Events

Abby Reeg, with Holland Community Health Center, will explain their role in the Holland Community.  Come prepared to learn more about this non-profit with the hospital and what it does for our community.

John Helm will talk about his life in the Foreign Service, which is the career cadre within the Department of State that Staffs Embassies, Consulates, and other Diplomatic Missions around the World.  

Lt. Mike Brown from the Allegan County Sheriff's office will be speaking about the Netflix documentary called “Into the Fire: The Lost Daughter”, which is about the cold case of Aundria Bowman, who went missing in 1989. We will find out about all of the hard work that went into solving this 30-year-old cold case.   

Cynthia Martinez will share a personal and powerful message rooted in her experience growing up as a Mexican-American child in Holland, Michigan—a community deeply connected to its Dutch heritage. Her early struggles with identity and belonging led her to a career in storytelling, journalism, and filmmaking, with a focus on amplifying underrepresented voices.

Her award-winning documentary film, First Voice Generation, follows the journeys of first-generation students working to overcome the barriers to higher education—stories that reflect Cynthia’s path and the realities faced by many in our community; talent and big dreams are evident, but opportunity, representation, and awareness are not. That work ultimately inspired her to run for, and win, a seat on the local school board, where she now serves as a trustee. Her mission to strive for equity in education isn’t just a goal, but a priority in all that she does.

A very special guest speaker will be joining us at our club meeting next week.  This is someone of great importance to the Rotary world.  Someone who has contributed beyond the imaginable.  Someone whose autograph you may want to seek out after the meeting.  And someone who promises that their program will be shorter than the time allotted – in case there are a lot of questions.

Don’t forget to wear your Rotary pin if you still have one – it will be very nice for the club to put it’s best foot forward.  And maybe a Rotary shirt if you have one as well.

Don’t miss this program – it may very well be the best one of the year!! 

J Field Reichart served as Chief of Staff to State Senator John Schwarz from 1989 to 1991, at which point he was appointed head of all Michigan Government International activities. In 1994, he served as chief of staff for the Secchia Commission on the effective delivery of Michigan Government services, a non-partisan commission accepted by the Governor in early 1995. Following his stint in state government, Field was involved in a number of business and consulting ventures in the USA and in Europe.

Laura lives in Holland, Michigan, with her husband, Ben, their three children—Jacob, Sidny, and Otto—and this year, they’ve also welcomed an Italian foreign exchange student, Lorenzo, into their home.

Professionally, Laura serves as General Counsel for DENSO Ten, a tier-one automotive supplier based in Novi, Michigan. She has more than 20 years of experience as a compliance attorney for large healthcare and education systems. 

Outside the office, Laura’s true passion lies in movement and the sense of community it creates. She believes deeply that community is medicine. With her husband, who recently retired after 22 years of active-duty service, Laura co-founded 90 Degree Ascent / The Forge Yoga and Movement Studio in Holland. They believed that together with the veteran community, we could change the way veterans viewed their post-service life alongside their community.  

Kay will talk about how visioning sessions can improve the focus of organizations.