Thomas Hollatz graduated from St. Ansgar High School in 1968. He graduated from the University of Iowa in 1972 and the Colorado School of Banking in 1980. He started his career in banking working in Winona, MN and Webster City, IA before moving to Redwood Falls to work at the State Bank of Redwood. In 1993, Mr. Hollatz began working for Thrivent Financial as a financial advisor. Mr. Hollatz served on the Redwood Area School Board for 26 years, serving 8 terms. He also served as Chair of the School Board. He believed the school district could be better only if they took calculated risks. He challenged staff members to move beyond the status quo and gave them a safe place to do so. The facilities of the school expanded greatly during his time in leadership. He believed we should do things in a first class way and was involved in the development of the Redwood Area Community Center, the Senior Center, Inglis Track and Field Complex and others. Mr. Hollatz is a 44 year member of the Redwood Falls Lions Club. He was a member of the board of Service Enterprises, Inc. for 25 years. He was also a board member of the Redwood Area Education Foundation and served as Vice President. Mr. Hollatz was a frequent emcee for Evening of the Stars and had a wonderful way of making the evening special. His pride in the community, along with his leadership and unwavering commitment to supporting the community have made a lasting impact on the Redwood Area School District and the community of Redwood Falls.
Some of our member participated in an Escape Room experience. This was held at JX Events. One group got out of their room in the allotted time the other group did not, but a good time was had by all.
Rotary members are invited to attend our Board meetings. We meet the second Tuesday of each month at Trinity Lutheran Church in Stillwater. We meet in the lower level. Please reach out to me and I will give you the room details. All members are welcome to attend our meetings. Below are the meeting dates up to June.
Planning a District or Global Grant for 2026–27? District 5960 has released the full schedule of required trainings, workshops, and grant deadlines. The always-popular Shark Tank session is set for May 6. Global Grant submissions are due May 15, and District Grants are due May 29, with review dates later that month and in June.
Thank you to Patty, Bob, Molly, Bev and Lois for serving dinner at Stepping Stone on April 16th. Thank you Katie for setting this volunteer opportunity up. The residents were all very pleased with the Meatloaf Dinner.
Salvation Army Bell ringing
Thank you, Amanda, Bob, Kim, Steve, Lois, Dave, Scott, Bev, Patty, Jonathan, Tracey and Katie, for taking the time to ring the bell for the Salvation Army on 12/10/25
During our bell ringing shift, we raised $1,088 for the Salvation Army! That’s 3x more than last year – but we had frigid cold and wind last year.
Roadside Clean Up
Thank you, Scott, Amanda, Lois, Patty, Dave P. and Kim for helping with the roadside clean-up on October 15th.
Stuff the Bus
THANK YOU to Patty, Sharon, Tom, Lois, Katie, Amanda, Bev, Clare and Sam (Clare’s son) for packing 40 backpacks for United Way’s Stuff the Bus campaign. They helped ensure that local kids would have all that they need to succeed on the first day of school. Service above self in action!
Relay For Life
We were proud to sponsor this years Relay for Life. Thank you to Clare and Molly for coming out to man our table. Thank you Lois and Amanda for participating in the Relay.
