifying the purpose of the gift.

 

All donations should be processed through the donation page, unless an invoice has been issued through the Dues & Billing system. If an invoice has been issued, donors should use the "Pay Now" link within the invoice. Once an invoice link has been used, it should not be reused. Questions about donations may be directed to treasurer Jim Meniketti. Questions about website use may be directed to Gary Cohn.