At our April 28, 2025 Rotary Meeting, the inspiration was provided by Christi speaking kindness and compassion.
Creating a more caring world for everyone has a ripple effect.
“Lost as we feel, there is no better
Compass than compassion.
We find ourselves not by being
The most seen, but the most seeing.”
Chase the light. Look at the bright side.
Welcome, May!
May you be happy.
May you be well.
May you be safe.
May you find comfort.
May you have strength.
May you have courage.
May you find healing.
May you have peace.
May you have joy.
May you be filled with love. (unknown author)
It was also National Pay It Forward Day.
Don Wolf introduced our guests this evening: our speaker Ryan Hiller with La Conner School District Technical Education, and Carol Avery, Lori's guest and nextdoor neighbor, with grandkids in La Conner schools.
Ryan is with CTE, Career & Technical Education. He helps with photography and yearbook clubs.
He has been a coder and systems analyst. He led La Conner initiatives for 1:1 device model, drones, and computers. He has facilitated underwater ROV and Aerial photography. He is a volunteer fire fighter and EMT.
Ryan gave a slide show using what he had recently presented to the La Conner school district board.
CTE provides hands-on learning in fields like engineering, business, healthcare, culinary arts, and animal sciences. The school focuses on career exploration, allowing students to sample various fields before specializing through the Northwest Career and Technical Academy (NCTA) or online courses. Programs include culinary competitions, photography, business math, and natural resources - often structured in alternating years to maintain enrollment.
The school receives CTE-specific funding, but, due to its small size, resources are limited. Compliance with state and federal requirements has enabled access to grants, such as Perkins 2, 15 ($5,000 annually), Perkins Reserve, and a $150,000 special grant supporting photography equipment, commercial drones, and culinary tools. However, as more courses are added, grant money becomes spread thin across multiple programs.
Students participate in guest speaker sessions, industry site visits, paid and unpaid internships, and school-based enterprises. The Career Choices program helps students explore career paths, complete interest inventories, and develop a High School & Beyond Plan. The school is expanding internship partnerships, including tribal programs, preschool teaching opportunities, technology support roles, and local business internships.
Staffing limitations remain a challenge. Most CTE teachers transition from industry roles but must have 6,000+ professional hours to qualify. Budget constraints led the school to move from seven periods to six, reducing elective availability. Collaboration with NCTA allows students from multiple schools to access specialized programs rather than forming a direct consortium. Tribal internships are currently limited to tribal members, but efforts are being made to open unpaid opportunities to a wider student base.
CTE instructors participated in an agriculture-focused tour of the Dominican Republic, exploring pineapple farms, cocoa production, and environmental restoration. Future plans include a Japan STEM-focused tour, covering robotics, engineering, and future city development. Service-learning trips with EF Tours emphasize local community engagement, allowing students to contribute in meaningful ways.
The school has seen five CTE directors in six years due to administrative turnover. Traditionally, principals, assistant principals, or counselors handled the role, but competing responsibilities made consistent leadership difficult. With new tech support hired, the current director can now focus more on expanding CTE programs and partnerships.
Plans include revamping shop programs, potentially partnering with NCTA to bring carpentry and woodworking back. Efforts to restore auto mechanics and American Sign Language (ASL) courses, which were lost due to budget constraints, are also being explored.
We suggested looking into connecting with the Youth Engagement Service (YES) program, where students complete community service projects that may align with CTE learning.
Rotary could help with connections with businesses - advertising the desire to have CTE internships.
We also encouraged Ryan and his students to apply for grants from our Rotary web page.
Very enlightening and educational program! Everyone was very engaged and had some great questions.
Ollie talked about tulip sales: We purchased and sold 149 boxes.
Christi provided an update on the membership committee and ongoing efforts to expand and engage members.
The membership committee meets monthly, typically the week before the board meeting. This month, Christi, Marty, and Tate participated. As a member of the District Membership Committee, Christi brings in ideas from district-level discussions, including a recommendation to approach membership with a three-pronged strategy: public image, membership growth, and foundation support. Publicizing Rotary’s activities, especially through social media, helps attract new members, particularly younger individuals who may not be familiar with Rotary’s mission.
The committee also reviewed ideas from their April 16 meeting, where Shawn O'Donnell and David Lukoff are developing a proposal for Assistant Governors (AGs) to visit clubs and facilitate membership conversations with club leaders. A draft of this proposal will be presented at the next meeting.
Leanne suggested reviving Fireside Chats to enhance member retention by creating social opportunities for newer and long-standing members to connect. Plans include hosting a backyard social, with details forthcoming as the weather improves.
Christi joined the La Conner Thrives Board as a Rotary representative. This nonprofit group, consisting of local merchants, a farmer, and Rotary members, collaborates with the Chamber of Commerce to support community engagement. The organization was formed to address concerns about how the chamber was handling promotional activities and volunteer opportunities.
A major upcoming event is a July/August ice cream social and meet-and-greet, hosted by La Conner Thrives and La Conner Rotary. It will invite community members, merchants, and service organizations like Kiwanis and Soroptimists to showcase their work and facilitate connections between volunteers and nonprofits. We need to draw a really big crowd, and we're hoping to attract some people with passion.
Christi is finalizing a Rotary brochure, incorporating feedback from members to keep it simple and effective. This brochure, along with business cards featuring a QR code linking to the Rotary website, will serve as outreach tools to introduce prospective members to Rotary and invite them to meetings.
Marty and Christi discussed three key ways to support La Conner School: providing snacks for students, ensuring access to clothing essentials, and addressing personal care needs.
The snack program, which started four years ago, remains ongoing. Christi recently delivered snacks to the elementary school, where staff expressed appreciation and regularly communicate their needs due to limited storage space.
Leanne has been actively assisting with clothing support, ensuring young students have access to extra clothing, socks, and underwear for emergencies.
Personal care needs also play a role in this initiative. Marty and Christi aim to better integrate these three aspects, ensuring resources are tailored appropriately to different age groups, and that students have access to essential items. The most recent meeting focused on refining how these efforts are coordinated.
At this point, we have met 13 of 15 club goals, so we're doing very well.
We are shy on membership. We have 28 members. We added members this year. But our goal was 29. If you have a friend that's thinking about joining, get them in here.
The auction committee selected "Community Service Heroes" as the theme. The plan includes bright-colored hero imagery, potentially featuring Rotary symbols, displayed throughout La Conner.
The committee is considering potential honorees for a Paul Harris award using a twofold approach - recognizing a community leader while also attracting new attendees to the upcoming auction.
Several nominees have been suggested:
- Susan Masic, a former club member who led efforts for library construction funding
- Jeanette Degoti, former owner of Tulip Town, a well-known figure in the community
- Founders and publishers of La Conner Community News, recognized for their ongoing contributions to local journalism and community engagement
These nominees represent individuals who have made a lasting impact and selecting one could help bring in new community members who may not typically attend the event.
Audrey’s closing remarks:
Without community service, we would not have a strong quality of life. It's important to the person who serves as well as the recipient. It's the way in which we ourselves grow and develop.
Dorothy Height - African American civil rights and Women's rights activist.
Service Above Self
Mount Vernon, WA 98273
United States of America