Kendallville Rotary Club

10/07/2026

Rotary RAZZ for October 6, 2026

WOW,WOW,WOW..What a meeting. Wait, that should read WOE

10/06/2026

The Kendallville Rotary Club brought the house down at the AppleFest 2026

Rotary, RAZZ AppleFest 20260:00 - intro thank you1:31 - tent set...

09/24/2026

It was great to be back at the Legion and the meeting was run well by the Razz editor. OK it was run OK, but the events or the evening made up for it.

Al Huth led us in the patriotic America song that mimics Britain's God Save the Queen. And Terry Gaff followed with a meaningful invocation before the Legion Ladies served each of us the meal of their choice (from the Legion's menu anyway).

As we ate our meal we had a Bonus. Chamber of Commerce Director Nikole Albright informed and entertained us with an informational game as to what the benefits are of membership in the Chamber. Take away: our Club is a member therefore each of us has the benefits of chamber membership. Get you membership card at the Chamber office on Main Street and get discounts at over 36 Chamber businesses. This includes 10% off on food orders at Sylvan Cellars (next week's meeting location). Great job NIcole!

Of course we had announcements.

Terry Gaff: Next week is the Fifth Tuesday. Meet at Sylvan Cellars with members of other Rotary Clubs from throughout Northern Indiana for fellowship, fun and a purpose. A fund raiser for Polio Plus and a change to have your Pinky Painted Pink as you support this Rotary project to serve humanity.

Matt Rickey: Apple Fest is approaching. It is quite well organized. You will be receiving your personal schedule from Alan Roush. We are busy Wednesday thru Sunday! Tom Jansen is going to be the Rotary Club rep at the Friday night 40th Anniversary Celebration

Alan Roush: Oak Farms Pork Burger Grilling is this Friday at the Old House. You know who you are if you are involved. Be there at 11:45. Plan to leave by 2:30.
Rain or Shine.

Drawing for the Pot of $232.
NO big winner David Hockley won $3 and Al Huth won $7. Maybe next week, Al was only one card off!

Sarge and Fines:
Doug Jansen showed up to be the Sarge, yay. Lotsa fines Sports related, of course then Eric Blackman, cause he is now empty-nesting. And Fred because he destroyed a birds nest while pulling shrubs last week at the Kendallville Day Care project.
Fred took over and we had some laughs.

Brag Bucks: just a few but all were accolades for works well done.

Program: Sam Tipton from the CLC spoke. His mother, club member Julia Tipton, had the program but was out of town. Dr Terry, aka Walt Disney's favorite fan, Gaff took over the introduction of Sam. How appropriate. Sam spoke about the Animakers Space at the Community Learning Center. Animakers make animated, 3D "things. Think robots that have emotions. Well not exactly that, but Disney had a lot to do with animation and the next step was non-cartoon 3-D animated objects. Think robots.

The CLC is one of the few "centers" in the US. It is just beginning but Sam tells us the CLC is a near-perfect facility for a regional Animakers Center. The CLC is trying to raise $200K for the project and to date have raised $25,000. And they are working hard seeking grants for more.

They have begun working with kids. Mostly middle-school aged who are not into after school sports, attend these programs. This past summer they began with 20 Humming Bird kits. These reusable kits allowed the participants to make animated 3D "creatures or object" that moved and responded to stimuli at the "camps". It was a success and the classes are continuing this Fall.

The CLC is a GEM!

And then... no RJ therefore no Words of Wisdom before we all stood and recited the 4 Way Test of the things we think, say and do.

Jim J

Note: The picture below has absolutely nothing to do with the meeting. Matt R.

09/16/2026

The heat and humidity rolled in but so did the Rotarians and Interact students to participate in a great Kendallville Day Care project! Seventeen Rotarians and six Interact students successfully completed our tasks of window washing, power washing, tree/shrub trimming, shrub pulling, w**d pulling, plant planting and mulching! A great meal was served by the staff for us. Special thanks to our resident landscaper Jim Jansen for planning our beautification efforts with Josh from KDCC. It was even Al Roush's birthday and he still showed up and worked hard. Thanks to all. The Day Care folks. are very appreciative of our help.

Dave Hunter

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09/11/2026

https://youtube.com/shorts/S0XgFboFCHM?si=EA66G4QfjTZbfrfD

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09/08/2026

Jim Jansen’s program tonight was for the Kendallville Rotary Club to take a look at the Oak Farm athletic facilities which includes a soccer field, a practice soccer field, tennis courts, pickleball courts, a middle school cross country course, and a high school cross country course. Athletic Director Donna Wolfe and cross-country coach Justin Beall indicated that the project is by no means finished. A press box, some offices, and potentially an auxiliary gymnasium will be added in the future. It is an impressive project and worth a look.

09/03/2026

A bit more detailed bit of information about our last meeting.

The Razz — September 1, 2026

What a Great Meeting!

We had 23 members present—more than half the club! We also welcomed four guests: Camille Wilson, David Waddles, Lee Harris, and our program speaker, District Governor Terri. David and Lee are prospective members, and they certainly brought some energy and smiles!

We began with a patriotic song led by Al Huth, followed by a meaningful prayer from Dr. Gaff and our reasonably priced Legion meal.

Upcoming Meetings & Events

September 8 — Oak Farm Montessori School — 6:00 PM
Meet at the athletic complex. Enjoy a chef-prepared boxed meal, a tour, and an opportunity to experience the new cross-country track.

September 15 — Kendallville Day Care Center Cleanup — 5:00 PM
Chairman Dave Hunter will lead Rotarians and the Interact Club in an exterior cleanup and the beginning of a two-year landscaping restoration project. Bring shovels, rakes, tree pruners/trimmers, and plenty of muscle! A pasta dinner will be provided. Matt will send the signup information.

September 22 — CLC
Sam Tipton from Animatrix, with Nicole Albright possibly joining us, will present.

September 25 — Oak Farm Lunch Cookout
Alan R. has the project under control!

September 29 — Fifth Tuesday: Purple Pinkies for Polio
Multiple Rotary clubs will gather at the Barn at Sylvan Cellars in Rome City for a PolioPlus fundraiser.

October 3–4 — Kendallville Apple Festival
The 40th Apple Festival!

Club News
Congratulations to Julia Tipton, who received the United Way of Northeast Indiana Change Maker Award. We are proud to have Julia in our club!

Denise Landers also updated us on Dolly Parton’s Imagination Library, which continues to provide books to young children. Denise encourages members to consider supporting the South Milford Lions Club's “5 Children for 5 Years” donor program.
Songs, Fines & Brag Bucks

Al Huth led us in “Smile… Sing a Song” and a birthday rendition of “Happy Birthday” for Terry Gaff.

The drawing brought in $50, with $25 going to the Foundation and $25 to the pot.
• 1st: Jerry Jansen
• 2nd: Matt Rickey
• Jackpot: $222 — the 5 of Diamonds remains elusive!

Sargent Kreigh collected $55 in fines, including a $40 fine from District Governor Terri. Larry D. even paid a brag buck over the audacity of fining a guest!

District Governor Terri

Our District Governor, Terri, shared an enthusiastic message about Rotary's impact at the club, district, and foundation levels.
Highlights included:
• Foundation grants helping local Rotary clubs serve their communities.
• Continued emphasis on youth programs including Interact, Rotaract, RYLA, and Rotary Youth Exchange.
• Disaster-response planning so Rotarians and community organizations can respond quickly when disasters occur.
• A proposed Great Lakes cleanup project, beginning locally with the Fort Wayne/Maumee River, which feeds Lake Erie. The Great Lakes contain approximately 20% of the world's fresh surface water.
• Rotary Foundation grants supporting community projects and scholarships, including opportunities for graduate and undergraduate study in peace-related fields.

The Starfish Story
Terri closed with the story of a little boy returning stranded starfish to the ocean after a storm. When told he couldn't possibly save them all, he replied that he had made a difference to that one.

Her challenge to us:

“How many starfish can our Club save this year?”
A great message for Rotary: one person, one project, one community, one act of service at a time can make a difference.
Kudos to District Governor Terri—and yes, she paid her fine and earned that standing ovation!

The Four-Way Test

09/03/2026

The Kendallville Rotary Club was honored to have district 6540 Governor Terry Rickel attend our meeting this past Tuesday. Her goal was to dig in to find out what makes our club tick. In a word she was impressed, and you would too if you saw all the positive civic minded cool stuff we do.

08/19/2026

The Biannual Noble County Trail Clean-Up by the Kendallville Rotary Club:

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