Marana Rotary Club Meeting
Happy Bucks & Personal News
- Harold: Happy for cooler weather
- Mark: Ran a half-marathon the prior weekend
- Bob: Grandbaby’s “halfway to one” party + good Rotary Foundation meeting
- Mike: Daughter visiting, full of joy
- Brandon: Cousin’s wedding in CA – rain stopped just in time
- Kathy: Big family gathering in Texas
- Don – Able to run again
- Beckie: Carl recovering, cancer treatments resume in Dec; daughter coming for Thanksgiving
- Kathleen: Christmas shopping done + injury-free hike
- Cindy: Oldest granddaughter got engaged during a sunrise hot air balloon ride!
More Than a Bed visit Kathy & Cindy were very impressed with the organization’s setup and growth.
- Started in a garage, now huge with church/business support
- Building an Enrichment Center for foster kids (80% dropout rate is the heartbreaking stat)
- Foster family event on Dec. 13 - Need ~600 cookies by Dec 12 for their event
- Kathleen: Described The Giving Machine at La Encantata Mall, available through December. It functions like a vending machine where people can make donations to one of five charities. Donors can select different donation amounts ($25, $50, $150) and see what their donation would buy.
Tourism Master Plan Presentation (Brandon Mejia, Discover Marana)
Tech hiccup: Brandon’s slides wouldn’t load, but he still rocked the presentation.
- Brandon: Explained that Discover Marana is the destination marketing organization for the town, operating on 6% bed tax from hotels and short-term rentals.
- The Tourism Master Plan was developed by a team of 17 members from town staff and stakeholders, with over 600 interviews and 10+ community engagement opportunities.
- Tourism currently generates $318 million in economic impact, with $2.04 returned for every dollar spent.
- About 70% of visitors are from within Arizona, with others coming from Canada, Mexico, Texas, New Mexico, Nevada, and California.
- The vision for 2035 includes developing Marana as a travel destination known for outdoor adventure activities (hiking, biking, bird watching, hot air ballooning, skydiving).
- The plan includes 10 objectives implemented in three phases over 10 years.
- Upcoming events include the Holiday Festival and Christmas tree lighting on December 6th (featuring a new light tunnel), the Bluegrass Festival in early March, and Founders Day Festival on March 15th.
- Brandon distributed visitor guides to club members and mentioned they're available through the DiscoverMarana.org website.
- The Tourism office is interested in supporting the El Tour de Cookie event.
Club Business & Action Items
- Sat: Tour de Tucson aid station (Rotary helping)
- Car-wrap raffle tickets/money due Dec 2
- RYLA applications are due: 122 kids for 105 slots – hurry!
- Noted that district grant funding is still available (up to $2008) with no deadline
- The Club will move the meeting site to Vista High School in January
- El Tour de Cookie – March 7, goal 750- 800 riders
- Reminder to read the Impact newsletter