Schodack Town Park
The Rotary Impact Committee needs a few more volunteers to staff the Rotary table at the Town of Schodack’s “Music in the Park” during June. Ideally, three people are needed for each event.
All events are held on Tuesdays from 5 p.m. until 7:30 p.m. If it rains, the event will be held on Wednesday. If you can help out, please contact Pat Bailey. Thank you to the following who have volunteered to date.
On a cool windy Saturday, SRC Rotary Impact Committee set up a table at Kristy’s Barn in Schodack to promote Rotary and their fundraising campaign.
More than $40 was raised for local food pantries and the Troy YWCA women’s shelter. Members spoke to numerous shoppers about what Rotary does.
Pat is looking for volunteers for next Saturday, May 14, to staff the table from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. or 2 to 5 p.m. Please contact her at baileyps26@gmail.com if you can help.
• From District Governor Bruce Connellee
There is a world of breweries, distilleries, and wineries right in our own backyard. If you have not had the chance to tour the various selections in the area, have we got a night planned for you!
We are going to celebrate two of our neighbors while we raise funds to end polio. And, and if this sells, we’re going to celebrate many more.
Join me for a “Wine & Whiskey Tasting to End Polio” at 6 p.m. Saturday, March 26. Our host will be Galway Rock Winery & Vineyard, located at 998 Saratoga Road, Ballston Lake. We will be sampling three of its wines plus three whiskies from High Peaks Distilling of Lake George.
Each tasting will be presented by the creators themselves, giving you the opportunity to learn more about how each selection is made and what goes into creating these wines and whiskeys.
Registration is $75 per person, which covers the tasting and heavy hors d’oeuvres. Click here to register online. Seating is limited, so grab your tickets early.
You will also have the opportunity to purchase additional beverages or bottles to bring home.
The Rotary Impact Committee, SRC’s newest fundraising group which is putting together a major raffle initiative, has issued its first planning report, from co-chairs Pat Bailey and Phil Kellerman:
“We have chosen to give the proceeds of raffle ticket sales to local food pantries and to the YWCA Women’s Shelter in Troy. Our theme is, ‘Help Rotary meet critical needs of Rensselaer County.’
“We hope to visit various sites such as Kids’Day at the Y, farmer’s markets, Little League events, ValleyCats home games at Bruno Stadium, and possibly June’s Farms or Windy Hill Orchard to sell raffle tickets. We hope to be ready to begin doing so by April 15 and to conclude sales around May 31 with the drawing for winners at that time.
“Prizes still are to be determined, but could include such things as a weekend away at a cottage or resort; a night out at an event; a new gas grill, or a ValleyCats package. We are asking members to let us know if anyone has a cottage or cabin that could be used for such a weekend getaway.”
“Raffle tickets will be priced at $5 each and 3-for-$10. We are also working on getting a banner and other marketing materials.”
The committee’s next meeting will be held via Zoom on either February 21 or March 7.
How are we doing with our ongoing push to redeem deposit containers and direct the proceeds to ShelterBox?
Pretty good on several fronts.
• The accompanying graphic shows our environmental impact.
• We recently sent a $400 check to the relief agency to help in its global work.
• And, another indicator of the support from across the SRC membership is that we recently topped the 25,000 mark of redeemed cans and glass and plastic bottles.
So, please keep up the good work. Or, if you haven’t yet joined in the Clynk initiative, please join your fellow Rotarians in this no-fuss ongoing fundraiser.
You can purchase a box of the official collection bags (the only bags accepted by the recycler) at any Hannaford market; ask Bill Dowd for the bar code stickers to affix to the bags, and drop off the full bags at any Hannaford redemption site where you simply scan the stickers and put the bags in the chute. That’s it. No need to rinse or separate the containers.
If you have any friends or family members who would like to join in this effort, just follow the same process to be sure they have the tools to have the redemption money credited to SRC’s Clynk account.
Have you wondered about our collective environmental impact from recycling through Clynk?
The accompanying graphic gives you a bit of an idea. That’s in addition to the money we raise for ShelterBox (our most recent contribution was a check for $500.)
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Remember, all you need to participate in our Clynk effort is an official collection bag (buy ’em at any Hannaford customer service counter), a bar code sticker (get ’em from Bill Dowd) and … oh, yes, some redeemable beverage containers.
No need to rinse or sort the glass, metal, or plastic containers. Simply stick them all in the same bag, stop in at a Hannaford market, use the bar code reader and drop the bag in the chute. Voila! Money for ShelterBox and less clutter in your house.
So, pack up all those holiday beverage containers. And, you don’t have to be a Rotarian to join the club’s effort.
After a year off because of you-know-what, the “SRC Holiday Party & Basket Silent Auction” returned on Thursday evening, with a large group assembling at Moscatiello’s Italian Family Restaurant for dinner, fellowship, and some catching up among people who hadn’t seen each other in a while.
In addition to the fun, we raised more than $600 for the club treasury through the silent auction.Thanks to all who contributed themed baskets, and to those who bid on them.
Another one of the highlights was the official induction of Tony Morris as a member of Rotary, with Jim Leyhane doing the honors. Tony has been part of SRC for a while, but COVID restrictions delayed the formality. Welcome, Tony!
The dinner was the last SRC event of 2021, but we are lining up plenty of activities for the new year. Just make a practice of regularly checking the website calendar page to stay in the loop.
Meanwhile, here are a few more scenes from the evening captured by Bill Dowd and Roberto. Special thanks to Debbie Brown for providing the floral table decorations. And, thanks to Roberto Martinez and Jim Leyhane for arranging the dinner.
Tony raises the flag after his induction by Jim.
Tangible proof that the basket fundraiser was paying off.
A picture of contentment.
After a COVID-induced break in our annual Holiday Party & Gift Basket Raffle last December, we’re back on schedule with a 3B (basket bidding battle) dinner at Moscatiello’s on Thursday, December 16.
We’ve been dropping large hints on how to come up with a theme for your baskets (in the $35-or-so range to create) to help jump-start your imaginations. Here are some more.
To begin with, “baskets” can be any type of container, such as these:
Then, of course, the contents are up to you. In the past, we’ve had wine baskets, candy collections, cheeses-and-crackers, movie-and-popcorn combos, children’s toys, soaps and lotions, craft beers and munchies … It’s limited only by your imagination. And, if you feel particularly creative, don’t feel constrained to creating just one basket. The more the merrier!
For those new to the process, it’s a simple one. Baskets are arranged on tables with bidding sheets next to them. Party-goers jot down their bids, with the highest bidder winning the basket. All proceeds go to the club’s general treasury to help support our community service initiatives.
So, be sure to mark December 16 on your calendar and plan to join your fully vaxxed fellow Rotarians and their guests at Moscatiello’s to ring in the holiday season in fine form.
Green thumb collection
SRC President Debbie Rodriguez (left) presents a club check for $250 to SRC member Shannon Romanowski, director of the Greenbush YMCA, to help support the Y’s annual “Community Basket Brigade” for Thanksgiving.
The event feeds local families in need for the holiday, and the Y is accepting donations of money and basket items through Monday, November 15. Go here for details on the event and how you can participate.
From President Debbie Rodriguez (sent via email today to all members):
Last fall, we successfully instituted a fundraising effort that gave members the opportunity to contribute to the club treasury or specific recipients of their choice.
The impetus was the restrictions of the COVID-19 pandemic on activities usually spent raising funds to support numerous local and global initiatives.
Although things have eased slightly, we’re still not able to undertake some of our past major events such as bowl-a-thons, virtual golfing, and recycling days. So, we’re again asking all members to make direct financial contributions according to their means and philosophy.
To decide on a contribution level, we’re suggesting that since we now are alternating virtual and in-person meetings, you may want to donate the $25 you are not spending for meals on alternate weeks: i.e., we have approximately 20 virtual meetings set for the remainder of the 2021-22 Rotary Year. That means $500 not being spent on dinner meetings over that period.
If you could contribute that amount, or any portion of it, to Rotary, it would help offset the lack of major fundraisers. Your contribution could be designated for the general treasury or toward specific efforts we’ve supported in the past — such as ShelterBox, Gift of Life, Circles of Mercy, Blue Star Mothers, Polio Plus, scholarships, the Rotary Youth Leadership Awards seminars (RYLA), various food pantries, Rotary Leadership Institute (RLI), etc. — or any combination of those items as you wish. And, if it is more comfortable to do so, you can split your contribution into two separate donations –- one now, one in March, for example.
Your contribution level will be kept confidential. Only Treasurer Murray Forth will have access to that information so he can distribute money as you and other members instruct.
Please send your checks, as soon as possible, made payable to SRC Rotary (with an accompanying note designating how you want the contribution distributed), to SRC Rotary, P.O. Box 71, East Greenbush, NY 12061.
Thank you for your ongoing contributions to the important work of Rotary, whether financial, personal effort, or both. By practicing “Service Above Self,” we do our best to make the world a better place.
Southern Rensselaer County Rotary Club 