Guests and prospective Rotarians are always welcome - we'd love to have you join us.

Weekly Meeting Details

We meet In Person

Tuesdays at 12:00 PM

River Club of Mequon

12400 North Ville Du Parc Drive
Mequon, WI 53092
United States of America

July and August meetings are at Rotary Park, 4100 Highland Road, Mequon. Use the west entrance to the park.

District Site

Bulletins

Venue Map

Jim Ley : History of a Fire Department

Jim Ley is a retired deputy fire chief from the City of Milwaukee Fire Department.

Jim spent 35 years on the department serving in all ranks including firefighter,

heavy equipment operator, lieutenant, captain, battalion chief and ending up

as deputy chief in charge of special teams.He was a member of the hazardous materials team

and one of the first incident safety officers on the department.

Always interested in history, it was a natural fit to get involved with Milwaukee FD history.

Since 2015, Jim has been curator of the Milwaukee Fire Museum located in an old fire station

on 16th & Oklahoma on Milwaukee's south side. He has authored a number of books

on Milwaukee and Milwaukee County fire history.

Jim and his wife Donna have two grown daughters, one son-in-law and one grand dog.

Jane Winans : Building a Community Playground

Jane Winans is an educator, community builder, and advocate whose days have been
guided by a lifelong commitment to helping individuals, families, and communities. With
a B.A. in Business from Marquette University and a Master of Arts in Teaching from
National Louis University, she has served as a teacher, client services manager,
volunteer and program coordinator, and project specialist. Across all these roles, she
has focused on empowering individuals, building relationships, and bringing people
together around a shared purpose.
Jane is a mother of three, including her daughter Lydia who has special needs. In 2011,
Jane co-founded Down Syndrome OPTIONs, contributing to efforts to empower
individuals with Down syndrome and their families. She also spearheaded the
Manitowoc Community Built Playground to create a fully accessible playground. Today,
she serves on the fundraising committee for the Rotary Park All-Inclusive Playground.
Jane is grateful to Jenne Hohn for the invitation to join this great cause for a great
community.

Lydia Winans is a writer, speaker, and advocate who believes everyone deserves a
place to play, belong, and contribute to their community. She has been public speaking
since age 10, worked at the Manitowoc Pool at 16, served as a full-time camp counselor
at Camp Tekakwitha in Shawano, Wisconsin, supporting campers during their week-
long overnight stays, and was hired as a crew leader to welcome incoming freshmen
while at Concordia College. She has taken classes in Human Services and Social
Justice at MATC to better understand how to support others and turn ideas into action.
Lydia is passionately involved at Islands of Brilliance, where she created a website to
house her writing and continues to develop her writing prowess.

You can often find Lydia in Cedarburg enjoying summer sounds or getting coffee with
her friends, attending Blossom events, volunteering with Mel's Charity, or being a
hostess at the Stilt House.

Lydia joined the Rotary playground's fundraising committee to help ensure everyone has a
place to play and belong. She is delighted to be with you today.

Our Weekly Speaker--Liz Sutton Our Great Lake; What's new in Freshwater Sciences

Liz Sutton leads outreach and community engagement at the UWM School of Freshwater Sciences, building connections between researchers and Great Lakes communities. She has established the School’s outreach department and plays a key role in regional collaborations such as the Freshwater Collaborative of Wisconsin Outreach Network and Milwaukee’s One Water, Our Water initiative. In 2018, Liz served as a Science Communications Fellow with the Ocean Exploration Trust aboard the E/V Nautilus, sharing live research with public audiences around the world.

A former educator and museum professional, she continues to focus on translating science into meaningful, accessible experiences. Liz has a master’s in science communication fromStony Brook University.

Our Speaker--Ryan Stenstrup New Mequon Restaurant with a 40 year history

Ryan Stenstrup was born in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, above Steny’s MKE—the same year his family opened the Stenys Milwaukee. The hospitality industry has been part of his life from the beginning, from working as a busser and barback in his younger years to now owning and operating restaurants.

Ryan attended Catholic Memorial High School in Waukesha, where he played hockey, and later earned degrees in communication and business from the University of Wisconsin–Oshkosh. After college, he joined his father at Steny’s Milwaukee, beginning the next chapter of the family business. Today, Ryan and his family proudly own three thriving Steny’s locations.

Outside of work and family time, Ryan enjoys playing hockey. That passion made the Mequon project especially meaningful: owning a Steny’s connected to a hockey rink was a lifelong dream.

Ryan is married to his wife, Brittney, and they have two children, Marleigh and Jayden. The family recently moved to Colgate to be centrally located between the Pewaukee and Mequon locations.

Our Weekly Speaker--FLIGHT for Polio

PETER TEAHEN is a prominent American pilot, author, mental health professional, and humanitarian based out of Cedar Rapids, Iowa. He is widely recognized for flying light aircraft long distances around the world to raise millions of dollars for polio eradication. Teahen has been piloting small aircraft for over 53 years.

In 2023, Teahen and his co-pilot John Ockenfels completed a 25,000-mile flight around the world in a 1977 Cessna T210M single-engine aircraft. The trip raised more than $2 million for Rotary International's PolioPlus program to distribute vaccines globally.

Atlantic Route Flight (2025): In late 2025, Teahen partnered with 89-year-old pilot Ed Galkin for an 8,800-nautical-mile journey across the Atlantic Ocean (covering 11 countries in 37 days) to target remaining wild polio strongholds in countries like Pakistan and Afghanistan.

Beyond aviation, Teahen has an extensive background in public safety, mental health support, and disaster response: He has served in leadership and mental health support roles during 75 major global disasters, including the response following the September 11th World Trade Center attacks and the 2004 Southeast Asia Tsunami. He is a highly active member of the Cedar Rapids Rotary Club and the International Fellowship of Flying Rotarians.

JOHN OCKENFELS

John has been piloting small aircraft for over 51 years. Along with Peter Teahen, he is half owner of the 1977 Cessna T210 that they flew together around the world to raise funds to eradicate Polio.

He is a founding member of the Iowa City, Iowa A.M. Rotary Club, serving as President in 1998-99. He served as District Governor for Rotary District 6000 during the 2014-2015 Rotary year. In 2002, John traveled to India to take part in a National Polio Immunization Day event and the International Polio Eradication Summit in Mumbai. John has served on many District, Zone, and International Rotary committees over many years. He is a member of the International Fellowship of Flying Rotarians and serves as the North Central Chair for the Americas Region. He is also an adjunct member of the E-Aviation worldwide Club.

Our Weekly Speaker: Mary Spicuzza INVESTIGATIVE JOURNALISM

Thomas Jefferson believed that an informed public is the only safe guardian of liberty. "Were it left to me to decide whether we should have a government without newspapers, or newspapers without a government, I should not hesitate a moment to prefer the latter."

Mary Spicuzza is an investigative political reporter who has covered Wisconsin elections and politics for nearly 20 years.

She is mainly focused on chasing down tips from readers to bring to light abuses of power, incompetence, scams, corruption and waste of taxpayer dollars.

Spicuzza has a background in government coverage, both at the local level and at the state Capitol in Madison where she was part of a Wisconsin State Journal team that was a Pulitzer Prize finalist for breaking news coverage.

Spicuzza has won a national awards for her work, including her investigations into her cousin's car bombing murder, Medicaid fraud, and for her PBS FRONTLINE documentary about deaths at the U.S.-Mexico border. Her work has been honored by the National Headliner Awards, Society of Professional Journalists Sigma Delta Chi Awards, Investigative Reporters and Editors, Society for Features Journalism, Associated Press Media Editors, Overseas Press Club and SABEW (Society for Advancing Business Editing and Writing). She was also a Livingston Awards finalist.

Our Weekly Speaker: Father Michael Simone "Talk to Me: How to Understand Each Other and Speak Together"

Michael R. Simone, S.J., a member of the USA Midwest Jesuit Province, is pastor of the Church of the Gesù in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. A graduate of John Carroll University and Weston Jesuit School of Theology, he later earned a Ph.D. in Hebrew Bible/Semitic Languages from Johns Hopkins University. From 2013 to 2021, he was assistant professor at Boston College School of Theology and Ministry where he taught Scripture and preaching, served on the core faculty of spirituality studies, and was chair of the Education Policy Committee. After his tertianship year in Dublin, Ireland (2021-22), Fr. Simone returned to the USA and served as associate pastor of Old St. Patrick’s parish in Chicago. He moved to Milwaukee July 2024.

Fr. Simone also works in Catholic publishing. He is contributing editor at America Magazine where he also serves as a regular columnist. He has written for the Portuguese Jesuits’ Mensageiro do Coração de Jesus and was a contributor to the 2023 and 2025 editions of LTP’s At Home With The Word. Among his other publications, Fr. Simone is the author of a commentary on the book of Judges for the Paulist Biblical Commentary, commentaries on the prophecies of Nahum and Zephaniah for the Jerome Biblical Commentary, Revised Edition, and the monograph Your God is a Devouring Fire(CBQMS 57). In his free time, Fr. Simone enjoys fishing and cheering for Boston sports teams.

...

Our Weekly Speaker--Kristen Nicholson, Advocates of Ozaukee

Kristen Nicholson has dedicated her career to supporting survivors of domestic and sexual
violence for nearly 30 years. A survivor of domestic violence herself, she is passionate about
helping others find safety, healing, and hope.

Kristen earned dual bachelors degrees in Psychology and Social Science from Alverno College.

She holds a masters degree in Clinical Psychology from the Wisconsin School of Professional
Psychology and is a Licensed Professional Counselor (LPC) in Wisconsin. She went on to earn
her Master’s Certificate in Non-Profit Management from Northwestern University.

She has been with Advocates of Ozaukee since 2004, serving in a variety of leadership and clinical roles

before becoming Executive Director in 2026.

In addition to leading Advocates of Ozaukee, Kristen has taught for the psychology departments
at both Alverno College and Concordia University. She continues to provide counseling to
survivors of trauma and is committed to strengthening services and raising awareness for
individuals and families impacted by domestic and sexual violence.

Our Speaker--John Rosing; Thriving Thiensville

John Rosing was born the 5th of six children in Cleveland, Ohio. He remains close to his siblings, who all stayed in Ohio, as well as many of his childhood friends. He met his wife, the lovely Mimi, in college at Xavier University. He later received a master’s degree from Xavier as well.

John’s career spanned several midwest cities working in hospital administration. He later specialized in hospital regulatory compliance and eventually went out on his own as a consultant. He is now semi-retired.

He first joined Rotary when he was working in La Crosse in 1983 and joined our club in 1994 when he settled in Thiensville.

In 2024 John was elected to be President of Thiensville. As part of that role, he serves on the board of the Southern Ozaukee Fire Department. John is a member of Lumen Christi Parish. He is also a 4^th Degree Knight of Columbus and is currently serving in his 3^rd year as Grand Knight of the Lumen Christi Parish Council

Bob Blazich "The History of the Land We Are On'

If you have a question about Mequon Thiensville history there is no better community resource than Bob Blazich. He started his career with a more international focus, serving 51 months in the Air Force as a Russian linguist. Bob never lost his worldly involvement. He and his wife Jan have traveled to over 60 countries, and have lived, worked, and volunteered outside the US for over 5 years.

In civilian life Bob became a therapist and School Social Worker. He retired from working in schools in 2001 and left his clinical work in 2011.

In “retirement” he joined The MT Sunrise Club and served on the Town Center Committee In the latter role became familiar with the Mequon Historical Society. The society had fallen on hard times no money, no membership list, no annual meetings. He got on the board, became president, and revived the organization. The (renamed) Mequon Thiensville Historical Society now is solvent, has over 300 members and Bob runs a MT History Facebook group that has over 7000 members.

Bob was also the first president of the Adult Literacy Center of Ozaukee County and (no surprise) was Mequon Thiensville Citizen of the Year in 2006.

Seth Taft ; Being a Friend to WI State Parks

This Week's Speaker

Seth Taft is the Executive Director for the Friends of Wisconsin State Parks; an 501(c)(3) organization that serves as the umbrella to over 65 nonprofit Friends groups throughout Wisconsin that are associated with a state park, forest, and/or trail. The Wisconsin State Park System comprises 50 state parks, 15 state forests, 44 state trails, and endless recreational/natural areas. His role is to connect friends with grants and resources, advocate and education state legislators, and cultivate a sense of belonging to Wisconsin's most beloved public spaces.

Dawn Fiedler

Speaker: Rotary 6270 District Governor Dawn Fiedler

Dawn’s passion is threefold: for her husband and family, her relationship with God and for Join the Movement Events, Inc. (JTM), educating our local communities, what human trafficking is and how to protect their neighborhoods and most especially our youth. She became aware of this great need for Wisconsin at her Rotary District conference several years ago. Since that time Dawn has been attending training with the FBI, DOJ, ICAC, WCASA, SAVAS, Children’s Hospital, Amber Alert, NCJCT, End the Game, and Truckers Against Trafficking and local organizations. JTM’s mission was to organize large group awareness events in local communities to educate our youth, parents/guardians and community members. Dawn specializes in protecting our youth in a digital world. This has expanded to include specialized training workshops for medical professionals, EMS Departments, Law Enforcement Departments, hospitality staff and social workers. She is a frequent guest lecturer at medical colleges and universities for their grand rounds. Dawn is dedicated to educating all ages in all communities and traveling around the Midwest. Each presentation is catered specifically for those in attendance. She is also a founding member of the Walworth County Anti-Human Trafficking Task Force. Dawn also serves on several organization boards of directors and task forces located in Wisconsin, Illinois and Minnesota.

For many years, Dawn has been an advocate for victims of human trafficking and domestic abuse, helping them with the resources needed to make the changes in their lives. The JTM toolkits are available free of charge and are facilitated by many organizations around the world and available to download from their website www.jtme.org. Dawn moved to Minnesota when she and Peter were married and was a charter member and board member of the Rotary Club to End Human Trafficking as well as an Assistant Governor for 9 clubs in Rotary District 5950. When she moved back to Wisconsin and District 6270, she came back to her Elkhorn club where she was President from 2018-19. Dawn continues to share her passion to educate our youth to area business leaders through Rotary International. After 5 years as an Assistant Governor, Dawn moved on to another position within the district and is currently the District Governor Nominee for Rotary District 6270 and is the Director at Large for Medium Sized clubs for the current Rotary year.

After meeting with several organizations who all identified a need to fill the gaps with advocacy services, the JTM C.A.R.E. Team (Community Advocate Resource Evaluation) was launched in the spring of 2022. The CARE Team are fully trained advocates for human trafficking, domestic violence, and sexual assault victims. The CARE team currently operates in Walworth, Racine and Kenosha Counties offering advocate support services to local hospitals, the Child Advocacy Center of Walworth County and in the Walworth County Jail.

Cybersecurity

Christy Knowles, Sheriff of Ozaukee county, will bring us up to date on cybersecurity, an ever evolving threat.

Christy Knowles was elected Sheriff for the term of 2023-2026. Prior to that, she served in the positions of Undersheriff, Captain of Operations, Lieutenant-Patrol Commander, Detective, Deputy Sheriff – Patrol, and Deputy Sheriff-Jailer, all with the Ozaukee County Sheriff’s Office.

Sheriff Knowles attended college at Marquette University and the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee. She is a graduate of the Northwestern University-Police Staff and Command College. She is a graduate of the elite FBI National Academy in Quantico, VA. Sheriff Knowles is also a certified Defense and Arrest Tactics Instructor, having provided instruction at Waukesha Area Technical College as an adjunct instructor prior to being elected Sheriff.

Christy was raised in Cedar Grove and has lived in Ozaukee County most of her adult life. She calls Belgium her home where she has raised her three children.

Harley Davidson

The Harley Davidson company was started in Milwaukee 123 years ago and Milwaukee remains it’s global headquarters. Harley Davidson Suburban dealership was started over 50 years ago in Thiensville by Wayne and Joan Houpt. and it remains a family held company today. We’re exited to have two speakers who will give us a perspective on this important local company, both past and future. Todd Berlin, has worked with the Houpt family for the past 20 years and is currently the general manager. Aaron Houpt, is a third generation member of the Houpt family,. He has been officially working in the business for six years, but has been participating in Harley Davidson events since childhood.

Andy Nerbun Mayor's Update

We begin our Rotary year with a city update from Andy Nerbun, our club member and Mequon's 12th mayor.

Andrew Nerbun was elected as mayor in April 2022. He previously served as the Alderman for District 7 (April 2012 to March 2017) and Alderman for District 8 (April 2017 to April 2022). During that time, Andrew served on the Public Safety Committee and Public Works Committee. Additionally, Andrew has been a Den Leader and Pinewood Derby Chair for Boy Scout Pack 3865, helped coach various youth sports groups and participated in the Mequon Community Conversation Task Force.

Andrew holds a Bachelor of Science in Mechanical Engineering from Marquette University.

Behind the Scenes of Science: A CEO’s View of MPM’s Bold New Chapter, Dr. Ellen J. Censky

Milwau

kee Public Museum is at an exciting point in its 144-year history with construction of its new, iconic building underway and an opening date slated for early 2027. Dr. Ellen Censky, President & CEO of the Milwaukee Public Museum, will give an overview of the project and provide an insider's look at the architecture, exhibits plan and what it takes to build a natural history museum and move more than four million collections items.

A Cedarburg native, Dr. Censky began her career at the Milwaukee Public Museum in 1977. She went on to serve in other leadership capacities nationally, including at the Carnegie Museum of Natural History in Pittsburgh, where she received national recognition for her work in founding and developing the BioBlitz program, which is now a staple community outreach program at institutions in every U.S. state and in countries around the world.