President Munk opened the meeting greeting our guests, Ilyse Strongin, Frank Pecaro, Mr & Mrs. Pecaro, Grace Kern and Mr. Kern.

 

 

The District is matching our $2600 grant to Shop & Drop for a total of $5200 going toward this program.

 

Please keep Sandra Bast in your prayers, she has returned to Puerto Rico to help her parents. Her father is ill.

 

Martha Gray gave us a great reminder - please remember to lock your cars at night! Thieves are checking unlocked cars for money and gift cards.

 

Did you miss it?  

The District's movie, The Year in Review, is now available to watch on YouTube, It's about 14 minutes long and we are about midway through. Check out all the wonderful things our District is involved in! Click here to watch.

 

 

 

First our Club firsheard from our scholarship recipients, Frank Pecaro and Grace Kern. Frank is the recipient of this year's Service Above Self  Scholarship. Frank credits his grandfather, a Rotarian, and his parents with instilling in him a life focusing on service. In junior high, he worked on community projects like Highwood's Pumpkinfest which benefits Make-A-Wish. When he went onto HPHS, he was overjoyed to learn the school had a Rotary Interact Club. He knew he had found a home. He said the Special Olympic basketball tournament was by far his favorite service project. Frank also has excellent grades and was an athlete at school. He will be attending University of Illinois in the fall. 

 

Grace Kern is the recipient of the Frank J. Schwermin Scholarship.She too credits her Rotarian grandfather and her parents for supporting a service led life. It was during an astrophysics internship one summer that she realized she didn't want to spend her life looking a a computer screen - she wanted to help people. Her love of the sciences steered her into the direction of healthcare. She'd like to explore all the fields of medicine that are in a hospital setting to find the one that fits the best. She scored a 35 on the ACTs and will be attending Boston College which is service oriented so she knows she'll be among people like her. She also enjoyed the Special Olympic service project. 

 

Both thanked the club for their scholarships and promised to return at winter break to keep us posted on their progress. At this time, both expect to be at school when classes begin in the fall, knowing things could change during this pandemic.

 

Our next speaker was Ilyse Strongin is owner and founder of Ripple Public Relations, LLC. Ilyse's company handles the PR for both downtown Highland Park and Highwood. She gave us an update on the outdoor dining situation in both areas. Some streets have been closed off to accommodate more seating with social distancing while some restaurants like Washington Gardens has decided to not give up their parking spaces for outdoor dining. Instead, they are focusing on their curbside business, which has been brisk.  The Ravinia Farmers Market is open on Wednesdays until 1 p.m. Seniors can shop from 7 am - 8 am. Patrons are required to wear a mask and are not allowed to touch the produce or products. They can check the website for vendors and products and pre-order for pick up at the entrance. For more information, click here.

 

 

 

Good news! AmazonSmile is now available in the Amazon Shopping app on iOS and Android mobile phones. You can use the copy and assets below to share the news with your supporters.

AmazonSmile customers can now support Rotary Club of Highland Park- Highwood in the Amazon shopping app on iOS and Android mobile phones! Simply follow these instructions to turn on AmazonSmile and start generating donations.

1. Open the Amazon Shopping app on your device
2. Go into the main menu of the Amazon Shopping app and tap into 'Settings'
3. Tap 'AmazonSmile' and follow the on-screen instructions to complete the process

If you do not have the latest version of the Amazon Shopping app, update your app. Click here for instructions.

 

 

Everyday is a great day to get something special for yourself or someone you love and also give our club a boost by reminding you to shop at smile.amazon.com, and Amazon will donate to Rotary Club of Highland Park- Highwood when you shop!