Ernie Goss, Ph.D. is the Jack MacAllister Chair in Economics at Creighton University. He is also principal of the Goss Institute in Denver, Colo. Dr. Goss, a U.S. military veteran, is a former faculty research fellow at NASA’s Marshall Space Flight Center. He was a visiting scholar with the Congressional Budget Office. He has published more than 100 research studies focusing primarily on economic forecasting and on the statistical analysis of business and economic data. His book Changing Attitudes Toward Economic Reform During the Yeltsin Era was published by Praeger Press, and his book Governing Fortune: Casino Gambling in America was published by the University of Michigan Press.  
 

He is the editor of Economic Trends, an economics newsletter published monthly with more than 10,000 subscribers, produces a monthly business conditions index for the nine-state Mid-American region, and conducts a survey of bank CEOs in 10 U.S. states. Survey and index results are cited each month in approximately 100 newspapers; citations have included the New York Times, Wall Street Journal, Investors Business Daily, The Christian Science Monitor, Chicago Sun Times, and other national and regional newspapers and magazines. Each month 75-100 radio stations carry his Regional Economic Report. 

We are thrilled to showcase Suburban Rotary's dedication to creating meaningful change in our community. The Suburban Rotary Charitable Foundation (SRCF) has recently approved a $3,000 Backpack grant for Andersen Middle School, exemplifying our commitment to making a difference.
 

This grant is aimed at supporting student refugees from diverse backgrounds, including Afghanistan and Ukraine. The Backpack program serves as a bridge to education, empowerment, and integration. We owe this remarkable achievement to your generous contributions to the SRCF. Together, as Rotarians, we illuminate paths of positive change and inspire a brighter future for those we serve. Thank you, Rotarians!

 

Do you have a powerful Suburban Rotary Impact Story that you'd like to share with fellow members? We believe that every project, every effort, and every initiative holds immense value, and we want to hear about yours! Whether it's an uplifting anecdote about transforming a local neighborhood, supporting a worthy cause, or positively influencing a young person's life, your stories contribute to the fabric of our shared success.

Your Impact Story will not only be acknowledged during our weekly meetings but it will also be featured on our website and social media platforms. By doing so, we hope to spread the ripple effect of your actions and inspire others to take part in the transformative power of Rotary. Please take a moment to compose your Impact Story and email it to the ever-enthusiastic and dedicated President Katie Henry at khenry@accessbank.com.

As Ukraine struggles against the current Russian invasion, it may seem strange to spend time remembering the collapse of the USSR in 1991. And yet I find it useful to reflect on that event. New, unexpected thoughts appear that provoke a shift in my attitudes, allowing me to reassess the past from the point of view of today’s tragedy.

In 1991, the USSR was physically disintegrating, crumbling like an old, abandoned building. Now Russian President Vladimir Putin’s dream of restoring the USSR is crumbling, and nostalgia for the Soviet past is dying.
 

I have always believed that the most important thing in life is to have a choice. This is the essence of freedom. Choice gives the opportunity to better understand yourself, the purpose of life, and your own role in it. In Soviet society, I could not choose a role that would suit both me and the Soviet system.
 

In my student years, I was an anti-Soviet Soviet person, as were many of my peers. I disliked many things about the USSR. I often argued with my communist father about the wrongness of the Soviet regime. And yet, I did not believe that this regime could be changed, that it could be made “correct.”
 

My father did not like to argue, although he always defended the Soviet system, in his calm, lazy manner. His positive attitude toward it grew from his belief that the Soviet system had allowed him to realize his dream. Since childhood, he had wanted to become a military pilot and he became one. He rose to the rank of captain, spending several years in Germany with the Soviet occupying forces after World War II. He returned to the USSR, and had it not been for the Cuban missile crisis and Nikita Khrushchev’s unilateral disarmament policy, he would have risen to the rank of colonel. Having faced the threat of a third world war, Khrushchev wanted to demonstrate that the USSR was a peace-loving state. This meant that my father, along with tens of thousands of other military men, was sent into the reserve army and a peaceful life. I am still grateful to Khrushchev for this beautiful peacekeeping gesture. Without it, I would not be a Ukrainian today.