ROTATELLER

MEETING RECAP  —  28 April 2025

 

Submitted by Will Arscott

 

 

We had quite a good turn-out for this meeting in the Main Dining Room of the Saskatoon Club.  President Jack Brodsky was our MC. Members sang O Canada. [One member attending via Zoom was threatened with a fine for eating during the singing of the National Anthem].  Steve Wilson asked the blessing. With voting taking place as we met, Steve asked for guidance for those in authority that they may find and carry through the common good. The meal was a very fine chicken dinner.

 

Cashier was Donna Gauthier. Technology was ably handled by Gary Rusu and 3 members joined us online. Steve Wilson greeted our members and guests. Avis Hardy expertly organized the duty roster for the meeting.

 

 

Steve Wilson, who was doing at least triple duty, introduced our visiting Rotarians and guests:

Erin Walling, our guest speaker, was formally introduced later in the meeting. It was good to see Mike Jaga return for his second visit to our club.  Maybe we will get to see him regularly. Barb Henderson came as a guest of Maureen Torr. We were also joined by Gage Haubrich a guest of Gary Rusu.

 

 

There was no report at this meeting.

 

 

We have a hands-on opportunity to undertake a clean-up of the garden property at the Space on H. This will take place on Saturday May 31 beginning at 9:00am. All members are encouraged to take part.

 

Public Image is an important priority of District 5550 for this year. Money has been set aside to aid clubs in their efforts. We would like to have a higher profile in the community.  Right now, the club has a Public Image committee of one – Don Lepp.  He needs more help and ideas on how we can reach beyond Rotary to the larger community. If you could help Don please let him know. We also need to update and increase our presence on social media, so if you have any knowledge in this area your participation would be appreciated.

 

Kelechi Agubata is starting a program to have our club sponsor student scholarships. The plan is to fund the scholarships from an online Facebook garage sale. More details will be forthcoming; for now please look around and see what items you might be able to donate to be sold.  They will need to be photographed and posted to the Facebook website. When the sale is on you may have people come and view the items. I believe Kelechi wants to get going quickly so there will be more information soon. Volunteers would also be welcome to help with the project.

 

President Jack spoke of a proposed flag project that is under discussion both at District 5550 and at Presidents’ Council. The project involves supplying a regular size Canadian flag and pole to fly on people’s property for several long weekends during the summer season. Flag subscribers sign up for the service.  Flags must be purchased and stored between use. They need to be taken out ahead of the long weekend and collected afterwards. This program has been a successful fundraiser for a Rotary Club in Moose Jaw. The North club has approved going ahead on this project. It will be discussed at the next Board meeting. If you have ideas, please bring them up with a Board member. If our club were to participate it would not be until next year.

 

The club is planning a steak night fundraiser for mid-October. It could be at Sports on Tap or another venue. It will be a social night with a steak meal, a 50-50 draw and a silent auction.   Please think about what you might be able to obtain for the silent auction. Items in the $200 range often see the best returns. The success of this event will be proportional to our success in getting non-club members to attend. The event is being organized by Will Arscott and President Jack.

 

Rock for RAP is taking place this Friday evening at Bethlehem High School. It is an ‘80s Prom theme. Kent and Maureen Smith-Windsor are attending and promise a surprise for all who attend. Tickets are still available. It would be good to see as many club members as possible attend.

 

The District 5550 conference is all online this year and takes place May 9 and 10. There is an excellent slate of speakers cued up. There will be a local watch party sponsored by the North Club. It will take place at the Open Door Society 733C, 1^st Ave N.  The times will be 1pm to 4pm on Friday May 9 and then 8:30am to 4:30pm on Saturday May 10. There is parking beside the building.  The cost is $50 per person which is the same rate as accessing the conference at home. Snacks and a lunch will be served. To register, send an email to jim.coulter@sasktel.net.   Payment can be made by etransfer to rotarynorthtreasurer@sasktel.net. You can also pay by cheque to the North club. Detailed program information is available from the District 5550 website.

 

Sobey’s cards are available from Donna.  Sobey’s cards are available in denominations of $50 and $100. It would be great to reduce the inventory before the end of the Rotary year.

 

 

 

The Club was thrilled to induct two new members. President Jack read the induction and reviewed the benefits and responsibilities of members. He emphasized that they were not just being admitted to our club but to the international fellowship of Rotary.  Each received their membership certificate and new member package. Welcome Wilson and Chioma we are looking forward to getting to know you. I know membership talks are planned so we will get to hear more of our new members in the near future.

 

 

Erin was introduced by Claire Mugabe: Erin Walling is an Experiential Learning Coordinator with Career Services at the University of Saskatchewan. She leads the ‘RBC Learn to Work, Work to Learn’ program which provides career readiness support and programming to students including the USask Connects Mentorship program.

 

Erin comes from an old Saskatoon family. Her grandparents operated the confectionery at College Drive and Cumberland. She is a proud USask alumni, graduating with undergraduate and graduate level degrees. She has worked at the University since 2011 in a variety of roles related to improving student policies, education, and experiences.

 

Now in the last third of her career, Erin is keen to help mentor and develop the emerging workforce and is thrilled to have the opportunity to support students and faculty through Career Services.

 

Outside of work Erin enjoys time with her husband and their two teenagers. One son just completed his second year at the University of Saskatchewan.

 

Erin began by thanking the club for our hospitality and the great meal. She is well familiar with Rotary as her father was a member of the Meewasin Club until recently. She has attended many Rotary events and her family hosted students on several occasions.

 

Erin spoke on the mentoring programs that are available to students at the University of Saskatchewan. A page outlining the program had been set at each place that included a QR code that could be used to contact the program or apply to be a mentor.

 

Mentoring is available in years two through graduation. It is not available to graduate students.   The idea is to put students who are interested in a particular career path into contact with people currently working in that field.  Students apply to be mentored and there are two cohorts per year, one in the fall and one in the spring. Usually there are 30 to 40 students in each group and the size of the groups is growing.  

 

There are two important goals in the program: The program provides the students with an opportunity to develop their soft skills. Very often the students are fully competent in the technical skills necessary in the field but lack skills in teamwork and networking in general.   The students get to see the importance of these skills. Secondly, the students get to learn more about an area of particular interest to them. They get a glimpse of what a successful person does when they work in the field. Some students who apply to the program want to be in touch with a mentor in a very specific area. Students wanting mentoring in a specialized area may come from studies such as engineering or computer science. Other students are more generalist.

 

A very specific program has been developed but students and their mentors are encouraged to build on the program as written and to vary from it as needed. Generally, students will meet with their mentors four times over the semester for about one hour each time. Often these meetings take place virtually as students and mentors can have very busy lives. Sometimes there are meetings in person. There is a topic for each meeting: The first meeting usually considers industry insights. In the second meeting the students are encouraged to consider their strengths appropriate to this field. Through a sponsorship with the RBC the students have access to the Clifton Strengths assessment online. The third meeting looks at competencies.  There may be areas where the students should consider additional academic work to be fully prepared to work in the field. Finally, they look at how ready the student is to enter the field and be successful.

 

The time commitment required by the mentors is not excessive and most find it a very rewarding process. People who apply to be mentors may not be paired with a student immediately because there may not be students looking for mentors in their area. There are other mentorship programs available at the University. The Edwards school of Business and Law runs a separate mentorship program. Many foreign students are involved in mentorship programs often looking for opportunities they can use to remain in Canada.  

 

Erin answered several questions: Kent Smith-Windsor asked if it would be appropriate to promote Rotary in the program. Erin said it likely would if the promotion of Rotary was ancillary to the main mentorship.

 

Erin was thanked by President Jack and regular donation to the Bethany Homes was explained.  Erin seemed pleased to support that cause.

 

 

Next meeting: May 12

Speaker: Carol Shepstone update on the new Saskatoon Public Library