I hope you all had a great 4th of July celebrating America’s 250th Anniversary of Independence Day! This year’s parade was in downtown Nevada City, and it was wonderful to see our community show up in full force to celebrate. Photo highlights of the parade include Nevada County Sheriff Shannan Moon, Nevada City Police Department Lieutenant Sean Mason, Nevada City City Manager Carrie Wright, Cathy as Emma Nevada, and we even saw some of the amazingly restored fire/safety vehicles from years gone by.
Seeing the smiles on kids’ faces and so many fellow community members taking place in the parade was a joy to watch and reaffirmed how lucky we all are to have chosen such a special place to call home.
Although we had no meeting last week, our Rotary Board was hard at work discussing our areas of focus and goals for this upcoming year during our Leadership Retreat which took place on June 28th. Big thanks go out to Miles and Suzi Adler for hosting.
Please join us as we launch our new Rotary year this week on Thursday, July 9th at 12:15pm at Bodhi Hive. This meeting will be an installation of our new Leadership Team as well as learning more about Return Organics to Nature (ROTN) from Jesse Hicks.
There are so many opportunities to get involved this summer starting with Hot Summer Nights (see below), National Night Out, working with First 5 Nevada County at the Nevada County Fair, tending to our pumpkin patch, and more opportunities coming up this Fall/Winter. Buckle up folks because our calendar is filling up, so please stay tuned for all the awesome ways the Nevada City Rotary Club is committed to caring for our community! We’d love to have you join us anytime.
President Babalola’s challenge—“Do better than your best”—invites our club to look back at the last five to seven years, identify our best year in membership, fundraising, and service impact, and then aim to exceed it. For Nevada City, this message maps directly onto our current priorities:
●Pumpkins Palooza 2026 (October 15, Miners Foundry): Evaluate success not just by funds raised but by community visibility, new member introductions, and long-term partnerships created—each a form of lasting impact.
●City of Nevada City Partnership: A formal partnership with the City is exactly the kind of sustainable structural relationship Babalola describes because it outlasts any single project and amplifies Rotary’s reach across future service years.
●Welcoming Culture: Audit how first-time visitors and prospective members experience our meetings. Babalola’s story of nearly being turned away is a reminder that every interaction is either an invitation or a door closed.
●Story Sharing: Collect and share member transformation stories—how has Rotary changed you personally? Babalola specifically calls on clubs to make these stories visible, so the public understands Rotary is more than a service organization.
●Membership Goal: Set a specific target that beats our best prior year for new members, then track it monthly through the 2026–27 year.
Nevada City Rotary continues our partnershp with the City of Nevada City and NCPD with Summer Nights.
With warm summer days ahead, we have a unique opportunity for Community Service. Rotarian Chief Dan Foss (also a member of the Community Services Committee) has asked the Rotary Club of Nevada City to help at the Summer Nights Event again. The dates/times are: Wednesday evenings, July 15, 22 and 29, 2026.
Rotarians will go out in special vests, to mingle with the crowds and give information, if asked, on such things as where the bathrooms are, etc. They may be positioned at the main entrances/exits to the event. We will be serving as additional eyes/ears for the Police Department and report back to the PD any problems we may see arising. We will not be handling problems ourselves! There will be a short 20-minute orientation for each shift and Rotarians are welcome to go back to City Hall to cool off and rest, as needed.
Cathy Wilcox-Barnes will be circulating a signup sheet at the meetings leading up to the event(s) or you can signup online. If you are interested, please make sure to sign up! If you aren’t at a meeting and want the opportunity to serve, click here to Sign Up Online or contact Cathy (2cwb@sbcglobal.net) or (530) 263-2496) and she’ll add you to the list. Thank you in advance for being Rotarians in Action!
We are also proud to sponsor a $600 youth scholarship for Nevada City Parks and Recreation summer programs.
SAVE THE DATE ~ OCTOBER 15, 2026 2nd ANNUAL PUMPKINS PALOOZA
All hands on deck for Pumpkins Palooza! Lots of farming opportunities throughout the summer. Let Cathy and Tom know if you want to join the fun tending our pumpkins and enjoying special harvest treats from Bakbraken Acres!
Board Meetings are held on the second Monday of the month. Our next Board meeting is July 13 at 5:30pm via Zoom with President Andrea leading us.
Not a Board member but want to join us? Contact Robin or reply to this Rotario for instructions. All club members are encouraged to attend a meeting. Location/schedule is subject to change, please ask.
An added thought — bring along something to share.
Bodhi-Hive
