President-Elect Tami Salisbury ran the meeting today, as President Rachel Aviles was unable to attend.
On behalf of Carol Franciosi, Blake McLellan passed the coveted trophy on to Brian Griffin in appreciation of Brian's performance at last week's Hog Wild on the Keys fundraiser.
g Wild on the Keys (watch the 
Interact co-presidents, Ava MacDonald and Olivia Carline, from Adams High School, were our last two scholarship winners for this year. Ava received a $1,500 renewable scholarship, which she will use when she attends the University of Michigan. As a pre-med student, she will major in biology, health, and society. Olivia received a $1,000 scholarship and will attend Michigan State University. She plans to major in human biology in MSU's pre-med track.
Charities President Tim Duncan presented her on behalf of Rochester Rotary Charities. SPEAKER
The Art of Conservation at the Detroit Institute of Arts
Our first speaker, Colleen McNamara, serves as the DIA’s Community Engagement Manager, where she works to connect communities throughout the tri-county area with the museum’s exceptional collections, exhibitions, and programs. 
Our second speaker was Barbara Heller, Director and Conservator of Special Projects at the DIA, where she has been on staff since 1976. Beginning her career as a paintings conservator, she advanced to Chief Conservator in 1985 before assuming her current role in 2009. The Detroit Institute of Arts (DIA) is funded in part through a millage approved by residents of Oakland, Wayne, and Macomb counties. Thanks to this generous support, the DIA can maintain its world-class collection while making art and educational programming accessible to the entire community.
As part of its commitment to tri-county residents, the DIA provides four key benefits: free unlimited general admission, school programs, senior programs, and community partnerships. Residents can visit the museum as often as they like, with extended hours until 9 p.m. on Fridays and a wide variety of free weekend programming, including live music, artist workshops, and special events.
The DIA’s educational outreach is equally impressive. Through free field trips and transportation assistance, more than 60,000 K–12 students visit the museum each year. The museum also provides professional development for educators and has recently expanded its in-school programming.
For older adults, the DIA offers free group visits with transportation for groups of 25 or more, as well as its popular “Melodies at the Museum” musical performances for residents age 55 and older.
One of the museum’s most successful outreach efforts is the Inside|Out program, which brings high-quality reproductions of artwork from the DIA’s collection into public spaces throughout the tri-county area.
Another community initiative is Partners in Public Art, a mural program that works with local communities to create public art reflecting their unique history and character. Rochester’s mural was completed through this program, and eight new community murals are created each year.
Upcoming DIA attractions include a major exhibition entitled Georgia O’Keeffe: Architecture, opening this September. The exhibition explores a lesser-known aspect of O’Keeffe’s work and was inspired by Stables (1932), a painting in the DIA collection.
Barbara Heller, Director and Conservator of Special Projects, then offered a fascinating behind-the-scenes look at the art of conservation. Conservators combine expertise in art history, studio art, chemistry, and scientific analysis to preserve and protect the museum’s collection.
She described the many threats to artwork, including fluctuations in temperature and humidity, light exposure, pollution, pests, improper handling, and even the artists’ own materials and techniques. To combat these threats, conservators use advanced tools such as ultraviolet light, infrared imaging, X-radiography, microscopy, and chemical analysis to examine artworks, identify hidden details, authenticate objects, and guide restoration efforts.
Heller shared numerous examples of discoveries made through conservation, including hidden figures beneath paintings, artist revisions, forged signatures, altered portraits, and evidence of reused canvases. She also discussed the restoration of paintings, sculptures, textiles, furniture, armor, and contemporary media works.
The presentation demonstrated that conservation is far more than repair work—it is a blend of science, history, and detective work that helps preserve cultural treasures for future generations while uncovering fascinating stories hidden beneath the surface.