We’ve got some celebrating to do!
Happy Birthday wishes go out to Brent Blankenship, Karen Joyce, and Tom Townsend—may your week be filled with cake, candles, and good cheer.

We’re also raising a toast (or at least a coffee mug) to some milestone Rotary anniversaries:
Steve Cooper – an incredible 50 years of service above self!
Frank Reold – 34 years of dedication and good humor.
Renee Cortright – celebrating 10 years and still going strong.

That’s a whole lot of Rotary wisdom in one room.

💵 HAPPY BUCKS

Ron Dilitto reminded us that one of Rotary’s guiding goals is to promote world peace. The recent hostage and prisoner exchange in the Middle East is a bright spot of hope—and as Ron noted, peace truly begins when the guns go silent.

Juliane Morian shared another great example of Rotary in action - making connections. Thanks to a Rotary presentation by Paint a Miracle, the Library and Paint a Miracle have formed a new partnership. As a result, the Library will host a six-month rotating art exhibit featuring artwork created by Paint a Miracle students.

Tami Salisbury took Juliane’s mention of the library as inspiration to check out the Rochester Hills Public Library's Makerspace. She’s excited to digitize her old home videos—because who doesn’t love a trip down memory lane (especially when it’s preserved on a flash drive)?

And Joyce Joyce was all smiles, celebrating her daughter’s birthday. Family birthdays definitely qualify for happy bucks!

📅 CLUB ANNOUNCEMENTS

Grab your gloves—Rotary Gateway Park Cleanup is happening Saturday, October 25. Contact Blake McLellan or sign up to help keep our little corner of the world beautiful.

And while your calendar’s open, circle this in red: our Holiday Potluck Dinner will be on Thursday, December 4th, at Christine Hage’s home. Details to come, but trust us—you don’t want to miss it.

🎵 SONG LEADER

Bob Lytle led us in a spirited rendition of My Favorite Things in honor of our speaker, who presented on ranked voting. We followed up with Happy Days Are Here Again—and after that second song, Tami Salisbury was overheard saying, “Good, it’s a short one!” Sometimes brevity really is music to our ears.

SHERIFF'S REPORT

Sheriff Peter Stuhlreyer is back in town and ready to do some serious sheriffin'. He dusted off his badge, tipped his hat, and got right down to business—ranking the most “worthy” candidates for passing along that dazzling, bejeweled trophy.

First up was brave David Archbold, who’s gearing up for yet another Michigan winter in his trusty 1997 Prius. Talk about courage under fire.

Next, he gave a nod to our resident fashion icon, Vince Mattina—always dressed to impress and probably the only guy who could make the trophy look even shinier. Then came the tall crowd, though Roger Roller didn’t stand much of a chance—height, it seems, can only take you so far when “worthiness” is in question.

Word on the street was that Mayor Bryan Barnett was trying to sneak through a little election reform, giving smiley-face votes 1½ points each. (Now that’s a campaign platform.)

But in the end, the good Sheriff’s first-choice vote went to Linda Eastman—for her moving, vivid, and occasionally eye-opening invocations, which somehow manage to weave in childbirth in third-world countries and still leave us inspired before lunch.

Thanks to Sheriff Stuhlreyer's creative enforcement, we raised an additional $273 for our scholarship program! Remember, these “fines” are all in good fun and serve a great purpose: building camaraderie and raising funds for our charitable efforts, especially scholarships. Let’s continue living out the Rotary motto, "Service Above Self," with enthusiasm, punctuality, and a healthy dose of Rochester pride and humor!

 

 

SPEAKER 

Guest Speaker: Pat Zabawa, Executive Director of Rank MI Vote

Pat Zabawa, Executive Director of Rank MI Vote, joined us to discuss a topic that could soon reshape Michigan elections — Ranked Choice Voting (RCV).

Rank MI Vote is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization dedicated to educating voters about ranked-choice voting and advocating for its adoption in Michigan. A ranked-choice voting initiative may appear on the 2026 Michigan ballot for voter consideration. Mr. Zabawa’s goal in speaking to Rotarians was to help us understand how this system works, so that when it comes time to vote, we can make an informed decision.

 

Why Consider a Change?

When people are asked to describe politics today in one word, the responses often include divisive, corrupt, dysfunctional, messy, polarized, chaotic, and confusing.

 

Rank MI Vote believes our current single-choice voting system contributes to those problems. It can:

• Split majority votes and produce unrepresentative winners
• Encourage negative campaigning and voter disenfranchisement
• Deepen political division and make governing more difficult

RCV allows voters to rank candidates in order of preference—first, second, third, and so on.

 

Here’s the process in four simple steps:

1. Voters rank candidates on the ballot by preference.
2. If any candidate earns more than 50% of first-choice votes, they win.
3. If no candidate reaches a majority, the candidate with the fewest votes is eliminated, and their votes are redistributed to the voters’ next choices.
4. The process repeats until one candidate secures a majority of votes.

This method ensures every vote continues to count throughout the process and that the eventual winner has majority support.

 

Benefits of Ranked Choice Voting

RCV changes the incentives in campaigning and governing. Under the current system, it’s often easier to tear opponents down than to build broader support.

With RCV:

• Candidates must appeal to more voters—including those who might list them as a second- or third-choice candidate.
• Campaigns tend to be more positive and issue-focused.
• Elections become more competitive, fair, and reflective of voters' will.
• Voters gain more power and a stronger voice in outcomes.

Where It’s Being Used

As of April 2025, 52 jurisdictions across the United States use Ranked Choice Voting, representing roughly 14 million voters. This includes:

• 2 states
• 3 counties
• 47 cities
• Plus, use for military and overseas voters in federal runoff elections across 6 states.

Internationally, RCV is well-established in Australia, Ireland, Northern Ireland, Scotland, and New Zealand.

 

What’s Next for Michigan?

To qualify for the 2026 general election ballot, Rank MI Vote must collect 446,198 valid signatures from Michigan voters within six months. Once these signatures are verified, the proposal will appear on the November 2026 ballot.

If voters approve the initiative, Ranked Choice Voting could be implemented in Michigan by 2030.