Please join us each Wednesday at 7:15 AM for fellowship and engaging speakers. Learn how.

Minneapolis City of Lakes Rotary Club is a vibrant community of energized people, working to create change both at home and around the world. Welcome.

Upcoming Speakers

February 1, 2023
Kelly Matter, Avivo Village Initiative

Kelly Matter

Avivo Village Initiative
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February 8, 2023
North Star Therapy Animals

Patti Anderson

North Star Therapy Animals:
Love Comes in All Sizes
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February 15, 2023
Sharon Bloodworth, White Oaks Wealth Advisors

Sharon Bloodworth
White Oaks Wealth Advisors

Annual Financial Outlook
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Our Impact

By the Numbers

What's Happening at City of Lakes?

Thank you from Way to Grow
Thank you notes from Way to Grow to COL Rotary
 
City of Lakes Rotary Club recently received a wonderful "Thank you" package from Way to Grow! There were personal notes and pictures of the children unwrapping their holiday gifts along with notes from all the teachers. They were so grateful for our support! Here are a couple of samples of the notes on the card:
 
“Your kindness multiplies-we are so encouraged by all of you-Thank you for making the holiday BRIGHT!”
 
“If only you could see the faces of the families when they receive the gifts, it is indescribable joy, for them and for us , too!”
 
“Thank you-your support of WTG families- for your kindness-we appreciate it!”
 
Click read more for additional images of the cards.
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COL Rotary Packs Food for CES Home Delivery
City of Lakes Rotary members pack gift bags for the CES food shelf holiday event.
 
On Saturday, January 7, members of the City of Lakes Rotary Club (COLRC) and their guests fulfilled food orders for 80 home delivery clients of the Community Emergency Service (CES) food shelf. This is an ongoing, bi-monthly club project which offers an opportunity to help senior and lower income community members in the inner city of Minneapolis. It is one of several service projects conducted by COLRC to support CES initiatives for those in need.
 
Click through to see additional photos from this great event!
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Holiday Packing at CES
City of Lakes Rotary members pack gift bags for the CES food shelf holiday event.
 
Friday evening, December 16th, and Saturday morning, December 17th, COL Rotarians volunteered helping our partners at CES get ready for their first Holiday celebration since Covid. Friday evening, we built 250 gift bags for their clients and helped decorate the building for the next morning. Saturday morning was the celebration and our volunteers served cider and cookies to the clients that our club provided. There was music, face painting and pictures taken, which helped to create a very festive event! We had a great team volunteering at both events!
Saundra Holden, CES's Director of Operations, sent us this thank you note after the events:
“I just wanted to take time to thank you and the rest of the Rotary Club members for supporting our 1st Indoor Christmas Distribution since the Pandemic hit. You all came with your Holiday Joy & Warmth and our neighbors appreciated your company. I also want to thank you for coming in on Friday to pack the Gift Bags. We had a good time and decorated the place as well.

“Being of Service to Others is my passion and doing that side by side with others who feel the same makes the pot of tea that much sweeter. You guys are awesome and I hope you’ll come back for the sequel in 2023!”
Click through to see additional photos from our work. Happy Holidays and thanks to all!
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New Zoom Link for Rotary Meetings
As mentioned during morning announcements on Wednesday, December 21, because of some quirks of Zoom, we had to change the link that you use to join the weekly Zoom meeting. So, if you've got an old link stored on your computer somewhere, it won't work anymore.
 
 
Once you do so, Zoom will email you with the new link you can use each week to attend our meetings. At any time, you can register (or reregister) for the meeting by going to our website, colrc.org, and clicking Attend a Meeting at the top of the page. 
 
If you have any questions or need some help getting signed up, please feel free to reach out to COL Zoom Master, Brock Ray!
COL Featured in CES Newsletter
 
The recently-released December 2022 newsletter for CES Food Shelf features an article about City of Lakes Rotary — titled “Service Above Self” — including an interview with COLer Gary Mosiman. Gary notes that COL Rotarians “see the need, and we know that CES is doing good work in the community.” Read the full article here. 
MCOL Holiday Party
 
Alliiance
400 Clifton Ave
Minneapolis, MN 55403
United States of America
 

Join us for the City of Lakes Holiday Bash! 

Location: Alliiance (just one block from the Woman's Club of Minneapolis) 
400 Clifton Ave, Minneapolis, MN 55403 

Festivities will include: 

  • Live music
  • Cookie-decorating
  • Holiday movie trivia
  • Kid's playroom with games, a movie, and a babysitter!
  • Attire: sweaters!
CES Food Shelf Thanks COL Rotary for Our Continued Support
 
We received a very nice “thank you” letter from CES for our annual $4,500 donation to help with their mission (and to help fulfill our Community Service “feed” initiative). From the letter: 
 
CES is serving more of our low-income neighbors across the Phillips-Midtown neighborhood who are struggling to make ends meet and put food on their table.… Your grant will provide nourishing food, hope, and stability to our low-income neighbors who are struggling. That is a powerful gift!
City of Lakes Rotary Members Rake Yards for Seniors
Rake Rattle & Roll 2022
 
On Saturday, November 5, 34 City of Lakes Rotarians and their guests raked yards for 13 seniors in South Minneapolis. This is an annual, family-friendly event that has been an ongoing community service project for over two decades. Though a little chilly, the weather was perfect for raking and all of the homeowners expressed their thanks (sometimes with cookies, power bars, coffee, and hot chocolate) for a job well done. Following the event, most of the group adjourned to the nearby Blue Door Pub for delicious food and beverages. Thanks to all who participated for making this another successful event!
 
Click through for more great photos.
 
 
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Minneapolis City of Lakes Rotary Club Purchases and Distributes 650 Hats, Gloves, and Scarves
Warm Hands, Warm Heads, Warm Hearts
 
With cold weather just around the corner, the Minneapolis City of Lakes Rotary Club again purchased and distributed hats, gloves, and scarves to six social service and homeless shelter organizations in the Twin Cities. The October 27 distribution through the Club’s Warm Hands, Warm Heads, Warm Hearts program is now in its 27th year. This year’s distribution included 600 high quality hats, 600 high quality pairs of gloves, and 50 hats and scarves hand knitted by a local church knitting group. As with many other community service projects, this program is funded through contributions by Club members to the Minneapolis City of Lakes Rotary Foundation.