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Friday's presentation by Dominic Roman showcased the work and effectiveness of the Roaring Fork School District's Family Resource Center.

Image result for Domonic Roman — Dominic Roman, Director Family Resource Center Roaring Fork Schools

The Family Resource Center (FRC) was founded in 1995 to support students whose heath and basic needs challenges adversely affect their learning. The FRC provides a network of 15 Family Liaisons embedded in every RE-1 school and early childhood education program. The family liaisons are a trusted connection to help families address barriers that affect student success. The liaisons:

Build relationships
Address immediate needs
Make systems easier to navigate
Support student stability and success

Dominic started as the Director of the FRC in July. Prior to his new role, he spent 2 years teaching and volunteering in Argentina, Costa Rica, and Peru. He then spent 7 years teaching social studies and English at Basalt High School before becoming the Dean of Culture. He is committed to strengthening connections across the community so students (and their families) can thrive. Dominic and his wife Erin are expecting their first child in December!

In 2025-26 the FRC provided over $200,000 to support families in need. Family liaisons use school, public and community resources first. Flexible funding fills gaps not covered by other resources. The FRC tracks every dollar and the need it meets.

Immediate student needs:

Housing or utlity assistance
Transportation
Clothing, shoes and school supplies
Medical, dental, vision, or mental health suppport

Educational opportunities:

Tutoring or academic support
Activity or participatio fees
Summer learning opportunities
College and career experiences

You can help support the work of the Family Resource Center. Contact Dominic at droman@rfschools.com.

Gardening for Good

The gardens and greenhouses at Mountain Valley Developmental Services got a “service call” from GS Rotarians on Friday, September 11 - A national Day of Service and remembrance. It was a beautiful day; cool sunshine and terrific temperatures for working outside. Maura Masters, MVDS Development Director, asked for help to dismantle some raised beds to make way for new plantings and the team obliged.

GS Rotarians take time out to pose and admire their work

They also engaged in weeding, hoeing, and general fall soil preparation while enjoying time with MVDS client gardeners. Nick had to leave early to be ready to greet and introduce DG Hood, so he is missing from the group photo, but he got a lot of work in before departing!

Nick Adams taking apart unused raised garden beds. Excellent drill work.

PJ Jaycox shows off what pilates does to keep him in shape for gardening

Maura Masters, DG Donna Hood, and Debbie Wilde admire the MVDS gardens

Friday's team also got a tour of Greenhouse 2 where GS Rotarians decorated the raised beds there with mosaic tiles last year. The beds looked great and Gardening Supervisor, Hollis, was growing beautifully tall cherry tomatoes and showing off the new evaporative water wall cooling system that is being installed there. The water wall is made possible from rebates from Glenwood Electric and grants from CLEER.

DG Donna Hood Shares Vision

This year’s District Governor, Donna Hood, engaged the club with her bright enthusiasm and strong commitment to Rotary and its ideals at Friday’s meeting. Donna is a Rotarian from Westcliffe, Colorado where she and her husband operate a large ranch for the past 22 years.

You can read more about Donna’s background in her biography. She has a very interesting history and is a committed Westerner through and through, as well as a dedicated Rotarian. I loved her comment about attending the International Convention in Taipei this summer. “You could just feel the presence of all good things” within the 37,000 Rotarians gathered in Taiwan.

As District Governor, Donna is doing things differently and her vision is to prepare District 5470 for years to come. She came to our club to talk a little bit about her vision which is to prepare the District for years ahead. She is all about contributing her energy for lasting impact. She also came without a prepared speech, but to ask provocative questions and to listen.

Addressing questions asked by Stig in a pre-visit questionnaire, Donna shared that many clubs in the area are experiencing challenges in membership – keeping existing members, attracting new members, looking toward the future. She had some suggestions based on experiences of other clubs.

She asked: Who is missing from the club? How does your community see Rotary? How often are we asking others to come to a meeting? “Don’t be afraid to do Rotary differently!” she challenged, and feel free to borrow the good ideas of other clubs. She noted that every club is a little different from every other club. And how lovely that is!

Engaging new members in meaningful ways is essential for their sense of belonging, said Donna. Membership Chair Debbie Wilde has scheduled a new member coffee this week. Thursday, September 17 1:30 PM at Barnes and Noble Café, Meadows Shopping Center, Glenwood Springs. Everyone is welcome.

Donna also noted something we have known for a while; Nick Adams is an OUTSTANDING MEMBER and we are fortunate to have his energy, knowledge, enthusiasm and commitment to Rotary in our club! This year Nick is the District 5470 Membership Chair and working hard to help us and other clubs. We are so proud of Nick and appreciate his (and his wife Becky’s) Rotary commitment.

Nick Adams, Assistant District Governor and all around great Rotarian!

Thank you, Donna, for your visit and your vision and your commitment to Rotary. Together we can create lasting impact.

The Blooming of Chinle Planting Hope

The meeting room was filled with members and guests alike and Navajo Tacos were the HOT menu item on Friday as Nancy Bo Flood and Debbie Wilde shared the story of the blossoming of Chinle Planting Hope. The room was also filled with love and support for the remarkable energy and tenacity of the Navajo women who dreamed for a better life for their children… and then made it so!

2022 CPH work crew: Back Row: Jim Drolet, Judy Drolet, Charlene Revoir, Mike Wilde, Ken Robinson. Front Row: Michelle Lefebrve, Nancy Bo Flood, Debbie Wilde and John Haines

The relationship between Chinle Planting Hope (CPH) and GS Rotary started in 2021 when Nancy and Bill Flood retired to their home in Glenwood Springs after working 10+ years on the Navajo Reservation. Bill thought he was going to “take it easy”, but then they met Debbie Wilde! She helped Nancy get Rotary's support for a wonderful youth literacy for Navajo young people called, Read at Home. That year, the club members donated $10,000 to ensure Highlights magazines where sent to the homes of all Chinle elementary school students! And that was only the beginning

The next year (2022) nine GS Rotarians traveled to Chinle with a truck full of stuff to help set up Chinle Planting Hope's Thrift Store on a dry, dusty dirt lot with nothing but six shipping containers and a big dream. They worked very hard under the hot Arizona sun and fell in love with the people, the project, and the plan for what CPH wanted to be, and they brought their enthusiasm back to the club to fuel more collaboration. Five years later, the Store is transformed into a “merchandise mall” bringing in over $3000 per month (with the continued influx of market items from Rotary clubs across the region). Check out this beautiful video about CPH from 2022.

Chinle Planting Hope is the central organizing entity for several support efforts for tribal members. I think of it as separate puzzle pieces focused on specific populations and their needs, all facilitated and connected into a cohesive vision by the staff of CPH. The pieces of the CPH puzzle are: 1) Read in Beauty Bookmobile, 2) Imagination Station Learning Center, 3) HOPE Thrift Store, 4) Community Garden, 5) Elder Support, 6) Solar Light Installation, and 7) Polar Express Holiday Store. These pieces work to address the major foci of Chinle Planting Hope - literacy, children, vulnerable elders and others.

Ken Robinson 2023 - Solar light installation

Chinle Planting Hope started with the vision of several Navajo/Dinė women “to do better for our kids and families" by building a community center where they could find their own solutions. They are doing that with the support of Rotarians, foundations, tribal leaders, school leaders, and technical support from many others.

CPH now enters a new phase to raise operating funds to KEEP THE LIGHTS ON. This three-year campaign seeks $30K per year to move from building programs to sustaining programs. Please consider contributing - either through our Club's Foundation (see Charlene) or through a sustaining donation directly to Chinle Planting Hope.

With every dollar WE are planting hope in Chinle and walking in beauty with the Dinė .

Shelter Box and More

President Stig managed Colorado State trivia on Friday. We knew a few of the answers, but others evaded us. Do you know all the Colorado state symbols and emblems? Here a few to share with colleagues and coworkers. See what they know about Colorado.

State Flower: Columbine (white and lavender)
State Rock: Yule marble
State Bird: Lark Bunting
State Animal: Big Horn Sheep
State Songs: Where the Columbine Grows, and Rocky Mountain High
State Cactus: Claret Cup
State Tree: Colorado Blue Spruce

Shelter Box & Rotary

ShelterBox Ambassador, David Addor (Rotary Club of Aurora-Fitzsimmons), along with our own Pam Pine, were on hand Friday to share more about the amazing work done by ShelterBox around the world. I didn't know that ShelterBox began in 2000 as a project of the Rotary Club of Cornwall, England, to provide a box of essential supplies for families experiencing climate disasters. In the past 27 years, ShelterBox has grown into its own 501(c)3 organization and is at work in over 15 countries around globe serving over 3 million people.

David Addor, Rotary Shelter Box Ambassador

Rotary International became an official partner with ShelterBox in 2012. Local Rotary clubs are integral to the success of ShelterBox. “Serving those who are not getting help any other way,” is a key to ShelterBox's mission and the local connections of Rotary clubs make all the difference in getting aid out there to ensure that aid is locally led. Often rural communities are overlooked or harder to reach due to their isolation and/or smaller numbers. That's where local clubs and members play an huge role.

ShelterBox partners with local NGOs (Non Governmental Organizations) to procure and distribute aid, and to provide the items, shelters, etc. that are needed. The original “green box” has been retired to make way for targeted items that better meet the needs of disaster survivors and adapt to where they are.

Aid items focus first on shelter, and that ranges from tents, tarps, and repair kits for temporary shelter to transitional and durable shelters that house people for years. Shelter Box also delivers essential household items such as blankets, cooking sets, water filters, solar lights, and mosquito nets.

Rotary's partnership has been instrumental in ShelterBox's reach and effectiveness, as have the partnerships with other organizations. And the power of both Rotary volunteers and Rotary funding is more necessary than ever. ShelterBox receives no governmental assistance and thus relies on the generosity of donors. That allows ShelterBox the independence to address tough issues and bring necessary relief to anyone anywhere, addressing power imbalances through its purposeful humanitarian efforts.

ShelterBox's organizational strategy focuses on three major aspects of aid - Do More. Do it Well. Do it Together. Their theory of change is worth reading about. And their mission - No one without shelter after a disaster - is worth supporting. Do that here with a contribution of any size. Become a Rotary ShelterBox Ambassador

Subscribe to ShelterBox's news links to learn more. The world's population is more vulnerable to natural disasters and less governmental support has increased the need for ShelterBox's response. Thank you.

Navajo Tacos, Reading, and Light

Get the latest news and learn about the outcomes of our club's human and capital investment in Chinle Planting Hope at the Friday, August 28th meeting. You'll hear from Debbie Wilde and Nancy Bo Flood, see photos of the center and its transformation, and learn more about CPH's next steps.

2026 Rotary volunteers in the Chinle Planting Hope Imagination Station

We will be enjoying Navajo Tacos prepared by our outstanding chefs at the Elks Lodge. This is one not to be missed! Check out the 2026 CPH photo album. You will see photos of many of your fellow members, as well as Rotarians from several other clubs.

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CMC: Our community's college

We were happy to share the enthusiasm of Friday's speaker when she talked about the essential programs and benefits of Colorado Mountain College to its students and our community.

April Polly, Regional Development Officer for CMC's Roaring Fork valley, updated the club on how CMC is serving the region's communities. April serves the campuses in Aspen, Carbondale, Spring Valley and Glenwood Springs in raising funds for scholarships, programs, and infrastructure. She is a native of the valley and also a graduate of CMC, earning her bachelor's degree in Sustainability Studies. She began working at CMC after graduation at the Aspen Campus, and moved into her current development office role 10 months ago.

April Polly, CMC Regional Development Officer

CMC has 11 campuses throughout the mountain region serving over 14,000 students, many who are still in high school earning college credits through concurrent enrollment. Over 40% of CMC's students are of Hispanic descent qualifying CMC as a Hispanic Serving Institution and making it eligible for grant programs focused on equitably serving all students.

The college has long been a college of opportunity and that is still its mission. Together with significant community support, CMC is focusing on majors that lead to living-wage employment opportunities and serve the region's communities. Supporting this focus CMC is expanding skilled trades education with a new facility in Rifle, high-demand health care programs such as nursing, radiology technology, and dental hygiene, and public safety programs in law enforcement, EMS, and fire science.

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We also learned about an exciting new program for engineering students to start at CMC and then transfer to Colorado School of Mines. What a great opportunity to stay local, reduce the total cost of a high-demand major, and earn a prestigious degree.

April highlighted some of the ways the CMC Foundation is supporting students pursuing these important majors and invited our support.

Nursing Travel Stipends - nursing students must travel to hospitals around the state to get required hands-on training due to the high demand for clinical training spots. They often need financial support as their finances are extremely tight because the curriculum is so intense.
Study Abroad - the value of being in another country and seeing how others live and work is the purpose of study abroad. For many CMC students this experience is unattainable without some economic support.
Center for Civics Education and Engagement - CMC is committed to engaging in its communities and raising the level of civic understanding and engagement. The Center is a broad-based approach to reinvigorating civic commitment and community participation.
Skilled Trades - The need is extremely high for skilled technicians in all trades areas. The college is responding by investing in a center to train people welders, mechanics, construction professionals, plumbers, heating technicians with a new center in Rifle.

If you interested in learning more or giving to the Foundation, please contact April Polly apolly@coloradomtn.edu.

Valley Meals & More

Mary Kenyon was looking for something to do after she retired. In 2021 she got curious about Meals on Wheels and did research. She discovered that the communities in eastern Garfield County did not have a food home delivery program for home-bound senior citizens. Nothing. Senior meals were served at community sites in Glenwood Springs and Carbondale one to two days per week, but nothing for home delivery. So she created one!

Mary Kenyon, Executive Director, Valley Meals and More

Kenyon founded Valley Meals and More which “supports the wellness of older adults living in eastern Garfield County by providing nourishing daily meals” and much more. She is its executive director and proud to be connecting with older adults who truly need and appreciate a daily meal and check in.

What sets Valley Meals and More apart? There are four main aspects of the program that highlight its impact:

Nourishment & Connection: Every meal brings more than food - a friendly smile, a quick chat, and a daily wellness check that brighten the day and ease isolation.
Nutritious & Appealing Meals - Meals are crafted to be both nourishing and delicious, with presentation that delights the eyes as much as the taste buds. They are prepared and packaged by Sodexo staff at CMC Spring Valley.
Freedom Without Fuss - The program provides essential support at no cost to the older adult, helping them age safely, independently, and with dignity while giving their families peace of mind.
Volunteers Who Care - More than 65 volunteers bring more than meals; they deliver kindness, connection, and a reminder that no one in our community is truly alone. Volunteers provide over 4,900 hours per year delivering food and checking on their clients.

Each meal costs $10.25. The cost to feed one client four meals per week for a full year is $2,912. Donations and grants fund the program. 40% of the funding comes from donors. Program sponsors/grant support comes from The Colorado Trust, Colorado State Unit on Aging, Sodexo, and Project Angel Heart.

In addition to meals delivered to individuals at home, Valley Meals and More offers a Congregate Meal program at three locations in eastern Garfield County where older adults share a healthy meal with others as well as socialize and connect. The Parade of Produce held every other Wednesday is made possible by the Colorado Trust and gives older adults access to fresh fruits and vegetables free of charge.

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Meals are delivered four days per week: Monday, Tuesday, Thursday, and Friday. They are substantial and generous so that clients often use them for both their lunch and dinner. Valley Meals and More delivered over 26,400 meals in 2025 to 240 older adult clients.

Clearly the success of Valley Meals has demonstrated the need for such a program. As “real” retirement beckons to Mary, she is looking to local municipalities to maintain the program, as well as solidify sustainable funding sources. so no vulnerable older adult goes hungry or forgotten.

To learn more about the program or ways you can support their important work, please visit the Valley Meals and More website where you can also make a donation.

Down on the Farm

Some months ago Rebecca from Highwater Farms in Silt presented an overview of the nonprofit farm and invited us to their community events. I had forgotten about the summer luncheon until Michelle Lefebrve's reminder email about the July 15 Community Lunch, so I bought a ticket hoping I would see a friend or two while learning about the Farm and having a “home grown” lunch.

Top Row: Ruth Edmonds and Heather Exby. Bottom Row: Becky Ciani and Nick Adams

The email brought out a few GS Rotarians and we enjoyed a delicious lunch, met the young summer interns who gave us tours and told us about their experiences at Highwater Farms.

Highwater Farm tour on a sunny July day!

It is a great space doing great things for kids, the environment, and the community. The Farm has a contract to supply fresh veggies for Lift Up, as well as supporting community members who sign up to support the farm and get produce each week during the growing season (CSA). Nick suggested that our club might invest in a CSA share next year and those interested in “sharing the share” could pay a portion and then pick up some of the bounty at our weekly meeting. I love that idea!

A Song in His Heart

We enjoyed a lovely medley of folk songs with Steve Shute on the guitar. He said these were some of his favorites, tunes loved by Steve Beattie, and favorites of Rotary, too. And you could tell he was having a wonderful time!

We sang classic folk tunes like Blowin' in the Wind, Five Hundred Miles, Leavin' on a Jet Plane, and This Land is Your Land. I love these tunes and love that we have Steve's voice and leadership in making music come alive…. and helping the rest of us sound Oh-so-good! Thank you, Steve.