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Stories
The Next Meeting:
When: Friday, February 9th, 2018
Where: The Lansing Center
Speaker: Mark Alley, VP Global Protective Services
Topic: "Security:  It's as Easy as 1-2-3"
Chair of the Day: Anne Cauley
Invocator: Teresa Kmetz
Chair of the Month: Anne Cauley
Greeters: Kurt Hanus & Justin Caine
Remembrance: Dick Ammons
Microphone: Lisa Smith
Editarian: Pam Miklavcic
 
Biography for Mike Yankowski, Chief of Police LPD
In 2013, Mike Yankowski was named Chief of Police for the Lansing Police Department (LPD). He has been with the LPD since 1994, serving as a Police Officer, Canine Handler, and Field Training Officer. In 2001, he was promoted to the rank of Sergeant where he was assigned to road patrol and served as LPD’s Canine Unit Supervisor. In 2007, he was promoted again, this time to the rank of Lieutenant where he supervised the night shift road patrol. In 2008, he was assigned to manage the Internal Affairs Unit. Promoted in March 2010 to the rank of Captain, Chief Yankowski was assigned to lead the South Precinct. Shortly after taking the helm of the South Precinct, he was tasked with the consolidation of the North and South Precincts into one operation.
 
Chief Yankowski was instrumental in developing and executing the implementation of the Data Driven Approach to Crime and Traffic Safety (DDACTS), Gang Resistance Education and Training (G.R.E.A.T.), Capitol Area Violent Crime Initiative (VCI), Crisis Intervention Teams (CIT), and Body Worn Camera Program at the LPD. He recently spearheaded efforts to establish an Advocates and Leaders for Police and Community Trust (ALPACT) program in Metro Lansing for which he serves as the Co-Chair.
 
Chief Yankowski has been instrumental in securing collaborative partnerships with the Michigan State Police (MSP) Secure Cities and the Department of Justice National Public Safety Partnership (PSP) for the Lansing Police Department.
 
Chief Yankowski graduated from Ferris State University as a student athlete (Football) in 1994 where he earned his Bachelor’s Degree in Criminal Justice. In 2017, he received the college’s Criminal Justice Distinguished Alumni Award. He is a graduate of the Michigan State University School of Staff and Command where he was named Class President of the Fourth Class.
 
Chief Yankowski is a member of the International Association of Chiefs of Police (IACP), Police Research Executive Forum (PERF), and Michigan Association for Chiefs of Police (MACP). In 2016, he was appointed to the Michigan Citizen-Community Emergency Response Coordination Council (MCCERCC) by Governor Rick Snyder, and in 2017, he was appointed a member of the Michigan Commission on Law Enforcement Standards (MCOLES) Recruiting Task Force. Chief Yankowski is also a member of the Ingham County Opiate Task Force.
 
In addition to these memberships and appointments, Chief Yankowski is a board member of the following organizations:
  • Greater Lansing Old Newsboys Organization
  • Y.M.C.A. Lansing Chapter
  •  H.O.P.E. Scholarship
  •  Promise Scholarship
  •  Partners in Crisis
  •  Lansing Safety Council
  •  Ferris State Criminal Justice Advisory Board
  •  Mid-Michigan Police Academy Advisory Board.
Call for Story Tellers!
In the Rotogram’s continuing effort to make Rotary relevant, the powers that be were approached by one Mark Hooper (you know, the guy who can count, sing and who introduced spooning to Rotary) with an interesting idea. Mark heard an editarian tell some tall tales one Friday and suggested, “Hey, what about a Mystery Rotarian story where a Rotarian’s story is written up in the Rotogram and people have to guess who the Rotarian is?” I thought the idea had merit and if it didn’t I could throw Hooper under the bus (win!).
 
So, here’s how it works: you all have interesting stories that none of us know, but that could possibly shed light on who you are and help the rest of us get to know you better. Since most of us live lives of quiet misery, I’ll of course juice up your story a bit, adding just enough flavor to make your life sound interesting (with your permission and final edit sayso). Stories would be one paragraph long (just a bit longer than this blurb), published in the Rotogram and then let the guessing games begin! Guessing would be conducted online through the Lansing Rotary FaceBook page, with the Rotarian who correctly identifies the Mystery Rotarian winning something, I don’t know, maybe a gallon of paint from O’Leary or a spoon from Hooper. “What can my story be about?” you ask? How should I know, they’re your stories. But, suggested story lines could include: working on mysteries without any clues; road trips; my dinner with Salvador Dali; my life as a Tibetan Monk. Anyway, if interested, contact schumacher@glassenrhead.com we’ll write one up and see if there’s any interest. If this falls flat, we’ll know who to blame (Hooper).
February Birthdays
Owen, StevenFeb 09
Stiles, CraigFeb 09
Calverley, StevenFeb 10
Culberson, EdFeb 15
Schuon, RickFeb 15
Cauley, AnneFeb 19
Sheehan, JustinFeb 19
Springer, DawnFeb 19
Umakanthan, UmaFeb 19
Hess, MatthewFeb 20
Sanborn, DianeFeb 24
Dear Fellow Rotarians,
One hundred thirteen years ago this month, the four members of Rotary's first club held their first meeting.  Although no minutes were kept, it's unlikely anyone talked about service; the club did not begin focusing on the needs of the community for another few years.
 
The meeting was held not in a hotel or a restaurant, but in a member's office; there were, so far as we know, no agendas or announcements, no committee reports, speakers, or nametags.  The meeting would have failed today's usual standards for a productive Rotary meeting most resoundingly.  it was, of course, the most productive Rotary meeting ever held.
 
Today, as in 1905, many of us come to Rotary seeking what Paul Harris sought:  friendship, connections, a place to feel at home.  But today, Rotary gives us so much more than it could every have given its earliest members in those earliest days.  The Rotary of today, more than 1.2 million members strong, lets us feel at home not only in a small group of our peers, but also in our diverse clubs, across our communities, and indeed throughout the world.  Today, Rotary connects us all in a way that Paul Harris could never have dreamed on that February evening so long ago.  Not only can we go anywhere in the world there is a Rotary club and feel at home, but we can reach out to anywhere in the world there is a Rotary club and make a difference.
 
In the 113 years since that first meeting, Rotary has become far larger, and more diverse, than those founding members could have conceived.  We have gone from an organization that was all white and all male to one that welcomes women and men of every possible background.  We have become an organization whose stated purpose is service, reflected in our motto, Service Above Self.  And we have become not only an organization that is capable of changing the world, but one that has already done so, through our work to eradicate polio.
 
None of us can know what lies ahead for Rotary.  It remains for all of us to continue to build on the solid foundations that were laid for us by Paul Harris and his friends:  to forge and strengthen the bonds of service and friendship through Rotary:  Making a Difference.
 
Ian H. S. Riseley
President, Rotary International
Letter appeared in The Rotarian, February Issue
New Members Proposed

The following proposed member has emailed their application to the office.  If anyone has a comment on this proposed member please forward it in writing within ten days to the Rotary office, before approval by the board of directors.  Thank you

  • Paul Jaques, Director of Student & Community Engagement with Spartan Innovations, sponsored by Mark Hooper
Editarian Report for January 26, 2018
President Brewster called the meeting to order, Scott Duimstra gave the invocation referencing the wise words of Dr. Martin Luther King, and Mark Hooper led the assembled in an acapella patriotic song in the key of F.
 
Maria Lenz led the introduction of guests and visiting Rotarians; Pat Munshaw shared the health of the club is good.
 
Melissa Nay announced Jeff Crippen as the Social media #LansingRotary winner of the week, citing his tag to Crippen Cars as the deal-clincher. Get your businesses involved, people! And, don’t forget to see Cathy if you want tickets to see the Blackhorn Celtic Band on March 25th, which the EL Rotary Club is putting on to benefit the Weekend Survival Kit program.
 
Sarah Garcia welcomed everyone to the Accident Fund headquarters, which used to be a power plant for the Board of Water & Light. They transformed the brownfield/contaminated site into a LEED Gold Certified building on the registry of National Historic Places. They opened 7 years ago with 500 employees and now have about 800. Sarah then took advantage of her podium time to give her new member presentation. We learned that Ms. Garcia (pronounced Gar-sha) had been a guest of several Rotarians over the years - Scott Burgess, John Cauley, and her sponsor, Michelle Reynaert. Sarah grew up in Holt, MI, the only daughter of Jerry and Billie Dowell. Her father was a member of Holt Rotary; her parents ran Ashland Oil. She has two brothers, Bill and Alan. The loss of her father to a heart attack when she was two years old taught her loss and survival; her mother led by example, bouncing back stronger and going on to hold a few state and township roles before she bought Lamberts Bridal Shop in downtown Lansing, which was in business for almost 10 years. There, Sarah learned business management, merchandising, managing employees, and sales. She has an Associate degree in Merchandise Management and a Bachelor's degree in Human Resource Management. Sarah worked for Senator Miller, Senator Dingell, and Governor Granholm. She was 11 months into her role as the Deputy Director of IT & Operations when her mom passed away suddenly of a heart attack/brain bleed. Channeling all her mom taught her, she continued to move up and along in her professional career, serving as Deputy Cabinet Secretary, and Residence Manager. Her state seal signed by Governor Granholm says “you turned on and off the lights”. She started at AF in 2011 to help with the move and grand opening, going on to become the Community Relations Specialist. She’s recently promoted, building her department, and growing the impact of AF Group employees via Caring & Sharing, volunteer hours and more. Sarah has been married to her husband, Joe Garcia, for 18 years; she has 4 step-children, 4 grandchildren, and one spoiled yellow lab. She and Joe enjoy spending time in Pentwater, at the home her mother bought when Sarah was 7. She is proud to be a Rotarian and reminds us all to tell the ones you love how much they mean to you.
 
President Brewster presented Sarah with her Blue badge, and introduced Paul Dankert for the January Birthday announcement. Paul, who rode his motorcycle in the gorgeous day’s weather, shared that 11 of 16 Rotarians have given $1,000 so far. He shared a few weird quirks of the January bday people, who are apparently an odd group. Singing ensued. There seemed to be cupcakes; I had a cookie.
 
Joe Garcia (Gar-see-ah), thanked everyone for supporting the food and other wish list items of Cristo Rey.
 
Bob Hoffman, chair of the month and day, introduced his Wharton Center colleague, Diane Wilcox, Director of Marketing & Communications. She talked a little bit about the productions they put on stage, but more about the programs they do for the community. They host broadway, dance, music, comedy and more. They offer space to the Lansing Symphony Orchestra, the MSU College of Music and the MSU Dept of Theater. They host 280 events/year, most of which occur Sept-June. They are Michigan’s busiest performing arts center, and the highest rated university presenter in the nation. Their patrons, plus Wharton and the visiting crews were responsible for driving more than $602Million of Economic Impact in the last decade. Performing Arts enrich life, increasing vocabulary, tolerance, empathy, social skills and academic abilities of children. The Wharton Center Institute for Arts & Creativity, supported by MSUFCU, offers lots of great Children’s programming, including Take it From the Top, summer theater, school & family shows, arts programming in Lansing and Flint public schools for 3rd-5th graders, and impacts a total of 30,000 ppl/year. They accommodate limited mobility (their new seats endeavor will double wheel-chair capacity), sign language, infrared hearing systems, large print programs for the visually impaired and even audio-described Broadway performances. Now they are also at the forefront of an important movement via their Sensory-Friendly Performances - 3 this year, 4 next year, and more to come - which have the needs of people with autism as a starting point, not an afterthought. The stats for those with ASD - Autism Spectrum Disorder - are staggering; A new case every 15 minutes, 1 in 68 births, and 50% of births by 2025 are projected to be neuro diverse, meaning they have a different way of experiencing the world, facing challenges from lights to noises, smells, textures, crowds, spaces, and more. Wharton has created online resources and advance descriptions - including a photo narrative - of what to expect at the theater, ensuring families feel welcomed and comfortable at every step, from arrival and beyond. They offer this program with the help of specially trained volunteers and subsidized tickets, graciously supported by donors, which they offer to organizations like Mid-Michigan Autism Association, Peckham, the Autism Alliance of MI and more. This ensures that families can enjoy Wharton Center together. Wharton is only the 5th market in the country to do a sensory-friendly performance of Lion King! Diane gave kudos to Julie Pingston and the GLCVB for their support and encouragement of an entire community effort to welcome families to our region - Lion King weekend is now Lansing Welcome Weekend to so many people from beyond our region. Learn more at Whartoncenter.com/SFP or contact the Wharton Center to learn how you can help continue to make programming like this continue.
 
President Brewster presented Ms. Wilcox with a coin featuring the Rotary 4-way test and noted a gift will be made in her name to support the Bio Sand Water Filter project - providing clean water in developing countries.
 
Next week’s meeting will be at the University Club (the Lansing Country Club is closed in January & February); the speaker will be Mike Yankowski, Chief of Lansing Police, who will speak about Policing Metro Lansing’s Opioid Epidemic. Anne Cauley is program chair for February. The meeting adjourned.
 
Michelle Reynaert's email is:  michelle.reynaert@sparrow.org
Speakers
Feb 16, 2018
"Hunger in Our Community: Who It Impacts and What Can We Do About It?"
Feb 23, 2018
at the Lansing Center
Mar 02, 2018
at the Country Club of Lansing
View entire list
Rotary Club of Lansing
P. O. Box 13156
Lansing, MI   48901-3156