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Welcome to the Rotary Club of Waukee!

Are you an established professional who wants to make positive changes in your community and the world? Our club members are dedicated people who share a passion for community service and friendship. Becoming a Rotarian connects you with a global network of diverse professionals who share your drive to give back.

We meet Thursday mornings, 6:45am - 8:00am at Des Moines Golf & Country Club. Guests are always welcome. For more information please email info@waukeerotary.org

Novmeber 15 - Ray "Bubba" Sorensen

Yesterday our club had the pleasure of hearing from Ray “Bubba” Sorensen, the painter of the now famous Freedom Rocks. The original rock stands at 12 feet tall, weighs 90 tons and is repainted annually, on Memorial Day, by Sorensen to honor the United States Veterans from all wars and branches of service. His art has gained national recognition and is a popular motorcycle pitstop for travellers. Painting almost 100 rock murals for veterans in his career, Bubba has set the goal to put a Freedom Rock in every county in Iowa. A true inspiration, thank you Bubba, for your art, and thank you to all our Veterans, we are grateful for your service!

November 1 - Teahl Bader

The regular Thursday morning meeting of the Rotary club of Waukee was fortunate to have the first attendance by our 2018 Waukee High School intern, Elle Kramer, who wrote the following synopsis of the presentation by Teahl Bader:

"Did you know 30% of children live in single-parent homes in Iowa? Today our speaker Teahl Bader shared about her work at Single Parent Provision, a group dedicated to the support of single parents and their children in central Iowa. As Teahl reite...rated many times, most single parents do not plan to become one, and it is her and her non-profit’s mission to make the journey for parents and children more manageable in any way that they can. Single Parent Provision has built a community of families in like situations, and their work serves hundreds in the Des Moines area. Thank you, Teahl, for sharing your powerful mission with us today and for all the work you are doing to better our community!”

The presentation was well received by the club members and they are delighted to have Elle as this years intern to support club activities.

October 18 - Greg Edwards

A spirited presentation by Greg Edwards, CEO of the Des Moines Convention and Business Bureau about the exciting things happening in the Greater Des Moines area hospitality and tourist industry and the increasing number of conventions and events was the program at todays Waukee Rotary Club.

Erna Morain introduced Greg Edwards and Ashlynn Zemlicka, her intern who will be joining the District 6000 team. President Elect, Brad Kobernusz, aptly filled in to run the meeting.

October 11 - Dan Dutcher

Dan Dutcher, Community & Economic Development Director for the City of Waukee, came and spoke to the club today. He gave us an update on all the exciting things going on around town, including the large Apple project.

October 4 - Bif Ridgeway

Thanks to Bif Ridgeway from Bike World for stopping by the Waukee Rotary Club this morning. He also brought by some props and showed us some of the different bikes they offer.

September 20 - Ellie Engelbrecht

Another fun meeting today at the Waukee Rotary. Ellie Engelbrecht stopped by to educate the Rotarians about the Iowa Lions Eye Bank.

September 6 - Chris Connolly

Chris Connolly from the Iowa Event Center joined us today. He gave us a peak inside what goes on in the Event Center and a bit of the history of the building. We can't wait to see what exciting events come to Des Moines next year!

August 23 - District Governor Visit

Thanks to our District Governor, Tom Narak, and his wife for stopping by and sharing their vision for the upcoming Rotary Year. There are a lot of things to be excited about and we are excited to see Tom's vision come to reality in the next several months.

August 9 - Opportunity on Deck

So much excitement this morning at the Rotary Club of Waukee. Dylan DeClerck was the speaker and told us about his organization: Opportunity on Deck, which provides free-of-charge athletic opportunities for children in the greater Des Moines area. For more information check out the website at www.opportunityondeck.com

August 2 - David Kurns

Today the Waukee Rotary Club was fortunate to have David Kurns, Editorial Director Meredith AgriMedia, as a speaker who presented an update on the success and dynamic changes going on at Meredith Corp. Meredith is now the largest publishing company in the world and will be bringing more senior jobs to Des Moines as a result of the acquisition of Time Inc.