The Carmi Kiwanis Club kicked off 2016 with with a well attended meeting on January 7.
President Alan Saunders welcomed club members. Kiwanian Jack Martin introduced his guest, Eric Rahlfs, personal financial advisor with First Mid-Illinois Bank and Trust. Bob Endicott was the the winner of the 50/50 drawing. Chris Myers passed out sponsorship information for the annual Pancake Breakfast which will take place on February 27.
Jeremy Jordan, program chair for the month, introduced the speaker of the day, Delio Calzolari, associate director of the Paul Simon Public Policy Institute. Calzolari, who joked that his ancestry is Irish, said, “People know where we are but don’t really know what we do.” Located at Southern Illinois University in Carbondale, Calzolari described the institute as “a non-partisan public think tank founded by the late Illinois Senator Paul Simon.”
Upon Senator Simon’s retirement, multiple universities vied for his services. The senator wanted to return to his southern Illinois roots and established his institute in 1997 at SIU Carbondale where he also taught Journalism.
The three-tiered mission of the institute focuses its efforts on fostering:
• Ethical conduct in government;
• Opportunity and fair treatment for people in America and throughout the world;
• Promoting responsible citizenship for all Americans–but particularly for young Americans. Services of the Institute include:
• Public Opinion Polling;
• Publication of The Simon Review available at www.TheSimonReview.org;
• Leadership programs for high school students;
• Opportunities for SIU Carbondale students such as internships, externships, fellowships, and scholarships;
• Events, conferences, and public forums toward the aim of contributing and adding to the conversation.
Following questions from club members, President Alan Saunders adjourned the meeting.
*Article & Photo courtesy of Greg Grant for Carmi Kiwanis Club
