Paul Huting Waterloo Leisure Services Director will share updates from Waterloo Leisure Services as well as present details about two projects in their pipeline: pickleball courts and the Riverside Skate Park. Both projects are near Riverfront Stadium and are candidates for our club to support financially this year.

 

Waterloo's skate park was first opened in 2002, but the floods of 2008 and 2016 damaged the ramps and the park has been technically closed for almost 3 years. FEMA originally planned to help but major hurricanes in 2017 redirected funding. 

 

 

 

Waterloo Leisure Services has hired a California company, Spohn Ranch, to develop plans for a new all-concrete skate park. On January 30th, a design workshop brought skaters and city officials together to discuss and vote on specific features for the new park.  The results and photos of that workshop can be seen on the group's Facebook page. 

 

 

Somewhat related to the skate park project - the existing concrete slab under the damaged ramps is still in good condition and can be transformed into pickleball courts. If you've heard of pickleball but aren't familiar with how to play, it's basically a combination of tennis, badminton, and table tennis. A pickleball court is smaller than a tennis court, and Leisure Services Recreation Manager Mark Gallagher says three pickleball courts could easily fit on the current skate park concrete pad. 

 

 

Years in Rotary – My current official initiation date is January 18, 1994 when I joined the Rotary Club of Iowa City A.M., However, I was a Rotarian with the Waterloo Downtown Club for a few years before I moved to Iowa City.  At that time, there was not a transfer system in place so there was a six-month period when I was not a Rotary member.

 

Hometown – Waterloo, Iowa

 

College – Iowa State University – GO CYCLONES!

 

Job – Wealth Management Banker, U.S. Bank, Waterloo

 

Fave Food – Anything chocolate

 

Fave Movie – I have many favorites … I typically go for something entertaining or fun … but that being said, I do love the Harry Potter series having gotten hooked on the books when I read the first in the series with an Iowa City elementary student I journaled through Rotary with when the book first came out in the U.S.

 

Fave Quote – I used to collect quotes (before computers and Pinterest), so it is hard to select just one … but one that always sorts itself to the top is “The Shepherd’s Prayer” that my mom posted by her desk in college to remind her of her late father: “Heaven won’t be so lonely if what I hope is true, if a little lamb of God is there or come old friendly ewe.  In those celestial pastures beside still waters deep, my the eternal future find me with a little bunch of sheep.”

 

Fave Thing About Rotary – I actually have two favorites … first, I love being able to help people locally and across the globe through the many Rotary initiatives … and second, I really enjoy the social aspects provided not only through involvement in the local club but also through the many friendships I developed by being involved at the district level when I was in Iowa City.

 

Something Unique About Me – I spend most of my vacation time helping my family exhibit our purebred, registered Hampshire sheep at three state fairs in the summer and our national show at the North American International Livestock Exposition in the fall.  My husband and I recently relocated to the area to help my parents, including assisting them with the sheep operation.  Right now is lambing season (approximately January–April) so we are very busy with all the new additions and trying to keep everyone warm and healthy!

 

 

 

February 25:  Tom Eachus, Executive Director of Black Hawk Grundy Mental Health will be making a presentation to the Club regarding the status of mental health in Iowa as well as the mental health care deficit.  He will also touch on a possible project that our Club could undertake which would be the development of a Rotary Garden or other landscaping at the Mental Health Center.

 

March 4:  Jared Salinger, President of Allen College and Mike Lind, Executive Director Allen Foundation.

 

March 11:  Urban / Rural Luncheon Speaker Aaron Putze - Director of Communications & External Relations of the Iowa Soybeans Association.