News and Activities

Click on a picture below to see the photo album from that event if available

June 2010

Madison is awarded the National Best Club Web Site Award for 2010! In a competition with other Exchange Clubs across the nation with 50 or more members, our website was judged the overall winner in the combined judging areas of Content, Structure and Navigation, Visual Design and Functionality. We are proud to carry the banner with honor and will strive to uphold the standard of excellence in years to come.September 2010 - December 2010

Carol-Ann Totte, Jamie Hellman and Brian Stroehlein handed-out flags at the annual 9/11 memorial at the Congregational Church.

Madison Exchange thanks Jacques Pepin, our fine restaurants and wine shops, the Madison Arts Cinema, the Mo' Johnson band and all the members of Madison Exchange who helped make September 23rd's Madison Arts Night a great success! Ticket sales were up from 205 in 2009 to 325 this year. Our final net for the event will be between $14 and $15 thousand, up from about $10 thousand last year. We attribute the higher event revenue to our celebrity host, our more exclusive slate of restaurants, and the enormous dedication of our members in selling tickets! We welcome new member, Laurie Ruderfer to Exchange. Laurie is the Coalition Coordinator for the Madison Alcohol and Drug Education Coalition and the proud parent of May 2010 Youth of the Month, Hanna Ellman.


Madison Exchange will be represented at October 21st's Salute to Connecticut's Bravest Event by 17 members. Tom Tung and Brian Stroehlein spoke about Exchange to the scouts and parents of Boy Scout Troop 494 on October 18th. It was an opportunity for us to find new members for both Madison Exchange and the Excel clubs Tom is starting at Hand (high school) and Polson (middle school). We hosted a table at October 30th's Monster March Halloween parade, where we

we handed out candy, toothbrushes and promoted Exchange. Our National Day of Service, a food drive at Roberts' IGA, was November 7th. Thanks again to Pam McKinnon for organizing this event. December included our Holiday Party on December 15th, our collection of toys for the Exchange Club of Greater New Haven's toy drive and toys for KIDSAFE CT children's wish list, and food collection for the MCS food pantry! Our Youth of the Month program also starts up as chairman Dave Bell hands out student entries to his committee. Winners will be recognized and awarded starting in January 2011 and the Youth of the Year winner will be announced at graduation next June.

Madison Exchange is the proud sponsor of the Polson Excel Club of Madison. Seventh grade students in the Polson Excel Club were officially recognized by the National Exchange Club on December 15, 2010. The school principal, faculty advisor, parents and sponsoring members of the Exchange Club of Madison celebrated the formation of this Excel Club which is the first in Connecticut. Excel is a student run volunteer service club and part of the national network of Exchange Clubs whose focus is on Americanism, Community Service, Youth Projects and the Prevention of Child Abuse. Excel’s recent activities include handing out American flags, adopt a grandparent, holiday toy drive, and support for veterans. Any student in 7th grade at Polson is welcome to join this charter club and better the community. They meet every Wednesday during lunch.

January 2011 - June 2011

The Leprechaun 5-Miler delivered record breaking numbers in March as Jonathan Snyder and co-race director Tom Tung leveraged social media and incentives to bring in 878 runners and walkers. New to this year was SoundRunner's help with setting up early bird packet pick up, volunteer assistance from the Boy Scouts, Excel Club, Rugby team and Softball team, and an after party at Donahue's Madison Beach Grille. This year's Easter Egg Hunt in April was another success thanks to efforts

by chair Emy Sigler and Charlie Corso. The Easter Bunny handed out candy to scores of chilled but happy children while the Polson Excel Club helped hide prize eggs. In May, Time Out Teddy was warmly welcomed in Madison for the launch of a joint effort by the Exchange Club of Madison and the Polson Excel Club. The Time Out Teddy program donates teddy bears to be placed in patrol cars and rescue vehicles so that first responders have something they can give a child who may be fearful or traumatized. 54 teddy bears were given to Madison and Guilford police, fire and ambulance departments. In June, the Connecticut District of Exchange Clubs presented Tom Tung the

2011 Exchangite of the Year award at the District Convention in Lake George, NY. The award recognizes an Exchange Club member for contributions to and the support of the ideals fo the Exchange Club. Exchange welcomes new members Robert Van Ostenbridge and Erik Ciccarello.

At the our end of year youth award presentation, Exchange recognized Alyssa Burlakoff as the 2011 Wally Cataldo Award winner, Ryan Stufano as the 2011 A.C.E. Award winner and Megan Lynch as the 2011 Youth of the Year. In addition to money, each of these students were presented award plaques at a dinner meeting at Cafe Allegre with their family and guidance counselors. Winners of the memorial scholarships were: Hannah Morgan - Evarts Jannssen Scholarship, Gregory Dowler - Sam Anderson Scholarship, and Caroline Eisele - Dunnith R. Heenan III Scholarship. The 6th annual Golf Classic tournament for Child Abuse Prevention teed off on a beautiful day at the Fox Hopyard Golf Club. Once again tournament directors Bob Graham and Vince Dussich organized another successful fundraiser whose proceeds contribute a large portion of the club's funds for our programs of service. The club and CAP centers thank Bob and Vince for their invaluable contribution.


July 2011

Parade chairman Mike Catalano guided us through another Independence Day Parade which is our gift to the town of Madison and a salute to America. Along with timely effort from Charlie Corso, Bill Lawlor and many other club members and volunteers, the Exchange Club of Madison thanks all for participating in 32nd annual Madison Fourth of July parade. It was a great event with a total of 110 groups and vehicles participating including 15 marching and musical groups. Also a special thanks to all the Madison youth groups including: Boy Scouts, Girl Scouts, Brownies, Little League, Youth Football and Cheerleaders. We had the largest participation by our young folks in many years to match this year's theme, "Our Youth, the Future of America." The collection of antique and classic cars was great with the highlights being the fully restored 1950 Newcastle Double Decker bus entered by Chris Greaves and the more than 30 Corvettes from the Corvette Club of CT.

Winners for each major parade category were:

Antique Car

Chris Greaves - 1950 Newcastle Transport Double Decker Bus

Antique Truck

William Lawlor -1922 Brockway LaFrance Torpedo

Classic Cars

Liz Lawlor 1952 Ford 4 Door Sedan

Float- Service Group

Madison Lions Club

Commercial Group

Pyramid Motor Patrol

Marching Group

Stony Creek Fife and Drum

The Madison Exchange Club also thanks Larry Ciotti for serving as our Grand Marshal and for his many years of service to our town’s youth. A special thanks goes to the Madison Police Department for making the event possible and safe for all.

Fall 2011

The Antique Show fundraiser headed by Pam McKinnon and Madison Arts Night headed by Bob Dunlop both enjoy great weather and raise critical funds for our service programs. Arts Night closed off downtown Madison and allowed attendees to mingle under the large tents set up on the Boston Post Road.

Exchange recognizes Deputy Chief Doug Minges from the North Madison Volunteer Fire Company in the 2011 Salute to Connecticut's Bravest. Doug is an example of a fireman who tirelessly gives his time and talent to our community and truly exemplifies the "Spirit of the Company." Madison Exchange celebrates their 60th Anniversary on November 19, 2011. In addition to many club members and their guests, District President Peter Cascini, VFG Bill Deacy and Division Director Chris Miller also attended. Highlights of the night included the presentation of the Exchange's highest award, The Book of Golden Deeds, to Past President, Carlo DiGirolamo and the renaming of the David Bell Youth of the Month/Year program to honor Dave Bell for his many years of dedication to the Youth of the Month/Year program. On December 14, 2011, the Polson Excel Club of Madison celebrates their One Year Anniversary as the first club in Connecticut with a holiday pizza party and movie. Custom baseball hats and t-shirts are distributed to to about 90 members. Pictured in the school cafeteria are 7th and 8th grade Excel members, club advisors and sponsors from the Exchange Club of Madison.

Spring 2012

On February 15, 2012 the Exchange Club of Madison hosting the 12th annual InterClub meeting for Division III Clubs. Attendance by any Exchangite is welcome. This twelve year tradition supports ongoing communication and comaradarie among the club members of Branford, Durham/Middlefield, Greater New Haven, Middletown, and Old Saybrook/Westbrook. This year’s guest speaker is an active FBI Special Agent dealing with counterterrorism – Special Agent Robert Hubbard.

March will be a busy month for the Madison Exchange with its Leprechaun Five Miler on Sunday, March 18, 2012 and its annual Easter Egg Hunt on Saturday, March 31, 2012.

The Leprechaun Five Miler is celebrating its 20th anniversary with the first certified run of the season. The well attended event now hosts nearly 600 runners, 200 walkers and 100 kid’s runners. The scenic run along the waterfront attracts runners both local and out of state with post run celebrations featuring music, Lenny and Joe’s chowder, beverages from Red Hook and awards presentations.

The Easter Bunny will once again appear at the Madison Surf Club on Saturday March 31st. The bunny visits with the eager young ‘egg-hunters’, hands out treats before the hunt officially begins and poses for pictures for that special moment.

Recognizing April as Child Abuse Prevention Month, the club continues its unique tradition of hosting a CAP Center Shower. On April 18, 2012 representatives from the Bristol Center will once again be invited to attend our regular meeting to bring the group up to date on happenings, successes and needs of the center. The generosity of club members results in clothing, books, toys and various other times being donated to the Center thereby helping families at risk. More often than not, more than one vehicle is needed to transport items back to the Center bringing smiles to the recipients and genuine joy to the club members.

Under the leadership of President Shari Roguski, the Madison Exchange Club will be hosting its inaugural Wine and Cheese New Member event in April (details TBD). Officers and members will be putting their best foot forward as they showcase this premiere organization which supports the community through events like the Easter Egg Hunt and the 4th of July Parade, scholarships through the Youth of the Year Program, and special efforts such as the Strong Field scoreboard campaign. Through the friendships formed during fundraisers and other activities members old and new alike help in the fight against Child Abuse while having fun and sharing the spirit of Exchange.

Introducing the Daniel Hand Excel Club of Madison

Club Builders Tom Tung and Pam McKinnon are pleased to welcome Connecticut's newest club, the Daniel Hand Excel Club of Madison on May 11, 2012. The permanent organizational meeting was attended by VFR Bill Deacy, District Director Chris Miller, CT District President Peter Cascini and members of the sponsoring club, the Exchange Club of Madison. The club is advised by faculty members, Ron Spears and Paul Coppola. Daniel Hand is the public high school in Madison. Together with the middle school Polson Excel Club, Madison youth can be involved with Exchange starting in 7th grade through graduation.