Each year, the Wadena Rotary Club partners with the Wadena-Deer Creek Schools to host a Fine Arts Banquet. This event originated with the late Dick Hess, a local newspaper columnist and Rotarian, who felt that the achievements of students who participated in the fine arts deserved recognition and should not be overlooked. The first banquet was held in the spring of 1982 and has continued every year since.
Over the years, our banquet has expanded to recognize even more students. The past several years, we recognized students who participated in the visual arts, band, choir, drama, Business Professionals of America, speech, and knowledge bowl. We have served around 225 meals for the past 4-5 years.
The advisers/coaches of these programs are asked to draft a “guest list” of participants they would like to recognize at this event. The administrative staff of the school compiles the list to make sure we don’t have more invitees than we can reasonably accommodate. For example, we may not be able to recognize every student who participates in band and choir. But we may be able students who received an exemplary rating at their solo and ensemble competitions. Once the list is finalized, the school sends our invitations to these students to attend the banquet, along with their parents. The kitchen staff at school caters for us and we order meals accordingly. The school custodial staff sets up the commons area with a head table for our president and the advisers and tables and chairs for the students and parents. Our president is the MC for the evening and welcomes people, introduces the advisers, and peppers in a few facts about Rotary throughout the evening. The visual art teacher sets up tables with exemplary work from featured students that people can enjoy before and after the event. The musical staff often coordinates a few special numbers to be enjoyed throughout the evening as well.
We order placemats with some tidbits about Rotary, which include the four-way test. And we invite club members to bring in fruit, crackers, meat and cheese trays for appetizers. These Rotarians are wearing their rotary shirts, of course!
Rotarians set all the tables, deliver the meals to the tables and provide lots of labor to clean up as well. The kitchen staff prepares the meals, plates the meals, and assists in running the commercial dishwasher.
I would strongly encourage Rotary clubs to launch a fine arts banquet in their own area. Start small by recognizing activities that may not get much attention but are worthy of recognition. Or, perhaps the place to start is with those areas where there is an existing connection between the club and a teacher or adviser in the fine arts. And then grow the banquet in partnership with the school.
