The Marana Rotary Club meeting focused on welcoming new member Kristina Brewer as an official Rotarian and featuring a presentation by nature photographer Steve Thompson, MD. 

Assistant Governor Alita Wiener conducted the induction ceremony, explaining Rotary's history and principles before welcoming Kristina as the newest member.  Kristina is the principal of Roadrunner Elementary school. 

Mike introduced guest speaker Steven Thompson, a Tucson-based nature photographer and retired academic endocrinologist, highlighting his work in capturing the beauty of the Sonoran Desert through his photographs.

Steve Thompson then delivered an engaging presentation about the Saguaro Forest, showcasing his nature photography of desert plants, animals, and the intricate relationships between bighorn sheep, saguaro cacti, and hummingbirds. He demonstrated his specialized photography techniques using macro and telephoto lenses to capture detailed images of desert wildlife, explaining how these species interact and the unique characteristics of the Sonoran Desert ecosystem. After the presentation, Mike proposed that Steve consider offering his photography services to the Marana Unified School District for educational purposes, which Steve welcomed.

Summary

Desert Photography and Saguaro Cacti

Steven presented as a nature photographer and discussed his equipment, including macro and telephoto lenses used to capture detailed images of desert plants and animals in the Saguaro Forest near Tucson. He explained the unique characteristics of saguaro cacti, including their water storage abilities and night-time photosynthesis process. Steven shared examples of his photography, including images of desert animals like rattlesnakes and honeybees, demonstrating how his specialized equipment allows him to capture detailed shots from a safe distance.

Desert Bighorn Sheep Identification

Steven discussed the behavior and characteristics of desert bighorn sheep, including their mating habits and how to determine a ram's age by examining hormone-related ridges on their horns. He explained the process of photographing and identifying bighorn sheep in the Sonoran Desert using high-resolution cameras and binoculars, demonstrating how to spot and count the sheep in various photos.

Saguaro Cactus Growth Process

Steven explained the growth process of saguaro cacti, noting that they grow from the top and produce approximately 100 aerials annually. He described the protective white cap on new growth and highlighted key features of cactus flowers, including multi-lobe stigma and stamens, explaining that cactus flowers are self-incompatible, requiring cross-pollination.

Saguaro Cacti Pollination Process

Steven discussed the pollination process of saguaro cacti, highlighting the role of native pollinators such as bees, white-winged doves, and hummingbirds like the Broad-tailed Hummingbird. He explained how these pollinators help transfer pollen between cacti, contributing to genetic diversity. Steven also mentioned the ocotillo plant and its relationship with hummingbirds, noting that ocotillos are self-incompatible and rely on pollinators for cross-pollination.

Hummingbird-Saguaro Mutualism Photography

Steven presented photographs and discussed the mutualistic relationship between hummingbirds and saguaro cacti, explaining how hummingbirds collect nectar while transferring pollen. He shared techniques for wildlife photography, including waiting patiently for the right moment and using backlit conditions to enhance images. Steven also showed photos of other wildlife, including cardinals and a desert lizard basking on rocks.

Steven presented a detailed explanation of how hummingbirds display color through structural features rather than pigments, demonstrating with photographs how the birds can control light reflection to show different colors depending on their orientation. He discussed his photography techniques using fast shutter speeds and specialized equipment to capture hummingbirds and other wildlife in natural settings. 

 The meeting focused on a presentation by Jane Shurtleff about the Prosperity Initiative and the Community Coalition for Prosperity (CC4P). Jane explained that Pima County has a poverty rate of 13.8%, with 17.8% of children living below the poverty line, and that the initiative aims to break cycles of generational poverty through 13 evidence-based policies across housing, health, education, and workforce development. She described CC4P as a collaborative effort involving government, nonprofits, businesses, and people with lived experience, and highlighted recent progress such as investments in affordable housing, food bank support, and early childhood education scholarships. Jane encouraged the Rotary club to get involved by joining CC4P as a member or participating in its working groups. 

Kristina, a principal at Roadrunner Elementary, shared her school's literacy efforts, including a book vending machine funded by a district grant, and the club discussed providing additional funding for books. The group also touched on the challenges of student attendance and the role of schools as social service agencies. Other topics included a brief discussion about the Rotary Youth Leadership Awards (RYLA) and the club's ongoing youth exchange efforts.

Next steps

Kristina

• Prepare a list of books needed for the book vending machine and provide an invoice to the Rotary Club for $1,000.

Collaboration

• The Marana Rotary Club: Discuss and potentially vote at the next board/business meeting on whether to formally join CC4P as a club.
• The Marana Rotary Club: Consider promoting and finding candidates for the Rotary Youth Leadership Awards (RYLA) program.
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This meeting was a celebration of Logan McLeod being named the first Rotary Star student of the school year at MCAT. Logan was introduced as the top choice from the electives department and the overall Rotary Star student, noting that Logan is set to graduate in December with just three more classes remaining. Logan shared his educational journey, explaining that he transferred from Marana High School to MCAT due to academic challenges and altercations, seeking a better environment to graduate sooner. When asked about his favorite aspects of MCAT, Logan highlighted the supportive teachers and collaborative classroom environment, particularly enjoying the Walking for Wellness elective class. Logan expressed plans to pursue a career in plumbing with his father or become a truck driver, and shared that his brother also graduated from MCAT and is working with their father's plumbing business. The conversation ended with teachers praising Logan's personal growth, commitment, and leadership qualities, and Mark presented Logan with gift cards as tokens of congratulations.

Club members also met representatives from the Romanian Friendship Exchange, Lucien and David Oniceanu.

After the MCAT meeting the club members went to the Marana Food Bank to Volunteer.   

Cindy called the meeting to order at 7:15 am with Beverly leading the group in the Pledge of Allegiance. (Mark, Josh, and our guest speaker, Adam Ostmeyer, were called out for an emergency at the high school - we are all sending positive thoughts to all involved)

Today’s Guest Speaker: Don Jorgensen 

• Participated in this year’s Zone Institute - a yearly, week-long conference
• The Rotary International Zone Institute: the regional leadership development and strategic planning engine of Rotary International. It bridges the gap between individual local districts and the global headquarters, serving as the essential training ground for the organization’s highest regional officers.
• There are 34 zones with approximately 15 districts on each zone
• Marana is in District 5500 and Zone 26 (along with zone 27, we are a combined 30 districts)
• Next year’s president will be Larry Lunsford - (July 1, 2027)
• Don spoke about our shoe drive - collected 600 shoes!! AND a monetary donation from the Peoria Rotary of $2500 - Wow!!
• Our group took a photo with some of the donated shoes and check
• 

Updates & New Business: 

ShelterBox

Some background info:

Founded: Established in 2000 in Helston, Cornwall, UK, by Tom Henderson, a Rotarian and former Royal Navy search-and-rescue diver. Has been nominated for the Nobel Peace Prize 3 times! It is Rotary’s official partner for disaster relief.

Mission: To ensure that no family is left without emergency shelter after a disaster.

Reach: Has helped over 3 million people across roughly 100 countries over its 25-year history.

• Our club received a “Thank You” read by Cindy
• Marana is a Bronze Hero Club, donating $1000 each of the last 3 years
• Rotarians are in Nepal and 15 other countries right now, providing aid

Meals at Hope

• Cindy provided an update - it is $9000 for 30,000 meals to be packaged
• All supplies are provided and delivered - gloves, hairnets, boxes, etc.
• We are coordinating an event for March 20 - location TBD - maybe Mt. View HS - good central location - will need all hands (literally) on deck!
• These meals will stay local and support our community!
• Kristina mentioned that MUSD has 2 mobile units that deliver meals when there are long breaks, holidays…maybe connect

District Conference - September 18 & 19 - Tubac Convention Center

• This year’s theme, “How Has Rotary Impacted You”
• Cindy & Bob will be presenting!!

Guest Speakers/Upcoming Meetings 

• September 15 - Meet In Person - @ Vista
• September 22 - MCAT Student - 7:15 am @ MCAT
• September 29 - 5th Tuesday Social - Game Night!! :)
• October 6 - Business Meeting @ Vista - Cindy & Mike will co-host - Mark will be celebrating his 30th anniversary!! Woot Woot!
• October 13 - Amanda Wiggins - Chamber of Commerce @ Vista
• October 20 - Photographer - @ Vista

Happy Buck$:

Bob - getting his steps in!! Anxious to be back to Arizona, through Oklahoma, in time for the Rotary Conference

John: Card night tonight… basically just a way to donate to his friends! Might start bidding baby tortoises…

Kristina: Excited about a new reading program at Roadrunner, every student that needs support has an adult to work with! So awesome! 

Bev: Her son in Chicago started his “dream job” today as a Federal Corrections Officer! Be safe, Zaine! (Bev’s dad was a Chicago police officer, and her 2 nephews are the Fire Chief and Lieutenant…she’s used to it…)

Cindy: Spent time in Senoita for the rodeo - her grandson is enjoying bull riding - she is glad that he did not get hurt! 

Harold: Spent time with his grandkids, added more smoke detectors to the ONE that was wired…they pair up automatically - how fun!

Gregg: The sulcata tortoises, all 36 of them, took a family trip to Pinetop! Must take care of those babies! (Did you know they are the 3rd largest tortoise in the world? Want one…there is a strict application process, so…)

Mike: With the cooler temperatures, getting on more hiking and biking; having cataract surgery today - hope all goes well!

Next Steps:

Cindy - Meals at Hope, logistics, mobile delivery vehicles

Cindy & Mike - plan October 6 meeting 

Order books for Roadrunner!

Cindy concluded the meeting at 8:04 am, Our meeting ended with the 4 Way Test, as led by Harold