We love to dance. We love to teach.  Come see us dance!

 

At the Maguire Academy of Irish Dance, students get a chance to learn from some of the best dancers in the world. There are currently four schools located in Tucson, Phoenix, Dallas and Houston. Over the years, Darren Maguire has gathered a highly-skilled staff that has performed at some of the world’s largest stages.

 

The Maguire Academy of Irish Dance is a committed team that:

 

Strives toward excellence, while celebrating the joy of dance and competition.

Cultivates creative leaders, mentors, and cultural ambassadors.

Provides a safe, fun, and friendly environment for children to learn Irish Dance and form lasting friendships.

Celebrate Irish culture and heritage.

 

 

Darren Maguire’s championship record is long. Before joining Riverdance in 1996, he had earned first place at many regional and National competitions, including the Great Britains, All England, All Ireland and the Regional Oireachtas; and a second place in the World Championships. Darren was born into a dancing family. His parents, Kathleen and Michael Maguire, founded the highly-regarded Maguire O’Shea Academy of Irish Dance just outside London, England nearly thirty-five years ago. Darren and his five siblings inherited the talent, all having won major dance titles. Most recently, his youngest sister, Ellie, taking first place at the World Championships three times.

 

Darren has performed on many of the world’s most notable stages, including Radio City Music Hall, The Kremlin and the Great Hall of the People.  As an accredited ADCRG, Darren is certified to adjudicate Irish dance competitions under the rules of the Dublin, Ireland-based Irish Dancing Commission.

 

He relocated to Tucson, AZ, in the summer of 2006 and founded the Maguire Academy of Irish Dance after hanging up his Riverdance shoes, having danced with the world-renowned show for ten years.  Darren actively teaches classes at all four schools.

We have great members in our Club.  This was brought home with the passing of Tom Andrews…it caused me to reflect on the members we have lost this year.  Frank Zunno.  Schuy Lininger.  Past member Yvonne Ervin and Tom Andrews.

Frank who passed away at 95 was a World War II Veteran.  Involved in Military intelligence, law enforcement and the development of the International crime collaborative Interpol.

 

Schuy who passed at 95 was also in WWII, but was among the last of a generation, in the Calvary.  He took over a family business, the Lodge on the Desert and turned it into a Tucson destination.  He was a City Councilman, ran for Mayor and gave back to the community and his industry.

 

Yvonne, 59, was a reporter and a Jazz diva.  She brought Jazz and the Jazz festival to Tucson.

 

Tom, 70, was also a Veteran, a pilot and a military flight instructor.  He was an engineer, an avid astronomer and an operations expert that in his last position ran the operations of Tucson International Airport.

 

There was a strong turn-out of Rotarians at Tom’s Memorial Service and at Yvonne’s Jazz tribute as well.  A special tip of the hat to the members that figured out how to be at both.  It was noted at Tom’s Memorial service that he left us too soon. Both Tom and Yvonne died too young. Frank and Schuy were blessed with long lives.

 

I was personally blessed to have had the opportunity to get to know all of these members.  They all had a story and they all had wisdom to pass on.  What we all have as members of Rotary is the opportunity to personally get to know ALL of the members of our Remarkable Rotary Club:  To seek out their stories, to gain from their wisdom and to better understand ourselves, and the world, as mirrored in the experience of others.

 

We are a big Club and it can be daunting to reach out.  Use your time at Rotary meetings to sit at different tables, meet members you don’t know, both older and younger.  Our 15-minute weekly fellowship over our meal is not enough to get to know a member.  Consider it an introduction.

 

Get involved with our fellowship groups, go to home hospitality, attend our replacement mixers, get involved in committee work, go to a work project, get engaged in our Car Show or simply take the initiative to get together with another member for a cup of coffee or meal! 

 

All of these opportunities create connections; they make our large Club smaller and more personal.  Most importantly they give you time to really get to know your fellow members.  You will be amazed by their stories and our Remarkable Club.

 

YIR,
Chuck Sawyer
President 2018-2019

President CHUCK rang the bell to open our meeting, and Honorary Member KANDIE VACTOR gave the inspiration highlighting the warm and exciting experiences she’s had at Rotary Clubs around the world and ending with all members reciting the Four Way Test.

 

President CHUCK then led us in remembering beloved member TOM ANDREWS who passed away on Saturday 3/2. Tom joined in 2003, supported Rotary Traveling Fellowships and had a big part in reviving the Hiking Fellowship. There will be a memorial service this Saturday for TOM.

 

New member BOB HOPKINS led us in the Pledge and then joined Past President / District Governor elect ELLIE PATTERSON in the song “America the Beautiful”.  New member MARCY EULER introduced our guests and visiting Rotarians (including one from England!) We had two Birthday Rotarians:

 

BOB HOPKINS is retired and now specializes in mobile phone sales (among other pursuits) and was at one time a college football referee.

GARY FRANKS plans to celebrate his birthday with a 100-mile hike through the Scottish Highlands, and he thinks the reason Rotary celebrates birthdays is a devotion to making life experiences better. GARY will be sponsoring ELLIE PATTERSON in the ride to end Polio in honor of his birthday.

 

STEVE PICKERING introduced our newest member, RON BUSH.  RON is an expert on information security and a past Rotarian who loves the passion our club brings to providing help throughout the world. 

 

Sergeant at Arms BOBBY LARSON took a moment to recognize JOHN LEWIS for being a finalist for the Executive Excellence Award this year, and then BOBBY thanked everyone who donated items to the raffle.  Finally, we had the following announcements:

 

President CHUCK took a moment to explain the five areas we are exploring to gather new members from (minorities, select corporations, newly retired persons, women, and those under age forty.)

Past President DON ROLLINGS presented a Blue Badge to BOB HOPKINS, noting that BOB is among other talents, a nuclear engineer.  Congrats BOB!

DARRELL STEWART reminded us of the upcoming Replacement Mixer on 3/27 and Home Hospitality during the week of 4/14, where we are looking for hosts.

MIKE ORCUTT announced that we collected 17 pints of blood during the Blood Drive, helping 51 people.

JIM WOOD introduced scholarship recipient Wesley Mulleneaux who is a physiology major and pre-dental student.

Car Show Chair JASON GRABOSCH announced the first Car Show Committee meeting on 3/14 at Truly Nolen, as well as a Happy Jackson for his son who signed a letter of intent to play baseball at Central Arizona Community College.

STU GOLDMAN announced that there would be a celebration of the life of past member YVONNE ERVIN at the Scottish Rite Temple on Scott Avenue this coming Saturday.

BOB WEBB announced the first meeting of the Wine Fellowship at Jonathan’s Cork on 3/21 at 5:30 PM.

DIANA CANNON’S Happy Jackson was to invite everyone to the Humane Society’s Saturday fundraiser celebrating the music of the Rolling Stones at Kino Sports Park this Saturday at noon (bring your well-behaved pets!)

 

Our very own celebrated author and retired prosecutor JERRY HARRIS introduced our speaker Pima County Attorney Jonathan Mosher.  Mr. Mosher is originally from Iowa, received an English degree from Colgate, and has won Prosecutor of the Year in Arizona.  In addition, he has completed in eight Iron Man triathlons and plans to run 50 miles on his upcoming birthday.  Mr. Mosher spoke about the prosecution of the murderer of Kay Read.  Ms. Read had the misfortune to open her door to a stranger who kidnapped and killed her after stealing her van.  Although Ms. Read’s body was never found, Mr. Mosher showed how the prosecution was able to use cutting edge techniques to analyze and present the evidence, including work provided by a video forensic lab operated by Target. Mr. Mosher signed a book for our lending library ”Ricky, The Rock that Couldn’t Roll”.

 

President CHUCK closed our meeting with a quote from Robert Kennedy: “Every society gets the kind of criminal it deserves. What is equally true is that every community gets the kind of law enforcement it insists on.”

 

Have a great Rotary week!

Our first meeting for the Fine Beer Fellowship is Friday April 12^th from 5pm – 7pm at Tap & Bottle North (Ina and Oracle).  The purpose of the meeting is for any Rotarians and their significant others/adult kids to spend some time together enjoying and talking about fine beer. It is a buy your own beer event and no cost to join. Just hanging out with like minded Rotarians. For those interested we will be happy to educate on what makes different styles of beer what they are. What goes into certain beers and introduce people to different types of beers based upon what they have liked up to this point.  For information or if you would like to attend contact Brett Stein 520-977-6156 or email brett.stein@nm.com.

 

Please join many other Rotarians and friends in District 5500 who will be traveling to Hamburg the first week of June to experience the many different opportunities at the annual RI convention. There truly is something for everyone whether you’re  a longtime member or you have just joined Rotary. Unforgettable moments are made at the RI Convention, a place where the Rotary spirit fills the air with the highest level of energy and enthusiasm.

 

Discover the unique blend of historical and contemporary culture that makes Hamburg such a perfect setting for a memorable experience. It’s a flourishing city with friendly people and many different delights that will make you want to return to this beautiful port city again and again.

 

March 31^st is the last day for preregistration discount so take advantage of the limited –time registration rates when you register at: http://www.riconvention.org/en/hamburg

 

Please contact Ellie ellie@thetempconnection.com  for more information.

Our District 5500 will  have a celebration dinner jointly with District 5495 at the famous Hofbräu haus, Hofbräu Munchen, on June 1 starting at 6:00 pm. $45.00 per person will include a wonderful German meal including soup, main course, dessert and an aperitif. The food will be served buffet style for each table. Registration is on our District website. Have a German beer or beverage of your choice in the company of fellow Arizona Rotarians. It will be a fun time! Prost!