Taking on a different format, this week’s program consisted of a panel discussion by two local small businesses moderated by our own Bob Cohen. The panelists began the presentation giving a brief summary of their respective backgrounds and businesses.
Born in Easton, Bruce Haines, proprietor of The Aardvark Sports Shop and the Bon-Appetit in Bethlehem, started his career as a counselor at Moravian College. In 1995, he decided to join the family business (Aardvark) and eventually purchased the business from his father. Despite the challenges of running two small businesses in a downtown environment, Bruce shared that he would not want to do what he does anywhere else. As other small businesses, he works hard to differentiate his business by focusing on the customer experience. He knows customers can order the same products he offers on-line in the comfort of their own home. The key to getting those customers into his store is through value-added offerings such as custom fittings, helpful running tips, etc.
Our own Club member, Pete Mickolay, owner of Aykroyd Hardware, grew up in Hellertown and spent summers hanging out in his grandfather’s hardware store, which gave him his first glimpse into the hardware business. After college, he had an opportunity to help rebuild and reestablish a larger hardware store in Hellertown that had burned to the ground. That experience prepared him for the decision he faced in 1985 when his grandfather fell ill. As we all know, he decided to keep Aykroyd Hardware going. Pete competes with the big box stores by providing exceptional customer service. His customers know they will receive the answers to their questions from staff who know what they are talking about. He also created a niche market for a specific brand of tools that customers from across the Lehigh Valley and even across the country. Pete believes the store is well-established and doesn’t see himself moving the store to another location anytime soon.
Thank you Bruce and Pete for helping to keep our downtown a bustling and vibrant place to buy local. You are filling an important role in the preservation of our City.
Announcements and Presentations:
The Taste & Tunes Committee will be inviting Tony & JoJo Muir, our Honorary Chair, and Paul Lynch, executive director of Second Harvest, to our Club for an official check presentation on November 2nd. Please be sure to join us for this exciting day!
A call went out to Club members who might be interested in learning to write grants for our Club. Rotary requires Club members to attend formal grant-writing training to be able to serve in that capacity for our Club. We NEED a few grant-trained Club members in order to submit future district and international grants for our Club. The next training session will be held on Saturday, October 29 from 7:30 am to 1:00 pm at Montgomery County Community College in Blue Bell. Bill is also trying to have a Foundation Training hosted locally for those who cannot attend the October 29th training. Stay tuned!
Scholarships are still available to attend the Rotary Leadership Institute on November 12, 2016 (7:30 am to 3:30 pm at Bucks County Community College). Tyler Papaz, Ham Malek, Bob Smith and Patricia Young will be attending so there are car-pooling opportunities available. Please contact President Gail for more information.
Don’t miss our annual Thanksgiving Luncheon on Thursday, November 16 at Moravian Village. Our guest speaker will be Jan Musser-Geier, outreach & marketing coordinator for the Salvation Army Foster Care & Adoption Services. Cost of our lunch is $20, of which $5 will be donated to Polio Plus. The Morning Star Rotary Club will be joining us to celebrate this special day of thanks!
Morning Star Rotary Club has invited our Club to attend their Holiday Breakfast on December 22nd at Moravian Village. Cost of the breakfast is $10; voluntary donations of $10 will be accepted to underwrite the cost of breakfast for the Liberty High School Chorus members who will be providing the entertainment. Rumor has it that Mr. & Mrs. Claus will also be attending! NOTE: THIS WILL NOT REPLACE OUR CLUB’S ANNUAL MEETING ON DECEMBER 21st AT WHICH TIME WE WILL BE ELECTING OUR NEW SLATE OF OFFICERS FOR THE 2017-2018 ROTARY YEAR. (This corrects an announcement from the podium at our 10/26 weekly meeting.)
Another service project is being planned to help fight hunger in our community. Our Club will be participating with other Area 2 clubs – Morning Star, Nazareth, Easton and Saucon Valley – in a food packaging/distribution project through Outreach Hunger to benefit local food pantries in our respective communities. The event will be held on Saturday, March 11, 2017 at Moravian College. Special thanks to Mark Reed for offering space at the college. Catherine Trawinski and Diane Donaher will be coordinating these efforts for our Club. We will need a good number of volunteers to help package food that day so please mark the date on your calendars now.
President Gail reminded Club members that we only added 4 new members to the Club since the beginning of her term. We need to add 1 new member per month for the next 8 months to reach our goal of 12 new members this year. She encouraged Club members to invite at least one guest to our Thanksgiving Luncheon on November 16th.
Ham Malek, chair of the Rotary Peace Fellowships Subcommittee for District 7430, made an exciting announcement about the 2017 Rotary Peace Fellowship selection. Morgan Marks, who presented to our Club a few years ago, has been selected to receive this special honor. Morgan was turned down for this award two previous times; however, she continued to persevere, which speaks volumes about her determination to pursue this endeavor. Ham thanked Club members who helped Morgan throughout the interview and application processes. Those who have interacted with Morgan know she will proudly represent Rotary at her assigned Rotary Peace Center at the University of Queensland.
November 2nd is our Club Assembly. We will be presenting a check, representing the proceeds from our 2016 Taste & Tunes event, to Second Harvest, and we will hear a presentation from George Mowrer, our Club’s RI Foundation Annual Giving Chair.
Watch an update on our progress toward creating a polio-free world. Top global health experts and Rotary's polio ambassadors gathered at the headquarters of the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention in Atlanta, Georgia, on World Polio Day, 24 October, to hail progress made by Rotary and its partners.
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