Thursday, August 21, 2025

Lunch Buffet

Doors Open 11:30AM

At

 

 

Sylvia Allen, Founder

 

When Minnesota native Sylvia Allen was asked more than a decade ago to be the honorary grandmother to over 1,000 children in the rural African village of Mbiriizi, Uganda at the tail end of a humanitarian trip, she set out on the conquest of a lifetime – to not only love and support her newly adopted grandchildren, but to make a difference in their lives.   

 

(L to R) Jack Seiler, Ruth Westra, Allison Hanig-Landrus, Bob Reichert, Jerry Pelofske

 

By Anthony Nordan

 

We started this week by President Zach Walters trying to ring us into session. We were then led by Rob Hofmann in our reflection. This week’s reflection was looking at how the Rotary 4-Way Test interacts with the parable of the Good Samaritan. The 4 Way Test is an invitation to live our lives with positivity. The Samaritan never asks for anything from the stranger that he is helping. The Saint Louis Rescue squad does something similar in their work. They never ask what is in it for them but show up to help those in their community of St. Louis County.

 

Rob Hofmann: Rotarians as Good Samaritans

 

We had several guests this week. A few returning and a few new friends joining us for our meeting. The guests this week were: Judy Sage, Bergen Hubley, Chris Pelofske, Mike Huska, and Dean Hudoba

 

There were also quite a few Golden Can moments. Gimlet Editor Rob Hofmann fined himself $2 for a misprint in last week’s Gimlet. President Zach Walters put in a few bucks and encouraged more Rotarians to have one-on-one Club member meetings with other Rotarians. That way we can get to know our fellow Rotarians better. Past President Sandy Hoff paid a Work-Zone fine for mentioning hosting one-on-one meetings at his hotel, Pier B.

 

Our Rotary Exchange Student, Bergen Hubley, presented the club with her “This is Me” PowerPoint, which she will give in Brazil. Bergen was originally supposed to go to Belgium, but due to housing issues, she had to shift to a new country - Brazil. There has been a great amount of paperwork and logistical reworking that has needed to happen due to her going to Brazil. She is from Harbor City International and was in both choir and theater. Some of the things she enjoys doing are reading, baking, and traveling. All hobbies are available in spades in Brazil. Bergen is looking forward to coming back in a year to talk about her year in Brazil.

 

Our brave Our Rotary Exchange Student Bergen Hubley!

 

Captain Rick Slattery was this week’s presenter. He was introduced by the chair of the day Past President Elizabeth Simonson. Captain Slattery presented on the work that the Saint Louis County Rescue Squad (STLRS) does throughout the year. STLRS is a 501c3 that covers 7,100 square miles, which is around the same size as the state of New Jersey.

 

Past President Elizabeth Simonson

 

Captain Rick Slattery

 

One of the most fascinating images that Captain Slattery showed was of how vehicles changed. The image shows a vehicle's design changing over the years. Top Left was a vehicle older than the 1970s. The Top Right was from the time of the Oil Embargo. Bottom Left is from a 2000s era vehicle. The Bottom Right is from a 2014 Subaru Outback. The statement that they don’t make them like they used to be is accurate. Slattery commented that a vehicle from the Top Left rolling over will give way and possibly crush the occupant. While the Bottom Right can roll several times without much deformation.

 

 

Some of the other information that Captain Slattery went over were the number of water fatalities per year (most because they weren’t wearing life jackets), the fires recently, ice rescues, cook floods, and the number of Alex’s on their team. There is also quite a bit of interesting equipment that they have. This equipment is key to the success of the Rescue Team.

 

Captain Slattery tells the story of the snow rescue vehicle they purchased. This vehicle is made by a Ukrainian gentleman. In 2014, it won a contest held in Russia for cross-country movement by a vehicle. The Ukrainian gentleman entered two vehicles, and they won first and second in this competition. The vehicle that won second placed crossed the finish line with a broken axle. This story is to show that the vehicle and equipment that the Rescue Squad uses need to be rugged and reliable.

 

A SHERP

 

Marsh Monsters work well in snow, too

 

Several photos were shown of the vehicles and equipment in use. The photos of them scanning the bottom of Lake Superior with a sonar were fascinating. The use of each piece of equipment to accomplish a list of tasks. They showed a drag behind sonar, an underwater unmanned vehicle, a “SHERP”, a “marsh master”, various boats, and some specialized apparel for the work they perform.

 

Cadaver Dogs in service

Able to detect human remains on land, buried, and underwater 

 

Before opening for questions, Captain Slattery showed a photo of a 7-year-old boy they found. He has been missing for a few hours, and they were able to find him in a ditch just short of a busy roadway. If they had not been as well trained and equipped as they were for this task that boy may have made it to the roadway.

 

Q&A

Do other counties have a Rescue Squad?

–Yes. To list a few Lake, Cook, Cass, Aitken.

 

How do you fundraise?

There are 3 ways to fundraise for the Rescue Squad

Boat and Water Safety Grant

State Statue Sherriff is responsible for missing people on the water

Annual Fundraiser

 

Captain Rick’s Dad started the unit in 1958

–Captain Rick helped his dad from a young age