Welcome to Our Club


Our Club members enthusiastically live the Rotary motto of “Service Above Self” both locally and internationally. Recent projects include water well installation at schools in Angola, food packing and providing necessities to the homeless in Chicago, supplying ultrasound equipment and related training to people in Uganda, providing disaster relief supplies to hurricane, typhoon, and other natural disaster survivors, providing winter coats and shoes to low-oncome children, food packing for people in Guatemala and Central America, and supporting local food pantries, literacy efforts and diversity.

NOTICE: We meet at Noon the 2nd and 4th Wednesday of each month, and at 7:30AM the third Wednesday of each month at the Wilmette Harbor Club in Gillson Park, Wilmette.  We also meet in-person on the 1st Tuesday of each month (for Lunch-packing) at 6pm at St. Joseph Church, Wilmette. 

We’d love to have you join one of our meetings!

Club Information
Welcome!


Our Motto: Service Above Self

We meet In Person
Wednesdays at 12:00 p.m.
Wilmette Harbor Club
20 Harbor Drive
Wilmette, IL 60091
United States of America
Phone:
(847) 722-2115
Email:
clubrotarywilmette@gmail.com
Flexible meeting times, morning or noon (plus evening service project). No attendance requirements. Mailing address: PO Box 111, Wilmette, IL 60091
District Site
Venue Map
CLUB NEWS
2026 Holiday Fundraiser Has Begun!!
2026 Holiday Fundraiser Has Begun!!

Our largest annual fundraiser of the year has started!  Monies raised will fund local and international humanitarian projects and become part of the 2027-2028 budget process. This event is based entirely on purchases of gifts, raffle tickets and donations; there is no physical event to attend.  

Gift items include wines, chocolates, spice blends, olive oil and vinegar sets, smoked salmon, summer sausage and cheese. Something new has been added, a Gourmet Gift Box from Schaefer's.. All these products are from local businesses. Raffle prizes will include $500 cash, a 4-night stay in a luxury condo in San Francisco, restaurant gift card, theater tickets, Cubs and Bears tickets. Click this link I WANT TO HELP to see all the wonderful gift items, purchase raffle tickets or donate. Click Raffle to see raffle prize detail.
 
Some of our local grants this year went to: Operation Warm, Go Green Wilmette, Haven Youth and Family Services, Our Place, Meals on Wheels, NE IL, Youth Job Center, Housing Opportunity Development Corp, Madonna Mission, Building Peaceful Bridges, Lawrence Hall, and other non-profits.
 
 
Club Awards $1,800 Grant to Go Green Wilmette

Our Club awarded a grant of $1,800 to Go Green Wilmette to help fund the organization’s Internship Program, an initiative that gives young people hands-on experience in environmental work while advancing sustainability efforts across the community. "This grant will make a huge difference towards providing a front row seat for young adults to the action of local activism, how a small organization works and environmental stewardship”, added Meg Hagenah Go Green Board member and Internship Program Manager. “I look forward to working with our next class of interns, and I thank Rotary for helping us in our efforts to involve young people”.

World Polio Walk - Oct. 24

Several of our members joined other area Rotary clubs, and the public, in the World's Largest Polio Walk in Evanston.  The Walk was organized to create awareness that polio is not yet eradicated worldwide and Rotary is raising funds to help end polio forever. It was a wonderful day of multi-club camaraderie and sense of purpose.  You can still donate to help the cause. DONATE

Rotary Supports Our Place!

Rotarians Ben Ivory and Frank Candioto present Our Place with a grant for $2250.  Our Place provides a supportive environment and programming for teens and adults with intellectual and developmental disabilities.  This is one of many non-profit organizations we support with our fundraising events.

        

October 14 Program - Meals on Wheels

Will McFarland, Director of Philanthropy for Meals on Wheels, Northeastern Illinois, and Erin Carter, Volunteer Coordinator  spoke to us about the services their MOW provides. Meals, are prepared in Evanston, delivered 6 days per week, cost around $10 (sliding scale), service clients from Wisconsin border south to Chicago border and from Lake Michigan to far west suburbs. In addition to meals, MOW provides wellness checks on clients and recommends social services when needed. The samples of food they brought were enjoyed by all. MOW is one of the many non-profits our club supports.

Rotary Supports Haven Youth and Family Services

Co-president Frank Hussey presented our grant check to Haven Youth and Family Services on October 22.  Haven's mission is to empower young people and families by providing services that promote mental health, strengthen well-being, and foster connection through education and outreach, prevention, intervention, and treatment.  This is one of many non-profit organizations we support with our fundraising events.

October 28 Program - Polio Eradication Update

Glenn Garlick, fellow Rotarian and Funding Chair for End Polio Now gave an informative presentation at our October 28 Noon meeting.  The campaign to End Polio Now is focused on Pakistan and Afghanistan.  One of the challenges is keeping up with the birthrate.  6.9 million babies are born annually in Pakistan and 1.5 million babies are born annually in Afghanistan (compared to 3.7 million in the U.S.).  Glenn stated that the countries are working hard to ensure all of the babies are vaccinated, but it is difficult to keep up.  He also explained that the Polio Vaccine Infrastructure is used for Covid and Ebola.  There are two challenge grants for donating:  (1) The Jack Blane Foundation will match a $500 donation and (2) an upcoming challenge grant will match every $100 donation.  An email announcing this second challenge will come out soon.  Donations can be made through Rotary.org or My Rotary.

Rain Garden Planting - Oct. 9

Several members joined the Wilmette Park District staff to plant a rain garden in Shorewood Park, Wilmette.  A Rain Garden will reduce flooding by capturing excess water to keep the park and streets from pooling.  It also provides food and shelter for bees, butterflies and birds using native plants. It was a very muddy operation of digging holes and planting species that thrive in water-drenched areas.  George Pearce, Ben Ivory, Terry Porter and Debora Morris got muddy and assisted.

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September 16 Program - Sarah Homan

Rotarians attending the September 16 Noon Rotary meeting were treated to a very special presentation by our own member, Sarah Holman.  Sarah has co-founded the GraceNote Collective (gracenotecollective.org) a Gospel Choir "representing many faiths, spiritual practices, ages, races, nationalities, sexual orientations and gender identities."  She talked about her personal journey with respect to gospel music as well.  We hope to attend one of their concerts, possibly on Saturday, October 24!

September 9 Program - Chamber of Commerce Executive Director

The September 9 Noon Meeting hosted Sara Jane Abbott, Executive Director of the Wilmette/Kenilworth Chamber of Commerce.  Throughout the year the Chamber hosts a wide vareity of networking events including Business for Breakfast, Business After Hours, Educational Workshops and Lunch and Learn events.  In addition the Chamber publishes the Community Guide which is a wealth of information about the Wilmette and Kenilworth communities and is distributed to over 12,000 households.  Ms. Abbott welcomed our suggestions and participation in Chamber activities.

Our
Co-Presidents
           
    Frank Candioto & Frank Hussey

SERVICE ABOVE SELF

How We Serve and Support:
Local Community Groups
International Groups
 
ABOUT ROTARY

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Speakers
Jim Pockross
Nov 11, 2026 12:00 PM
What We Should Know About Medicare
What We Should Know About Medicare

Member Jim Pockross is an expert on Medicare issues and insurance in general. He will talk about the issues facing Medicare today.

Dick Farkas
Nov 18, 2026 7:30 AM
Grandma's Recipe for Foreign Policy
Peggy Forbes, Executive Director
Dec 09, 2026 12:00 PM
Madonna Mission
Holiday Party
Dec 16, 2026 6:00 PM
Glencoe Golf Club
Stephanie Garrity
Jan 13, 2027 12:00 PM
Rainbows for All Childrem
View entire list...
Club Executives & Directors
Co-President
Frank Candioto
Co-President
Frank Hussey
Immediate Past President
Brian Bradley
Co-President Elect
Sarah Homan
Co-President Elect
Kurt Zoller
Club Foundation Treasurer
John Flanagin
Secretary
John Kilner
Treasurer
Kent Meyers
Director
Irene Paterno
Director
Nick Dallas
Director
Frank Cheswick
Director
Ben Ivory
Director
John Kay
Director
Karl Behrend
Director
Michael Harper
Director
Thomas Ryan
Director
A. Robert Taylor
Membership Co-Chair
George Pearce
Membership Co-Chair
Debora Morris
Public Image
Gabriell Doyle
Co-chair Community and Environmental Service Committee
Sarah Homan
Co-chair Community and Environmental Service Committee
Ben Ivory
Youth Service Chair
George Pearce
Web Site Coordinator
Debora Morris
Program Chair
Frank Cheswick
Co-Bulletin Editor
Debora Morris
Co -Bulletin Editor
Heidi Voorhees
Fundraising Chair
Debora Morris
INTERNATIONAL SERVICE CHAIR
Steven R Jambor
Rotary Foundation
Terry Porter
Finance Chair
John Flanagin
AI Assistant 
Ask our AI Assistant, Avery, any questions about our Rotary Club.
 
 
VOLUNTEER OPPORTUNITES
Monthly Lunch-packing on November 3,  Please Sign-up to participate.  Our monthly service project of preparing lunch bags for Connections for the Homeless is at St. Joseph's Church, Lake and Ridge, Wilmette at 6pm. Enter through the east lower entrance. A Rotary Club meeting follows immediately after the sandwiches are made. This is now a collaborative project with members joining us from the Winnetka-Northfield and Evanston Lighthouse Rotary Clubs.  
 
General
Upcoming Events
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