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Today, Aug. 7, the Rotary Club of Marion held its regular meeting at the Marion Community Building. President Steve Hunter presided over our meeting and led us in the Pledge of Allegiance and the Four Way Test. Sergeant-at-Arms Bill Warren gave the invocation. President Steve reminded us that Thursday, Aug. 21 is Discover Rotary Day and we are all asked to bring a guest on that day. He asked for a show of hands among the Rotarians who plan to bring a guest. He told us that the McDowell Food Advisory Council will hold Movie Night at the Market tomorrow night from 6:30 to 9:30 p.m. The Tailgate Market Shelter will have a special showing of the movie “Wall-E.” Folks can bring a chair and blankets and sit under the Tailgate Market Shelter and enjoy the free movie. Light snacks will be provided. In addition, President Steve told us the Foothills Food Hub will host a dinner on Thursday, Aug. 14 at its new location, the former Babcock Furniture building. He also told us that the Black Mountain Rotary Club has dissolved but a new one has been formed to take its place. The new Black Mountain/Swannanoa Club meets on Wednesdays at noon and he encouraged us to visit with our fellow Rotarians there. President Steve reminded us that Centro Unido Latino Americano will host the 2025 Culturas Unidas Festival on Sept. 13 in downtown Marion. The theme for this year’s event is “United After Helene.” As a club we voted unanimously today to approve former state Rep. and retired Judge Bob Hunter as a Rotarian Emeritus. We have a handful of former members who have earned this distinction. Bob Hunter has been an important member of our club for decades and his positive impact on McDowell County can be seen everywhere. He and his wife Nancy have moved to Raleigh to be closer to their family, but they will always be in our hearts and minds. Long-time Rotarian and Past President Annette Bryant suggested we make him a Rotarian Emeritus for our club and we gladly approved her proposal. Our program today was the formal kickoff of our 2025 auction. But there was nothing formal about our fun program. The auction committee comprising of Rotarians Walt Bagwell, David Wooten, Brandi Behlke, Jim Williams and Janet Spake strutted out to the sounds of Ray Parker Jr.’s theme song for the comedy classic “Ghostbusters”! The theme for our auction is “Goalbusters” and we will fully intend to accomplish that. “Who ya gonna call? Goalbusters!” The 2025 auction will take place Thursday, Oct. 16 at the Box Factory at the Larry D. Miller Business Complex. Our goal for this year is to raise $40,000 and we will do our best to bust that! This auction, our biggest fund-raiser, is just 70 days away. “We’re all going to be goalbusters,” said Walt. We were all asked to fill out our goal cards. If you make your goal, that makes you an official “goalbuster” complete with the T-shirt. Instead of the Winner's Circle, we will have the Slime Society! Brandi showed off a list of businesses both in and out of McDowell County where we can ask for donations. We also kicked off the fund-raising by accepting bids for a four-day stay in Myrtle Beach, South Carolina. The vacation package comes with a side view on the beach. The place sleeps four people and has an $800 value. A bid today was $100. Come next week if you want to bid - it will be closed out next week. If Rotarians would like to contribute on a quarterly basis, they should let the club’s treasurer know. Also, you can sign up for $150 to take a pontoon cruise on Lake James for 12 people. Rotarian and Past President Chip Cross wants to do seven of these so let him know if your family wants to cruise on Lake James. After the auction kickoff, Jim Williams, also a past president, made a special presentation. Our club created a pin that recognizes Rotarians who are veterans. Jim designed this commemorative pin and it has been adopted by other Rotary clubs. He presented this pin to Rotarian Alyssa Hughes, who is a veteran of the National Guard. We applauded her and all the other veterans for their service to our country. Next week, we will hear about the small grant recipients. In the meantime, be sure to check out our website: www.rotaryofmarionnc.org. If you miss a meeting, you can make it up online. To enter a makeup, login to DacDB, select My Data tab followed by Enter Makeup button. You can also email us at rotaryofmarionnc@gmail.com #Rotary7670 #McDowellstrong. (fb)