Events

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.

We will present our trip to Thailand with students who received the scholarship. Discuss ways we can build connections with the Hua Hin school that we visited as well  as share  news about a trip to Peru that the Rotary could sponsor in a similar way. 

Herrick District Library is more than just books! HDL is committed to supporting creativity in the community by helping people "make cool stuff." Join Groundworks Coordinator Dan Zuberbier for a show-and-tell session as he shares examples of what the Holland community can create using the equipment and resources in HDL's makerspace and digital media lab. He'll also share how you can learn more about Groundworks' resources so you can be ready to DIY your gifts this upcoming holiday season.

The Lakeshore Nonprofit Alliance is a member-driven organization with a mission to strengthen the ability of nonprofit organizations to achieve their missions through collaboration. With over 210 member organizations in the greater Ottawa County region, we are recognized for our leadership among the local nonprofit community. We invest in the development of healthy leaders for the nonprofit sector, operational excellence of nonprofit organizations, and collaborative impact. So far in 2025, we have impacted over 900 nonprofit leaders and staff, who in turn have supported community-wide impact through their respective organizations.

Amber Krieg with Kids Food Basket is talking about what has been going on in the past couple of years with the organization. 

The annual bell ringing for the Salvation Army near the corner of 8th Street and Central Avenue, in front of Bowerman's on 8th.

Greetings Rotarians and Guests. Santa is busy preparing for Christmas, so he is unable to attend our December 18^th meeting. However, Mrs. Clause will be in true Holiday Spirits and represent the Clauses.

Additionally, a celebrated musician will join us singing a collection of favorite Christmas and Holiday songs. Musician (and psychiatrist) Reid Taylor has performed in numerous venues. A few performances include the Tutu party of 2/22/22 at 2:22 in the afternoon, which lasted 2 hours and 22 minutes, numerous Tulip Time performances, and a featured guest performer on several cruise ship voyages.

Undoubtedly, you will enjoy this holiday sing-along.