There will be NO meeting on Tuesday, December 30! Enjoy the holidays with your loved ones!
Also, return your 2026 Salem Rotary Raffle Calendar stubs and payment so your recipients are entered into the first drawing of the new year on January 6!
This Week at Rotary
It was a jolly time at this week’s evening meeting! President Ryan provided club updates and shared some thank yous the Club received from Salem High School, the Salem Pantry and others.
He also thanked Rotarians for the great service efforts already given this year. Only halfway through the calendar year, we are well on our way to exceed our goals for service. It took President Ryan hours to enter all of the activities into the Rotary tracker. Projects have included, but likely aren’t limited to: the DCF Picnic; 3 Lifebridge Meals; the Elliot Picnic; SPUR Backpack Program; MANY days/hours at the Traffic Island; the Longest Table; wrapping for SPUR and DCF; and the DCF Holiday Party. Our Club is engaged and clearly cares deeply for the community. We have a lot to be proud of this year.
Rinus Oosthoek then provided an update from Salem High’s Career and Technical Education (CTE) Program. Salem High hosted a meeting with the Salem Chamber, Salem Partnership and Rinus on December 17 to review pathways, staff, student participation, upcoming events, updates, and facility needs for the 2025-2026 school year.
If you are unfamiliar, CTE pathways include Automotive Marine Service Technologies, Building and Property Management, Carpentry, Culinary Arts, Early Education, Electrical, Medical Assisting, Programming, Graphic Design, Business & Marketing, and Technical Theater, each staffed by dedicated instructors. Out of 960 students at Salem High, 617 participate in CTE programs, with 27 students from Beverly joining specific pathways. The Salem Technical Institute evening program is successfully graduating its fifth cohort this year as well.
The new Salem High School building plan outlines CTE spaces by level but faces challenges such as replacing the automotive building during construction and accommodating program needs in new spaces. Staffing and funding gaps remain a concern as well.
Rinus then shared key dates in 2026 that will highlight the CTE program: • Jan. 10 Salem 400+ Kickoff & Volunteer Event • Feb. CTE Month • April Rotary Luncheon at Black Cat Café (date TBD) • April 16 Career Fair • May 7 General Advisory and Program Advisory Meetings • May 21 Rinus Oosthoek Rotary CTE Awards Ceremony • June 5 Salem High School Graduation • June 13 Car Show (tentative)
The remainder of the meeting was dedicated to happy dollars and Club announcements shared below.
Calendar Winner!
We had two calendar draws this week due to there being no meeting next week. These are the last winners for the 2025 calendar. Winners are:
Kelly Moore sold by Joe Amico
Lisa Seufzer sold by Bill Henning
50:50 Raffle
$675
Tim Clarke & Rinus Oosthoek
No Winners!
Visitors and Guest Rotarians
This week we welcomed Natalie’s daughter Josie, Gary Stirgwolt, Jim Dunlap and Carol Lang to our meeting..
Volunteer
Let’s not forget our motto, Service Above Self! The Community Service Committee is working hard this year to find more opportunities for Salem Rotarians to serve in our community.
LIFEBRIDGE DINNER Wednesday, January 14 | 4 PM | Lifebridge Lifebridge helps the folks in our community who are most in need with important basics like shelter and food. Once every two months, volunteers from the Salem Rotary Club make dinner. Meal prep typically starts around 4/4:30 PM, with dinner service at 5:30 PM. Email Hannah Beth Hembree if you’d like to volunteer!
Club Events
Why should you go to fellowship events?
Because they’re fun!
ACCIDENTLY ON PURPOSE FUNDRAISER FOR SALEM ROTARY FOUNDATION Saturday, January 24 | 7:30 PM | Hawthorne Hotel Thanks to fellow Rotarian Bruce Whear, the Club has the opportunity to have some fun while raising some money for our own Salem Rotary Foundation. Proceeds for up to 40 tickets to this performance of his comedy troupe “Accidentally on Purpose (AOP)” purchased by Rotarians will be matched by Bruce and donated to the Foundation. Part of Salem’s annual “Comedy and Spirits Festival,” AOP is the hottest improv comedy troupe on the North Shore. They specialize in short form improv comedy and travel through New England to perform both public and private shows as well as offer custom improv based corporate trainings. Tickets are $25 each. If you are interested, sign up with Rinus Oosthoek.
SAVE THE DATE: Salem Rotary Mad Hatter’s Tea Party Auction and Gala Friday, March 13, 2026 | Hawthorne Hotel As we prepare for this year’s Mad Hatter Tea Party Gala & Auction, we are excited to bring our community together for an evening of fun, creativity, and impact. One of the highlights of the night will be our auction, which helps raise the vital funds that fuel our Rotary Scholarship Fund. Together, we can make this auction unforgettable and raise the resources needed to continue the incredible work of Salem Rotary. We are anticipating this to be a crowd drawing event, so be sure to get your tickets early and please share the event and ticket links on your social media platforms. Thank you for being part of the magic—we can’t wait to celebrate with you at the Mad Hatter Gala! Please let Jason Lang or Heather Lang know what you can contribute, or who we can reach out to, by February 1, 2026.
RI & District News
DISTRICT EVENTS
Feb. 12 World Peace and Understanding Event
Mar. 21 “Spring into Action” Polio Fundraiser
May 16 District Conference
Jun. 13-17 RI Convention in Taipei
Salem Rotarians Say . . .
Joe Amico had quite a bit to share, but the notetaker was using a cocktail napkin, so not all may have been captured! He first gave a stove update. He and Jim have been battling with their Viking Stove for quite some time, going through quite an ordeal to coordinate the repair with the gas company and the appliance repair company. After a lot of attempts, the stove is repaired, but at the sacrifice of Jim’s favorite cooking mat, which Joe is replacing.
Joe also had a very happy birthday made extraordinarily special by Jim who made him special muffins for breakfast, took him to dinner at the Beverly Depot, brought him to Bit Bar to play pinball, and bought him a special bird feeder that lets Joe enjoy the birds from his phone when he is not home. If husbands would like to enter into the Jim Dunlap Make Your Spouse Feel Special Program, please let Joe know!
Joe closed his happy dollars with an invitation to the Christmas Eve service at the Tabernacle Church, which will begin with a concert by the Napierkowski Family at 6:40 PM tonight, followed by service at 7 PM where Scott Grover’s son Alex will direct the choir. The Tabernacle Church is located at 50 Washington Street, Salem.
Jason Consalvo can never pass on the opportunity to take the microphone and shared gratitude for several fellow Rotarians for a fun time at the Hamilton Hall Ball and to Jen Close for helping him replace a lost Paul Harris pin.
Heather Lang closed out the meeting with a funny joke which she signed about “passed your eyes” milk!
18 Washington Square
Salem, MA 01970 United States of America
NOTE: The fourth Tuesday of the month is an evening meeting, beginning at 5:15 p.m.
If you are interested in learning more about Salem Rotary, please email president@salemrotary.com.
