A few weeks ago Morrison Rotarian Dr. Dick Vandermyde introduced Christopher Stein, Chief, Heritage Areas and Large Landscape Initiatives National Park Service, Interior Regions 3- 5. Christopher introduced our Rotary Club to the Bee and Butterfly Fund Seed a Legacy program. He discussed how dependent on bees, butterflies and other insects to pollinate plants to provide the foods we eat every day. Christopher noted “One out of every three bites of food you eat exists because of the efforts of pollinators, including many fruits, vegetables, and seeds. Pollinators not only are necessary for our own food, but support the food and habitat of animals” In addition he noted “In the United States alone, pollination by honey bees contributed to over $19 billion of crop production in 2010, while pollination by other insect pollinators contributed to nearly $10 billion of crop production”

In June of 2020 the Rotary International Board of Directors and the The Rotary Foundation Trustees added “supporting the environment” as the 7th Area of Focus. Rotary Board members established a collaborative effort known as Operation Pollination. Operation Pollination recognizes the importance of pollinator habitat both restored and maintained on public and private lands.  Through collaboration and outreach, an interconnected mosaic of pollinator habitat interspersed between public and private land will be developed to stabilize and/or increase populations of pollinator species throughout your project area.

The Morrison Rotary Club agreed to join Operation Pollination as their 2021-22 project. The club wrote a District matching grant to fund the project. The Morrison Club voted to contribute $500 toward the project which was double-matched by our local 6420 District. The Morrison City Council agreed to donate up to an acre of land located at Waterworks Park on West Winfield St. An environmentally friendly herbicide was applied to remove grass and weeds from the site. Morrison resident Ron Shank plowed the area in October 2021. He plowed it again in April 2022. Next a grant was written to the Bee and Butterfly Fund Seed a Legacy program for seeds that are native to both bee and butterfly pollinators. Many thanks to Elsa Gallagher for providing 17 lbs. of a variety of clover, lavender hyssop, lemon mint, coneflowers, goldenrod and blackeyed susan seeds at no cost to our club. The garden was planted in late April. A sign was erected to commemorate the Morrison Rotary Clubs dedication to the preservation of pollinators in our area. Many thanks to Christopher Stein, Elsa Gallagher of the BBHF, Dr. Vandermyde for his vision, plus Morrison Rotarians and Rotary District 6420 for providing funds to make this vision a reality!

 

A few weeks ago Morrison Rotarian Dr. Dick Vandermyde introduced Christopher Stein, Chief, Heritage Areas and Large Landscape Initiatives National Park Service, Interior Regions 3- 5. Christopher introduced our Rotary Club to the Bee and Butterfly Fund Seed a Legacy program. He discussed how dependent on bees, butterflies and other insects to pollinate plants to provide the foods we eat every day. Christopher noted “One out of every three bites of food you eat exists because of the efforts of pollinators, including many fruits, vegetables, and seeds. Pollinators not only are necessary for our own food, but support the food and habitat of animals” In addition he noted “In the United States alone, pollination by honey bees contributed to over $19 billion of crop production in 2010, while pollination by other insect pollinators contributed to nearly $10 billion of crop production”

In June of 2020 the Rotary International Board of Directors and the The Rotary Foundation Trustees added “supporting the environment” as the 7th Area of Focus. Rotary Board members established a collaborative effort known as Operation Pollination. Operation Pollination recognizes the importance of pollinator habitat both restored and maintained on public and private lands.  Through collaboration and outreach, an interconnected mosaic of pollinator habitat interspersed between public and private land will be developed to stabilize and/or increase populations of pollinator species throughout your project area.

The Morrison Rotary Club agreed to join Operation Pollination as their 2021-22 project. The club wrote a District matching grant to fund the project. The Morrison Club voted to contribute $500 toward the project which was double-matched by our local 6420 District. The Morrison City Council agreed to donate up to an acre of land located at Waterworks Park on West Winfield St. An environmentally friendly herbicide was applied to remove grass and weeds from the site. Morrison resident Ron Shank plowed the area in October 2021. He plowed it again in April 2022. Next a grant was written to the Bee and Butterfly Fund Seed a Legacy program for seeds that are native to both bee and butterfly pollinators. Many thanks to Elsa Gallagher for providing 17 lbs. of a variety of clover, lavender hyssop, lemon mint, coneflowers, goldenrod and blackeyed susan seeds at no cost to our club. The garden was planted in late April. A sign was erected to commemorate the Morrison Rotary Clubs dedication to the preservation of pollinators in our area. Many thanks to Christopher Stein, Elsa Gallagher of the BBHF, Dr. Vandermyde for his vision, plus Morrison Rotarians and Rotary District 6420 for providing funds to make this vision a reality!

 

 

 Pictured here is sponsor Ellen Smith placing a Rotary pin on the lapel of new member Lynette Damhoff. Also pictured is president Scott Vandermyde who administered the new member oath. We are grateful to have Lynette in our club!

Our March Students of the Month are Macy Williamson and Brady Wolf.

Macy is the daughter of Larry and Judy Heath. She is a senior at MHS. She is actively involved in Student Council, Key Club, and the B.L.I.N.D program where she is a leader. She also serves as the student director of the upcoming Drama performance.  She loves to teach kids how to dance at Jennifer’s Dance Center.  Her hobbies are Dance, Art, Reading and Writing. Her future goals are to attend Coe College in Cedar Rapids with a double major in Psychology and Sociology. She will obtain her masters to work as a therapist with troubled youth and/or recovering addicts. Eventually she would like to open a non-profit community center for children and teens!

Brady is the son of Ben and Alisa Wolf and the grandson of Dr. B.J Wolf, former superintendent of Rock Falls Schools. Brady is active in Student Council, the B.L.I.N.D program, Track and Field, Basketball and Cross Country. He also volunteers to collect supplies for nursing homes and food for local food drives. He loves to run, lift weights, working on cars and driving drag cars. He plans to attend U.W. Platteville to obtain a bachelor’s degree in mechanical engineering with a minor in biomedical engineering.

 

The Morrison Rotary Club honored 2 students of the month for February. Seniors Mae Li and Allison Taylor took a few minutes to talk about their school experiences and share future plans.

Her actual name is Rongxuan Li. Her guardian is George Pelka. Mae came to Morrison 3 years ago. She noted that everyone in Morrison knows everyone so she decided to change that. NO one knew her when she came. During her 3 years at MCH she has participated in track and field and swimming. She said that she was taught swimming when her mom tossed her in the pool and told her to swim. Teaching techniques have advanced through the years. She loves to play tennis, ride bikes, read and go to movies. She noted in China there is more focus on academics so she was excited to be able to participate in sports. She loves to volunteer at the local alpaca farm. Future plans are to attend Sauk Valley College and then move onto a 4 year school with the final goal to be a math teacher.

Allison’s parents are Kevin and Michelle Taylor. She has lived in Morrison since about 3^rd grade. She loves to attend Emmanuel Church youth activities and she has participated in mission trips. She loves to travel, dance and spend time with friends and family. She is president of the Key Club and is a member of the National Honor Society. She has also been a cheerleader for both football and basketball. Her future plans are to attend Wartburg College in Waverly IA and major in Business Marketing.