Held on February 11, the Club's annual dinner/auction event, Hearts & Wine, proved to be a great success again this year.

About 100 people attended the evening event, that included wine-tasting, dinner, and a silent and live auction. And from what we could tell, everyone had a great time--whether they ened up being a successful bidder or not.

Proceeds from the event will help support the Club's programs for under-privileged and at-risk youth from Tacoma schools. 

Special thanks to our corporate sponsors for this event: Columbia Bank, DaVita, Gray Lumber, Johnson, Stone & Pagano, Key Bank and 2 Bridges.

..now, it's time to get started on planning next year's event.....

The 2011 Tacoma Sunrise Rotary Club's Annual Breakfast was one of the busiest ever!

We served more than 900 breakfasts, not to mention giving the kids a chance to visit with Santa, get a stuffed animal, and do some arts and crafts as well.

Thanks to all who helped make the event a great success!

To be honest, the 3 hours I spent there was a blur of activity, and I hardly had time to take any pictures.

Feel free to post YOUR photos or add a comment about the event on this site. 

--Rod Koon

http://sunriserotarysantabreakfast2011.shutterfly.com/ 

The new ice skating rink is bringing new life and holiday spirit to downtown Tacoma.

I went there last night with my wife and two daughters, and a few of their friends--and we all had a great time. The kids skated, Tracey and I watched and vsiited with lots of folks.

It wasn't quite Rotary Cub meeting make-up situation, but we ran into:
Chris Algeo and his family,
Sean Peterson, playing drums with his amazing band (and trying to stay warm),
Larry Schlemmer, working the skate check-out counter and spraying down those shoes, and
Cameron Fellows, keeping a watchful eye on it all.

If it's not on your list to work there, or skate there, it should be.

Bottom line: Great fun. Great time. Great music.

Here's a link to find out more: http://www.tacomaartmuseum.org/Page.aspx?cid=7503 

It's also a little cold (as you might imagine), so bundle up when you go. 

Tonight I received the news that a very special longtime member of our Club--Pearl Rose--passed away.

I was very saddened to hear that news, so I felt the need to write and share this.

For those who knew Pearl Rose and worked with her over the years, you know how much she did for our Club and for our community.

I feel honored to have known her and to have worked with her over the years.

I saw and felt first-hand her energy and enthusiasm for our Club and what it does, our community and what it can be, and for our youth and how they can help lead us all to a brighter tomorrow.

For those of you who never met her, here is some background:

Pearl joined our Club on August 5, 1987, sponsored by Jim Walton. In terms of titles, she served as our Club’s president  and she served as our Club’s secretary. 

But she also served as our Club’s cheerleader, compass, mentor and guiding light…and so much more.

My favorite memories of Pearl include when she was working at the Club’s Santa Breakfast and when she was keeping us all on track during a Club auction event.

She knew how to work hard.

She knew the importance of family and community.

And she knew how to have fun.

She was a blessing to our Club and to our community. 

Her funeral mass will be held at St. Leo's Church in downtown Tacoma (710 S. 13th St.)
at noon on Tuesday, November 15.
 

We have all been to “rubber chicken” luncheon fundraisers—all for good causes.

We have all been to auctions—for good causes (in fact, our Club has held many of them over the years.)

But they take a LOT of work to organize and put on, and require a LOT of time and commitment from the great people who attend them and help raise money for various causes.

THINKING OUTSIDE THE BOX

One day our Club members asked the basic question: Isn’t there a simpler way to raise money?

At Tacoma Sunrise Rotary, we decided the answer was YES…so we developed the UNTIED fundraising effort, the “non-event” event.

No need to get dressed up, put on a tie and coat or fancy dress, because our UNTIED event had NOWHERE to go.

Through the magic of our Club’s creativity and energy, snail mail, and the generosity of many members of the Tacoma community and our Club, we were able to raise a total of $8,460---without even holding an actual event.

THE JOYS OF BEING UNTIED

The positive benefits for the “non-attendees” included:

• NO need to get all dressed in a fancy dress or suit and tie
• NO need to rent a babysitter
• NO need to gas up the car
• NO need to miss your favorite TV show on the night of the event
• NO need to bid on an item you REALLY didn’t want in the first place

And for our Club members, there was:

• NO need to worry about the caterer
• NO need to rent the big meeting venue
• NO need to create the table centerpieces
• NO need to hire an auctioneer
• NO need to worry about the PA system

FEEDBACK ON OUR "NON-EVENT"
All funds raised by the event will go to the Club’s scholarship program for youth. Here are some of the comments we received on the UNTIED event:

• “Thank YOU – this is important work”
• “I love being Untied!!”
• “This is the best idea for a fundraising “event” that I have seen!”

THANKS

Thanks to all the Club members who made this creative “non-event” happen. And thanks to all in our Club and in our community who supported it by making a personal donation to this effort.

In 1988, the "Tacoma Little Boy" incident (a tragic story of child sexual abuse) drew the attention of local and national media. But more importantly, it drew the attention of local Rotarians as well. Two members of the Tacoma Sunrise Rotary came to Mary Bridge Children's Hospital with an idea to invite all of the Pierce County Rotary Clubs to take on the problem of child abuse in our community. Out of this challenge came the birth of the Courage Classic Bicycle Tour and the creation of the Rotary Endowment for the Intervention and Prevention of Child Abuse and Neglect at Mary Bridge Children's Hospital.

The Courage Classic Bicycle Tour was created as a fundraising rise to support the Rotary Endowment for the Intervention and Prevention of Child Abuse and Neglect. This endowment will ensure that the children in our communities and their families will never be turned away from the help they might need in the case of sexual or physical abuse.

It's sad but true that one of every three girls and one of every five boys will be sexually abused by the age of 18. Since 1988, the number of children treated for sexual abuse at Mary Bridge has increased nearly 250 percent.

The Courage Classic is a three-day bike ride is a fun, challenging, 173-mile course through these three mountain passes: Snoqualmie, Blewett, and Stevens.

The 20^th Annual Courage Classic is being held August 6-8. The Tacoma Sunrise Rotary Club will again be involved by hosting its legendary “ice cream rest stop” on Saturday, August 6 at Lake Easton State Park on I-90. Tacoma Sunrise Rotary Club member “Bouncing” Bob Rezba again is organizing our Club’s stand—everything from ice cream procurement and sampling to bananas and other healthy toppings. The stand will be open from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. to reinvigorate riders as they roll along their way.

Find out more about the Courage Classic at: http://www.multicare.org/home/courage-classic/

At our Club meeting on June 29, our Rotarian of the Year Award was presented....

..to a man who has served as president of our Club.

..to a man who has opened up his house and hospitality to our Club for special events.

...to a man who has given an amazing amount of his time, talent, and resources, to help our Club grow and prosper.

...to a man who has a BIG heart, and a true sense of giving back to our community,

...and to a man who seldom has the right answer to the Club's weekly website trivia question.

Congratulations to PETE PORIETIS, our Club's Rotarian of the Year.

FYI--Pete's on the RIGHT in this picture....our outgoing Club President Dirk Stegeman is on the left. 

Oh! The Places You’ll Go! and Tacoma Sunrise Rotary
(with apologies to Dr. Seuss)

Congratulations! Today is our day.
We’re off to Great Places! We’re off and away!

It’s Rotary morning, and we feel all right
Today we’ll get oatmeal. Brown sugar…delight!

You have brains in your head. You have feet in your shoes.
And Larry Schlemmer will tell you if you still owe some dues.

And if you go to Hawaii, or Vegas or Rome
Remember you’ll pay a big fine when you’re home

Now “The Eye of the Tiger” is Dirk’s favorite song
And if he sings it I hope he won’t sing it for long

Now our Club has great causes, and spirit and more
And our feeling of service it rests at our core

And this polio thing, is plain nasty at best
That’s why we must crush it, and until then, not rest

The Rotarian spirit, it was born long ago
By folks with great fire, back in old Chicago

And our Club has a motto, our Club has a test
And we take it four ways, to make sure it’s the best

We look in the mirror, and microscope, too
To closely examine if it’s false or it’s true

And if it’s not true, if it makes us glare
Then we plain don’t do it, no, we just wouldn’t dare

And about “is it fair”, well that packs quite a wallop
And we are not just talking  ‘bout the scones in Puyallup

Goodwill and friendships, we strive to make better
Sometimes with a smile, ice cream or a letter

We all love where we live, and the future it holds
And the projects we do make a difference we’re told

So whether you’re new here, or been with us for years
You’re part of our team, so be of good cheer

Sometimes we get mixed up, of course, as we already know.
We get mixed up with many strange birds as we go.
So be sure when you step...Step with care and great tact…
And remember that Life’s a Great Balancing Act.

Just never forget to be dexterous and deft.
And never mix up your right foot with your left.

So to old Dr. Seuss, I hope I’m forgiven
For the license I’ve taken, and the roads I have driven

And will our Club succeed? Yes! We will, indeed!
(98 and ¾ percent guaranteed.)

We’re off to Great Places! Today is our day!
Our mountain is waiting. Rotarians…let’s get on our way!

--Written and presented as the Club invocation by Rod Koon on March 2, 2011 

Our Club's support of Stewart Middle School and the 100 Percent Club is a long-standing tradition.

It's just one of many ways that our Club is making a difference in the community. Here are two of many "thank you's" that the Club has received about the program:

Dear Rotary,

Thank you for putting on Stewart Middle School's 100% club. Also for the awesome prizes.

--2009-2010 Eighth grade student--Zachary Bennett

Dear Sunrise Rotary,

Your commitment through the years to the students at Stewart is so appreciated!

Thank you for providing the ice cream and all the toppings for the students in 100% and Pride. The prizes were always wonderful, too.

--Kellie Bennett

Congrats to Steve Gray!

At today's meeting, Virginia Ferguson presented Steve with a special award for reaching the fourth level of giving to the Paul Harris Foundation.

To translate that into dollars--this means that, over the years, Steve has made an impressive $4,000 investment into the Rotary International Foundation......

Rumor has it that Steve said it took him about 23 years to reach this milestone.

Moral of the story: If giving is a race, it's not always about the hare.

In the long-run, the tortoise just may win (unless we're talking Courage Classic).

Instead of the usual trivia question, here's your hi-tech social media assignment for the next two weeks--check out Rotary District 5020's Facebook page at:

http://www.facebook.com/pages/Rotary-District-5020/73905544442

The year-end celebration at Stewart Middle School was a HUGE success!

Check out PREZ PETE'S remarks at the event, and get a flavor for the excitement of the 100% Club Celebration on YOUTUBE at: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6kF75jiBtQc

This is just one of many ways that Sunrise Rotary works to invest in our community's children today, and our community's future tomorrow.

Rotary's US $200 Million Challenge is the Rotary Foundation's response to the two grants totaling $355 million from the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation to help eradicate polio.

Every dollar given to PolioPlus will be counted toward the $200 million match, which must be completed by 30 June 2012.

Our Goal: $200 million by 30 June 2012

Where we are now: $114.5 million

The Tacoma Sunrise Rotary Club was established back in 1981.

Here's a flashback to remind you what else was happening that year:

• 3M introduced a new product called a "Post-It Note."
• Robb Weller, University of Washington cheerleader, invented "the wave" at the University of Washington-Stanford football game (October 30).
• MTV goes on the air running around the clock music videos, debuting with "Video Killed the Radio Star."
• The Supreme Court rules to allow television cameras in the courtroom.
• Pacman-mania sweeps the country.
• Christopher Cross SWEEPS the Grammies:  Album of the Year: Christopher Cross, Christopher Cross (Warner Bros.), Song of the Year: "Sailing," Christopher Cross, songwriter.

Wimbledon
Women: Chris Evert Lloyd d. H. Mandlikova (6-2 6-2)
Men: John McEnroe d. B. Borg (4-6 7-6 7-6 6-4)

Super Bowl
   Oakland d. Philadelphia (27-10)

World Series
   LA Dodgers d. NY Yankees (4-2)

NBA Championship
   Boston d. Houston (4-2)