To support our many service projects, the Jefferson Rotary Club members stage several fund raisers annually.

The Brat & Burger Raffle, started in 1992, is our major fund raising effort to support our scholarships and some of the local community service projects undertaken by the Club each year. (See pix above)

The Club also sells calendars every fall as part of the Character Education program at Jefferson High School. Other recent fund raisers include the Rock River Regatta & Family Fun Fest as well as the Cow Chip Challenge at the County Fair. (See more pix above)

The Club obtains "operating money" from dues of $25 collected twice each year, plus payments of $5 during the month of a member's birthday. The club also charges members for missed meetings! (If you miss a meeting and don't make up at another club, then you are charged for the meal anyway.)

To support the Rotary International Foundation, a collection basket is passed at every meeting and most members toss in a buck. Many members also contribute to the Foundation personally through a voluntary contribution accessed on their semi-annual dues statement.

Rotary members can get creative when it comes to fundraising. For example, in 2007, the club staged Chutes for the Shell -- a parachute jump that raised money for the planned band shell at Rotary Park. The club is currently hosting a wine and beer tasking event in conjunction with St. Patricks Day with the funds earmarked for club service projects.

Frequently, when the kitty gets a bit low, the Sergeant-at-Arms will nail a member or two with a good-natured fine.

Until recently, the Club hosted the "Best Brunch in Southeastern Wisconsin." Staged each spring, often on Palm Sunday, the Rotary Brunch was a popular community event that supported the scholarship program. The Rotary Brunch was suspended indefinitely when the Club moved away from Meadow Springs in early 2009.

Rotary members also contribute their labor at special events such as the Spring and Fall Car Shows and Gemuetlichkeit Days. Their earnings from these events go into the Club coffers to support our community services.