The Rotary of Macomb meets Tuesdays at noon at the First Presbyterian Church.
August 18, 2026 President Nick Knowles called the Rotary Club’s 7th meeting to order with the ringing of the Rotary Bell at the First Presbyterian Church in Macomb. First, Todd Rodeffer delivered the invocation, and Blake Severs led the Pledge of Allegiance.
Abbey Thorman reported attendance of 30 members in person representing 57% of the club’s membership.
The Happy Money portion of the meeting followed during which nine Rotarians shared special events from the previous week. During the 50/50 drawing, Jerry Brookhart held the winning ticket and had the opportunity to claim the $178 prize by drawing the 9 of Hearts from the remaining 29 cards. However, Jerry drew the Ace of Diamonds and did not win the prize this week.
President Nick provided some announcements to the club. A sign-up form had been distributed electronically, and a printed copy was also made available for members to volunteer for cash raffle ticket sales that Ryan Van Dolah would cover in his following presentation. Nick also asked members to mark their calendars for the club’s 5th Tuesday Social on Tuesday, September 29, 2026, which will include the drawing for the $20,000 Raffle. The club will not hold its regular noon meeting that day.
Rotarian Ryan Van Dolah was then introduced to begin the kickoff of raffle ticket sales. Ryan stated that he was pleased to launch the club’s primary fundraising project, which supports local students who will attend Western Illinois University or Spoon River College. The club has conducted the raffle since 2020–2021, and this year marks its sixth year. To date, the raffle has helped provide scholarships totaling $30,000. The grand prize remains $20,000, with additional prizes of $2,500 for second place, $1,000 for third place, $750 for fourth place, and $500 for fifth place.
Overall, the raffle continues to be a successful fundraiser for the Rotary Club of Macomb, with members selling a significant number of tickets each year. Ryan stated that his goal is to sell 400 tickets this year, a level the club has reached in the past and one he would be pleased to see achieved again. He has planned two ticket sales events: he wanted to make sure that members fill up to work at Hy-Vee on Saturday, August 29, 2026, from 8:00 AM to 12:00 PM, and the other at the Farmers Market in Chandler Park on Saturday, September 12, 2026, from 8:00 AM to 12:00 PM.
Ryan also expressed his appreciation to Royal Printing for donating the printing of the tickets; Lynne Campbell of The Community News Brief for donating the flyers, advertisements in her paper, and selling tickets at her store; Brae Huston for organizing and recording all ticket sales, and all Rotarians for their efforts to sell tickets.
The enthusiasm continued as members received their tickets and began considering potential purchasers for this important fundraising project.
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.”
