Mark Beisswenger opened the meeting with a musical bell ringing and an invocation which ended with a plea for some snow on behalf of Beisswenger's Hardware.
 
President Dana welcomed our many visitors, including: Susan Hoel, Ruth Marg-Patton, Marika (Smiley) Brandt, Mike Baker (Marika's Boyfriend) and Denny and Debbie Connolly (Guests of the Marg-Patton's).
 
Dana reminded us of the Board Meeting next week at 11:00AM.
 
Next week's program will be Bob Barmore, with photos from his recent trip to Israel.  See the list in the left-hand column for future programs.
 
Our Holiday Party will be at Bev Aplikowski's home on Friday, January 8th; arrive between 6 and 6:30PM.
 
The District 5960 Mid-Term/Leadership Academy will be held at the Radisson Roseville on January 29 & 30.  This meeting is a great way for Rotarians to learn more about Rotary and polish their leadership skills.  The Mid-Term meeting will never be closer or more convenient than Roseville, so this is your chance to check out this great meeting. More information is available here.
 
The District Conference this year will be held jointly with District 5950 on May 12th and 13th at Mystic Lake Casino in Prior Lake, MN.  Mark your calendars now.
 
A few slots may still be available to volunteer with 2nd Harvest Heartland Food Shelf, call or email District Governor Elect Jim Hunt. 612-770-2203 jim.hunt.d5960@gmail.com
 
The Irondale High School Choir, directed by Jason Etten, provided our program for today, once again showing how great the choral music program is at Irondale.  We were treated to a mini-concert featuring the Guyz Group and the Triple Trio.  Those of us with good counting skills noted that the young women had only seven singers instead of the normal nine.  A couple of singers were ill, but the remaining seven sounded just like nine.  The concert was followed by our annual carol sing-along with the choir which is, for many, the favorite program of the year.  The choir is shown below.