
A working strategic plan, new members, a state-of-the art meeting place, high profile community projects and monthly charitable giving define the Rotary Club of Hudson’s accomplishments in 2021. President Patrick Scherer presides over a group of citizens dedicated to improving life, living and scholarship in our vital town of Hudson. Meeting every Wednesday from 7:00 to 8:30 a.m., the Club enjoys networking, speaker programs and challenging community projects. Currently 62 members strong, the Club includes many professionals, community leaders and successful business retirees as well as school administrators and board members. The informal weekly discussions are always lively and informative.
Since July, the Club has convened at the new Hudson Meadows Retirement Community on Barlow Road that provides a cafe setting for a continental breakfast and a plush high tech theater for our speaker programs. Meetings continue to be offered on Zoom for those who are concerned with Covid infections or have work/family restrictions that prevent attending live sessions. All interested community members are welcome as guests.
New members from a variety of backgrounds joined the Club in 2021 adding a wealth of talent and business/professional savvy to our ranks. A short profile of each follows:
- Terry Bortnik--real estate professional, Humane Society, sky diver
- Dr. Patricia Goetz--child and adolescent psychiatrist, former city council candidate
- Geoff Korff--founder and CEO of Galenas
- Joe Resnik--past president of the Mentor and Hudson Rotary Clubs
- Jerry Zemlicka--local bank branch manager
- Tom Petropoulos--a skilled photographer who works for the Akron Board of Legal Assoc.
If you are interested in learning more about the Rotary Club of Hudson, attending a meeting or applying for membership, please contact Mike Swain at swainmp1448@gmail.com

Speakers participating in Rotary’s weekly meetings have been entrepreneurs, candidates for local office, health care professionals, sports leaders, cultural venue representatives, history experts and High School Service Learning students. In addition, live interviews with our own members regarding their backgrounds, community service and business/professions made for interesting Club discussions. A few of the more fascinating entrepreneurs who spoke were David Thorn of DTR Associates, owner of Thorncreek Winery; Steve Marks, author of the Muffin Man Chronicles and owner of the Main Street Gourmet in Akron and Arthur Brite, management consultant and author of Successful Managers Must Lead. Representatives of the Cleveland Orchestra, Apollo’s Fire, CVNP Conservancy and Akron Zoo as well as sports leaders from the Cleveland Cavaliers, Monsters, Indians and Browns all provided interesting and revealing stories.

This past year marked the start of embracing a community charitable cause each month, allowing Club members to donate funds, goods or service to needy organizations. Many of the involvements have been going on for years. Some of the charities supported are the Food Bank, Valor Home, Veterans clothing drive, Pints for Polio, Gift of Life, Big Brothers/Big Sisters, Boy Scout facilities, EMS Outreach, Hudson Job Search, Hudson Library, HCTV, Music from the Western Reserve, St Vincent DePaul and Drug Safe Hudson.


Rotarians Serve to Change Lives