CONGRATULATIONS to LuAnne Lathrop on her marriage to Mike Patak on Saturday, July 12th.

GOOD NEWS!  Dan Veskrna, our Rotary Foundation Chairman, reports that gifts to the Rotary International Foundation, from Blair Club members, averaged over $100 last year (for the year ending June 30, 2003).  

The Club has been notified that the brick we purchased for the Lewis and Clark Monument in Ft. Calhoun has been installed.  It is located in section 3, on the pathway which will lead to the sculpture to be installed this summer.

Notes from the July 7th  Meeting -  Program Chair - LuAnne Lathrop

LuAnne gave an update on the construction of the new building for her insurance business.  The new building can be seen from the meeting room which the Blair Rotary uses at the Pizza Hut.  It is being built by a corporation formed by LuAnne and her new husband, Mike (see above).  The building is 72 by 206 feet and is scheduled for completion on October 1st.  LuAnne's insurance business (Specialized Insurance Inc.) will occupy one section of the building and Mike will use the other part of the building for come of the cars he collects.  The corporation also owns the lots adjacent to the building and plans to build office space for lease in the future.  

LuAnne reports that Specialized Insurance will be celebrating it's 10th year of operation.  The business, which has 13 employees, is a wholesale insurance brokerage serving auto-related businesses in six states on the west coast.  Specialized Insurance contracts with independent agents who sell the policies to businesses.  Most of the communication is conducted by e-mail, phone and fax.  

Rotary Question of the Week

What is Interact?

Rotary Fact of the Week (from  the RI or District Website)

Interact is Rotary International's service club for young people ages 14-18. Interact clubs are sponsored by individual Rotary clubs, which provide support and guidance, but Interact clubs are self-governing and self-supporting.

Club membership varies greatly. Clubs can be single-gender or mixed, as well as large and small. The membership base can be drawn from the student body of a single school or from two or more schools from the same community.

Each year, Interact clubs complete at least two community service projects, one of which furthers international understanding and goodwill. Through projects, Interactors develop a network of friendships with local and overseas clubs. And, in the process, Interactors develop leadership skills and learn the value of hard work.

As one of the most significant and fastest-growing programs of Rotary service, with more than 8,600 Interact clubs in some 110 countries and geographical areas, Interact has become a worldwide phenomenon.

 Thought of the Week

"In matters of style, swim with the current; in matters of principle, stand like a rock." - Thomas Jefferson

July Birthdays
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