Erik Beckler is on a mission to help current and future leaders look at their world differently and lead through the concept of Love, Respect, Service and Fun.  He coaches executives and functional leaders, helping them to develop capabilities that allow them to see leadership differently to transform themselves, teams and organizations. It wasn’t so long ago, however, that he was battling one of the most debilitating conditions in the world. In 2011, Beckler was one of the estimated 22.8 percent of U.S. adults who according to the National Alliance on Mental Illness (NAMI) was dealing with a mental illness. In his case, the diagnosis was Dysthymia, a persistent depressive disorder. Just seven years later, The Minnesota Timberwolves and Minnesota Lynx named him the 2017-2018 Jr. NBA Minnesota Coach of the Year.

He will speak about his journey and the book he  has written: The Four Fundamental Forces of Leadership: Developing a Practice on Love, Respect, Service and Fun.

Club President Dan O’Brien introduced August 15th speaker Darin Mastroianni, Board Director of the Twins Community Fund, a former Twins MLB player, and Dan’s son-in-law. After playing baseball for most of his life, Dan was drafted out of college and has since played on many MLB teams including the Twins and the Blue Jays. As a former player and current coach for youth summer baseball programs, Dan values patience and perseverance in order to increase access to the game he loves.

 

Although most major and minor league teams have community funds, the Twins Community Fund (TCF) is among the largest and most far-reaching projects to spread the love of baseball to disadvantaged youth. Unsure what to do next after playing professional baseball for 10 years, Dan worked with Kevin of the TCF and proclaimed it his “favorite opportunity” in his career. The TCF was established after the Twins won the World Series in order to give youth increased access to baseball, whether that be through providing equipment, building new fields, or staffing summer programs to teach the game. The fund also donates money to help communities rebuild after disasters such as COVID-19 or Hurricane Nicole in Florida, where the Twins summer training facilities are located. The RBI program specifically targets low-income families in cities who have less access to fields.

Dan shared several personal anecdotes about his time coaching for TCF youth summer leagues.

Joining District 5950 (click HERE for memo from District President Tom Gump) with the work of supporting social justice, the Eden Prairie Rotary Club is joining in with eight other clubs to collaborate with the Lake Street Council as the business leaders on Lake Street build back their successful business’s.  We are joining them as they take steps to move ahead!