People interested in getting a taste of the brand of community service that the Dowagiac Rotary Club specializes in will be able to so during the group’s annual “Family and Friends of Rotary” dinner, which will be held next month.

This is the sixth year that the organization has held the evening meal. The dinner is a special extended version of the club’s regular weekly lunch programs, which feature special guest speakers during each meeting.

“We hold it during the evening so that spouses and friends in the community will be able to come,” said Event Chair Barbara Groner. “It might attract people who want to know more about Rotary, and might be interested in becoming members in the future.”

This year’s speaker will be TV journalist Maureen McFadden, with South Bend’s WNDU network. Her talk, entitled “Tracking Every Lead,” will focus on the various assignments she has worked on in her 30 years in broadcast.

“She’s going to be part of the evening news that night, from 6 p.m. to 6:30 p.m.,” Groner said. “Then she’s going to drive up here. She’s going to miss the dinner portion of the event, so I told her I would be glad to send her home with a meal.”

McFadden is the latest in a series of area guest speakers the club has brought in for the event. Last year, the organization featured Decatur resident and author Leo Flory, who spoke about the experiences he had while serving in the Vietnam War.

“We always try to have local people come out and talk who will be of interest to our area and have had a significant impact in our community.”

McFadden was a natural fit for their criteria, Groner said, pointing out the two Emmy awards the anchor has won for her coverage of medical issues in the area. In addition, her work for area charities mirrors the kind of public service that Rotary promotes among its members.

“She’s our kind of people, and we’ve watched her on the news for 35 years,” Groner said. “I think she’ll have a lot of good things to tell us.”

The dinner is also the culmination of the local club’s fundraising efforts for the year. The club will be selling tickets for it’s 50/50 raffle, with the winner receiving about $1,000.

“It’s our main fundraiser
for the year,” Groner said.

In many ways, the dinner is also a great event for current Rotary members, who normally meet for only an hour every week during their regular luncheons.

“It’s our chance to have a more leisurely evening, with a lot more greeting and meeting,” Groner said.

Tickets are currently available for $25. The dinner will take place at 6:30 p.m. at the Dowagiac Elks Lodge, located at 300 Riverside Drive.

“If the subject matter appeals to you, you’ll find kindred spirits in our club,” Groner said. “Come see McFadden not on TV but in person, up close and personal.”

To purchase tickets, contact Groner at 269-782-6262.