Rotary Club of Milwaukee Tuesday Speaker Series

This week, Rotarians heard from fellow member Dr. Anthony Cruz, President of Milwaukee Area Technical College Dr. Cruz reflected on his first year as President of MATC, and provided insights on the educational needs of the community, MATC's new strategic plan, and new initiatives that will lead to new bold targets in student success, caring culture, and community trust.

This week in Memorial Hall, we toasted outgoing President Saj Thachenkary and welcomed new Club President Kent Lovern.

This week at Rotary, we honored Beth Weirick as our 2025 Rotary Person of the Year for her decades of leadership, compassion, and vision that has transformed Milwaukee. A lifelong Milwaukeean, Beth Weirick has been committed to the city since her first independent bus ride downtown to see a concert at the MECCA. Hired in 1998 to lead the newly formed Milwaukee Downtown, BID #21, Beth brought experience from roles at the Westown Association, the Milwaukee Department of City Development, and the Milwaukee Common Council.

This Tuesday, members heard from Dale Schultz, former Republican majority leader of the state senate, and Rotarian John Franke explain how fusion voting works and how it can provide moderate voters with a constructive way to reduce the power presently held by the extremes within the two major political parties. The program was moderated by the Lubar Center's Craig Gilbert.

This week in Memorial Hall, members heard from fellow Rotarian and Chancellor Mark Mone who has led the University of Wisconsin - Milwaukee for 11 years. Mark reflected on the unprecedented headwinds during his tenure and the relationships and established groundbreaking collaborations that have benefited UWM, its students, our city and beyond.

This week in Memorial Hall, Mark Murphy spoke to the Rotary Club of Milwaukee about building a championship organization during his 17 years as the President and CEO of the Green Bay Packers. Mark also shared his background and influences and the Packer's impact on the community through the Green Bay Packers Foundation, Give BIG, and Titletown.

On May 6th, Deep Thought, the 44 foot long boat stranded in Lake Michigan for the past several months, was pulled from the water by Jeff Piller and his towing company, All City. This week at Rotarians heard from Jeff about the planning and execution of the operation that removed the 100,000 pound boat and captivated the attention of Milwaukee.

At this year's Armed Forces Week program, Rotarians heard from U.S. Navy Captain Lena Kaman, Commander of Navy Reserve Region Readiness and Mobilization Command Fort Worth. A native of Shawano, Wisconsin, and a career Naval Aviator with over 4,200 flight hours, Kaman has served in combat operations, led aviation squadrons, and held senior staff roles in Washington, D.C before assuming command of REDCOM Fort Worth.

Yesterday in Memorial Hall, Rotarian Dr. Doug Davis provided an update from the frontlines of Ukraine as he shared stories from his recent international work to support the acute care needs and address the physical and mental trauma resulting from the war in Ukraine.

This week at Rotary, Rich Eng, Founder of Voters First Wisconsin, provided an update on the progress of Final Five Voting in Wisconsin. Rich highlighted its success in Alaska, and provided an honest appraisal of its potential for empowering voters and countering political divisiveness. The program also included a demonstration of the Final Five Voting process - an election to choose Rotary's favorite pie!