Midwest City Rotary Club installs new officers
The Midwest City Rotary Club installed new officers during their June 28 meeting at Wickline United Methodist Church. The new officers include (from left) Secretary Margaret Mueller, President Austin Fisher, Sergeant at Arms Billy Cox, Vice President Brittany Byers and President-Elect Shane Willard. (Photo by Jeff Harrison)
By Jeff Harrison
Midwest City Beacon
The Midwest City Rotary Club recently welcomed new officers and celebrated past ones.
Austin Fisher was sworn in as president for 2021-22 replacing outgoing president James “Chili” McQuillar. Before handing over the gavel, McQuillar thanked those who served on the board during a challenging past year.
“Even in the midst of the pandemic, we did not wait for things to happen,” McQuillar said. “We did not wait for folks to knock on our door. Rotarians found opportunities to still be a blessing.”
McQuillar highlighted the club’s efforts to help the community during storms last year. He said they helped people with electrical problems, grid issues, food issues and manual labor removing downed tree limbs.
“We’ve done a whole list of things in addition to our normal grants, normal shoe distribution and common projects,” he said.
Midwest City Rotary Club President Austin Fisher (Right) presents a plaque to past president James McQuillar during a June 28 meeting. Photo by Jeff Harrison
Sally Newey and Mukesh Patel were named the Rotarians of the Year, and new member Ben Osenga received the Rising Star Award.
Fisher thanked McQuillar for his leadership through the pandemic and urged the group to reengage with the community through social events and projects.
“Chili brought us through this pandemic year of COVID and I think the world has made a turn,” Fisher said. “I think we’re moving out of that phase of COVID and moving back to world of normalcy. One of the things I’d like to see is to get all the members back in the room together. Back working on projects together.”
The new officers were also sworn in. They include: Secretary Margaret Mueller, Sergeant at Arms Billy Cox, Vice-President Brittany Byers and President-Elect Shane Willard.
Fisher said they are planning the shrimp boil and Mexican breakfast fundraisers for this fall. He said they hope to add another social event this summer to allow members to reengage.
The Midwest City Rotary Club has been meeting on Monday afternoons at Wickline United Methodist Church. They also live stream the meetings through Zoom. They will discontinue the Zoom meetings at the end of the month.
