Jim Tincher is a nationally recognized customer experience expert, speaker, and author. His innovative customer experience consulting firm, Heart of the Customer, has helped start-up companies and Fortune 500 companies increase revenue and loyalty. He has done this by harnessing the voice of the customer. He joins us this week to discuss utilizing EPAM Grants and providing customer experience updates.
On October 27, 2020, the Eden Prairie AM Rotary Club successfully navigated its first hybrid meeting. Numerous members, including John Crudele, Roger Jorgensen, Elaine Larabee, Jenifer Loon and Prafulla Vegunta (and many others) were essential in making this happen.
Matt Fyten
Southwest Transit Update
First, Matt Fyten provided an overview of SouthWest Transit. SouthWest Transit is a public transit provider for Eden Prairie, Chaska, Chanhassan, Carver, and Victoria. It was formed in 1986, and it is currently governed by a commission consisting of six individuals. Before COVID-19, it operated over approximately 160 trips per day with 75 buses, and it annually provided over 1.2 million rides. SouthWest Transit’s major routes include those that bring individuals to Downtown Minneapolis and the University of Minnesota. Additionally, SouthWest Transit is considered as the national leader in innovation, technology, and transit oriented development, and, on top of that, SouthWest Transit was introduced as one of the nation’s first microtransit organizations.
Mr. Fyten also discussed the benefits that come with suburban transit systems. One benefit is that the innovation of SouthWest Transit influenced other regional transit systems to improve. Specifically, SouthWest Transit was the first to bring coach vehicles, microtransit, Wi-Fi, and Transit-Oriented Development to the region. Also, Southwest Transit has received great customer feedback and provides access to locations that were previously not served. Another benefit is that they are cost effective meaning suburban systems are able to provide more to commuters with less money. Overall, suburban systems better understand and provide the transit needs of their communities.
Next, Matt Fyten presented the SouthWest Light Rail Transit (SWLRT) on Southwest Transit. SWLRT was a 3.5 year negotiation process, and the final agreement was adopted in December 2017. The needs of SouthWest Transit and Met Council were both met by the results of the agreement. Under the agreement, Southwest Transit were financially compensated to move their administrative offices, and they also received protections related to bus operations. The sites are being redesigned to support existing SouthWest Transit bus operations and the Light Rail Transit. Ultimately, the Light Rail Transit will allow for more service opportunities for SouthWest Transit and improve its efficiency.
Additionally, Matt informed us on the impacts that COVID-19 had on SouthWest Transit. Initially, SouthWest Transit lost over 90% of their riders and a similar percentage of farebox revenue. Another impact is that they were forced to furlough or eliminate over 50% of their workforce. However, they received Federal CARES Act Funding, and they have taken numerous safety measures. These measures include disinfecting vehicles, swapping vehicles throughout the day, daily health screening of employees, passenger separators, and air purification systems.
On a more positive note, Matt Fyten spoke about some of the things that were in store for SouthWest Transit. Currently, they are working on expanding the SW Prime and Prime MD services into the 494 Corridor, Shakopee, and other surrounding communities. They are also working on electric as well as autonomous vehicles.
Announcements:
Kurt was inducted into the EP AM Rotary Club in March 2020, and he received his certificate of membership and pin in the Rotary’s first hybrid meeting.
Spotlight on Steve Cwodzinski:
Steve Cwodzinki recently released his book Beyond the Lesson Plan in February of 2020. He had originally planned to promote his book, but, unfortunately, he was unable to due to COVID-19. Beyond the Lesson Plan is full of anecdotes and the non-curriculum material that Mr. Cwodzinksi preached to every student he had.
Happy Fives:
Prafulla Vegunta was happy to see former member and president Jeanne visit the Rotary this week. Additionally, he was pleased to begin hybrid meetings for the Rotary.
Adam Sienkowski was happy to say that his son Jonah was born nine months ago.
Brad Aho was excited to share that his youngest child, Annie, just had a baby.
Tim Connors was happy to share that he attended a camp celebrating diversity 47 years ago. This camp preached service before self and coming together to solve problems around the world.
Jane McGinty and her son were excited to share that their dog had just turned one years old.
PG Narayanan is proud of his daughter for passing her exams and becoming a lawyer.
The meeting on Tuesday, October 27th, will be in-person at Bearpath. An email sent by Carol and Jennifer includes the protocols for the meeting. A zoom option will be provided for those who prefer to participate virtually.
Rotary School Board Candidate Forum.
At our last meeting, school board candidates joined us to discuss their views for Eden Prairie Schools. Beth Fletcher, Francesca Pagan-Umar, Kim Ross, and C.J. Strehl visited us to talk about questions posed by the Rotarians.
The candidates had good responses to the questions and below are a few highlights.
Candidate Beth Fletcher was a former teacher and wants to make sure everyone feels valued and connected throughout the community. Beth also talked about how she wants to continue to work on the achievement gap.
Candidate Fracesca Pagan-Umar, a former special education teacher, wants to make sure every group of the population is to be represented. She also wants to intentionally recruit diverse teachers.
Candidate Kim Ross, a Rotarian and former school board member, believes she is the most qualified candidate and wants everyone in the community to be heard. She also wants to set achievable goals for the school board and community. In addition, she wants to focus on resources to help decrease the achievement gap.
Candidate C.J. Strehl wants to build mentorship bridges for diverse communities. He is interested in having an accountability dashboard to show progress and results of the school board.
On October 13th, 2020, board members spoke about club announcements and some history of the EPAM club. Club assemblies are for board members to give updates on their committees and also for special presentations.
Jane McGinty shared the story of the Rotary Legacy Project "Soaring Bird: Peace through Service." Jane believed a legacy project would make the Rotary more visible. In 2012, The City of Eden Prairie said more artwork or sculptures would be great to beautify the city, but were always hard to fundraise for. The EPAM Club decided to build the Soaring Bird under the theme Peace through Service at the Eden Prairie Community Center in 2012. The project was completed in July 2013.
Dave Anderson and Roy Terwilliger shared a bit of the EPAM club history. The EPAM Rotary Club was chartered in June 1976 as the first morning club in the district and started with around 25 members. Roy stated that the EPAM Club was one of the instigating organizations that set up the Eden Prairie Community Foundation, Eden Prairie Chamber of Commerce, and Eden Prairie Crime Fund. Mark Weber shared that the Eden Prairie Community Foundation has generated over $1 million in the last five years, and Jane built on that saying that there is a strong legacy in the EPAM club of having leaders in the community who are help grow the Eden Prairie community in various ways. Dave talked about previous blood drives and his experience raising donations for pints of blood. He also talked about the Golden Eagle Award that was meant to honor the top athlete scholar at Eden Prairie High School and fundraise money as an event.
Announcements
Hybrid meetings at Bearpath will resume October 27th, 2020. For those who would like to attend meetings at Bearpath, please send breakfast and beverage preferences to Carol Kampman by the Thursday or Friday before Rotary Meetings.
The Rotary District 5950 is holding an Amazing Race to End Polio Scavenger Hunt on Saturday, October 24th from 9am – 10am
Irene Kelly is asking for more involvement in the club regarding fundraising inputs. She'd like to know where members will be involved. Two events will be outdoors and related to wellness sometime in the spring or summer. Some other possible fundraising events would be a restaurant benefit or an online concert event.
Irene also noted that speaker inputs would be greatly appreciated. Please contact Nathan Nyren for speaker suggestions.
Spotlight on Sophia Rizzo
The newest EPAM Rotary member, Sophia Rizzo, shared a bit about herself. Sophia moved to Eden Prairie in 2018 with her family. Sophia is originally from Sochi, Russia, and at the age of 22, she moved to the United States to learn more about health sciences in America. She enrolled in Winona State University and received a degree in Nursing. Sophia then continued her education and attended New York University in the College of Dentistry. Sophia and her husband recently launched their dental clinic, Modern Day Dental, in Eden Prairie. Sophia enjoys volunteering for the Salvation Army, the PROP Food Shelf, and many other organizations. In her free time, Sophia enjoys hiking, reading, and playing piano. Sophia and her husband met in college and have two sons and a dog.
Jim Tincher is a nationally recognized customer experience expert, speaker, and author. His innovative customer experience consulting firm, Heart of the Customer, has helped start-up companies and Fortune 500 companies increase revenue and loyalty. He has done this by harnessing the voice of the customer. He joins us this week to discuss utilizing EPAM Grants and providing customer experience updates. 
Steve Cwodzinki recently released his book Beyond the Lesson Plan in February of 2020. He had originally planned to promote his book, but, unfortunately, he was unable to due to COVID-19. Beyond the Lesson Plan is full of anecdotes and the non-curriculum material that Mr. Cwodzinksi preached to every student he had.
Candidate Beth Fletcher was a former teacher and wants to make sure everyone feels valued and connected throughout the community. Beth also talked about how she wants to continue to work on the achievement gap. 
Candidate Fracesca Pagan-Umar, a former special education teacher, wants to make sure every group of the population is to be represented. She also wants to intentionally recruit diverse teachers. 
Candidate Kim Ross, a Rotarian and former school board member, believes she is the most qualified candidate and wants everyone in the community to be heard. She also wants to set achievable goals for the school board and community. In addition, she wants to focus on resources to help decrease the achievement gap. 
Candidate C.J. Strehl wants to build mentorship bridges for diverse communities. He is interested in having an accountability dashboard to show progress and results of the school board.
On October 13th, 2020, board members spoke about club announcements and some history of the EPAM club. Club assemblies are for board members to give updates on their committees and also for special presentations. 
The newest EPAM Rotary member, Sophia Rizzo, shared a bit about herself. Sophia moved to Eden Prairie in 2018 with her family. Sophia is originally from Sochi, Russia, and at the age of 22, she moved to the United States to learn more about health sciences in America. She enrolled in Winona State University and received a degree in Nursing. Sophia then continued her education and attended New York University in the College of Dentistry. Sophia and her husband recently launched their dental clinic, Modern Day Dental, in Eden Prairie. Sophia enjoys volunteering for the Salvation Army, the PROP Food Shelf, and many other organizations. In her free time, Sophia enjoys hiking, reading, and playing piano. Sophia and her husband met in college and have two sons and a dog.