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Founded on June 30, 2009, we are a multicultural club committed to promoting diverse perspectives and community service.Upcoming Program
September 8 2026 Program 6-7 p.m. in-person at Milwaukee Athletic Club or via Zoom -
Zoom link
Join Zoom Meeting
https://us02web.zoom.us/j/86219095626?pwd=3jM6ndnWNStFNnJgaaDLZfYN9enlg4.1
Passcode: 866816
Questions - contact President Angie
If you are unable to join us in person at the Milwaukee Athletic Club (followed by pay your own for dinner at the rooftop restaurant at 7 p.m.) then please join via Zoom.
In person at Milwaukee Athletic Club - 758 N Broadway, Milwaukee, WI 53202
Parking is in ramp adjacent to Club or some street parking north 1 block.
The Brown Berets of Wisconsin: Fighters for Social Justice
Emerging in the late 1960s as part of the Chicano Movement, the Brown Berets was a bold, youth-led civil rights organization and force for Mexican American community self-determination. In Wisconsin, and especially in Milwaukee—a city with a strong history of social activism—the Brown Berets’ work connected local struggles to wider challenges including discrimination, workers’ rights, educational inequalities, and policing and community safety. Come and learn more from Maria Cruz, a retired educator who keeps their legacy alive by documenting and sharing their long and storied history with social activism which continues today, bringing light to this overlooked history and educating and inspiring new generations in future activism through collective action.
Maria D. Cruz
Author, Oral Historian, Educator, Civil Rights Activist
Maria D. Cruz is a first-generation Mexican American who was born in Humboldt, Kansas. Despite the challenges of racial and ethnic discrimination, she achieved success in her education and professional career and later as an activist for civil rights. Now retired, Ms. Cruz’s professional career spanned 40 years as a teacher, counselor, and administrator, including 26 years of service at the Milwaukee Area Technical College (MATC). She obtained her BA from the University of Missouri at Kansas City and her MA from The Ohio State University.
Ms. Cruz is a lifetime activist and community volunteer and was featured in the book “Somos Latinas” which is a compilation of Latina women activists in the State of Wisconsin. She holds the distinction of being the first Latino/a who ran for a seat in the 3rd. Senate District of the State of Wisconsin in 1982.
Ms. Cruz has written a memoir and coordinated and curated a photo exhibit, “Life Under the Shadow of a Smokestack,” that brings to life the stories of her family and other Mexican families who worked for a cement factory and lived in company-provided houses in Southeastern Kansas during Jim Crow practices and laws. Ms. Cruz is currently writing two books, “The Brown Berets of Wisconsin: Fighters for Social Justice,” and “Ramona’s Journey,” a children’s book about a former Brown Beret and her migrant family working and living in Wisconsin. She has also developed a lecture series on the “History of Chicano Activism in the State of Wisconsin” for both adult and youth audiences.
Past Programs
August 11, 2026
District Governor Dawn Fiedler provided a wonderful program reminding us of the importance of stories. She shared her own personal journey in Rotary and how it helped her find her true calling and establishing her nonprofit, Join the Movement to Stop Human Trafficking. She challenged each of us to share our stories and to help others understand why our membership and service in Rotary is important to us in an effort to help others know what they may gain or find through Rotary.
DG Dawn installed our new 2026-27 President Angela Rester and the board of directors. We thank 2025-26 President Fessahaye Mebrahtu for his service and continued enthusiasm for Rotary.
July 14 2026 Program
Oleksandr Tolchynski will be a Junior at New Berlin West this fall. RC MKE Amigos After Hours sponsored his attendance at this years' World Affairs Seminar where he joined oth
er teens for a week experience at Carroll College to develop greater awareness and tools to work toward world peace.
He will share what the experience was like and what he gained from it.
Halyna Salapata is the President of WI Ukrainians and will share with us the conditions and current situation for Ukrainians now living in Wisconsin AND in Ukraine. More information will be available as to how the Amigos Club will participate and support the upcoming Ukrainian Festival on Sunday, August 16 at the Franklin Beer Garden / Croatian Park. We will also further discuss how the District Grant that Amigos applied for and received to support medical equipment for hospitals in Ukraine.
We had an engaging and timely conversation with Celia Jackson, attorney, educator, social justice advocate, and community leader.
Vevette Hill-Nwagbaraocha is an assistant director in 
Jon is a retired U.S. diplomat. Now a member of the Rotary Club of Milwaukee, he was a member of the Rotary Club of Port Moresby, Papua New Guinea and the Rotary Club of Calcutta, India. He also served in Brazil, Pakistan, Saudi Arabia, and Iraq and as Director for South and Central Asia at the Office of the U.S. Trade Representative and as a Middle East Foreign Policy Advisor in the Directorate of Strategic Plans and Policy at the Joint Staff. He later worked as the Executive Director of the Miami-Dade County International Trade Consortium, and Director of International Trade and Investment for the New Jersey Economic Development Authority. Jon holds J.D., MBA, and BS degrees from the University of Wisconsin-Madison and is an Army veteran of Operation Desert Storm. 
RIP had its world premiere from July 17th-28th, 2024 at Next Act Theatre's performance space in Milwaukee, WI. Many Amigos Rotarians and District Governor Peter Bosch attended several performances. Rob is available for Rotary Club programs to share the journey of the idea, the journey, and "what's next". Watch for a future date when he will present to the Amigos Club.
