Three former Waunakee Rotary Club presidents talked about their involvement in Rotary and their experiences leading the club.
Taylor Endres led off the program March 26. He was president from 2019-2020, and remembered that the COVID-19 pandemic began in March of 2020
The 2010 Waunakee High School graduate began working in the insurance field in college and stayed with it. He was introduced to Rotary by his uncle, Rex Endres, who hosted the club meetings at Rex’s Innkeeper and loved Rotary. Taylor joined at the start of his career. He served on the board of directors as recording secretary and wanted to be more involved. Taylor was also on the Wauktoberfest Committee and often wore the lederhosen that were a few sizes too small, he said.
He said whether you’re a new member or club president, your involvement helps many people.
Taylor left the club for a time but has since rejoined.
Joe Baer joined Rotary in 2014 at age 23. His slideshow presentation included a picture of his wife Lindsay and two children, neither of whom were in his life when he joined. They are why he remains a member – he wants to set an example of service, he said.
Joe is a financial planner with Edwards Jones. When he launched his career in Waunakee, he worked with Mark McFarland and Shelley Moffatt, both of whom told him to join Rotary. And the more he involved himself, the more he saw how much the organization does.
Joe is also in his 10th year of coaching high school golf in Waunakee. He attended UW-Madison as a Western Golf Association Evans Scholar after working as a caddie at the Maple Bluff Country Club. He’s passionate about giving back to the Western Golf Association, which sponsors the scholarship and as a UW alumni, he said.
Phil Willems has been club president three times. Born in rural Arkansas in 1939, Phil described his time there as a “Tom Sawyer like life.”
Phil and his family moved to Milwaukee in 1950 when his father’s health began to fail. He finished primary and high school there and attended UW-Milwaukee. On his 20th birthday, he and his family buried his father, he said.
Phil had a career in retail with WT Grant which took him all over the midwest. In a 10-year span, he and his wife lived in 8 different cities and their children were all born in different places.
Phil had wanted to own a Ben Franklin store and got the opportunity in Waunakee. He was invited to join Rotary and said, “It was a lot of fun. I got to do things,” adding he was always welcome at Rotary.
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Other News:
-Taylor Endres reports that he remains cancer free and now just has annual screenings. He just bought a home in Waunakee.
-Paul Knutson said the Chips & Chips event is doing well with golfers signed up but needs about four more hole sponsors and more poker players. The day time portion will be a golf outing at the Meadows of Sixmile Creek, and that evening will be the poker tournament at Lone Girl Brewing Company. Paul said there will be prizes and two bands are playing that evening.
Coming Up
March 28: Easter Bunny Drive-Thru at Ripp Park
April 17: Tri-Con Convention at Kalahari
April 17: Chips & Chips Fundraiser
April 25: Fundraiser for Create Waunakee at Lone Girl Brewing with live music and a live auction.
May 16: Tri 4 Schools triathlon event.
Visiting Rotarian: Terry Anderson, Madison Downtown.
Greeters: April 2, Veronica Castillo and June Ganser; April 9, Shelley Moffatt and Jen Tasker; April 16, Lori Derauf and David Kennedy; April 23, David Rupp and Lauren Freeman.
To sign up to greet or to find out when you are greeting, visit:
https://www.signupgenius.com/go/805054CAAAA2CA7F85-44320149-2023#/
