The Rotary of Macomb meets Tuesdays at noon at the First Presbyterian Church.
August 4 , 2026 President Nick Knowles called the Rotary Club’s 5th meeting to order with the ringing of the Rotary Bell at the First Presbyterian Church in Macomb.
First, Nick asked for a moment of silence for Rotarian Bruce Biagini who had passed away in the previous week.
Todd Rodeffer delivered the invocation, and Garry Johnson led the Pledge of Allegiance.
Abbey Thorman reported attendance of 30 members in person and one member via Zoom, representing 58% of the club’s membership. There was one guest, our speaker, Tanner Horrell Head Football Coach at MHS.
Happy Money followed, with 13 Rotarians sharing special events from the past week. During the 50/50 drawing, John Bannon held the winning ticket and had the opportunity to claim the $157 prize by drawing the 9 of Hearts from the remaining 31 cards.
Unfortunately, he drew the 6 of Clubs and did not win this week.
President Nick had Jerry Brookhart mention our Pollinator Garden located at 300 Ember Rd – North of the WIU golf course. The project needs volunteers to work on this Saturday, August 8, 2026, starting at 10:30AM. He asked for volunteers to help erect an informative sign at the site.
Nick then introduced Tanner Horrell, Head Football Coach at MHS.
Now in his sixth season at MHS, Coach Horrell has led the team to the playoffs in most of those years and has restored a winning tradition. He has encouraged players to be involved and engaged and has proven to be an excellent coach.
Tanner wanted to mention his coaching staff and how much they help him build on the success of the team.
He then reviewed the successful season the team had last year going 9-2 with a regular season loss to Farmington and a loss to Geneseo in the 2nd round of the playoffs. He went through the team’s strengths and few weaknesses they would have for the coming season. The strengths included having 60 players signed up to play with some more expected when school starts. His one weakness is having backups for his offensive line. The team especially the O-Line will need to stay healthy.
Tanner mentioned the success for the junior football program that he has helped change from a full contact program to a flag football format. This has boosted the numbers of players and having more who want to participate when they reach high School.
This year, the IHSA has expanded the playoff field to 48 teams, an increase of 16 teams, which will extend the playoffs by one additional week. Coach Horrell stated that one of his goals is for the team to have a strong season and earn a first-round bye, which would provide MHS with a significant advantage. Given last year’s success and the number of returning players, this season has the potential to be an exceptional one for MHS.
The club members wished Coach Tanner a successful season and thanked him for his dedication and leadership in leading the Macomb High Bombers football program.
The meeting concluded with the recitation of the “Four-Way Test” and the sounding of the Rotary Bell, encouraging all members to make Rotary part of their lives and to “Unite for Good.”
