Irwin speaks to Sunrise Rotary

After having been somewhat restricted from gathering together for meetings due to the Covid Pandemic and temporary loss of meeting space, Marco Island’s Sunrise Rotary finally has returned to face-to-face meetings at their former gathering spot. 

Two weeks ago, they began their normal Tuesday morning meetings at Stonewalls, located at 551 South Collier Boulevard. When first restricted due to the Covid outbreak, the club resorted to internet Zoom-style meetings, as did several other organizations.

“When we first started back in a face-to-face format, we were delighted to accept an invitation from the folks at the Sandbar for a temporary location,” said Erik Condee, President of the club. The Zoom format was utilized for some of the members who still had not returned from their homes away from the island.

“We’ve been really pleased to see more and more of our members returning and joining with us as we’ve resumed our regular format here at Stonewalls,” said Condee.

At their last several meetings, members have heard from three of the oldest members of the club who began their affiliation with Rotary when the Sunrise Club received its charter. Prior to that, the Noontime Rotary Club was in existence, but due to work requirements, the earlier meeting time which was established by the Sunrise Club was more convenient for many.

Over a three-week period, members have heard from Bill Cohen, Craig Woodward and Jim Prange. All three of these early members spoke about starting the new club entertaining the membership with stories about the ups and downs of doing so and humorous recollections from the past.

At this past Tuesday’s meeting, the club heard from City Councilor Becky Irwin. As an elementary school student, Irwin came with her parents to the island when her dad was transferred for a short time to work for the Marriott in 1980. It was a relatively short stay, and Irwin once again returned to Fort Lauderdale when her father was reassigned back there.  She grew up and graduated from high school before going off to Florida State.  

After graduation from Florida State, she returned to Fort Lauderdale, raised two boys and worked professionally for 20 years. In 2013, she relocated back to Marco Island and has been working between Marco, Naples and Fort Lauderdale in the real estate business. 

Irwin is finishing her second year on the seven-person city council, and she spoke to the Rotary membership regarding a number of issues facing the council and residents of the island, while taking a number of questions regarding some of the more contentious issues.

The Marco Island Sunrise Rotary meets on Tuesdays beginning at 7:30 AM, and they invite any interested prospective members to join them and get a feel for the organization.