“Every time you push the pedals, you’re not just moving forward on the road – you’re moving forward in life.”
PP Linda Geery’s thought for the day on the benefits of cycling set the tone for our official kickoff of Sacramento Century Challenge season for the Rotary Club of Sacramento.
Saturday, October 4th, 2025
Sac Century 2025! With $866k raised since 2014, this year’s fundraiser could be the one that pushes us over the $1 million mark in support for the Crisis Nursery at Sacramento Children’s Home. PP Todd Koolakian outlined the key needs – volunteers, sponsors, Challenge Champions.
Sign up for a role! PP Bobby Reed is coordinating volunteers and noted key slots across a wide range of volunteer areas – parking, bike valet, check-in, registration, course layout, breakfast, rest stops, cleanup, merchandise sales, warehouse coordination, marketing, and more.
Huge thanks to committee leads including Sarah Hodge, Ruth Tesar, Michael Mui, PP Bobby, PP Todd, Kathe Nathan, Jamie Furlong and Tim Mattheis – overseen by longtime maestra PP Susan Sheridan.
Sponsors so far include Goralka Law, MSC Integrated, Sacramento Delta Property Management, Sacramento Credit Union, Downey Brand, and NorCal Pet Imaging Center. CapRadio is the event’s presenting media sponsor.
Club announcements –
- Service Day on August 5 – President Kerry outlined our service outing to support “carnival day” at ACC Senior Services Assisted Memory Care; this 10:30am to 11:30am volunteer duty will be held in lieu of the club luncheon that day.
- Caregrams for Dick Osen – PP Diane Woodruff encouraged club members to write notes and reach out to longtime club member Dick Osen, who’s undergoing a tough treatment for mesothelioma.
- Loaves and Fishes – John Swentowsky seeks volunteers both for the morning and afternoon shifts on July 31.
- Rotary International Conference in Taiwan – President-Elect Paul Keefer announced plans for a group trip wrapping around the June 2026 RI conference in Taipei.
President Kerry recognized July birthday celebrants Laurie Wright, PP Diane Mizell, Christie Holderegger, Clayton Lee, Norm Marshall, Bhavnesh Makin, PDG Fred Teichert – and Kerry herself!
In the “Get to know your fellow Rotarians” slot, we learned about Megan Wygant’s youthful trip to Costa Rica with a pal, during which her return was jeopardized by a mistaken passport swap! Then we discovered Rhonda Poppen’s job at NASA included working alongside national hero Katherine Goble Johnson, the pioneering mathematician featured in the movie Hidden Figures. Rhonda’s stint at NASA Langley also connected her with Bill Poppen, now her husband of 34 years.
The day’s cycling theme was carried through by guest speakers Bob Bowen and Dave Takemoto-Weerts of the US Bicycling Hall of Fame and its museum, located in Davis. Dave walked the club through the early history of the bike, leading up to the game-changing pneumatic tire. Bob talked about the Hall’s 2008 relocation to Davis, discussed some key figures in cycling history, and ended up with a demonstration on how to mount a vintage “penny farthing” bicycle from biking’s earliest days.
President Kerry gave shoutouts to wine reception sponsor Tim Comstock; meeting greeters Steve Shiflett, Bill Proffit, Nancy Smith-Fagan and PP Kevin Smith-Fagan (also the Pulse reporter); and John Swentowsky for handling photography duties.
Next week’s meeting will feature Evan Schmidt, CEO of Valley Vision, a civic leadership organization dedicated to improving the livability of the Sacramento region.