The Wilmette Rotary Installation Luncheon will take place on Wednesday, June 25 at noon at the Wilmette Golf Club. We will install our new President, Brian Bradley and the new Directors for Rotary year 2025-2026. The cost will be $30; you will get your choice of six menu items, iced tea or lemonade, cookie or brownie, tax and tip are all included. Click to RSVP for this important event.
Trivia Night last Wednesday was a fun and successful event. Many thanks to all the members, spouses and friends that helped to make the event possible. We don't have final numbers yet, but our proceeds will benefit the many service projects we support.
Special thanks to the Trivia Night committee led by Jim Pockross, including Jim Bowman, Jim Waite, Frank Hussey, Frank Cheswick, Jack Close, John Plante, John Wertymer and Hank Hufnagel.
Additionally, many members and spouses helped with set-up and clean-up including Gabe Doyle, Steve Jambor, Frank Candioto, Karl and Grace Behrend, Dave Fielder and many others. Forgive me if I left out some names.
Pictured below is the winning team of Sean Devney, Megan Wertymer, John Fleck, Lucie Fleck. And Second place team of Lyle Staab, Karl and Grace Behrend and Gabe Doyle.
George Pearce, Ben Ivory and Alice Chow joined the Village of Wilmette's Pollination Project on June 6. The goal of this multi-year project is the restoration of the ecologically barren sites along the Glenview corridor ; this will increase biodiversity through the installation of native grasses and forbs that are necessary to support pollinators. This project was part of our club's environmental focus.
We have two new members! Please welcome Doug Oettinger and Jolie Garcia. Doug is sponsored by Debora Morris and Jolie is sponsored by Heidi Voorhees.
Doug Oettinger is Principal Emeritus at ZS Associates, a global management consulting and technology firm. During 35 years with ZS, he helped to grow the company from 25 people to over 13,000 worldwide. Doug has a AB from Harvard and an MBA from University of Chicago. He is also active at the Youth Job Center as a board member and an executive council member of BPeace, an organization that connects entrepreneurs to personalized consulting. A resident of Evanston, Doug is interested in woodworking, reading, exercise, and he is currently building a 16 ft. boat from scratch.
Jolivette (Jolie) Garcia is a Senior Manager of Cyber Security with Rotary International, where she leads efforts to strengthen digital security and resilience. Beyond her role at Rotary, she is active in the broader tech community, serving on professional boards and leading programs that promote ethical hacking and innovation in cybersecurity and leadership. . She earned a degree from Virginia Tech and attended Keller Graduate School of Management at DeVry University. Jolie is known for her collaborative leadership style and for bringing fresh, strategic thinking and community-focused initiatives. A resident of Wilmette, Jolie enjoys playing golf, attending theater performances, and reading.
The July 1 Lunch-packing session, organized by the Evanston Lighthouse Rotary Club, had enthusiastic volunteers from both Evanston Lighthouse and Wilmette Rotary clubs. 160 lunch bags were prepared for delivery the next day to Connections for the Homeless. Monthly lunch-packing sessions will by organized with Wilmette, Winnetka-Northfield and Evanston Lighthouse Rotary Clubs taking alternate months. Next month is Wilmette Rotary. Sign-up for the next Lunch-packing session on August 5. Space is limited, so Sign-up now to participate.
Remember EREY. Every Rotarian should contribute what they can before the end of this Rotary year, June 30. If you can contribute $100, that equates to only 27 cents per day or $1.92 per week. Ray Z. or Terry P. will be able to tell each member how far away they are from their next Paul Harris Fellow award (PHF). Rememberpart of your contribution comes back toourClub tofund our service programs. Ray Zeiss has indicated that there are several members who are very close to becoming a Paul Harris Fellow, or adding to their PHF status, with credits from our past EREY contributions. Donations will be matched for those within $500 of reaching the next PHF.
Members : It's very easy! Click HERE for a direct link to donate.
The Wilmette Rotary Installation Luncheon will take place on Wednesday, June 25 at noon at the Wilmette Golf Club. We will install our new President, Brian Bradley and the new Directors for Rotary year 2025-2026. The cost will be $30; you will get your choice of six menu items, iced tea or lemonade, cookie or brownie, tax and tip are all included. Click to RSVP for this important event.
Monthly Lunch-packing on October 7, 6pm - 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. Sign-up
Big Book Drive - Member Maurice Sullivan is resurrecting our Big Book Drive, which was indefinitely suspended during Covid. This year we are partnering with Bernie's Book Bank to collect books from local schools and libraries. Volunteers are needed to assist Maurice in publicizing the event. We still need a few more volunteers! Contact Maurice at mauricewsullivan@aol.com
Beach Sweep (NEW DATE)- Saturday, September 20, 9:00am . We will partner with Go Green Wilmette as we did last year. We (Rotary and Go Green Wilmette) will base ourselves at the Wilmette Beach Building structure and welcome both Springman School students and the public. One of the unique features is completing the Alliance for the Great Lakes collection form and our sorting process to show what was collected. We will need volunteers; sign-up HERE
Taste of Evanston - The Evanston Lighthouse Rotary Club is excited to announce the 11th Taste of Evanston, September 21 from 3 p.m. – 6 p.m. on the lakeside lawn of the historic Charles Gates Dawes House. A wonderful opportunity for food lovers and civic-minded sponsors, Taste of Evanston offers delicious appetizers, entrees, desserts and drinks from our city’s most popular restaurants, breweries, and wine shops. It raises much-needed funds for two respected local non-profits (Reba Place Development and Connections for the Homeless) as well as supporting the ongoing philanthropic projects of the Lighthouse Club. Click TASTE for tickets and more information.
Northbrook Rotary’s Annual Ducky Race September 21, 2025 3:00 pm, at Village Green Park in Northbrook. Sponsor a duck and watch your ducks as they race down the river to the finish line. Join the fun on Sunday, September 21st, at 3:00 pm at Village Green Park during Shermerfest. Win cash and support the thousands of people and organizations, locally and globally, who benefit from grants, scholarships, and other support from The Rotary Club of Northbrook. Click DUCK
1 Duck - $10 Donation; Quack Pack of 3 ducks - $25 Donation; Flock of 15 ducks - $100 Donation
St. John's Good Fest - Saturday, Sept 20, 5:30pm- 10:00pm. Good music, good BBQ, good cause. Fundraiser to support Family Promise North Shore. Location: St. John's 1235 Wilmette Ave, Wilmette. Tickets $39.19 per person (kids under 10 are free). Tunes by Tributosaurus and Antler Chandelier, and BBQ from the Backyard Barbeque.
Go Green Wilmette - EV & Bike Show. September 20, 9am-1pm. Metra parking lot by the Bensidoun French Market (Wilmette). Come learn about many different electric vehicle (EV) models available from your friends and neighbors at our local EV exhibit. Check out the Rivian truck and SUV, and a variety of EVs from Hyundai, Chevrolet, Volkswagen, Nissan and more. Learn more about at-home, local and road-trip charging options. This event will also display a small number of electric bikes.
Blood Drives - The Wilmette Fire Department and the Winnetka Fire Department are sponsoring several upcoming blood drives with the goal of collecting 600 units of blood that can help to save 1,800 lives. Vitalant Bloodmobiles will be at various locations. Call 877-258-4825 or visit Vitalant.org for appointment. Use Code ORD0132D November 12 - 9am-1pm; Wilmette - 1304 lake Avenue. Sept 12 - Winnetka - 428 Green Bay Rd
Japanese Art of Flower Arranging Workshop- two-day event featuring workshops and demonstrations led by Master Instructor Misei Ishikawa. The event takes place on October 4th at Wilmette Lakeview Center at Gillson Park and October 5th at Michigan Shores Club. You can register for entire event or just certain classes. To register FLOWERS
Charity Golf Event Supporting Veterans -- On September 12, Wilmette Rotary Member William Shehan's organization, No Salt Sailing, is holding a fundraiser to help veterans learn to sail and to provide Sailing Adventure Therapy to veterans. For more information, CLICK VETERAN
Acoustics on the Corner - Rotating performers will provide a fun summer vibe to downtown Wilmette every Friday and Saturday from 6:00 to 8:00 p.m., June - September, on the Village Green. Visit www.wilmette.gov/SummerMusic for the performance lineup.
Wilmette Artisan Market - September 13 and 14, Wilmette Metra Station (722 Green Bay Rd.) Meet and shop 100 talented local and Midwest artisans in food, fashion, home goods, and art at this delightful outdoor market. Admission to the market is free. Visit www.NorthShoreArtisanMarket.com for more information.
TEDxWilmette - On Saturday, October 4, 2025, 1pm-3pm, an extraordinary event at the Wilmette Community Recreation Center Auditorium, featuring six inspiring speakers who will share their transformative ideas under the theme: “Actually, You Can” Tickets Here
Club Information
Welcome!
Our Motto: Service Above Self
Wednesdays at 12:00 p.m.
St. John's Church
1235 Wilmette Avenue
Wilmette, IL 60091 United States of America
We meet monthly on the 1st Tuesday at 6pm at St Joseph Church, the 2nd and 4th Wednesday at Noon at St. John's Church, Wilmette and the 3rd Wednesday at 7:30am at the Sheridan Shore Yacht Club in . Mailing address: PO Box 111, Wilmette, IL 60091
Our Place, is a safe haven for teens and adults with intellectual and developmental disabilities where they can develop meaningful relationships, engage in productive activities, and grow through life experiences. This transforms them into contributing members of their community and makes the community stronger.
