Welcome to the North Adams Rotary Club Web Site!
It's Spaghetti Supper time again!
The 2007 Annual North Adams Rotary Club All You Can Eat Spaghetti Supper is back upon us, y'all, and it is Thursday night, November 15th, 2007, from 4 to 7pm. Head on over to the American Legion (not St. Anthony's, like last year) on American Legion Drive. Bring $6 for dinner tickets--$5 for the kids--and a fistful of cashola for the AWESOME Chinese Auction and raffle items we have going on.
Get yourself as many plates full of freshly-boiled pasta and HOMEMADE meatballs--that's right, lovingly hand produced by folks who take the time to disdain the bagged, frozen, perfectly spherical meat-lumps that are so frequently bounced steaming onto your charitable event plate--that you want, along with all-vegetarian lettuce-based salad, and bread, and a soft drink. And at the Legion, you also have yourself the option of turning on the drinking lamp. Beats church, by a mile.
And the pies, folks, the strawberry pies. Nine inches worth of fresh strawberries, 100% red glaze, and cream that has been whipped to within an inch of its life. It's the legendary DiLego family recipe that means you have actually tasted North Adams, Mass. These go fast, kids. You can buy a whole pie for fifteen bucks. Just get in touch with me to pre-order before you miss out. Or, for $3 you can get a slice right then and there. We are not responsible for public berrygasms.
And we'll present, for your charitable auction enjoyment, a fabulous selection of local merchandise and gift certificates. We have gift certificates from Molly's Bakery, Jack's Hot Dogs, Village Pizza, Cafe Latino, Red Sauce, Cup and Saucer, and more....merchandise from Carpinello's Service Station, Passion Parties by Tara, Tangiers, Bark 'n Cat, Persnickety Toys, Tropical Gardens, Dragonflii, Cheshire Auctions, and also more. You just have to come and see all this stuff, because there'll be lots more by the time you show up.
Can't stick around for a sit-down? No matter! Get your friends together and give us a call and we'll get yer orders together to go. Get ENOUGH friends and we'll deliver 'em over to you ourselves!
Rub elbows with the local Rotarians, cognoscenti, illuminati, and a shaker or two of parmesan cheese. The proceeds for this will stay mostly here in our community, helping local schools and charitable organizations do their thang: sponsoring our champion Little League team, for instance, or setting up the autism resource library at BFair, or giving a holiday party featuring toys and winter coats for kids who need 'em but may not get 'em otherwise.
So you basically have no excuse. See you Thursday. Come hungry. Don't wear a white shirt or a tie you'd be upset to get sauce on.
Rotary International and its member clubs provide business and professional men and women everywhere the opportunity to meet others and serve their communities. A good summary is found in the Wikipedia entry for Rotary International:
The declared objectives of Rotary are to encourage and foster the ideal of service as a basis of worthy enterprise and, in particular, to encourage and foster:
- The development of acquaintance as an opportunity for service;
- High ethical standards in business and professions, the recognition of the worthiness of all useful occupations, and the dignifying of each Rotarian's occupation as an opportunity to serve society;
- The application of the ideal of service in each Rotarian's personal, business, and community life;
- The advancement of international understanding, goodwill, and peace through a world fellowship of business and professional persons united in the ideal of service.
These objectives are further set against the "Rotarian Four-Way test", used to see if a planned action is compatible with the Rotarian spirit. The test, developed by Rotarian and entrepreneur Herbert J. Taylor during the Great Depression as a set of guidelines for restoring faltering businesses was adopted as the standard of ethics by Rotary in 1942 and is still seen as a standard for ethics in business management:
Is it the Truth?
Is it Fair to All Concerned?
Will it Build Good Will and Better Friendships?
Will it Be Beneficial to All Concerned?
What is the Rotary Club?
A Rotary Club is a service club that follows bylaws set up by Rotary International, a worldwide organization of business and professional leaders that provides humanitarian service, encourages high ethical standards in all vocations, and helps build goodwill and peace in the world. Approximately 1.2 million men and women belong to more than 32,000 Rotary clubs in more than 200 countries and geographical areas.
Where and when do you meet?
We meet at the Holiday Inn on the corner of Main Street and American Legion Drive in North Adams, Massachusetts, every Tuesday at 12:15pm. Occasionally we hold meetings elsewhere (to mix it up a bit), so email us or call the Holiday Inn beforehand if you'd like to come to a meeting: (413) 663-6500.
Are you looking for new members?
We always enjoy meeting people who'd like to join us! Membership to Rotary is by invitation, but if you'd like to contact one of us--for instance, click this link to email the webmaster--let us know if you'd like to come to a meeting!
What does the North Adams Rotary Club do?
Our club's mission is to serve our community. We contribute to local causes, raise funds for civic projects, and partner with area organizations. And once a week, we get together and have lunch!
Can I address your club?
Part of our lunch meeting is usually dedicated to a speaker. We enjoy being updated on non-partisan, non-denominational topics of local and national interest, with a special interest in organizations that serve the Northern Berkshires. Email the webmaster to let us know what you have in mind.
A Message From 2007-08 Club President Stephen Narey
Thanks for looking at our web site and for your interest in the North Adams Rotary Club. Please email me if you have any questions, comments, or suggestions on how we can better fulfill our club's mission to serve the North Adams community.
We'd love to hear from you! Please don't hesitate to ask about how you can join us!
--Steve
Schedule of 2007-2008 Rotary Events:
Thu, Nov 15: Spaghetti Supper, American Legion, North Adams
Sun, Dec 16: Children's Holiday Party, American Legion, North Adams
Our regular meetings are every Tuesday, 12:15pm, at the Holiday Inn, North Adams. Call (413) 663-6500 for directions or go to their web site.
For our November 6th, 2007 meeting, we hosted a joint meeting with our neighbor Rotary Club of Williamstown, Massachusetts. Our featured speaker was Rick Palmisano, CEO of North Berkshire Healthcare. He spoke about the state of health care here in North County, and to his credit, also addressed the North Adams Regional Hospital labor situation that, as of this writing, is currently unresolved. Here are some pictures from that event:
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| Mr. Palmisano addresses our members |
Club President Steve Narey thanks Mr. Palmisano |
Many thanks to Past President and Board Member Fred Ley of the Rotary Club of Williamstown for these pictures!
On Tuesday, October 24th, the North Adams and Williamstown Rotary Clubs held a joint session and were addressed by the three candidates for the Massachusetts State Senate seat for the Berkshire, Hampshire, and Franklin District. The candidates were Ben Downing (D-Pittsfield), Matt Kinnaman (R-Lee), and Dion Robbins-Zust (I-Richmond). The session was held at the Williams Inn, was open to the public, and continued a long tradition of Rotary Clubs hosting political speakers. Here are some pictures from that event.
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| L-R: Downing, Kinnaman, and Robbins-Zust |
Mr. Downing makes a point |
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| The candidates with their Rotary mugs |
Two of our members pose with the candidates |
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Congratulations to Mr. Downing, who won the election and is now a member of the Massachusetts State Legislature. Both clubs would like to extend their thanks to all three of the candidates for making this event both informative and fun.
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