Speakers

Jessica Petroske is the Outreach Coordinator and a Scientist Educator with the Minnesota office of Science from Scientists. She holds a Bachelor of Science degree in Agricultural Education with a minor in Animal Science from the University of Minnesota - Twin Cities. Jessica has worked as an agriculture teacher at AFSA Middle School and Resource Specialist with Minnesota Agriculture in the Classroom. She also held internships with the Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences, USDA, and Conservancy of Southwest Florida. Jessica has a passion for bringing quality agriculture and science lessons to students. Jessica has been with SciSci since early 2025.

Bekki Hansen is the Director of Operations for the Minnesota office of Science from Scientists. She holds a bachelor's degree in Microbiology and a master's degree in science education. Bekki worked as a molecular biologist at Vanderbilt University and at the Mayo Clinic before becoming a licensed science teacher. After a couple of years teaching in traditional classrooms, Bekki found her passion in informal science education, working as a program manager at The Bakken Museum for 16 years. Bekki has been with SciSci since 2023.

Science from Scientists - Stemming the STEM Crisis
In 2025, approximately 2.5 million STEM jobs will go unfilled because of a lack of candidates in the workforce pipeline. The number of STEM workers needed will continue to increase in years to come and it's anticipated that, long-term, the gap between open positions and interested/qualified candidates will widen. Science from Scientists is a 501(c)3 non- profit that aims to close the gap by inspiring the next generation of STEM workers, the elementary and middle school students of today.

Not a meeting to be missed! The Golden Valley Rotary Club members will have a discussion on membership and transition team, leadership opportunities, grants, and future projects, etc. You'll definitely want to attend this Rotary meeting to contribute to the important Club conversations. We'll also be discussing the 2025 Taste & Tour of Golden Valley event and our Annual Awards Luncheon scheduled for June 10th. Look forward to seeing you there!

Ellen Schreder started her practice at Carson, Clelland & Schreder doing criminal prosecution and family law. As her family law practice grew, her time as a prosecutor decreased. Ellen soon became a partner, and the law firm has since been known as Carson, Clelland & Schreder. Ellen now practices solely in the field of family law, and works with all types of family law cases, including but not limited to dissolution, custody and parenting time, post-Decree issues and modifications, third party custody, grandparent visitation, adoptions, and step-parent adoptions. Ellen spends the majority of her time away from the office working on all aspects of the sewing program which she runs in Cap-Haitian, Haiti. She recently applied for and received a Rotary Global Grant to further this work in Haiti, where women from two different villages are employed sewing items needed by and purchased by the Haitian people. Ellen also enjoys bicycling and all things outdoors, including spending time at her cabin. She is a longtime member of the Brooklyn Center Rotary Club.

A Haitian native, Gymps Sunel was raised by his grandmother after losing his parents at the age of two. He was educated in Haiti, Martinique, the Dominican Republic, and later on in the United States. Gymps works for the State of Minnesota's Department of Health and Human Services as a Behavioral Analyst when he is not working on various projects in Haiti. After Covid-19 hit in 2020, Gymps saw an increase in the number of children and people, that were already living in poverty and hunger, plunged to a deeper level, not knowing where their next meal would come from. More than half of Haiti’s total population is chronically food insecure, and 22% of children are chronically malnourished. People don't have the food they need to live a healthy and productive life. Hunger affects the ability of children to learn, and perpetuates the cycle of poverty. It was this realization that led Gymps to find a parcel of land in his home country and the vision of Mango Community Family Farm was born. It is their hope that Mango Farm will provide a safe space for families to grow their own food and be able to provide a sustainable, living wage from the proceeds of sales at the market.

The couple operate Days for Girls and Mango Community Family Farm in northern Haiti, and for over 20 years, have worked to provide opportunities for Haitians to help themselves and their families.

Meet at WorkAbilities at 12:00 p.m. for a Culver's lunch and presentation and tour of WorkAbilities.

7400 Laurel Ave., Golden Valley, MN 55426

Luana Ball, Executive Director, will speak. Luana has been employed with WorkAbilities since November of 1995. Prior to that, her work was in residential supports for people with developmental disabilities. Luana has a Bachelor of Arts degree in Psychology from Southwest State University and a Master of Arts degree in Counseling and Psychological Services from St. Mary's College.

WorkAbilities is a day training and habilitation program that trains and supports clients with disabilities with an emphasis on volunteerism. Projects range from meal-packaging and local clean-ups to crafting and sewing projects. Clients have made leg warmers for micro-premature babies at North Memorial Health Hospital in Robbinsdale; sensory pillows for seniors at Texas Terrace Care Center in St. Louis Park; and fleece blankets for animals awaiting adoption at humane societies.

https://www.workabilities.org/

Before retirement, Jelan Heidelberg had a long and varied career with IBM. In the late 70's and throughout the 80's, she worked as a systems engineer, supporting companies large and small throughout the Twin Cities. She then switched to working virtually long before it was popular and when the tools were much more primitive. She worked for IBM Rochester and then for headquarters. In her last dozen years at IBM, she managed several software products and had the opportunity to travel the world. She traveled just enough to whet her appetite for more -- more places and more time to meet the local people and learn. Since retirement, Jelan and her husband Jim have criss-crossed the globe. One of their latest adventures took them to Ethiopia. Jelan has been a member of the Golden Valley Rotary Club and now is a member of the Rotary Global Travelers E-Club.

Eric Johnsrud, the Chair of North Star Rotary Youth Exchange, joined Rotary in 1985 and has been a member of Rotary Clubs in Winona and Northfield, Minnesota. He has served as a Club Youth Exchange Officer and, more recently, a North Star Country Officer for Spain. He practiced law in Winona, Minnesota for 36 years before retiring in 2021 and currently represents Region 11 on the Board of Directors of the North American Youth Exchange Network (NAYEN) and is its incoming President Nominee. https://northstarrotary.com/

The Golden Valley Rotary Club will gather with members of the community to celebrate all things Rotary during the 2024-2025 year. We will present the Citizen of the Year award and the Rotarian of the Year award. Our high school scholarship recipients will be honored. Bryan Rossi, Club President, will pass the gavel to incoming Club President, Alisha Weis. A great celebratory event in the fifty-two year history of the Golden Valley Rotary Club!