PRESIDENT DOT KRET welcomed us to the meeting. She noted all of the cowboys and cowgirls in attendance with special mention of the Bola Ties. Yep, it’s “Bola” not “Bolo” and is the State Tie of Arizona. Arizona is the only state with a State Tie.
New member VANECIA KERR led the Pledge of Allegiance and “God Bless America” with KHRIS DODGE on the piano.
ROGER LaFAYE offered the inspiration. He noted that the best way to form meaningful relationships is to be genuinely interested in others rather than offering information about yourself.
DAN KALM introduced lots of guests and noted that you can watch live streaming meetings on YouTube. Here’s a link to the YouTube page: https://www.youtube.com/@rotarycluboftucson7465
MICHAEL GUYMON introduced some of the crew of the USS Tucson, a Los Angeles Class attack submarine. The Commander of the vessel let us know that they say “Bear Down” as a rallying cry on the sub, sometimes 75 times in a day.PRESIDENT DOT introduced our cookie sponsor, DAN KALM. Thanks for the cookies DAN! They sure make the end to a good meal even better. PRESIDENT DOT then mentioned a very special program that we’ll be having on April 1st. No joke, US Senator Mark Kelly will be joining us that day. You will need to sign up to attend.
MICHAEL GUYMON was back at the mic to introduce our speaker, Anne Breckenridge. MICHAEL, who services on the Board of the Tucson Museum of Art, told us that they had eradicated a $1 million dollar deficit in just 9 months.
Anne Breckenridge has been in Tucson for 23 years with a 5 year break in Chicago. She is the President and CEO at the Tucson Museum of Art (TMA). Before her role at the TMA, she worked with the University of Arizona’s Center for Creative Photography. She noted that the North Star of the TMA is to serve the community. The Mission of the TMA is to “Connect Art to Life.” The TMA was founded in 1924 and celebrated their 100th anniversary 2 years ago. They believe in staying hyperlocal and globally relevant. The TMA holds 11,000 pieces of art in the following categories: Latin American Art, American West Art, Modern & Contemporary Art and Photography. The TMA takes up an entire block in downtown Tucson and is comprised of five historic buildings. It’s a great place to visit and find some respite as well as learn more about our local history and culture through art. April 11th is their biggest fundraiser of the year, the Masquerade Gala. You can learn more here: https://www.tucsonmuseumofart.org/2026gala/Anne signed the book “Museum ABC” that will go into the Make Way for Books Library.
BRITTANY BATTLE was celebrating her birthday. She let us know that when she really became a Rotarian was when she was experiencing grief and challenges in her life. Rotarians were there for her. She is also assembling a marketing team and needs help with Public Relations, Website maintenance and updates, Graphic Design and Story Telling. Did you know that BRITTANY is the great granddaughter of Zane Grey? TIM PUNTENNEY was celebrating his birthday. He’s been a member of our club for 52 years. Wow, TIM! I didn’t know that they allowed teen agers in Rotary back then. DAN KALM was celebrating his birthday. He learned to speed read when he was 12 years old and could read 1,600 works a minute with 95% comprehension. That’s fast! KEN LIGHT was celebrating his birthday. KEN will be visiting Casablanca, Morocco in late April to compete in the Rotary International Golf Fellowship Nation Cup. Swing well but not often, KEN!
MARK IRVIN introduced our newest member, VANECIA KERR. VANECIA is the CEO of the United Way of Tucson. She came from the United Way of Denver where she won many accolades. She has a husband, Kevin and son, Chris. She joined Rotary because of the warm welcome that we offered as well as our deep community involvement.DAN KALM held two drawings. The first was for a Tucson Museum of Art membership and GARY OLSEN was the winner. Then, DAN held a 25/50/25 Raffle and the winning price would have been about $1,200. ART ALLIS won $120 but not the pot.
CHRIS EDWARDS, the 2026 Tucson Rodeo Parade Grand Marshall, got us all involved in his parade wave. I hope that it went well CHRIS! Way to Go!
MICHAEL GUYMON was back on stage announcing that the RCOT Board had voted to give some of the President’s Discretionary Fund to the Tucson Museum of Art.
PRESIDENT DOT offered a few announcements:
Upcoming events are always printed and available for review on the tables during our lunches as well as on our website.
She showed some Red Badge Selfies. Keep them coming!
March 18th is the Western Winds Apartments Service Project. Bring personal items and cleaning supplies for donation that day.
ROGER LaFAYE had a Happy Jackson. May 2nd there’s a Golf Tournament at Sewailo Golf Course to raise money for the Desert Crown Theater Company. The cost is $165. Get in touch with ROGER if you’d like to participate.
ALAN SCHROPE offered a Membership Minute. He reminded us to get involved with the club. Think about that feeling that you have when you leave a Rotary event or moment of fellowship. Reach out to those who might like that feeling.
Nicholas was a student who attended RYLA this year and stopped by to say thanks and Bear Down!
PRESIDENT DOT closed the meeting with ROGER LaFAYE offering a toast.
