Featured Speaker
Virginia McKenzie, President of Rotary Club of the Pacific Northwest Ending Sex Trafficking (April 29th)
Rotarians Stand Up Against Human Trafficking
Virginia McKenzie built her Rotary reputation on innovation. She joined Rotary 17 years ago. Originally a member of Seattle 4 Rotary, where she launched the Young Rotary Leaders Committee. Next, she launched Seattle City Rotaract, the first community based Rotaract Club in District 5030. Most recently she is the charter President of Rotary Club of the Pacific Northwest Ending Sex Trafficking. She’s been featured in the ROTARY Magazine three times for her successes in club expansion. We are very pleased to feature Virginia McKenzie at Bellevue Rotary Club today!
Upcoming Speakers
Recent Speakers
Club Updates
Another well attended Thirsty Thursday, with Ben and Michael Giving the Toast
468 Sandwiches of Service: Our First Rotaract/Interact Project for Union Gospel Mission
Our first Rotaract/Interact service project packed 468 peanut butter & jam sandwiches for Union Gospel Mission.
Past President Jemal and President Tom inspect a wonderful box of PB&J’s made by our Newport Interact team to help feed the homeless:
Group photo after assembling 480 sandwiches at Newport High School:
Tim McKey, chair of the program committee, demonstrates the result of strong arming people to be our lunch speakers.
Debbie Williams with guest, Lydia.
Future and past presidents Jeffrey and Steve…always tech ready!
Anna and Celia share the joy after a Tuesday meeting!
Chuck Doland is honored for his many contributions to our club, particularly Partners for Work.
Newest member Gabe Jakobson and daughter, Sydney.
April Rotary Anniversaries!
Join us in celebrating the remarkable dedication and service of our members as they mark their Rotary Anniversaries. These individuals have contributed their time and energy to make a positive impact in our community and beyond, embodying the true spirit of Rotary. Let’s take a moment to recognize their outstanding commitment and express our heartfelt gratitude for their unwavering support.
| Rotarian | Rotary Years |
|---|---|
| Sam Esayian | 42 |
| Ross Jacobson | 35 |
| Mike Hendrickson | 30 |
| Katherine Thompson | 29 |
| Eva Chiu | 24 |
| Ross Mclvor | 23 |
| Fred Auch | 13 |
| Steve McConnell | 13 |
| Fay Andersson | 7 |
| Kurt Ursich | 7 |
| Anna Flora | 6 |
| Nithya Gnanasekar | 1 |
| Dan Keating | 1 |
| Daniel Seydel | 1 |
April 2025 Calendar
Here are the items on the BRC Calendar for March:
- Apr 1 — First Day of National Autism Awareness Month
- Apr 1 — First Day of Rotary Maternal and Child Health Month
- Apr 1 — 10 AM World Community Service Committee Meeting
- Apr 1 — 12:30 PM BRC Lunch, In-person & virtual
- Apr 8 — 11 AM DEI Committee Meeting
- Apr 8 — 12:30 PM BRC Lunch, In-person
- Apr 15 — 12:30 PM BRC Lunch, In-person
- Apr 16 — 8 AM BRC Board Meeting
- Apr 17 — 6 PM Thirsty Thursday
- Apr 19 — Last Day of Passover
- Apr 20 — Easter
- Apr 22 — Earth Day
- Apr 22 — 12:30 PM BRC Lunch, In-person
- Apr 25 — National Arbor Day
- Apr 29 — 12:30 PM BRC Lunch, In-person
The Calendar includes some committee meetings, service events, and other BRC happenings. If you are a Committee Chair or Event Organizer, you can add your item to the calendar by filling out this form.
Book Group Discussion – May 14, 2025
The next Book Group meeting will be hybrid (in-person and by Zoom) on May 14, 2025, from 6:30 to 8:30 PM. Back again in our rotation is a non-fiction pick; this time it’s Revenge of the Tipping Point by Malcolm Gladwell.
Why is Miami…Miami? What does the heartbreaking fate of the cheetah tell us about the way we raise our children? Why do Ivy League schools care so much about sports? What is the Magic Third, and what does it mean for racial harmony? In this provocative new work, Malcolm Gladwell returns for the first time in twenty-five years to the subject of social epidemics and tipping points, this time with the aim of explaining the dark side of contagious phenomena.
Through a series of riveting stories, Gladwell traces the rise of a new and troubling form of social engineering. He takes us to the streets of Los Angeles to meet the world’s most successful bank robbers, rediscovers a forgotten television show from the 1970s that changed the world, visits the site of a historic experiment on a tiny cul-de-sac in northern California, and offers an alternate history of two of the biggest epidemics of our day: COVID and the opioid crisis. Revenge of the Tipping Point is Gladwell’s most personal book yet. With his characteristic mix of storytelling and social science, he offers a guide to making sense of the contagions of modern world. It’s time we took tipping points seriously.
“Rigorously researched—but always with a witty flair—its’ a must-read for longtime Gladwell fans or readers simply curious about the quiet, surprising origin stories of the crises and questions that define contemporary life.” Francesca Billington, Oprah Daily
“Gladwell is a great storyteller and writes with a contagious sense of curiosity, with each revelation seeming as exciting to him as it is to readers…Revenge of the Tipping Point provides an opportunity to assess his success and his critics’ arguments.” Economist
If you are interested in attending, RSVP to John Campbell to receive the location address and Zoom link, which will be published about a week ahead of the meeting.
Chuck Doland and Partners For Work Featured in Greet Magazine
January’s theme at the Bellevue Rotary Club is all about “Brace For Impact”. The positive impact we make in the success of our communities by investing our time, talent, treasure and trust.
A shining example is highlighted in this month’s article in Greet Magazine which features our own Chuck Doland and his commitment to service above self. The article focuses on Chuck’s long term work with the Bellevue Schools and Partners For Work. In the article you will see our wonderful greeters Megan (from last year) and Sebastian (this year). Chuck reflects on the power of Rotarians working together to effect change, build inclusivity and lift our communities. Find a copy and be inspired. Well done Chuck!
Article Summary
Chuck Doland, a longtime West Bellevue resident and Bellevue High School alumnus (’61), has dedicated his life to community service through his work with the Bellevue Rotary Club. A key focus of Chuck’s efforts is the Partners for Work (PFW) program, which connects individuals with developmental disabilities to meaningful employment opportunities. This initiative started with four Rotary clubs and has expanded to nearly 25 chapters in King County and created over 200 competitive jobs. Author of A Trifecta of Impact in Bellevue, Allison Frey, notes:
“The program’s footprint has grown thanks to its proven success in connecting communities and businesses to the untapped potential of individuals with developmental disabilities.”
PFW provides mock interviews, resume presentations, and job tours to help students transition out of public school and gain employment. In accordance with Washington Administrative Code (WAC) and the Individuals with Disability Education Act (IDEA), the Evergreen Transition Program in Bellevue further supports young adults with disabilities from high school to fulfilling futures by fostering independence in employment, education, and life skills.
Chuck champions the Rotary ethos of “Service Above Self” and believes in the transformative power of inclusivity, emphasizing the value that individuals with disabilities bring to the workforce, and says “communities thrive when they’re inclusive.”
New Bellevue Rotary website feature: Club internal pages
In the past few months, several committees have asked to publish club internal content to our website.
As our website is currently targeted to public facing content only, the ability to add club internal content was lacking until now.
We’re pleased to announce that we have a new section of our website dedicated to this.
You can find this section by clicking on “Club Internal” on the member page (see screenshot) of our site or by directly opening: https://bellevuerotary.org/internal/
This section of the website is password protected, we will change the password from time to time and send an update to brc-mbrs@ (and include it in the emailed bulletin as a reminder as well)
Using Zelle for Club and Foundation Invoices and Donations
The Rotary Club of Bellevue and the Bellevue Rotary Foundation now accept payments via Zelle. We recently switched our banking relationship in order to reduce operating costs for both the Club and the Foundation, but we need your help! Another way to reduce our operating costs if for our members to start using Zelle to make Happy Bucks, Fines, Club, and Foundation payments as there are no fees associated with these transactions versus the fees we incur when payments are made via credit card.
See instructions on how to use Zelle to make payments to the Bellevue Rotary here.