DG Bryan’s Medical Report: I want to thank you all for your cards, e-mails, thoughts & prayers! If you hadn’t heard, on March 31st I saw my cardiologist about a 3-day headache. He prescribed an MRI which showed that I had a subdural hematoma (a balloon of blood between the skull and brain caused by a bump while getting into my car). Air Life flew me to Swedish Medical Center where the CT scan showed the ½ avocado size balloon of blood had caused a crease on the other half of the brain. The neurosurgeon drained the blood and put me on pain and anti-seizure meds. The meds made me throw up. I was discharged April 3rd and told to rest. I reported back on April 12 for another CT scan, which showed that the brain was back to normal. Carolyn and Ian, our son, were great caregivers and I feel good and am gaining my strength and endurance back. I feel very blessed!

Welcome to Greeley’s May 12-14, 2011 District Conference! If you haven’t registered yet, Conference Chair Mark Wood, wants you to help set a record of 500! Come celebrate your Dis-trict Conference! All registrants will receive a free commemorative poster conceived by Gojo’s Doug Bliss and myself. The poster compliments RIP Ray Klinginsmith’s theme of Building Com-munities Bridging Continents and our District Conference theme song, which is a medley Some-where over the Rainbow/What a Wonderful World. On Friday morning May 13th sing along with our son Ian Cooke, PHF, singer-songwriter, named Best Band in 2009 by The Denver Post.

The poster shows the Rotary Wheel Bridging the Continents while the Rainbow spans our Won-

derful World. The central figure shows a Rotarian giving the two life-saving drops of the oral vac-

cine to a child to End Polio! On Friday at historic Centennial Village enjoy the BBQ, Hispanic

dancers, Rattlesnake Kate, Bob Purcell and the Outriders and participate in the Best Dressed

Western competition. Then c’mon down to the Union Colony Civic Center and hear PRID Grant

Wilkins, a Polio survivor, give a brief update on Polio to kick off the Polio Benefit Concert at 7

pm. Since 1985 Rotarians have contributed more than $800 million and countless volunteer hours

to immunize more than 2 billion children in 122 countries against Polio. With the help of WHO,

CDC, UNICEF and the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation there are only four remaining countries

with Polio (Pakistan, Afghani-

stan, India and Nigeria). The

Concert is open to the public

for $20, so invite your friends

for a fun evening & a good

cause! All the proceeds from

this Conference will go to End

Polio!

Volume 1, Issue 11

District Governor’s Message

May, 2011

Assistant Governors

• Donna Burrill - Loveland, Loveland Mountain View,

Loveland Thompson Valley

• Chan Coyle - Craig, Ski Town, USA, Steamboat

Springs

• Gerry Crites - Cheyenne, Cheyenne Sunrise, Laramie,

Laramie Sunrise

• Rod Everett - Jackson Hole, Jackson Hole Breakfast, Jack-son Hole Supper, Star Valley,

Teton Valley

• Ron Fossen - Lander,

Riverton, Thermopolis

• Eleanore Jones - Morrill, Scottsbluff/Gering,

Torrington

• Ray Leaycraft - Estes Park,

Estes Valley Sunrise

• David McGinnis - Evanston,

Kemmerer, Rock Springs

• Bill Mortimer - Casper, Casper 5 Trails, Douglas,

Rawlins

• Manny Muniz - Cody, Powell,

Worland

• Phil Murphy - Fort Collins, Fort Collins After Work, Fort Collins Breakfast, Fort

Collins Foothills

• Barb Redder - Buffalo, Gillette, Gillette-Energy,

Ranchester/Dayton, Sheridan

• Chuck Rutenberg - Greeley After Hours, Greeley, Greeley Centennial, Greeley

Redeye

• Susan VanDeren - High Plains-Eaton, Johnstown-

Milliken

• Peter Youngers - Sedgwick

County, Sterling

District Governor’s Newsletter

Rotary International Distri ct 5440 , Inc .

PAGE 2 DISTRICT GOVERNOR’S NEWSLETTER VOLUME 1, ISSUE 11

District Governor’s Message

Following Past Rotary International Director Grant

Wilkins will be the Ian Cooke Band. They will open for

Greeley Rotarian George Gray and the Elvis Experi-

ence. As mentioned earlier, this Concert is open to the

public and George has generously offered to donate

half the proceeds to End Polio! So let’s fill that 1700

seat UCCC Auditorium! Thank you so much George!

As a Pilot District in one of the largest humanitarian service organizations in the world, we salute all you Rotarians in District 5440 for your generosity in helping the flood victims in Queensland, Australia; earthquake victims in Christ-church, New Zealand and the tsunami survivors in Japan! Come and celebrate the successes of your Clubs. On Thursday May 12 at 7:30 pm join us at the Chocolate Fountain and Ice Cream Bar at the University of Northern Colorado UNC, University Center's UC Fireside Lounge at 2101 10th

Ave. There you can enjoy the Art Show, Silent Auction, Club storyboard displays and piano music. Hear the Rotary International President's Representative RIPR Past District Governor PDG Greg Podd speak on Ro-tary's future, RI Trustee Lynn Hammond report on changes in The Rotary Foundation, Joe Dittmar tell how he sur-vived 9/11 on the 105th floor of the 2nd Twin Tower, Ann Moore, Executive Director of Cowboy Ethics explain how she works with at-risk youth, Dr. Evan Thomas consultant to NASA and Engineers Without Borders, describe how to install water treatment, biogas and fuel briquetting technologies in Rwanda, Kenya and Afghanistan. Hear Peace Scholar Dr. Manisha Javeri tell how Thailand and Mozambique changed her life, Ambassadorial Scholars Phoenix Mourning-Star and Christopher Jenkins share their experiences in New Zealand and Chile & listen to the impressions of our Youth Exchange students and Turkish Friendship Exchange visitors. Choose from a variety of Breakout sessions and optional activities on Friday and Saturday afternoons from participat-ing in UNC's Challenge Ropes course, ice skating, fly fishing, checking out the Kress Theatre, exploring Greeley’s museums, walking tour of historic downtown, riding the Poudre Trail, taking a relaxing yoga class, visit our Funplex Recreation Center, or if you are a model train buff, then you’ve got to visit the amazing interactive Greeley Freight Station Museum!

PAGE 3 DISTRICT GOVERNOR’S NEWSLETTER VOLUME 1, ISSUE 11

District Governor’s Message

On Saturday afternoon 1:30- 4:00 pm, if you’d like to get a free T-Shirt (see graphic design below) you can join our New Generations youth (Youth Exchange, RYLA, Interactors and Rotaractors) on a Habitat for Humanity project called “a brush

with kindness.” At 5:00 pm on Saturday the cash bars open at the UC Fireside Lounge. Then bid early and often at the Live and Silent Auc-

tions to End Polio. Finally give it a whirl on the dance floor from 9:30 pm - 11:30

pm starting with a Snow Ball Dance and ending with the singing of Auld Lang Syne. Music to be provided by Greeley’s own John Mills Orchestra! Where has this year gone? I can’t believe June will be my last monthly newsletter!

Carolyn, our family & I welcome you & thank you for helping us to celebrate a fantastic year at your very own District Conference 2011!

Greeley After Hours Bowlathon Huge Success! Renee Fielder & Steve Moreno were checking out the teams, while Carolyn Cooke & PE Kendall Alexander gave prizes for the team with the Highest Score, PP Karoline Woodruff’s

team won the prize for the Best Name “Adventures of Huckleberry Pin” and Cheri Todd’s team “Getcha Some” got

the prize for the Team with the Most Team Spirit! But the team that raised the Most Money was President Liz Clark’s

team! I’m told the fun afternoon raised close to $5000! Congratulations Greeley After hours Rotary Club!

PAGE 4 DISTRICT GOVERNOR’S NEWSLETTER VOLUME 1, ISSUE 11

This past summer, my wife and I decided to take a car trip from our home in Denver to Cody, Wyo. We had a wonderful time in Cody visiting my cousin, who was a Rotary Foundation Ambassadorial Scholar to France years ago. Coming over the Big Horn Mountains on our way home, we blew our transmission and lost third and fourth gears. We were able to limp into Buffalo, Wyo., in second gear. Fortunately, Buffalo (with a population of about 4,000) had an automotive repair shop on the outskirts of town. After searching the area for a compatible transmission for our car, we determined that our best choice was to pull the transmission and send it to Bill-ings, Mont., to be rebuilt. We were told that we could pick up our car in one to two weeks. The owner of the garage then drove us, including our small dog, to a motel and dropped use off. Now, how to get back to Denver, which was 400 miles away? All the rental car companies in the area wanted their cars back and wouldn’t allow us to drop the car in Denver. There was a taxi in town, but we were told that the maximum distance was 25 miles. The closest airport was in Gillette, and we had no way to get there. There was bus service to Denver, but no dogs were allowed. It was now getting dark, and the possibility of getting home anytime soon was looking bleak. The following morning, I spotted a sign that said the Rotary Club of Buffalo was meeting that day at a restau-rant about 100 yards from our motel. As it turned out, Bryan Cooke, District 5440 governor, and his wife, Carolyn, were making their annual visit that day. During the meeting, I asked the members if they had any ideas about how we could get to Cheyenne, about 300 miles away, where a friend could meet us and take us home to Denver. After the meeting, Bryan and Carolyn—she’s also a Rotarian—told me they would drive us to Cheyenne. They were spending the night in Buffalo and heading in the opposite direction the next day for another club visit. I said that represents a 600-mile round trip! They said, “That’s OK. We don’t have any-thing else to do this afternoon.” My wife and I will forever be grateful for their kindness. I am proud to be a Rotarian and will pay it forward for someone else when given the opportunity.

Rotarian Rescue By Bruce Yaple, Lakewood, Colo. Article courtesy of The Rotarian

PAGE 5 DISTRICT GOVERNOR’S NEWSLETTER VOLUME 1, ISSUE 11

We are at 69% (415) of our goal of having 600 attendees at the District Conference in Greeley May 12th – 14th. Tickets to the Elvis/Rotary End Polio Now Concert on Friday night May 13th are now available to the public. Encourage your family and friends who are not Rotarians to buy a ticket for $20 to support End Po-lio Now and enjoy an evening with Elvis! And you Rotarians who have not registered yet, you still have 15 days! A considerable amount of time has been spent and miles have been drive by the District Conference Planning Committee members, to make this the most well attended Rotary District 5440 Annual Conference ever. DG Bryan Cooke has spent countless hours, e-mails and phone calls to assemble an agenda with out-standing speakers, top notch entertainers, educational opportunities, a worthwhile community service project and free time activities for you to enjoy. Again, this could not have been accomplished without the service and dedication of 58 planning com-mittee members and the additional volunteers they recruited to make it all possible. During the Conference they will be wearing lanyards that identify them as DISTRICT CONFERENCE COMMITTEE. As you see them throughout the Conference, please take a minute to thank them for all of their time and effort they have put forth in planning and conducting this Conference. Thank you and make it a great District Conference!

Mark Wood, Chair, 2011 Rotary District 5440 Annual Conference Planning Committee

2011 Rotary District 5440 Conference by Mark Wood, Conference Chair

Assistant Governor~Phil Murphy

Phil was born in Worcester, Massachusetts and grew up in Webster where he graduated from Bartlett High. He went to Worcester Polytechnic Institute and received a degree in Chemical Engineering. In 1973, with an interest in natural resources, Phil attended the Uni-versity of Idaho where he received degrees in Forest Management and Statistics. After working for Weyerhauser, Phil and his wife Sara moved to Fort Collins in 1977 where he went to work for the Colorado State Forest Service, an agency of Colorado State Univer-sity. He presently is the Division Supervisor for Information Technology at CSFS. Phil and Sara have been married for 35 years and have two children. His daughter, Libby, is a first grade teacher in Douglas County, and his son, Matt, works for Chase Bank in Windsor and is also a member of the Fort Collins Breakfast Rotary Club. Phil and Sara

have one grandchild, Jake. Phil joined the Fort Collins Breakfast Rotary Club in December 1989. He was the Club treasurer for 14 years and has served on almost every committee in the Club. He became President for RY 2006-2007 and this is his third year as As-sistant Governor. In addition, he also is involved with the District’s Rotary Leadership Institute and Visioning as part of the Training Committee. AG Phil’s Clubs include the four Fort Collins Clubs and Windsor. The Clubs have been very effective in working together in the Northern Colorado area to promote Rotary and the Polio program. The Clubs just complete a bowling fund raiser for polio where they brought in over $10,000. In addition, the four Fort Collins Clubs are working together on the Fort Collins Peach Festival, a new fund raiser in the community. The Clubs have also been very active through the Future Vision Pilot Project for The Rotary Foundation, by applying for and receiving District grant funds for several projects.

Upcoming EventsUpcoming EventsUpcoming EventsUpcoming Events

• 5/12/11 - RLI Courses - Location TBD

• 5/12/11-5/14/11 District Conference

Greeley, CO

• 5/21/11-5/25/11- RI Convention, New Orleans

PAGE 6 DISTRICT GOVERNOR’S NEWSLETTER VOLUME 1, ISSUE 11

Richard Kemme Receives Zone 27 Award Submitted by RRFC Bill Pettus

Richard J. Kemme, MD of the Rotary Club of Greeley, CO, District 5440, recently received the Zone 27 Global Alumni Service to Humanity Award. Dr. Kemme is a long time supporter of hu-manitarian projects having been actively involved with such or-ganizations as Habitat for Humanity, the Sports Center for Dis-abled Skiers, the Advisory Committee for the Monfort Children’s Clinic, and the High Plains Housing Corporation. As an orthopedic surgeon, he has traveled to Malawi, Africa to perform surgeries and train Malawi surgeons in orthopedic proce-dures. He has also sponsored a micro-enterprise village bank pro-ject in Malawi. He currently partners with the Gates Foundation on an experimental AIDS prevention education program in Malawi. He has also served in western India as a monitor of polio correc-tive surgery projects.

Melodrama pays off for two

charities By Doug Fox, Estes Park Rotary Club

(ESTES PARK) – Representatives from Life-long Learning of Estes Valley and Estes Valley Victim Advocates collected checks for $2,661.50 each at church services at Presbyterian Community Church of the Rockies on Palm Sunday. Those two charities were the designated groups to receive all the proceeds from the recent melodrama, “The Great Estes Park Land Grab” or “There’s Not a Ghost of a Chance It Happened This Way.” “We had five performances and all but one of them was a sellout this year,” said a proud Ginger Wilkinson, co-chair of Back Pew Creations, which stages the melodrama each year. “We couldn’t be more pleased with how the community showed up and bought tickets, and now we come to the fun part – giving out the money raised by the play.” Betty Meyer and Mary Mesropian of Victim Advocates and Nancy John-son from Lifelong Learning of Estes Valley were on hand to receive the checks from Rich Mitchell, who wrote the play and played the role of Duke Dudraven, and Marc and Mandy Gallavotti and their two children, Anthony and Micayla, who also acted in the melodrama. The Galavottis have been actors in every one of the six melodramas staged at the church, but this is their last year because they’re moving to the Fort Collins area. “I don’t know what we’re going to do without them next year,” said director Barb Cole. “They have been such steady, dependable and marvelous actors each year. They are really going to be missed.”

PAGE 7 DISTRICT GOVERNOR’S NEWSLETTER VOLUME 1, ISSUE 11

Distinguished UW Alumnus

Rotarian and PDG Bill Pettus was recently named Distinguished Alumnus by the Uni-versity of Wyoming School of Education. Pettus was cited for his thirty-five year career in California which included leadership positions in three different school districts. While in the Norwalk-La Mirada School District he was among the first counselors selected to work with intermediate age students. Later, he went to Rim of the World School District in San Bernardino County where he led the development of a complete special education program in a district which was not yet compliant with state regulations. In that position he also was active in supporting federal legislation to provide services to all special needs children. There he also served as high school principal when the superintendent appointed him and told him to "clean up the mess at that site." Pettus led the school to Honorable Mention, Distinguished School status in just one year. After serving a number of years as an assistant superintendent in that district, he became Superintendent of Mariposa County Unified School District near Yosemite National Park. Here he took the lead in turning a district around which had serious financial, political and policy problems. He brought the district

from a million dollar deficit to a positive financial situation and also had four Distinguished Schools named during his tenure. Pettus' award at UW also cited his involvement in Rotary and specifically mentioned travels to South Africa,

Membership at the Fore By Pat Butts, District Membership Chair

The recent Assembly in Laramie attracted energetic, enthusiastic, and dynamic Rotarians and bodes well for the future of District 5440. During the “Membership Opportunities” breakout participants actively molded a member-ship mantra. When asked what one word represented their clubs, words like hands on, active, effective, energetic, giving, pillar, fun and vibrant popped out. When asked to list three things that make a great club, they came up with

1. effective communication 2. efficient follow up 3. keep every member active 4. seek younger members 5. maintain diversity of age 6. establish a continuous process for recruitment and retention 7. educate, educate, educate As you presidents look to your year, perhaps the most important position in your club will be that of Membership Chair. Select someone who understands and supports the “membership mantra” and who will focus on the ele-ments of membership that will help your club grow and prosper. Your membership chair may well be the key to your club’s future!

Kellie Tovar 3729 W. 22nd Street Greeley, CO 80634 Rotary5440@yahoo.com 970-506-1036

ROTARY INTERNATIONAL DISTRICT 5440, INC. OFFICE

Judy TeSelle P.O. Box 755 Windsor, CO 80550 Judy55454@aol.com 307-259-5028

Service Above Self

We’re on the Web!

www.rotary5440.org

Rotary International

NEWSLETTER EDITOR

Mar. - 11 Mar. - 11 July - 10 Change Change Mar. – 11 Mar. - 11 July - 10 Change Change ROTARY CLUB Attendance Members Members YTD Per Mth ROTARY CLUB Attendance Members Members YTD Per Mth Buffalo 60.00 31 31 0 0 Lander 58.90 69 66 +3 +1 Casper 51.75 180 181 -1 -2 Laramie 45.00 101 102 -1 +2 Casper 5 Trails 51.13 54 60 -6 -2 Laramie Sunrise 68.00 27 28 -1 -2 Cheyenne Not Rep’d 211 205 +6 0 Loveland 75.10 162 167 -5 +3 Cheyenne Sunrise 80.57 36 34 +2 +1 Loveland Mtn View 60.20 36 43 -7 -4 Cody 57.00 80 81 -1 0 Loveland TV 69.54 35 33 +2 0 Craig 63.00 19 21 -2 0 Morrill Not Rep’d 19 20 -1 0 Douglas Not Rep’d 30 33 -3 0 Powell 57.00 25 32 -7 0 Estes Park 90.40 123 133 -10 -1 Ranchester/Dayton Not Rep’d 21 23 -2 0 Estes Park-Long’s Peak Not Rep’d 21 20 +1 0 Rawlins 49.29 29 32 -3 0 Estes Valley Sunrise 76.81 69 64 +5 0 Riverton 49.02 51 57 -6 -1 Evanston 70.00 48 46 +2 +3 Rock Springs 56.00 32 27 +5 +4 Ft. Collins 70.20 162 187 -25 0 Scottsbluff/Gering 43.42 111 112 -1 -2 Ft. Collins After Work Not Rep’d 20 20 0 0 Sedgwick County Not Rep’d 30 27 +3 0 Ft. Collins Breakfast 87.60 77 76 -1 -1 Sheridan 52.70 125 126 -1 +1 Ft. Collins Foothills 60.00 107 105 +2 +3 Ski Town, USA 77.50 30 27 +3 0 Gillette 40.91 66 67 -1 +1 Star Valley Not Rep’d 13 18 -5 0 Gillette-Energy Not Rep’d 52 52 0 0 Steamboat Springs 78.09 89 85 +4 +5 Greeley Not Rep’d 141 147 -6 0 Sterling 51.67 36 37 -1 0 Greeley After Hours Not Rep’d 19 19 0 0 Teton Valley 54.05 31 41 -10 -1 Greeley Centennial 61.29 104 104 0 -1 Thermopolis 57.00 31 31 0 0 Greeley Redeye Not Rep’d 28 32 -4 0 Torrington 64.93 67 65 +2 +3 High Plains (Eaton) Not Rep’d 22 29 -7 0 Windsor 59.00 32 32 0 -1 Jackson Hole Not Rep’d 197 198 -1 0 Worland 66.00 37 39 -2 0 Jackson Breakfast 57.00 14 14 0 0 Jackson Supper 58.60 45 38 +7 +2 Johnstown/Milliken 77.42 25 20 +5 -1 Kemmerer 70.00 25 24 +1 0 TOTALS 3245 3311 -66 +10

Club Attendance and Membership - March, 2011

2011 District Conference online

registration is now available at

www.rotary5440.org