Rotary Club of Joliet, IL

The Rotary Club of Joliet was privileged to have Jeff Molby who presented “Chemo Riders: A Rotary Journey of Hope”. The American Cancer Society connects people who need rides to their oncology appointments and Jeff has been riding his bike around the country in search of drivers. Https://chemoriders.org for more information on how you can volunteer.

Joliet Rotarian Shameco Moore received her Red Badge on Tuesday from President Pete Colarelli and Membership Coordinator Brianne Hetman. This means that Shameco is an official member and in one year can receive her Blue Badge.

Joliet Rotarian Shameco Moore received her Blue Badge from President Pete Colarelli and Membership Coordinator Brianne Hetman. Rotarians get their Blue Badge after one year of being a Red Badge and completing orientation.

The Joliet Rotary Club showed up strong for Channahon's Three Rivers Festival Special Needs Day

There's no better feeling than coming together with other community members, businesses, and organizations to support such an important cause!

The Rotary Club of Joliet was thrilled to give $27,873.00 of our raffle money to Joliet’s Belmont Little League to help replace their fence. Pictured here from left to right in the front row from Belmont’s Board of Directors, Esmeralda DeLuna, Secretary, Alberto Vargas, President, Juan Martinez, Sponsor Manager, Rotarian Mary Kay Sheehan, Maribel Bedolla Belmont’s Board Treasurer and Silvia Onate, VP of the Challenges Program. The back row are Rotarians Jane Condon, Matt Dollinger, Chief Jeff Carey and Megan Millen. Also pictured is community paramedic Brian Hertzmann who with Chief Carey identified this project for Rotary to sponsor. You can see the fence which will be replaced.

On July 16th, President Elect Megan Millen welcomed Patrick Harbour Sr., Zach Harbour and Ragan Pattison from Harbour Contractors for an update on the Joliet Arsenal Development history and progress.

The Rotary Club of Joliet was honored to have District Governor Rachel Ossyra speak to us today about the vision for Rotary this year-making magic happen. Rachel is pictured here with Bonnie Sanchez-Carlson, next year’s District Governor and Joliet Club President Pete Colarelli.

What a night for all who came out to our Vision Session to plot our Club’s course for 2024-2025…and beyond!

Thank you to Rotarian Damon Zdunich for opening up the doors to Bishops Hill Winery for the perfect setting and tasty hors d'oeuvres to complement the award-winning wine selection.

We accomplished much and are excited about our future - in Vino Veritas!

The Rotary Club of Joliet was happy to give out the first of our raffle proceeds to the Alano Club of Joliet which holds AA, Narcotics Anonymous and Al-Anon meetings among many other support groups. With just over $12,000, the Alano Club will be able to provide part of a new roof and a sign to identify the new building where they hold meetings. Pictured are Rotarians Pete Paros, Diane Cepela, Mary Kay Sheehan and Tracy Simons along with Alano Club’s Board Secretary, Kallan Dee Elias.

Come on out!

2024 Rotary Special Needs Day at Channahon's Three Rivers Festival!
PRE-REGISTRATION REQUIRED by August 2nd

Groups/Organizations register here: https://forms.gle/cPJ74nxKo7S9EGPe7

Individuals register here: https://forms.gle/suTuREkjqoL7ZgdQ8

Questions? Email us at [email protected]

Happy Independence Day from the Rotary Club of Joliet!

Time for the passing of the torch!

Congratulations to Rotary Club of Joliet, IL’s 2024-2025 President, Pete Colarelli and our incoming Board of Directors, who were installed this week!

Special thanks to Mary Kay Sheehan, who served as our Past President and will be leaving the Board, for her leadership.

As we mentioned last week, Diane McMahon Cepela did an incredible job as our 2023-2024 President and will be moving into the role of Past President.

Outgoing Rotary Club of Joliet President Diane Cepela offered her final remarks at last week’s meeting. We are grateful for all that Diane has done to serve our Club over the past year - she has created a strong foundation for us to build upon!

Rotarian Mike Hennessy announced our Annual Fund results at the meeting, raising over $15k, with an additional $5.7k raised for Polio Plus.

Finally, Mike recognized our 70 Paul Harris Fellows (many are pictured below), and celebrated over $580k in donations to the Rotary International Foundation, dating back to 1985!

Now that our weather is looking good, you may be looking for some ways to enjoy our great outdoors. Tara Neff, Executive Director for The Nature Foundation of Will County, showcased some of the incredible amenities available to us this summer (and for all seasons) through her organization.

Honorary Rotarian Will County Executive Jennifer Bertino-Tarrant and Mike Theodore, her Communications Director and member of the Chicago Lakeview Rotary Club, were on hand to hear the story as well.

Thanks to Rotarian Troy Cicero from MulticultuReal Communications for providing an update on DEI to our Club and for showcasing innovative ways to implement inclusive work environments in our businesses and organizations.

Rotarians are People of Action!

Rotary Club of Joliet, IL planted several trees today at the National Hookup of Black Women to enhance their community garden and recreational walkway.

One of the plantings had special significance, as a large Oak tree was installed in memory of Rotarian and NHBW benefactor, the late Ruth Colby. A bench will be placed under the Oak at a later date.

We remember those who sacrificed and served.

Rotarian Dan Kuska led an interesting discussion at this week’s meeting, highlighting the challenges that not-for-profits face when trying to raise money.

ATTENTION NURSING, PRE-MED, CNA, PA, NP, SOCIAL WORKER, RADIOLOGY, LAB TECHNICIAN, ANY HEALTH CARE COLLEGE STUDENTS!! Applications are now open until June 10th! $2400 scholarship available for students studying health care at Lewis University, Joliet Junior College and St. Francis University. One student from each school will be selected. Application on jolietrotary.com or contact [email protected]

If you or someone you know is struggling with mental health, you can find help at Rosecrance Behavioral Health. Allison Thomas was on hand at this week’s meeting to showcase all that Rosecrance does to eliminate stigma, raise awareness, and increase access to mental health treatment.

We also welcomed our JTHS Entrepreneur students for one last visit before the end of the school year, and met our Students of the Month, Emerson Ziesmer (JCA) and Ashley Klinder (JJC).

So many great causes!

Representatives from the Belmont Little League, Alano Club, Joliet American Legion Band, and St. Mary Nativity made presentations to the Joliet Rotary Club, seeking support for their organizations.

Our members will vote and the winner will receive up to $40,000 in a grant from our annual raffle - stay tuned!

In other news, Michael Merritt and Jeff Carey received their Blue Badges this week, and we also welcomed Joliet Central High School Senior Juan Guevara as our Student of the Month.

Juan would like to study Finance and Computer Science and is deciding between JJC and Lewis University for his undergrad degree.

We all learned something new about John Spesia, Deb Condotti, and Jeff Pearson during their Blue Badge presentations this week.

Speaking of Blue Badges, Lisa Sampalis and Erik Schelling received theirs this week!

We also welcomed three inspiring students from the JTHS Entrepreneurial Program: Jowell Maldonado, Lucia Centeno, and Shakira Onate.

The Rotary Club of Joliet is now accepting applications for students at Joliet Junior College, University of St. Francis and Lewis University who are enrolled in a program related to healthcare. This scholarship program is in memory of Dr. Paul Morimoto, a beloved Joliet ophthalmologist and proud Joliet Rotarian because of a generous gift set up by his family. The scholarship this year is $2,423.00 for a student at each college! Application can be found on our website jolietrotary.com and the deadline is May 31, 2024. For questions please contact Mary Kay Sheehan at [email protected].

Rotary Club of Joliet this week welcomed back Joliet Township High School Entrepreneurship students and their Coordinator Michelle Cottrell. Students Alondia Perez, Jalissa Blackwell, Jerman Rodriguez, Christian Garcia and Tyler Vinson actively participated in the Rotary meeting by making announcements, leading our Four Way Test and Sergeant at Arms. Our speaker was our own Ken Mihelich who reminded Rotarians of our responsibilities as sponsors.

Rotary Club of Joliet was proud to sponsor and attend the Top Student Banquet. Special thanks to Joliet Rotarian Mark Griglione for chairing the planning committee.

Just in time for beach season, Gloria Dollinger provided us with some tips on healthy eating to get us back into shape!

With Spring weather finally arriving, the Rotary Club of Joliet, IL enjoyed a presentation by Nancy Kuhajda, the University of Illinois Extension Program Coordinator for the areas of Agriculture and Natural Resources in Will County.

Nancy coordinates the Master Gardener, Master Naturalist and Master Composter Programs and shared all of the various partnerships she has developed with nonprofit and community organizations.

We also met our Students of the month: Truman Sowatzke (JJC), who will be furthering his education at Georgia Institute of Technology in technology or aerospace and Dillan Johnson (JCA), an NHS member who enjoys science and business.

The Rotary Club of Joliet had a social evening that included a tour of the Rialto where our own Mark Griglione played the organ!

Joliet Rotary Club had their final week of volunteering at the YMCA pool with Fairmount School. If you need a reason to join Rotary, this could be it!