For 60 years, choosing a theme has been the privilege, and sometimes the challenge, of each incoming president. Looking back on those past themes opens a small window into the thinking and the vision of each leader – how they saw Rotary, the place they saw for Rotary in the world, and what they hoped Rotary would achieve.
When my turn came to choose a theme, I did not hesitate. I knew immediately that our theme in 2017-18 would be Rotary: Making a Difference. For me, that small phrase describes not only what we do now, but what we aspire to do. We want to make a difference. We strive to help, to have an impact, to make the world a bit better.
Over the past two years, I have seen so many ways that Rotary is doing just that. In California, after the devastating wildfires last year, I saw Rotarians Making a Difference to those who had lost everything. In Guatemala, I saw the difference that simple wood stoves are making in the lives of women who had been cooking on open fires: They no longer breathe smoke when they cook, they spend less time gathering firewood, and they are using their stoves to start small businesses. In Israel, I visited a Rotary-supported hyperbaric center that is helping brain injury and stroke patients return to healthy, productive lives. In communities around the world, Rotarians are Making a Difference by resettling refugees, immunizing children, ensuring a safe blood supply, and helping young people learn and thrive.
International Rotary convention brings 24,000 people to Toronto
Most multi-cultural convention to be held in the city
TORONTO – The 109th annual international Rotary convention will take place in Toronto on June 23–27, and is expected to bring 24,000 Rotary club members from over 175 countries to the city – injecting an estimated $48.5 million CAD into the local economy.
Often described as a “mini-United Nations,” Rotary’s fifth convention in Toronto will transform the Metro Toronto Convention Centre and Air Canada Centre into a cultural mosaic as the organization’s global network of volunteers gather to exchange ideas on how to improve lives and bring positive, lasting change to communities around the world.
Submitted By: Debra Warner, District Governor 2017-2018
Hello Rotarians, Rotaractors and family of Rotary!
What an honor it has been serving this year as your District Governor! As this year comes to an end, I reflect upon the incredible journey that I have been on for past 3½ years and the very best part of this journey has been visiting clubs. It has been my goal to visit clubs whenever possible to get to know you, to see firsthand the great things you and your clubs are doing and to understand your needs so the district may better serve you. Ed and I have been wholehearted welcomed at every club we visited, and we say thank you for the kind reception wherever we went. What a year it has been with over 200 visits! It has been our pleasure to travel District 5580 to visit and learn about how all Rotary clubs, regardless of size, are “Making a Difference” in their communities and many in the world as well; I am so proud to be a member of District 5580! I want to thank each one of you for all that you do in your service to Rotary.
Submitted By: Gloria Mink, District Executive Secretary
As the end of the 2017-2018 Rotary year nears, I reflect on why I decided to accept the position of Executive Secretary for District 5580. In my introductory letter, which was sent out almost a year ago now, I stated, “I find extreme satisfaction knowing that I am involved in an International Service Club of this scale. I love that we are active! I love that every club and each member may have unique characteristics, but we all unite for one common purpose- TO SERVE! The enthusiasm I have for Rotary has led to a greater desire to be more involved with District leadership and the communication of our efforts.” At that time, what I didn’t realize is how incredibly welcoming and supportive the District leaders are! It has been an honor to get to know everyone and I encourage any member of this District who would like to serve at the District level to DO IT!
District 5580 is now calling for nominations for the office of District Governor for the Rotary year 2021-2022, and qualified Rotarians may submit a nomination for consideration by the District Nominating Committee. The Nominee must submit the following documents:
Submitted By: Keith Brokke, District Foundation Chair
We are closing in on the end of another Rotary year on June 30th. From all indications, our District 5580 membership is up for the year, with some clubs reporting 18 or 19 new members! But when we look at our giving numbers to Polio Plus and the Annual Fund, we are down by 30% as of May 29, 2018. I’m not comparing to May 2017, but rather to our year end numbers. Typically we’ve been at roughly $255,000 for the Annual Fund, whereas this year to date, we are currently at roughly $182,000. Regarding Polio Plus we average $110,000 in giving the past 5 years and this year to date, we are at $77,000.
I recall a few years back, when we had a RI President’s representative at our District Conference and she was concerned that we were down in our giving in early May of that year. I told her at the time that I was not concerned because D5580 always comes through in the end (and I was right). As your D5580 Foundation Chair, one part of my job is to be your club’s cheerleader and biggest supporter. If there is anything I can do to help with your fundraising, please get it touch with me.
Submitted By: Donald Cavalier, District Membership Chair
June is Rotary Fellowship Month: A time to recruit new Members for your Clubs!
I want to thank the Past District Governors, Debra Warner (who will complete her term as District Governor on June 30), Herb Schmidt, Craig Loughery, and Dr. David Smette for giving me the opportunity to serve as the District Membership Chairperson for the past four years. Also, a BIG thanks to Dr. David Smette and Branden Robinson for all their help with Membership and Extension over the past four years and to all the District club Presidents and Club Membership Chairpersons. It has been a great learning experience and I want to wish Branden Robinson well as the next District 5580 Membership Chairperson.
The Object of Rotary is to encourage and foster the ideal of service as a basis of worthy enterprise and, in particular, to encourage and foster: FIRST- The Development of acquaintance as an opportunity for service. SECOND - High ethical standards in business and professions; the recognition of the worthiness of all useful occupations, and the dignifying of each Rotarian’s occupation as an opportunity to serve society. THIRD - The application of the ideal of service in each Rotarian’s personal, business, and community life. FOURTH - The advancement of international understanding, goodwill, and peace through a world fellowship of business and professional persons united in the ideal of service.
Submitted By: Bob McLean, District Governor- Nominee, District WaSH Chair 2017-2018
It may have been 2001, attending my first Rotary International convention, when I heard the alarming comment: “The next world war will be fought over WATER!” That haunting statement has stuck with me.
At the beginning of the millennium (2000) various international organizations collaborated to establish Sustainable Development Goals (SDG) for our future. It addressed various steps towards improving access to key/basic services; education, electricity, poverty relief (economic development), health and wellness, and, of course, safe water and basic sanitation. The list reads much like Rotary’s Six Core Areas of Focus with WATER at the center of it all.
Nearly two decades since those goals were espoused, almost two billion people still lack access to safe water and nearly 2.5 billion people lack access to basic sanitation. According to the most recent newsletter from the Water And Sanitation/Hygiene Rotary Action Group (WASRAG), every 90 seconds a child dies from water-related disease. A horrific 3.5 million people, mostly young children in poor underprivileged countries, die annually from these preventable water-borne disease – cholera, dysentery, diarrhea and typhoid. Over 80 percent of all illnesses in the world are related to contaminated water, poor sanitation, and poor hygiene; nearly 90% are children.
Submitted By: Rick Bricker, District Governor- Nominee
As one Rotary year ends and another begins it becomes the responsibility of your District Governor- Elect and Nominee to fill committee chairs and assistant governor positions. One position that needs to be filled is the Vocational Training Team chair. This position is unique as it comes with a budget already in place. A couple of years ago the grants committee put aside $15,000 in District Designated Funds to support a V.T.T. It was intended to provide a leadership training program in Haiti. The project never happened and the money is still available for a V.T.T. A couple of ideas that are being reviewed is a team for diabetes education and another for dealing with non-profits in Ethiopia. Let me add that a V.T.T. is funded by a global grant that has a $30,000 minimum. The D.D.F. can be used for a match to make that minimum. The team can also include a project. For more information please contact me.
Submitted By: Gary Nolte, End Polio Now Zone Coordinator Zone 28
June 2018 Polio Update… One new case of polio this week in Pakistan, which follows 1 case last week, 10 cases for 2018, Previously we had 8 weeks without a case of polio. Rotary’s and the Gate’s Foundations commitment is the eradication of Polio in the world. We have come a long way since 350,000 plus cases in 1985, but we are not finished YET. There is still time to make a difference this year. Rotary’s US $50 million will be matched 2 for one by the Gates foundation: that’s real money!! Don’t leave Polio money on the club’s books. This will be Rotary’s legacy” a polio free world”. Remember malaria? NEARLY eradicated in the 50’s and now one of the biggest and most dangerous killers on the planet!! Part of our Polio Plus program is the distribution of bed nets to protect against the little bugs that spread the virus. It is estimated that ONE BILLION dollars will be saved each year without Polio! And finally another plus, a world wide network of labs, one of which recently was used in Nigeria to combat the ebola outbreak. This isn’t a sprint but rather a long race that we have been running since 1985 and the finish line is THIS CLOSE. There is still time to write a check and make a difference. YIR Gary Nolte End Polio Now Zone Coordinator Zone 28
On May 3rd to 5th, our Model United Nations Assembly was staged 61 years after our inaugural MUNA in 1957.
The event has been growing in recent years, in spite of the fact that there are now about 46 MUNAs across Canada, some like ours catering to high school students, others to the universities.
MUNA this year hosted 72 delegations, comprising 144 students and 51 counsellors; delegations came from Minnesota, North Dakota, Ontario, Saskatchewan, and Manitoba.
Four resolutions were presented to the students for research and debate:
The Situation in Syria,
Non-proliferation/ North Korea,
Promoting the Rights of Persons with Disabilities,
and Mainstreaming a Gender Perspective into the United Nations System.
Submitted By: Blake Carlson, District Youth Exchange Chair
The District conference has come and gone. This was the last required attendance event for Inbound students (students from countries outside of our District being hosted in our District) for the year. There are two remaining events that some of our Inbounds will take part in.
The first is a Summer tour. There are two tours offered which they can pick from, a US East or a West coast. The tours are about two weeks long and are paid for by the student.
The other remaining event that Inbounds have the option to do is the Central States Rotary Youth Exchange (CSRYE) Summer Conference. CSRYE is a multi-district organization which we belong to. All of our Inbound and Outbound exchanges are arranged by and through CSRYE. It is made up of 19 individual Districts located in the upper central portion of the US and Bordering Canada.
Submitted By: MacKenzie MacFarlane, District Rotaract Representative
Rotaract clubs around the district have been actively working to make a difference in their local communities. The Twin Ports Rotaract club started off with big changes when they converted from the University of Minnesota Duluth Rotaract Club to the Twin Ports Rotaract Club. This has been great because it allows students from the twin ports area to join our club, where as in the past only UMD students could join. The Thunder Bay Rotaract Club became active again this year! They completed wonderful projects, a highlight being Operation Christmas Child. Operation Christmas Child is an initiative organized through Samaritan's Purse in which people fill shoeboxes and these boxes are sent to children in need. They made 50 shoeboxes! The Twin Port’s Rotaract highlight this year was the Polar Plunge in which they jumped in Lake Superior in February and raised $1,500 for Special Olympics! Rotaract also celebrated their 50th Anniversary on March 13th. Today there are over 10,000 Rotaract Clubs and 250,000 Rotaractors worldwide!
The Bismarck Rotary Club recently lost a long time member. Frank J. Bavendick, died March 8, 2018. He was 87 years old.
A native of Bismarck, he attended Bismarck Junior College, now Bismarck State College, and the University of North Dakota from which he graduated in 1952. In high school he participated in football, basketball and track, setting state records in track. He continued his participation in track and field at the University and retained a lifetime interest in athletics. In later life he became an avid skier and enjoyed hunting and hiking the North Dakota prairie.
During North Dakota's early 1950s oil boom, Frank joined a major oil company in its land department, eventually locating in Casper, Wyoming. In 1963 he ventured forth on his own, returned to Bismarck
and established Westex Petroleum Corporation dealing in oil and gas properties, real estate and
farming. During years of decline in oil exploration following the early boom, his astute investments in mineral properties continued and proved fortuitous when boom times returned to North Dakota.
Frank was the recipient of numerous awards for his industry service. He was named to a number of boards and commissions both private and governmental. On the national level he served as president of the American Association of Professional Land men. He also served on the boards of several non-profit organizations in his home state.
Our 17th annual tournament in 2018 will be held at the Lakeview National Golf Course, Two Harbors on Saturday, June 30th, beginning with the opening tee time at 8:30 AM. Lakeview National has generously opened its course and facilities for this event.
The cost is $65 per person ($32 for Lakeview National members), which includes the following:
18 holes of golf (6 holes best ball – 6 holes alternate golf – 6 holes scramble
Breakfast prior to tee time and luncheon voucher for use at any time following play
Registration gifts valued at over $30/couple
Flight awards
Every dollar of the entry fee is returned to the participants.
The tournament is limited to 20 couples. Reserve a tee time by calling 218-834-2664
The annual North Shore Rotary ForeKids Couples Golf Tournament continues as the only tournament of its kind in the area and exposure for our sponsors. This tournament, and most importantly your support, has provided opportunities for more than 90 students from the North Shore area to attend leadership camp as well as matching dollars for more than 50 college scholarships at Silver Bay and Two Harbors.
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Ian H.S. Riseley, President 2017-18.jpg)
International Rotary convention brings 24,000 people to Toronto 
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Submitted By: Debra Warner, District Governor 2017-2018
Submitted By: Gloria Mink, District Executive Secretary
District 5580 is now calling for nominations for the office of District Governor for the Rotary year 2021-2022, and qualified Rotarians may submit a nomination for consideration by the District Nominating Committee. The Nominee must submit the following documents: 
Submitted By: Keith Brokke, District Foundation Chair
Submitted By: Donald Cavalier, District Membership Chair
Submitted By: Bob McLean, District Governor- Nominee, District WaSH Chair 2017-2018
Submitted By: Gary Nolte, End Polio Now Zone Coordinator Zone 28.jpg){kind=small}
Submitted By: Blake Carlson, District Youth Exchange Chair.jpg)
Submitted By: MacKenzie MacFarlane, District Rotaract Representative.jpg){kind=small}
Submitted By: Bismarck Rotary Club.jpg){kind=small}
