.jpg)
.jpg)
Seasons Greetings from our first, and hopefully only, virtual Holiday Party this week.
The Rotary Club of Ipswich-Rowley recently teamed up with Conley’s Drug in Ipswich to provide the Ipswich Police Department with additional personal protective equipment. To fund the project, Rotary secured a District Grant, and Conley’s owner Alex Doyle generously agreed to sell at cost.
“Alex gave us a discount so we got more than what we would have,” said Rotary co-president Martha Mauser. Doyle said the supplies consisted of hand sanitizer, gloves and masks.
Ipswich-Rowley Rotary always is grateful to our generous community partners.
Seen in the photo are Rotary co-President Lisa Shanko, Conley's owner Alex Doyle, police Chief Paul Nikas, and Rotary co-President Martha Mauser. Photo courtesy of thelocalne.ws.
For the safety of everyone during the pandemic, the Ipswich High School Interact Club will host a 'Jingle Bell Drive-In' this year. The event will be an adapted version of their annual 'Jingle Bell Walk', and will take place next Saturday afternoon, December 12, at Ipswich High School. The fun begins at 3 pm.Festively dressed and masked interact members will guide cars from High Street along the parking lot, exiting through School Street. Santa will be on hand, but due to Covid restrictions he requests that photos be taken only from a distance. He still has a busy night coming up in a few weeks, and he needs to remain healthy. Kids are encouraged to bring their letters to give to Santa.
On November 7, 2019, disabled Marine veteran Micaila Britto was granted guardianship of a Grant Dane service Dog from the ‘Service Dog Project’ in Ipswich. This gift was made possible by a $20,000 District Grant put together by the Ipswich Rotary Club. Since then, her dog Rabbit has become her best friend and an indispensable part of her life.Micaila visited the Ipswich Rotary virtual meeting last Thursday to bring us up to date on her first year with Rabbit, named for her litter and the iconic ‘Winnie the Pooh’ character. Ms. Rabbit, as she calls her, stands 31 inches tall and weighs about 140 pounds.
This all came about due to a traumatic, life changing injury that Micaila suffered while on active duty with the US Marine helicopter launch and recovery unit. The chronically painful effects of her injury include balance and mobility issues. Fortunately for Micaila, the Service Dog Project gives preference to veterans and first responders. When Ipswich Rotarians learned of her plight, they acted quickly.
The 'IpswichRowley-Opoly' games are in stores now, just in time for Christmas. Your whole family can enjoy the local themed fun while supporting our communities through Rotary. The game sells for $30 and you can pick up yours at any of the following convenient locations:
Jettie’s Bagels, 5 Depot Square, Ipswich
Windhill Realty, 16 Market Street, Ipswich
Corliss Brothers, 31 Essex Road, Ipswich
Henry Bear’s Park, 3 Market Street, Ipswich
Northern Lights Farm Stand, 243 High Street, Ipswich
Haircrafters, 15 Market Street, Ipswich
BankGloucester, 143 High Street, Ipswich
Rowley Family Dental Center, 434 Haverhill Street, Rowley
Act fast, supplies are limited!
Ipswich Rotary serves the communities of Ipswich and Rowley. We are grateful to the many sponsors who made this unique fundraiser possible.
Ipswich High School Interact is a Rotary sponsored service club sanctioned by the Ipswich Public Schools and advised by Ipswich Rotary. Last week, the club leaders presented their plans for two new service projects at the weekly meeting of the Rotary club, currently held on Zoom. As he has for many years, Rotarian Keith Harris serves as their Rotary Advisor. Faculty member Michelle Barclay begins her third year as the Faculty Advisor. The officers for 2020-21 are President Audrey Berger, Vice President Louisa Roesler, Treasurer Sam Orroth, and Secretary Rowan Galanis. Board member Angelina Rix also was on hand for the virtual presentation. Harris commented on the solidarity of the club, which despite Covid-19 restrictions had 35 members at their first Zoom meeting. He also commended the club and its leaders for their commitment and teamwork.
To kick off the year, the Interact club has initiated two projects: the “Interact Community Service Fair”, and an “Oral History” project with the Ipswich Council on Aging.
The ‘Service Fair” project will reach out to local businesses, non-profits, and town government seeking volunteer opportunities and possible internships for students. The goal is to help Ipswich students fulfill the requirement of 30 hours of community service by the end of their junior year or beginning of the senior year. Students will be encouraged to “advocate for themselves” and to “enhance their communication skills and build their character”.
This project is a continuation of one initiated last year under the leadership of then President Kayla Laddin, but interrupted by the pandemic outbreak.
Students will join the event through a series of Zoom fairs. Representatives from participating businesses and organizations will be invited to the appropriate fair. Interested business partners will be sent a brief Google Form survey in which they can describe their opportunities. Students also will receive a Google Form to assess their interest and allocate them to the appropriate fair. The target date to hold the fairs is October 21.
Interested business and non-profit leaders are urged to contact President Audrey at 21bergera@ipsk12.net ASAP.
In the “Oral History” project, students are conducting a series of video interviews with senior citizens. When completed, the club will share the videos with appropriate community outlets, such as ICAM, and on the Ipswich Rotary website.
Seen in the front of the High School are the 2020-21 Interact officers: President Audrey Berger, Vice President Louisa Roesler, Secretary Rowan Galanis, and Treasurer Sam Orroth
Just in time for the holidays, the Ipswich Rotary Club has announced its new “IpswichRowley-opoly” game for $30 per game. All proceeds from the sales of the game will benefit the on-going work of the club during the pandemic. Like its predecessor issued many years ago, this
collector game board features many local businesses and professionals who generously support our club during this fundraiser. Be among the first to collect $300 when you pass “Bank Gloucester”, receive a Chamber Card from the “Ipswich Y”, or purchase the “Institution for Savings Depot Square” branch for just $200. All in play money, of course. If you enjoy “Monopoly”, you’ll enjoy playing this game with all the local fun built in.
collector game board features many local businesses and professionals who generously support our club during this fundraiser. Be among the first to collect $300 when you pass “Bank Gloucester”, receive a Chamber Card from the “Ipswich Y”, or purchase the “Institution for Savings Depot Square” branch for just $200. All in play money, of course. If you enjoy “Monopoly”, you’ll enjoy playing this game with all the local fun built in.
The game will be released in November to local retail locations. In the meantime, you can pre-order directly from the club using Venmo direct transfer to “@IpswichRotary” (Ipswich Rotary Trust), or by check payable to the “Ipswich Rotary Trust”. Mail your check to:
Attn: Ted Garside
Institution for Savings
PO Box 32
Ipswich, MA 01938.
Please include a phone number with your payment so that we can reach you.
For questions, please contact Julie Nelson at jnelson23@mac.com.
Ipswich Rotary is a service organization of Rotary International. The club’s more than 70 business and professional leaders provide humanitarian and social services to residents of Ipswich and Rowley. Please support our generous sponsors.
Ipswich Rotary joins with the community in remembering the victims of opioid overdose, those still struggling with addiction, and their families.
This week, Rotarians performed annual maintenance to the 9-11 Memorial in Rowley. The memorial remembers several Rowley residents who perished on that fateful day in 2001. Again this year, the beautiful plantings were donated by Country Gardens in Rowley.
Seen in the photos are Ipswich Rotary Past President, and member of the Rowley Select Board, Bob Snow and his wife Jami. Due to the extremely dry weather this year, it was decided to conduct the maintenance later than usual.
Rotarians and neighbors will stop at the site tomorrow at 8:44 am for a few moments of reflection and remembrance.
We are reposting this 2015 memory of our long time friend and fellow Rotarian Don Whiston who sadly left us on July 11 at age 93. His friend and Rotarian, Nat Puslifer, said recently that he will be remembered as an honorable and wise man.
Speaking to the club in 2015, Don regaled us with anecdotes from his then new book “Winning Silver” which recounts his years as a hockey pioneer at Brown University and a silver medal winning goaltender for the US team at the 1952 Oslo Winter Olympics. At Brown, Don was the 1951 NCAA tournament MVP and a First Team All American. He later served as head hockey coach at Brown.
That day, Rotarians had a rare opportunity to hold a real Silver Medal. He also was the first college goaltender to wear a mask, proving there are no dummies at Brown; Don still had all his teeth.
He served with the Coast Guard in the Pacific theater during the final year of World War II, was a former President of the First National Bank of Ipswich, and was known for his philanthropy, including serving on the Board of the Coburn Charitable Society in Ipswich.
Greetings Members and Visitors,I am extremely privileged to be able to serve the club as President again for the first four months of our 2020 – 2021 Rotary year! I thoroughly enjoyed serving as your President in 2016-2017 and I am looking forward to the next four months.
Our Rotary club is extremely special – we are truly a Rotary family! We all work hard to do our best to hold true to our Rotary Mission of providing service to others, promoting integrity, and advancing world understanding, goodwill, and peace. But what makes our club truly amazing is the respect and admiration we have for each other …. we are a family.
My goal during my four months as President is to get every member engaged in the club by serving on a committee, volunteering for projects, or attracting new members. When I first joined the Ipswich/ Rowley Rotary Club in 2010, I received a call from the Rotarian I admire the most and the one who has been my mentor over the years, Bob Wicks. Bob called me because I was a new member of the club and he talked to me for a while. He wanted to know what my interests were and what committee I thought I would enjoy serving on. Since that day, I have been on the Membership Committee, Chaired the Fundraising Committee, served on the Board many times, served as Vice President, President Elect, President, Past President and now President. Bob knew what he was talking about when he said, “You have to get all members engaged and not only engaged in club activities, but engaged in things they enjoy.” So this is my mission over the next few months!!!
Sincerely,
Lisa
This summer, The Ipswich-Rowley Rotary Club presented scholarships to 12 recent High School graduates from Ipswich and Rowley. This year, graduates received $500 or $1,000. Since the traditional presentations at a club meeting were not possible during the pandemic, the club arranged a special one-on-one event to ensure safety. We are grateful to our Scholarship Committee, led by Sr Leonore Coan, for putting this wonderful plan together. Dubbing it the “Auto Award”, the club scheduled a drive-by outside Ipswich High School. Each young scholar was assigned an arrival time and was required to wear a mask and practice social distancing. As the student arrived, a large sign displayed his or her name in calligraphy print. They were dropped off for a few minutes to accept their award and exchange a few pleasantries. Rotarians and family members who were on hand cheered in appreciation for their achievements. Some students were accompanied by a parent or their entire family.
In an historic first for our 97 year old club, three recent Presidents will share presidential duties and responsibilities this year. From left to right, Lisa Shanko, Martha Mauser, and Cushing Titcomb have agreed to combine their experience and passion for Rotary during a year of unique challenges. Each will lead our club for four months.
Our year began on July 1 with Lisa at the helm until the end of October. On November 1, Cushing will step into the chair for the next four months, through February 28. On March 1, Martha will carry the leadership baton for the bell lap until the end of the Rotary year on June 30. During this time, President Elect Clint Dalton, a second-generation Rotarian, will prepare to take the reins next July 1 for 2021-22.
Out of an abundance of caution, the club has suspended live meetings until further notice.
We will continue to meet virtually, so watch this site, and our social media pages, for information about our on-going activities to support the Ipswich and Rowley communities.
We are all in this crisis together. Together, we can help keep each other safe. Please follow the recommendations and guidance of the World Health Organization (WHO), the U.S. State Department, and the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
Thank you for a Great Year of Leadership!
Joan Arsenault
Rotary Club of Ipswich and Rowley
District Governor D7930 2019-20
.jpg)
