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We meet In Person
Wednesdays at 12:15 PM
Rendezvous at Heather Gardens
2888 S Heather Gardens Gardens Way
Aurora, CO 80014
United States of America
Aurora, CO 80014
United States of America
Amazing Speaker on October 1st
Our guest speaker at Rotary today was Adrian Miller a two time James Beard, award-winning author, a professional speaker, a certified barbecue judge and what he likes to call a recovering attorney born and race in Denver. He served as a special assistant to President Bill Clinton with the Initiative for One America from 1999 to 2001. He later worked as a senior policy analyst for Colorado governor Bill, Ritter Junior. His work reached Global audiences through his appearance in the Netflix hit “High on the Hog: How African-American cuisine transformed America. He is also the author of four celebrated books. His debut was Soul Food the surprising story of an American Cuisine, One Plate at a Time, won the James Beard Award for scholarship Reference in 2014. His second book The President‘s Kitchen Cabinet, the story of the African-Americans who have fed our first families was a finalist for both a 2018 NAACP image award and the Colorado Book Award. His most recent book Cooking to the President’s Taste; Asian Heritage Chefs in the White House. History was published this year by the White House Historical Association and has already received multiple honors. Adrian serves as the executive director of the Colorado Council of Churches, where he is both the first African-American and the first African American and the first layperson to hold that position.
Our guest speaker at Rotary today was Adrian Miller a two time James Beard, award-winning author, a professional speaker, a certified barbecue judge and what he likes to call a recovering attorney born and race in Denver. He served as a special assistant to President Bill Clinton with the Initiative for One America from 1999 to 2001. He later worked as a senior policy analyst for Colorado governor Bill, Ritter Junior. His work reached Global audiences through his appearance in the Netflix hit “High on the Hog: How African-American cuisine transformed America. He is also the author of four celebrated books. His debut was Soul Food the surprising story of an American Cuisine, One Plate at a Time, won the James Beard Award for scholarship Reference in 2014. His second book The President‘s Kitchen Cabinet, the story of the African-Americans who have fed our first families was a finalist for both a 2018 NAACP image award and the Colorado Book Award. His most recent book Cooking to the President’s Taste; Asian Heritage Chefs in the White House. History was published this year by the White House Historical Association and has already received multiple honors. Adrian serves as the executive director of the Colorado Council of Churches, where he is both the first African-American and the first African American and the first layperson to hold that position.
Alzheimer’s Walk Fundraising Success
Community Service Director’s Update
The Community Service Director reported that the Alzheimer’s Walk held on Saturday, September 20th was a great success.
Fundraising Achievements
The Alzheimer’s organization raised over one million dollars to support their cause during the event. Additionally, our club contributed significantly by raising $3,000 for this important initiative.
Vocational Talk Highlights
On September 24th, Paul Christensen delivered a vocational talk to the club. Paul was born and raised in Baltimore, Maryland, and attended the University of Baltimore, where he majored in accounting. He is married, has two children, and is the proud grandfather of five granddaughters.
Paul’s career included working at Coca Cola, and he was fortunate to retire at the age of forty-nine. In retirement, he traveled extensively around the world. Paul also enjoys playing golf and has achieved the notable feat of making two holes in one.
Jeff Timian, originally from Oklahoma, gave a vocational talk on September 24th. A lifelong hockey enthusiast and former Michigan State goalie, he started his career in the car business and now works in reverse mortgage brokerage.
September 10 Meeting
Senior Communications Strategist Rory Franklin has been with Aurora Water for more than 20 years. Before coming to Aurora Water, she worked as an editorial assistant for The Denver Post and as communications director for a national non-profit. Rory has an M.A. in Communications from the University of Colorado. You can reach her at rfrankli@auroragov.org or 303.325.8854.
On September 3rd, our District Governor Cindy Rold visited our club for the annual meeting. She shared that this year's Rotary theme is "Unite for Good," which encourages collaboration with other organizations - something we already excel at. Cindy also recounted her trip to Kenya this summer, where she observed our International Project, the Adopt a Village program. She was highly impressed with how our contributions are being utilized, from the water jugs for handwashing and the cleanliness of each village to the ways they are generating income.
Cindy highlighted three key actions for us this year: First, reach out to members who are not attending our meetings and remind them that they are missed. Second, invite someone to participate in an activity with you. Third, show appreciation to someone and let them know how important they are.
Cindy Rold presenting a pin to Bill Rapp, a distinguished member of our club for 50 years of service, he also received our challenge coin from President Ryan Turbyfill (not pictured).
August 13th Meeting
Bob Barrows introduced the Invocation today with some humor and wisdom.
Joel Boyd General Manager of Town Center of Aurora on the left, Chelsea Thatcher Town Center of Aurora Marketing Director, and Scott Cartwright Operations Director came to talk about the 50th Aurora Town Center Anniversary! The 50th Anniversary Celebration will be on September 13th and 14th at Town Center West parking lot. Singing groups include Chicano Heat, Dotsero, Hot Lunch, Little Moses Jones, Jakarta, Los Mocohetes, Wash Park, That Eighties Band and more.
Joel Boyd, a club Rotarian and General Manager of Town Center of Aurora, spoke about the mall's 50th anniversary. He noted that most malls last only 25 years, but Town Center has doubled that thanks to community support and positive change.
- Kyle Lephart Club Rotarian is receiving a check for Canine Partners of the Rockies. Their mission is to train highly skilled service dogs to enable Coloradans with disabilities to lead more independent and gratifying lives while enriching community connections.
Leisha from YMCA received Grant from the Aurora Rotary Foundation
