The meeting was called to order by President Dick Schroeder.  Rita Brown led us in prayer and Clyde Rauch with pianist Micki Vollmer led us in wonderful harmony to the tune of "God Bless America." Dave Frost as Sgt. of Arms shared make ups from Mary Elmquist, Bob Ruehl and Harold Bischoff.  Amy Kentner presented guest Joe Osborn from The Ridge at Shawnee and Fellowship was led by the ever popular Greg Wannemacher. Greg presented fines for all April birthdays, along with fining the golfers and Paul Nardini.  Announcements included the Rotary Blood Clinic May 1st at the Senior Citizens Center.   Finally, the District Conference is April 30th.  Supplies are needed from all Rotarians for the 3H Project in Honduras. Clean out your closets for gently used items including: Clothing, shoes, flip-flops stuffed animals and medical supplies.  Thank you for your donations in advance.

Our speaker today was fellow Rotarian, the Honorable Justice Robert R. Cupp.  Justice Cupp serves as one of the seven Ohio Supreme Court Justices.  Before election to the Supreme Court, Bob served on the 3rd District Court of Appeals.  Previous public offices include 16 years in the Ohio Senate, County Commissioner, and Assistant City Law Director.  Bob and his wife Libby have 2 sons Matt and Ryan, both of whom are Eagle Scouts.  Justice Cupp focused his opening remarks on the life and good works of recently deceased Chief Justice Thomas Moyer who passed away earlier this month after serving an impressive 23 years as Chief Justice.  He was the longest serving Chief Justice in the U.S. enjoying many successes over the years.  In Bob's words, Tom Moyer was impartial, dedicated to serving the courts in a positive way and always led by example.  Justice Cupp then shared his belief he is to protect individual rights, resolve disputes fairly and impartially.  There were 22 million cases filed in the U.S. courts in 2009.  Ohio has a 3 level court system: Trial courts, Court of Appeals and the Ohio Supreme Court.  In Ohio there are 254 Courts, 646 judges and 12,000 cases decided every day.  Every outcome represents someone’s liberty, reputation, life and fortunes.  Currently in the Supreme Court there are 2,500 active cases, 900 pending cases with 17 of them being Death Row cases.  There are 8 scheduled executions with 2 pending in the courts.  Justice Cupp also announced that the Supreme Court has gone "Hi-Tech."  Case Decisions are announced on their website, where you can watch oral arguments and even get up to date summaries of current decisions.   The Supreme Court also features a welcome and educational center for the public.  It has a mock court room, interactive stations and educational material for learning the judicial system.  We thank Bob for sharing the workings of our judicial system with us.

President Schroeder opened the meeting by asking Cheryl Deitering to provide the invocation.  Cheryl welcomed Wally Kincaid back following a serious health issue.  Jon Rockhold led the group in God Bless America with Micki Vollmer accompanying on the piano.  Jon also led in the Pledge of Allegiance.

David Collins gave the Sergeant of Arms report.  There were a number of guests present. Julie Pantello provided Fellowship, beginning by congratulating the LCC Thunderbirds for having won the State Basketball Division 3 championship.  She thanked Ralph Ellis for again hosting an Easter dinner for persons who are in need.  She asked everyone for a donation to be given to the Rotary Foundation, earmarked for the Ellis Easter Dinner.

Alberta Lee introduced Anne Decker for membership.  She is the Director of Advertising for Adman Inc.  As part of her job duties, she oversees the operation of GTV-2 for the City of Lima.  President Schroeder then inducted her into membership.  Anne announced there will be a fish fry on Friday to benefit the Ottawa River Coalition

President Schroeder encouraged members to go to the Rotary Web site and sign in.  Michael Frueh will be available at future Rotary meetings to help those who are having trouble signing in.

He then introduced the program presented by Steve Johnson, Mayor David Berger and Commissioner Sam Bassitt.  They introduced the outcome of the recent effort to brand our community. They showed a video that introduced the new brand and logo and discussed the process used to develop it.

In 2007, the Ohio Department of Transportation offered the community the opportunity to have input into the aesthetics of the planned improvements along the I-75 corridor. Potential new bridges/overpasses and sound barriers could include a local brand to highlight our community to passing motorist.

Mayor David Berger organized multiple forums which brought together local business owners, non-profit Arts, community leaders and citizens along with City and County officials to discuss past initiatives and efforts.  North Star Destination Strategies was contracted with to research the community and develop a brand, logo and various advertising opportunities.  The Allen County Chamber of Commerce Foundation agreed to be the lead organization for this project.  Steve acknowledged and thanked Mike Ayers for providing all the wonderful photographs that were used in the video.

The new branding slogan is Real American Strength.  The logo is several gears in motion.  People can download the logo by going to

www.realamericanstrength.com and requesting permission.

David Anderson won the Rottary Drawing for $87.  This marked the end of monies being donated for Haiti relief.  Next quarter, Family Promise will be the recipient.  President Schroeder closed the meeting with the following quote.  “Junk is something you’ve kept for years and throw away three weeks before you need it.”

President Dick Schroeder called the meeting to order and asked Cheryl Dietering to open the meeting with the prayer.  Jon Rockhold led us in song and the Pledge after he apparently broke the microphone (for which he was justifiably fined a few minutes later). Nate Gast delivered the Sargent at Arms report. The fellowship report was given by Scott Ferris.

Micki Vollmer introduced our newest member, Jay Begg. Jay is the Allen County Agricultural Society Manager and is also a candidate for Allen County Commissioner. Cindy Wood exchanged her red badge for the blue badge, since she has been a member for six months. Jennifer Lawson gave a short presentation on the YWCA sponsored “Stand Against Racism Day” which will be April 30th. Anyone interested in helping out or being a sponsor please contact Jennifer at the YWCA.

President Dick made a couple of announcements:  the Rotary Blood Clinic, one of our best fund-raisers, will be held May 5th and this year we will be using the Lima Memorial Hospital lab.  Also Dick urged all members to sign up on the Lima Rotary website. Mike Frueh will be glad to help you with any questions you may have about the website.

President Schroeder introduced our speaker, Jim Harriman. Jim is currently Assistant Professor of Accounting at Mount Vernon Nazarene University and has previously been an instructor at UNOH, Bluffton College, Tiffin University, and Rhodes State. He retired five years ago from Huntington Bank after 28 years as an investment team leader. Jim is a CPA and operates Harriman Financial.

Mr Harriman’s presentation was titled “In Search of Excellence” and was a look at various Ohio and Lima area businesses that displayed longevity and unusual success. Jim’s lively and humorous delivery kept everyone involved and very interested throughout.  P & G, Worthington Industries, and Lincoln Electric were three Ohio companies that Jim examined. After showing these examples of excellent Ohio companies, Mr. Harriman pointed out several local businesses that have displayed the same excellence and success, namely I & K Distributors, Northwestern Business College (now UNOH), Tom Ahl Dealership, United States Plastics, Perry Corporation, and the Kewpee. Mr. Harriman pointed out several ways that these companies, and the men who started them such as Rex Perry, Ron Klausing, Lauren Jarvis, and Stanley Tamm, were unusually generous to their employees. These companies all seemed to have similar characteristics which revolved around the “Golden Rule”.

President Dick Schroeder called the meeting to order and asked Tom Martin to lead the Rotary in prayer. Tom asked everyone to keep Kathy Williams in their thoughts and prayers due to the loss of her mother. Clyde Rauch was asked to lead the group in song. Upon completion of the Pledge of Allegiance, Edward Goedde was introduced as Sergeant at Arms. The report noted there were 69 members present with four guests. The guests were Doug Parish, Barb Cosart, John Quaintance and Paul Swartz. In addition, Anne Decker was a guest of the club. It was noted that Bob Ruehl submitted two makeup’s at various other foreign clubs.

Larry Webb gave the Fellowship report by starting with fining our friends at the Lima News for creative headlines. Larry wanted to commend the florist and bankers, but due to the past (Valentine) and current (President’s day) holidays, however, none were present. Larry then complimented Micki V. on her ALL class seminar on differences between the generations. The WWII, Baby boomers and Generation X’ers were all asked to be recognized and their strengths were discussed.

Dick Schroeder announced that Amanda Miller and Jerry Courtney have agreed to lead the Group Study Exchange with Brazil. Anyone interested in assisting them simply needs to see them. Everyone was asked to register at the Lima Rotary website. It was noted that assistance with the registration process will take place at an upcoming Rotary meeting.

Jared Walsh introduced the speaker, Linda Parish of HOPE Visitation & Exchange Center (Hope). Linda has been with Hope for the past seven years and gave Rotary a glimpse of how their mission plays out. Hope administers supervised visitations in a neutral home like setting. The goal of the organization is to reduce the stress and tension felt by all involved with a focus on the children’s well being. They work to remove all of the family drama by not judging their clients and keeping a safe zone between all clients. While the visits are taking place, Hope staff is busy documenting the entire visit for use by the courts. In addition to the visitations, Hope allows for the exchange of children where parents or guardians are kept safe and separate as the staff moves the children to the other parent or guardian. For the visitation and exchanges, Hope charges a nominal fee; however, no one will be turned away for lack of finances. Hope was selected by the 2008 Allen Lima Leadership class to assist with the upkeep of their facilities.

To end the meeting, Dick left the Rotarians with the following message. A conscience is what hurts when all your other parts feel good.

President Dick Schroeder called the meeting to order and asked David Runk to provide the invocation and lead the group in song. Upon completion of the Pledge of Allegiance, Edward Goedde was introduced as Sergeant at Arms. The report noted there were 91 members present with three guests. The guests were Jay Begg, John Klausing and Rob Moening. It was noted that Bob Ruehl and Don Witter submitted makeup’s at various other clubs.

Jennifer Lawson gave the Fellowship report by starting with the birthday announcements and proceeded to fine anyone that did not watch the Superbowl. Not stopping there, she proceeded to fine herself $1 for not telling a joke and offered $5 for 5 jokes told by attending members. Members took her up on the challenge and Jennifer donated the $25.

Dick Schroeder resumed the meeting and asked for assistance with the Group Study Exchange with Brazil scheduled to take place in May. Specifically, Dick asked for hosts for visitors, transportation services and someone to take a leadership role in the activity. Dick then read excerpts from John Kennedy, President of Rotary, calling for Rotarians to assist in the vocations.

Micki Vollmer was called on to introduce the speaker, Don Klausing of Kettle Creations. Don’s discussion centered on the founding of Kettle Creations through the setup of the manufacturing facilities and finished with the product packaging. Kettle Creations started as an idea hatched at a meeting held at the investors’ homes. 13 months passed from first discussion to the start of operations. They prepare retail and food service products primarily sold in the eastern half of the United States. The company’s goals are to maintain a worker friendly environment making the best food with the highest safety possible. Starting with 32 employees, they have expanded the payroll to 43 employees with the hopes of adding additional shifts. After a short four minute video tour of the plant, Don was very complimentary to the Allen Economic Development Group and local businesses that helped locate, build and support Kettle Creations. After several questions, Dick Schroeder thanked Don for speaking to the Lima Rotarians.

To end the meeting, the Rottary Drawing was held with a winning pot of $207 with an equal contribution going to the Haiti relief efforts. Lucky Rotarian number 14 was selected, but they were not present. After a redrawing, Jon Rockhold was the big winner. On a final note, Dick left the Rotarians with the following message. If you lend someone $20 and you never see them again, it was probably worth it.

President Dick Schroeder called the meeting to order and asked Tom Martin to lead the Rotary in prayer.  Bill Lodermeier was called on for Fellowship.  Bill donated $20 in lieue of fines to discuss the school systems in and around the City of Lima.  Bill stated there is not a bad school in the area and completed his thoughts with a saying from his mother.  Education is the way to a marvelous life.

Following the Fellowship report was the Sergeant at Arms report presented by Jon Rockhold.  There were 92 members present with Anne Decker a guest of the club.  With no make ups announced, Jon gave way to Gary Stanklaus who spoke on the Annual Fund for International Efforts.  Gary discussed the various levels and focused on the distinction of Major Donors.  The requirement of a Major Donor is progressing through 10 consecutive levels of Paul Harris Fellowship.  Dick Schroeder presented Robert G. Ruehl as the first Lima Rotarian to receive the Major Donor distinction.  Bob was recognized by a standing ovation from his fellow Rotarians.  In his remarks, Bob invited all Rotarians to join him on his international Rotarian travels and enjoy his passion.

Bob Fett introduced the speakers, Jim and Jodi Mohney of Living Water International (Living Water).  Living Water was founded 20 years ago to provide clean water to communities in the poorest nations and has focused 2010 on assisting Haiti after its devastating earth quake.  Living Water accomplishes its mission with two separate services.  Living Waters has the ability, knowledge and teams to drill wells and repair wells and pumps.  In many of their efforts, they will partner with other organizations to meet the needs of the poorest people.  Secondly, Living Waters sends in Hygiene teams to educate the children, teachers and mothers about hand washing and transfer of diseases.  Their hope is to educate and change for life the habits and understanding of the ones they are helping.  Living Water’s 2010 goal is to complete 500 well projects in Haiti and are on their way with 56 completed projects.

To end the meeting, Dick once again thanked Robert G. Ruehl for his dedication and service to Rotaries missions.

President Dick Schroeder called the meeting to order at 12:05.  Dick Meredith served as Chaplain.  Michael Frueh led the crowd in singing Jingle Bells, accompanied by Dick Riggs on the piano.  Dan Best gave the Sergeant at Arms report, 86 Rotarians present.  Bruce Opperman provided a meaningful seasonal Fellowship by reading a poem about a U.S. soldier serving as the guardian of honor on Christmas Eve, allowing Santa to make his rounds in peace.

Dave Runk thanked all bell ringers who helped collect $1,427.95 at the Lima Mall.  President Schroeder thanked the Rotarians who helped make the annual Christmas Auction a success, raising a total of $17,675.  A check for $8,837.50 was presented to Major Tamayo of the Salvation Army.

The ladies from Milano’s were acknowledged for their service in the past year.  John Gaeth announced twelve scholarships were awarded this quarter and introduced the seven recipients who were in attendance.  Since May 2001, 556 scholarships have been awarded totaling $361,000.

Bruce Opperman introduced the speaker for the day: Ari Sarsalari, Meteorologist for Lima Hometown Stations.  Ari received a degree in Atmospheric Science from the University of Wisconsin, Madison, and landed his first job as weather reporter here in Lima.

Interpretation of computer generated weather models is critical in predicting weather.  Ari credited colleague Darren Maier with helping him apply local variations to accurately prepare Lima’s forecasts.

He emphasized the difference between a weather “watch” (conditions are right for severe weather) and a “warning” (severe weather/tornado is occurring/eminent). He suggested everyone buy a weather radio that will sound an alarm and broadcast severe weather warnings.

While he enjoys living in Lima with his wife, Alex, his long-term goals are to obtain a job with one of the top 30 news markets in the nation (Lima is #186 out of 200), hopefully near his family in Milwaukee, and some day experience storm chasing in Kansas and the Texas panhandle.

President Schroeder called the meeting to order at 12:10 PM.  Dick Meredith served as Chaplain and in addition to the invocation, reminded all of us of the importance in being happy now.  Michael Frueh led the club in a festive rendition of “White Christmas” with Dick Riggs tickling the ivories.  Dan Best gave the Sergeant at Arms report.  Sam Bassitt provided fellowship.  While no fines were levied, he did provide an interesting dissertation on the connection between taxation and beer.

Esther Baldridge thanked everyone who attended the Special Needs Christmas Party.  John Snyder shared with the club an opportunity to participate in an international service project in Guatemala in 2010.

Gary Stanklus stressed the importance in having 100% participation in the Paul Harris Fellowship Program and the value of building the annual fund through $100 from every Rotarian every year.  To help the club accomplish this goal, new sustaining members Tom Biddle, Doug Bodey, Jim Bronder, Don Bruns, Carol Buettner and Debra McCurdy were recognized.  Also recognized was Phil Buell for reaching the Paul Harris recognition level and Paul Yessenow for reaching the Paul Harris +3 recognition level.

Lynn Metzger introduced the Elida High School Vocal Jazz Choir, “8’s the Limit”.  With their beautiful harmonies, they serenaded the club with:

• “The Look of Love”
• “Bewitched”
• “Baby It’s Cold Outside”
• “Winter Beautiful”
• “God Rest Ye Merry Gentlemen”
• “What Child is This?
• “Cool Yule”

The Annual Christmas Auction was held at the Civic Center with nearly 140 people in attendance.  President Schroeder welcomed everyone to the event, and Dick Meredith led the invocation.

Rotarians gathered at 6:00 PM for cocktails and appetizers.  This year the Civic Center offered special Holiday Martini’s that were very popular!   Rotarians and their guests had the opportunity to socialize and look at the items for auction.  Dinner was served at approximately 6:50 PM and the auction began at 7:30 PM.   Jeff Tracy and Brian Keegan were terrific in getting the crowd involved and together raised more than $8,000 from the live auction.

The auction concluded approximately 9:15 PM.

The meeting was called to order by President Dick Schroeder at 12:05. Jon Rockhold provided the invocation and  led us in song, God Bless America with Micki Vollmer on the piano. Julie Pantello presented fellowship. The Sergeant at Arms report was provided by Dave Collins, 96 members present. Rotarians with guest were Walter Kinsey (Kaitlin Chasse), Paul Nardini (Dick Heath), Dan Bucher (Andy Bucher), and Jim Osman (Tom Benjamin).

Club Announcements were made by Tom Martin for the Salvation Army Kettle Drive, all the morning slots are filled from 9am -11am, and volunteers are still need for 11-1, 1-3 and 3-5.

Amanda Miller reminded everyone that the Christmas Auction would take the place of the normal Rotary meeting and she would be emailing the list of people who have signed up later this week.

Joe Watson asked for more volunteers to fill the slots for the Special Needs Christmas, currently there are not enough volunteers to fill the slots for a one on one.

Bruce Opperman introduced Joe Downs, Sports Director of Lima Hometown Stations. Joe introduced each Head Basketball Coach from LCC, LSH, Temple Christian, Elida, Bath, Perry, Shawnee, Allen East and proceeded with a round of questions for each. Good luck to all of our area teams for the upcoming season.