Rotary International was founded in 1905. What began as four men meeting in local Chicago businesses has now grown to 1.2 million Rotarians belonging to over 34,000 Rotary clubs in more than 200 countries and geographical areas.

Metro Rotary will celebrate its 19th birthday next month. Since our club’s founding in 1993, we have seen many professionals come and go, but our core mission has remained true. As a result, we have been able to assist many people, both locally and on an international level. Five of our charter members remain active today! A special thank you to Win Burggraaff, John John, Ginny Northcutt, Audrey Spieler and Jim Stock. Your devotion of time and talents has played a key role in our club’s growth, and we appreciate each of you.

As a reminder, we only have two months left in this Rotary year. I encourage you to remain involved in our club’s activities, and plan ahead to be even more active in the year to come. Help make Metro Rotary History!

President Jim

Congratulations to Metro Rotarians Lynda Baumgartner and Shatenita Horton! These two women were honored on April 26 by Women’s Network. Lynda was awarded the Athena International Award, and Shatenita was awarded the Athena Young Professional Award. Women’s Network is the largest division of the Columbia Chamber of Commerce, and it serves to enhance the personal and professional growth of business people and to encourage participation and recognition of women in the community.

Lynda is the Coordinator of the Study Abroad Program for Stephens College. A Columbia native, she has been very active in the local community. She has been a member of Metro since 2009, and she is a Paul Harris Fellow. Lynda is married to fellow Rotarian Steve Baumgartner.

Shatenita is a Vice President and Banking Center Manager for Providence Bank. She has been a member of Metro since 2010, and she is a Paul Harris Fellow. Shatenita is married to Erskine, and they have two children, Jaerien and Emree.

The Athena Awards focus on personal traits of strong, successful leaders. Recipients are chosen for displaying excellence, creativity and initiative in their business or profession, providing valuable service to improve the quality of life in their community and helping women reach their full leadership potential.

Metro is very proud to be the home Rotary club of these two exceptional women!

PROGRAM - Terri Foltz, Court Appointed Special Advocates

GREETERS - Casey Buckman & Chris Dohm

INVOCATION/PLEDGE/ FUNDRAISER - Les Borgmeyer

Congratulations to the Rotary Club of Columbia on marking their 90th Anniversary!

The club we commonly refer to as the Downtown Rotary Club was founded in 1922 and will celebrate this historic anniversary on April 26 during their meeting at Columbia College. The meeting will be held at 12:00 noon at Columbia College, and the featured speaker will be District 6080 Governor Dr. Rita Esterly. Club President Brenda Woods will oversee the meeting which will include highlights of their 90 years of Rotary service.

The membership roster of the Downtown Rotary Club has included some individuals whose names are quite prominent in the community. In fact, there are at least ten streets and/or buildings in the City of Columbia bearing the names of charter members of this club. In addition, the Downtown Rotary Club was the home of 1934-35 Rotary International President Robert E. Lee Hill. In addition to Hill, Frank Rollins, Lewis Shelburn, John Rufi, Patterson Bain, Charles Proctor, R.D. Ross and Dee Corn has served as District Governors.

Also, the Downtown Rotary Club has been active in extending Rotary through the formation of new clubs. It co-sponsored our club in 1993, and we have enjoyed an excellent relationship with their members through the years.

Metro Rotary appreciates the Downtown Rotary Club and extends best wishes for many more years of Service Above Self!

PROGRAM - Dawn Brown, Heart of Missouri Girls on the Run

GREETERS - Sandra Logan & Rose Lloyd

INVOCATION/PLEDGE/ FUNDRAISER - Rob Quinn

PROGRAM - Dr. Sandra Long, The Rotary Foundation

GREETERS - Joy Block & Rob Christensen

INVOCATION/PLEDGE/ FUNDRAISER - Lori Neidel

Metro Rotary is proud to support the Boys & Girls Club of Columbia. To assist the students, Metro is participating in a Vocational Service Day on Tuesday, April 24 at the Teen Center (1200 North 7th Street).

The event will begin at 4:30 p.m., and students will be divided into groups. Volunteers are needed to help escort the groups to the career tables for focused informational sessions of approximately 15 minutes each. The event should conclude by 6:00 p.m.

As the day concludes, students will be given a goody bag as they exit. If you have items from your business that you think would be beneficial to the students, please contact Kristen Dickinson, Karen Taylor or Kristi Ray.

We anticipate 30-35 kids will participate in the event, and their ages will range from 10-16 years old. A special thank you to Rotarians Shatenita Horton, Casey Buckman, Tom Rose and Brad Nelson! These fine people have agreed to share information and experiences about their respective careers with the students.

This promises to be a fun and educational event. Please contact Kristi Ray if you wish to learn more about the event or want to volunteer.

will meet Wednesday, April 11 at 1:00 p.m. at the Columbia Country Club.

PROGRAM - Alexa New, Heart of Missouri United Way

GREETERS - Nicole Galloway & Susan Hart

INVOCATION/PLEDGE/ FUNDRAISER - Kristen Dickinson