President Elect Roger started the meeting on this very snowy morning with the Pledge of Allegiance
GREETER: Thank you, Will and MJ
GUESTS: Danny Schmidt, Senior at BUHS and Tom Costello, local attorney.
SERVER: Diane played hooky and Melissa stepped in as our server this week and MJ will be next up.
BIRTHDAYS & ANNIVERSARIES:
Birthdays- Dan Dietz 2/20
Anniversaries- Adragna, Vito 3 years Feb. 22 2023
Shippee, Lisa 3 years Feb. 22 2023
Blake, John 2 years Feb. 26 2024
Sullivan, Kristin 1 year Feb. 26 2025
SCRIBE: – February 25th is Toni, March 4th is Roger Cardinal.
30 for 30: None this week
STUDENT ROTARIANS: No students this week due to school holiday.
However, Danny Schmidt, a BUHS senior, presented his speech in preparation for his participation in the State Competition of the American Legion's National Oratorical Contest.
ANNOUNCEMENTS:
- Dinner Raffle:
- Online Ticket Sales Issue: Diane reported an unexpected pause in Facebook ticket sales: due to high volume, Facebook mistakenly flagged the sales as automated/robotic and temporarily shut them down. The issue is now resolved; online ticketing has resumed.
- Members are urged to like and share the club’s Facebook posts to increase visibility and algorithmic reach.
- Several members have extra tickets. Make sure you bring them to the meeting to get help with selling them.
- Ongoing encouragement for members to return both tickets and funds promptly, this organization alleviates day-of chaos
- Bingo
• Date/Time: Saturday, February 28, 2026, at Newbrook Fire Station.
• Setup Time: 4:00–4:15 PM; typical wrap-up by ~8:15 PM depending on bingo caller’s speed.
• Drop-off window for food: 2:00–3:30 PM please coordinate with Mona.
- Board meeting is set for Thursday, next week at Nick's office (28 Vernon Street); all welcome to attend.
Vermont Welcome Center Service/Fundraiser, need to choose potential dates. Options for Saturdays in June: June 6, 13, 20, 27. Club selected 6/20, 6/6 and 6/13 as the three potential dates.• Annual all-day, hands-on event: cooking, volunteering, and interacting with travelers and other Rotarians.• Logistical Updates: New rules prohibit parking on Broadbrook Road and abusing emergency access for unloading. Emphasis on strict rule enforcement—potential fines for violations.• Leadership/Support: Need for additional support given Katja’s departure from role.
FINES: Kevin imposed a fine for missing official Rotary pin $10 fine on Dan by Sandy for public display of Rotary-branded clothing at community/social events. Greg Hessel imposed a fine on Jon Secrest for telling him he “looked like shit” this morning.CARDS: Jack of Diamond……and the winner was Josh Traeger!!!
BRAGS:
Justin- bragged for VTrans deployment to Boston: 12 dump trucks, 12 bucket loaders, 35 support vehicles headed from Vermont to Massachusetts to help after severe storms (with up to 40 inches of snow and hurricane-force winds).
Will- bragged for the impressive group of Rotarians that showed up this morning. Wanted to congratulate everyone who made it in this morning.
SPEAKER: Danny Mahoney Schmidt
In 1776, not only was the hope for a new nation born, but the first constitution enacted, the Articles of Confederation. While they were sufficient enough to grant victory in the Revolutionary War, they were not strong enough to govern a new nation, as they lacked the social contract of a government and its people. A government that protects the people and instills in them the rights necessary for the people to uphold their government, to keep it accountable and in concordance with the best interests of all people. And it's for this reason that the people could not function under the Articles of Confederation. It was this realization, sparked by rebellion and uprising, that gave way to the first constitutional convention. At first, our Constitution had its most vital part excluding the Bill of Rights. While many saw it as redundant or unimportant, it was patriots like Thomas Jefferson and John Adams who understood its importance and paved the way of rights and justice that all of you are expected to follow. Justice not just is in the upholding of rights that already exist, but in the revision of injustice, injustices within our systems. Because the most patriotic thing an American citizen can do is to fight for the revision of the Constitution when it benefits the collective. You and I are all a part of the people. The 13th amendment abolished slavery. The 14th amendment allowing any person born in the United States the right to citizenship. In the 19th Amendment, securing the right for women to vote were only possible because of the shared understanding and patriotism of people at the time to campaign, to fight and to die for the cause of women's suffrage and abolition. Such is the case for patriots like Susan B. Anthony, who made it her life goal to create an equal America for black people and women. She let no criticism, prosecution or consistent failure stop her as she created the National Women's Suffrage association and later went on to lead the National American Women's Suffrage Association. She spent her life campaigning, fighting and dying for the causes of women's suffrage and abolition. Though she did not get to see the day that women could vote, she did see the hope and change she had already made, allowing her to hold out faith and those around her to enact the 19th Amendment just 14 years later. But the Constitution doesn't envision all of its citizens to be like Susan B. Anthony. In fact, most important of all is you. The lawyers, the editors, the pastors, the voters. Collectively, it is you all that keep this experiment in democracy working. The lawyers who uphold the citizens’ rights to fair trade, trial and proper representation. The editors who utilize their freedom of speech in order to illuminate the stories and knowledge necessary to be an American citizen. And the pastors who utilize their freedom of religion to inspire generations with hope and prosperity. And the voting who vote in federal, state and local elections, keeping our legislators and interpreters of the Constitution accountable. Because you understand that no matter how much money you have, how long you've been alive, or how much knowledge you think you possess, your vote counts just as much as mine, as much as your neighbor, and as much as the President. Because voting is the greatest of all. So, although it's not your legal obligation to vote, it is your civic duty to give your best opinions on the legislators of each United States, of each united town, of each united citizen. No less equal than you. Because you must understand that no matter how much money they have, how long they've been in office, or how much knowledge they try to possess, your vote is what influences their decisions. And they are all subject to the American voting. Because voting is what changes this country. So, although it's hard to focus on anything but the present when it's so much in your face, you must look to the past to see the times that voting and the tenacity of the American voter changed this country for the better. Because it was the tenacity of the American voter that allowed for a country of farmers to overthrow the strongest military in the world. And it was the tenacity of the American voter that allowed for a country built on slavery to abolish it completely. And it was the tenacity of the American voter that allowed her country to not just overcome the Great Depression, but to come out the other side better and more prosperous than before. So, it's not just your duty to hold out hope. It is your job to act and to change. Because it's not what the founding fathers wanted. It's what they needed when they created a piece of paper that was not meant to naively prevent history, but instead to bring about the tools necessary for when history would repeat itself. To allow Americans to fend off halt and to control those who harmed this country the same way the first Americans did with the tyrants of Great Britain. So, it's not just your job to follow the law, it is your duty to act against injustice, to fight against injustice until you win against injustice. And it's not just what's expected of you, it's what's needed of you if we want to keep this wild, flawed, glorious, forever changing and patriotic experiment in democracy working for you, for all of us, and for the future us. Thank you.