Monthly Archives: May 2013

NEXT MEETING: May 31, 2013

The California Maritime Academy

The California Maritime Academy (CMA) in Vallejo is a California State University (CSU) of Engineering, Technology, and Marine Transportation. It is one of 23 campuses in the CSU system and one of only seven degree-granting maritime academies in the United States. With about 1000 undergraduate students enrolled at the 90-acre campus, CMA offers six different Bachelor’s degrees and a Master’s degree in Transportation and Engineering Management. Rear Admiral Thomas Cropper, current President of the University, will tell us more about the school, its past, present, and future.

MEETING OF May 24, 2013

Welcome

President Jim Young rang the bell and called the meeting to order. Richard Alexander led the pledge of allegiance. In drawing particular attention to another recent, senseless killing of a polio vaccination team member in Pakistan, George Egan asked for a moment of silence for freedom, peace, and justice on earth. Prescient President Jim had this thought for the day: more sold-out performances are anticipated for the last weekend of the Lost Secrets play (and, lo and behold, there actually were more).

Visiting Rotarians

It was great to see Leslie Levy, formerly a Richmond Rotarian when her law office was in Richmond and now a member of the Berkeley Rotary Club.

Rotarians with Guests

  • Jan Brown introduced her husband, Byron, as well as Ellie Fraenkel, wife of today’s speaker, Albert, along with Joyce from the Philippines.
  • Jon Lawlis introduced his betrothed, Darlene Quenville.
  • Jim Young introduced his wife, Linda.

Sunshine Report

Doris Mitchell is a new mom. She and her son (born on May 10) are doing well. Congratulations, Doris, and we look forward to seeing you soon!

Announcements

  • Results are in for the Lost Secrets play project: it was a great success! Each of the six performances was effectively sold out as ticket demand exceeded seats available. Everyone seemed happy with the play, including local politicians, who took turns with opening remarks before each performance. There was clearly a bunch of community good will generated by and for Richmond Rotary.
  • Lots of people (Richmond Rotarians and others) participated and contributed in some way to help make the Lost Secrets play happen. Volunteer ushers included Shawn Rowles from Berkeley Rotary on Friday night and two Rotary Interact students on Saturday night (Anthony Bell from Salesian High School and Amy from El Cerrito High School).
  • The Berkeley Rotary Club has been a particularly solid supporter of a couple of Richmond Rotary projects. Related to the Lost Secrets play, there has been a $500 matching grant offered, for which Richmond Rotary has raised $300. Another matching grant from Berkeley Rotary is in the amount of $1000 intended for the Richmond RotaCare healthcare clinic. Our Club’s contribution so far in this case is also $300. Please see President Jim or Treasurer David to make a donation and help secure this additional outside support.
  • The Richmond Rotary Board of Directors will meet on Thursday, May 30. Same place as always: through the kitchen and upstairs at La Revolucion Restaurant.
  • Teen Moms gift bags preparation will take place at Nick Despota’s house on Saturday, June 1, from 9am to 11:30am. See Nick to sign up to help.
  • Don’t forget about the Bocce Ball tournament in Martinez on June 8. Teams led by Pam Jones and Rafael Madrigal are bound for glory. Come for the sun and fun. Stay for the beverages.
  • The annual Richmond Rotary baseball game at the Oakland Coliseum will be August 31 at 6:05pm (Oakland A’s versus the Tampa Bay Rays, good seats on the 2nd deck behind home plate, $30 per person). Pre-game tailgate activity will start at 3:30pm in the Section “A” parking area (potluck hot dogs and ribs, BYOB). Note that parking costs $17 per vehicle. There will be a fireworks show right after the game.

Recognitions

  • Dan Tanita celebrated his 11th wedding anniversary on May 11 and just returned from two weeks of vacation in France. He gave $100 to the Rotary Foundation.
  • David Brown celebrated 33 years of married bliss on May 18. He contributed $100 to the disaster relief fund established by the Murray, KY Rotary Club, which is making a special effort to help recent tornado victims in Moore, OK. Borrowing the microphone from President Jim, David used his cell phone to enable a Murray, KY Rotarian to audibly and gratefully accept David’s contribution.

Recognitions

  • Dan Tanita celebrated his 11th wedding anniversary on May 11 and just returned from two weeks of vacation in France. He gave $100 to the Rotary Foundation.
  • David Brown celebrated 33 years of married bliss on May 18. He contributed $100 to the disaster relief fund established by the Murray, KY Rotary Club, which is making a special effort to help recent tornado victims in Moore, OK. Borrowing the microphone from President Jim, David used his cell phone to enable a Murray, KY Rotarian to audibly and gratefully accept David’s contribution.

Happy and Sad Dollars

  • Leslie Levy offered some happy dollars for having joined Richmond Rotary 25 years ago as one of the first female members following the Supreme Court ruling that enabled such memberships. She also announced that she has a second grandchild now and a new boyfriend.
  • Herb Cole provided happy dollars for the recent dinner at Leslie’s place (a Christmas auction item from 2011) and also for a Christmas auction item from last year, Jan Brown’s excellent nearby hiking tour on Saturday around what Herb called “the garbage dump”. Herb said the hike was fun and interesting.
  • Always proper Jon Lawlis improved upon Herb’s characterization and gave some happy dollars for also participating in Jan’s hiking tour of the “Landfill Loop”. It was, as Jon said, a “gentle hike near beautiful marshes”.
  • Another joyful hiker, Tom Butt, gave up some happy dollars for being able to join in what he called the “circumnavigation of Garbage Mountain”. Tom also liked the elegant lunch that was included.
  • Jan Brown was pleased and happy with the hiking tour (plus lunch) that was well attended and enjoyed by all. Jan thanked Connie Tritt for co-coordinating the outing and Peter Nuti of Republic Services for supplying some tables for the sit-down lunch. Bruce Beyaert, Chair of TRAC (Trails for Richmond Action Committee), was also in attendance.
  • Erle Brown was happy to once again be involved as a member of the Richmond Museum after a few years away from it because of, well, a certain circumstance that is no longer present.
  • With more to the story not fully caught by the Scribe, Richard Alexander had some combo happy-and-sad dollars associated with recently renewing his Coast Guard 100-ton Masters License.
  • Dan Tanita was happy about being called by KPIX TV to advise him that he’s been nominated for an annual Jefferson Award for public service. This is related to Dan’s work with the school dental clinic program, which he started as a Rotary project at Peres Elementary School in 1997. There will be related TV coverage on June 5 and the Jefferson Awards ceremony will be held in January 2014 at the Herbst Theater in San Francisco.
  • Don Lau had happy dollars for the West Contra Costa YMCA 95th Annual Dinner on June 5 at the Richmond Country Club. The event is open to the public. In recognition of outstanding contributions to the community, Darrol Davis will receive the prestigious Fred Breen Humanitarian of the Year award. Darrol is a former West Contra Costa YMCA Board President and retired Richmond Police Officer.
  • With Leslie in attendance from the Berkeley Rotary Club, Jim Young had some genuinely happy dollars for all the support and encouragement over the past several months from Berkeley Rotary with regard to the Lost Secrets play project.
  • Jan Brown happily recognized Leslie with some flowers for her having joined Richmond Rotary in the Fall of 1987, just a few short months after the Supreme Court decision in May of that year enabling female Rotary membership.

Norm’s Nonsense

Three people were going to the guillotine. The first was a lawyer, who was led to the platform, blindfolded, and had his head put on the block. The executioner pulled the lanyard, but nothing happened. To avoid a messy lawsuit, the authorities allowed the lawyer to go free.

The next man to the guillotine was a priest. They put his head on the block and pulled the lanyard, but nothing happened. The blade didn’t come down. They thought it must have been divine intervention, so they let the priest go.

The third man to the guillotine was an engineer. He waived his right to a blindfold, so they led him to the guillotine, and put his head on the block. As he lay there, he said, “Hey, wait. I think I see your problem.”

PROGRAM

Albert Fraenkel, Baton Rouge Ambassador-by-the-Bay

Jan Brown introduced the program speaker, Albert Fraenkel, past President of a large Rotary Club in Baton Rouge, Louisiana, and a successful entrepreneur who moved west to retire in San Francisco 15 years ago.

Albert and his wife Ellie, together for 59 years, met Virginia Brown, Byron’s mother, at a park in San Francisco a while ago. That acquaintance eventually led to this enjoyable talk by an amiable story teller and accomplished Rotarian.

Albert declared that his life has been blessed. He was born in New Orleans, went to Tulane University, spent a couple of years in the Navy during the Korean War, and moved to Baton Rouge, where he and Ellie borrowed a lot of money to start a furniture distribution company from scratch. He remembers their first sale, a $10.95 playpen that convinced them they could make a go of it.

The furniture distribution company grew steadily as more employees were hired (over 600 at the peak). Soon there was diversification into mattress manufacturing with plants in several states. After a few years, the company was set up with an Employee Stock Ownership Plan valued at more than $30 million (from an initial personal start-up investment of $12,000). Fifty-four years after start-up, the company is now being acquired by a large manufacturing company in Richmond, VA, which will continue operations in Baton Rouge.

As his company grew during those years in Baton Rouge, Albert was asked to join the local Rotary Club, which had 380 members at the time (all male, all white).

Albert became Baton Rouge Rotary Club President in 1986, the same year Don Hardison was President of Richmond Rotary. At the start of Albert’s term, Baton Rouge had 450 Club members (one non-white, still all male). Following California’s lead, the Baton Rouge Club added five female members in 1987 and continued its diversification over the years.

Today, as one of the 50 largest Rotary Clubs in the United States, Baton Rouge Rotary has 475 members, a full-time Executive Director, its own 5000-ft2 headquarters, and a $960,000 Club Foundation dedicated to Education-related projects.

As he spoke fluently with no written notes, Albert highlighted some unique issues for large Rotary Clubs. For example, “scooters” seem more prevalent (members who check in but routinely leave early). The Houston Rotary Club, with about 900 members, needs to recruit about 100 new members each year just to stay even and keep up with attrition. It’s also harder to form close friendships in a large organization. Clubs with 30-60 members seem to be the most friendly. (Hey, that’s us!)

Albert said to encourage new members to join in order to be of service to the community, to remember that friendships are enhanced through service, to grow by building on unique Club strengths, to go slow in releasing a Club member, and to not shy away from worthy projects that last longer than a year.

As for staying mentally sharp, Albert takes courses at the Fromm Institute for Lifelong Learning at the University of San Francisco. So stay thirsty, my friends, and keep those neurons firing.


Rotating Scribe, Tom Waller

NEXT MEETING: May 24, 2013

Baton Rouge Ambassador-by-the-Bay Report

Albert Fraenkel, President of Baton Rouge Rotary in 1986-87, helped one of Rotary’s largest clubs (nearly 500 members) usher in a new era of social and entrepreneurial change that included opening Rotary membership to women. (Detail of Supreme Court decision on right.)
In 1998 Mr. Fraenkel left his home town and a thriving business to relocate in the Bay Area and was declared the “Baton Rouge Ambassador-by-the-Bay” by his former club.

MEETING OF May 17, 2013

Welcome

President Jim Young rang the bell and called the meeting to order. Herb Cole led the pledge of allegiance and George Egan asked for a moment of silence for freedom, peace, and justice on earth. President Jim had this thought for the day: “It’s Opening Night!!”

Rotarians with Guests

Alan Baer introduced his guest, Gonzalo Ochoa, owner of G&O Tires and Service Center on 23rd Street in Richmond.

Sunshine Report

The Club wishes a speedy recovery to Henry Moe, who has a bad case of the flu.

Announcements

  • BREAKING NEWS (a special update since last Friday’s meeting). Opening weekend for the Lost Secrets play (you’ve heard about the play, right?) was a smashing success. Friday and Saturday nights’ performances were sold out and the Sunday afternoon matinee was almost sold out. District Governor Laura Day was there on Friday night and toasted Richmond Rotary in a special reception held before the play. Richmond Mayor Gayle McLaughlin, in brief remarks made to the audience before the start of Sunday’s performance, not only praised the ongoing work of the East Bay Center for the Performing Arts but also openly thanked Richmond Rotary Club for sponsoring the production of the play.
  • There are still a few tickets available for the Lost Secrets play’s second and final weekend (May 24-26). You won’t want to miss the special “thank-you-Rotary” reception being hosted by the East Bay Center immediately after the Saturday night performance on May 25.
  • The Berkeley Rotary Club continues to support the Lost Secrets play. There has been a $500 matching grant offered, for which Richmond Rotary has raised $300. Please consider contributing in order to secure this additional outside support. (Another matching grant from Berkeley Rotary is in the amount of $1000 intended for the Richmond RotaCare healthcare clinic. Our Club’s contribution so far in this case is also $300.)
  • Teen Moms gift bags preparation will take place at Nick Despota’s house on Saturday, June 1, from 9am to 11:30am. See Nick to sign up to help.
  • The annual Richmond Rotary baseball game at the Oakland Coliseum will be August 31 at 6:05pm (Oakland A’s versus the Tampa Ray Rays, good seats on the 2nd deck behind home plate, $30 per person). Pre-game tailgate activity will start at 3:30pm in the Section “A” parking area, food provided but BYOB. There will be a fireworks show right after the game.

Special Events

New member Rosa Lara did her “Who am I?” Lara was born in Mexico and grew up in Richmond, attending Helms Middle School and graduating from Richmond High School in 2003. She attended Contra Costa College, worked for Kaiser for a while, and then signed up for the 12-week RichmondBUILD program to develop skills in the construction and renewable energy fields. By week seven of the class, she was working for the City of Richmond in code enforcement and abatement while boarding up abandoned houses. Reflecting the work-hard ethic that she learned from her father, Lara was then recognized for her many talents by being selected as Recruiter for the RichmondBUILD program. And she’s now President of the 23rd Street Merchants Association. Congratulations, Lara, and welcome to the Club!

Recognitions

Alas, no birthdays or anniversaries or extraordinary personal accomplishments merited recognition on this fine day. We sped along into Happy and Sad Dollars, making up for the calm in this category.

Happy and Sad Dollars

  • Rafael Madrigal was happy to be leaving within a few hours to Las Vegas even though it’s a business trip.
  • Michelle Itagaki had happy dollars for her approaching retirement as Executive Director of the Richmond Convention and Visitors Bureau (CVB) and for her replacement that has just been named (Beth Javens).
  • Joan Davis was happy about participating in the recent “Culinary Clash” in Pinole, wherein four cooking teams were in competition to create a winning dish using surprise food ingredients. This was a fund-raiser for a local non-profit business food incubator.
  • Hank Covell offered some happy dollars for being involved for 48 years in the local $1.2 million Spencer Trust, which provides scholarships for deserving students to go to UC Berkeley or Stanford.
  • Herb Cole had some scared and some happy dollars. The scared dollars had to do with filling out the 40 pages of IRS tax Form 1041 as part of settling his mother’s estate. The happy dollars were in anticipation of going to the Rotary International Convention in Portugal next month.
  • Jan Brown provided happy dollars with kudos to Michelle Itagaki for her good work as Executive Director of the Richmond CVB.
  • Don Lau had happy dollars for the ceremony last week that officially changed the name of the Coronado YMCA to the E M Downer Family YMCA.

Norm’s Nonsense

A fleeing Taliban terrorist, desperate for water, was plodding through the Afghan desert when he saw something far off in the distance. Hoping to find water, he hurried toward the mirage, only to find a very frail little old Jewish man standing at a small makeshift display rack — selling ties.

The Taliban terrorist asked, “Do you have water?” The Jewish man replied, “I have no water. Would you like to buy a tie? They are only $5.” The Taliban shouted hysterically, “Idiot Infidel! I spit on your ties. I need water!”

“Okay,” said the little old Jewish man, “If you continue over that hill to the east for about two miles, you will find a restaurant. It has the finest food and all the ice-cold water you need.”
Cursing him again, the desperate Taliban staggered away over the hill.

Several hours later he crawled back, almost dead and gasped “They won’t let me in without a tie!”

PROGRAM

The Fine Art of Improvisation

The scheduled program speaker had a family emergency to take care of so Jim Young asked President-Elect Liliane Koziol to lead an open discussion about possible programs and projects for the coming year.

Liliane shared that one of her planned activities for next year is a literacy project in India. This will involve providing desks and other equipment to some specific schools in that country. The project will be done in conjunction with a group the Club has worked with before in Monterey, Mexico. There will be BARSHEEP Club participation, District grant applications, and in-country travel opportunities for interested Rotary members.

There was a lot of discussion about the desirability of local hands-on projects that allow Rotary members to come together for a few weekend hours to accomplish worthwhile tasks while socializing and building relationships within the Club. A well-remembered example of such an activity was the Club’s association with Christmas in April, a local non-profit that enabled Rotarians to make minor repairs and renovations to senior-citizen and other disadvantaged people’s homes.

Mike Winter has been looking into Rebuilding Together, the apparent non-profit successor organization to Christmas in April. He’s had some difficulty establishing communications with Rebuilding Together and is concerned about what he hears is a “pay to play” feature requiring fees to be paid before being connected with project work.

Several members pointed out there should be lots of opportunities for project work that don’t require paying a fee to be helpful (for example, what the Club has done with NIAD). Lynn Martin further advised that it’s important to connect with non-profits in terms of what they truly need.

There was also good interaction about the pros and cons of simple, short-term projects versus more comprehensive, longer-term projects. Short or long, a project should add value in some meaningful way.

In terms of future speaker programs, Herb Cole suggested the Club schedule a lunch at Three Seasons, the widely acclaimed on-campus restaurant at Contra Costa College where students in the Culinary Arts Management program prepare for careers in gastronomical delights.


Rotating Scribe, Tom Waller

NEXT MEETING: May 17, 2013

California Mega-storms: Rivers in the Sky

Professor B. Lynn Ingram from the UC Berkeley Department of Earth, Planetary Science & Geography visits Richmond Rotary to discuss her recent Scientific American article about the gigantic storms that hit the North American West Coast about once every 200 years. The program will consider the historic consequences of the most recent storm (1861), as well as the modern implications for the next storm.

MEETING OF May 10, 2013

Welcome

President Jim Young rang the bell and called the meeting to order. Rafael Madrigal led the pledge of allegiance and Stoney Stonework asked for a moment of silence for freedom, peace, and justice on earth. President Jim offered this quote from Henry Ford as the thought for the day: “You can’t build a reputation on what you’re going to do.”

Rotarians with Guests

  • Joe Bagley’s guest was his daughter Lana, a Salesian high-school graduate and now So-Cal dwelling industrial engineer visiting her parents for Mother’s Day.
  • Tom Butt’s guest was Tom Powers, a farming friend who lives in Martinez.
  • Sid Chauvin’s guest was his wife, Zelpha.
  • Jon Lawlis’ guest was his betrothed, Darlene Quinville.
  • Rafael Madrigal’s guest was Ed Medina, Richmond Deputy Police Chief.
  • Tom Waller’s guest was Ron Nunez, Associate Pastor of Waypointe Christian Fellowship church in Richmond.

Sunshine Report

A celebration of Henry Kelman’s life was held at La Strada Restaurant on Saturday, May 11, and was well attended by Richmond Rotarians.

Announcements

  • The world premiere opening night of the Lost Secrets play at the East Bay Center for the Performing Arts will be Friday, May 17, at 7pm. Rotary District Governor, Laura Day, will host a champagne reception at the Center after the opening night performance. As everyone knows by now, there are five more performances (May 18, 19, 24, 25, and 26). Rotary volunteers are still needed for box office helpers and ushers at all six performances. Please contact Jim. And be sure to buy plenty of admission tickets for friends and family, neighbors, work associates, the postman, and others that you think might enjoy this delightful (and meaningful) production intended for kids of all ages.
  • Read an excellent article that appeared recently in the Contra Costa Times newspaper about the Lost Secrets play and Richmond Rotary’s important role.
  • Thanks to those who helped at the Richmond Rotary booth at the Cinco de Mayo festival on (coincidentally) May 5. Lots of Richmond Tales books were sold and information about the play was distributed. Also, it became clear there’s a real need for Rotary-balloon-inflation-and-ribbon-tying training, which will likely be conducted by Josh Genser.
  • In a ceremony on Friday afternoon, the Coronado YMCA was officially renamed the “E M Downer Family YMCA” in recognition of long-time supporters in the Downer family, which founded Mechanics Bank in Richmond.
  • This month, the Richmond Rotary Board of Directors will meet on Thursday, May 30. Same place as always: through the kitchen and upstairs at La Revolucion Restaurant.
  • Teen Moms gift bags preparation will take place at Nick Despota’s house on Saturday, June 1, from 9am to 11:30am. He and Jan will ask volunteers to help for a couple hours that morning.
  • Don’t forget about the Bocce Ball tournament in Martinez on June 8. Teams headed up by Pam Jones and Rafael Madrigal will be competing for world dominance or at least first place.
  • For those keeping meticulous personal planning calendars, here are a couple of noteworthy July dates: on Friday, July 5, the Club will be “dark” (no meeting) while on Friday, July 12, there will be fireworks in the form of widely acclaimed program speaker, Cliff Dochterman, a past-President of Rotary International and someone who’s not to be missed.

Special Events

Foundation Director, Connie Tritt, presented Lana Bagley with a family member Paul Harris Fellow pin and certificate.

Erle Brown received his Paul Harris award number seven.

Congratulations to Lana and Erle!

Recognitions

  • Nick Despota celebrated his 64th birthday on April 29 as he and Nel spent their 4-week vacation cruising the deserts of the southwest and hiking the valley of the Rio Grande: Migratory birds, the Milky Way, howling coyotes, Tex-Mex food–and a respite from Flywheel production. (Thank you Tom, Jon, and Josh S!)
  • Alan Blavins has just celebrated his fourth anniversary in Richmond Rotary.

Happy and Sad Dollars

  • Building upon his reputation as the unrivaled global fisherman in Richmond Rotary, Alan Blavins offered some happy dollars for his upcoming four-week fishing excursion to northern Thailand.
  • Michelle Itagaki was quite happy to learn from her doctor that all internal “hardware” used to put her back together after last summer’s water accident is finally coming out next month.
  • George Egan was very happy about the stock market’s success as he’s been able to pull in record investment dollars for his business to look after.
  • Erle Brown was happy to have Police Chief Chris Magnus come talk to the Club. Confirming that it is a small world indeed, Erle reminded us that Chris Magnus was born and raised in Lansing, MI, where Erle’s wife, Phyllis, used to teach. One of Phyllis’ students was a young man that later became our very own police chief!
  • Stoney was happy he went to Vallejo last week and attended the Rotary District Summit meeting, which was attended by 500-600 people. He enjoyed speaker Cliff Dochterman’s talk (remember he’ll be at our Club on July 12), which emphasized that a lot of what Rotary’s always been about is good old fashioned “networking” and the many pleasures and benefits that entails.
  • John Wilson was happy to provide some information cards about various publicly available astronomy-related activities that his son oversees on Mount Diablo.
  • Joe Bagley, already pretty happy about his daughter being able to join him for lunch, was also happy about his wife Rita’s art showing at a weekend event in San Pablo.
  • Sid Chauvin was very happy about leaving for 10 days on vacation with his wife, Zelpha.

Norm’s Nonsense

Only creatures that can talk are allowed in this bar …

-A gorilla walks into a bar and orders a scotch and soda. The bartender fixes it for him and the gorilla gives the bartender a ten dollar bill. The bartender thinks he will put one over on this beast so he rings up double the amount and gives the gorilla one dollar in change. The bartender then says to the gorilla, “We don’t see many gorillas in here.”
The gorilla replies: “At these prices I can see why.”

-A termite goes into this bar and asks a customer: “Is the bar tender here?”

-A horse trots into this bar and orders a drink. The bartender says: “Why the long face?”

PROGRAM

Police Chief Magnus reports on the Public Safety

Chris Magnus is in his eighth year as Richmond Police Chief. It’s been a “building period”, as he put it, full of struggles and challenges, both internal and external. The Chief first acknowledged the tremendous help that Deputy Police Chief Ed Medina has been in providing various technical and support services to the police department’s work.

“Unfortunately,” Magnus said, “life doesn’t go in a straight line” and we’re currently experiencing an uptick in criminal violence in some areas. With his usual straight-talking manner, Magnus said there are a lot of “underlying problems in Richmond that one agency [the police department] can’t solve by itself.” Richmond has a “sizable underclass” with needs that include jobs, shelter, and a better standard of living.

Over the years, there has been an uneven pattern of local gang activities involving different forms and shapes. In confronting this reality, Magnus strives to have his department be very strategic about going after those who are committing the violence and, for the most part, the police know who they are.

Stunningly, there are only about “100” really bad guys in town responsible for perpetrating heinous violent crime, but building strong cases against them takes time. In targeting the right people, Magnus has his police officers nurture good community relations (and that’s been reasonably successful, it seems), thereby receiving fuller cooperation from law-abiding citizens and not having the police department be seen as agents of oppression.

Getting the right people off the streets and breaking the cycles of violence also requires close cooperation from the District Attorney’s office. Magnus was happy to report that “Richmond is back on the DA’s office radar” and that two assistant DA’s are now handling Richmond cases.

An alarming trend that Magnus spoke about is the increasing number of violent young gang members aged 12-14, often the children of the really bad guys. Magnus said, “We’re starting to see a new generation that has lost its way because the older generation has not taken care of them.”

Middle schools are a particular concern where problems with bullying and other forms of bad behavior are on the rise. When talked to and offered alternatives to a life of destructive behavior, many of these young offenders simply respond by saying, “Why? I’m going to be dead by the time I’m 18 and I’m taking others with me.”

What to do? Magnus made it clear that he believes we must invest more money, time, and resources (wisely) into early childhood development programs, child care, and schools in general in order to give kids the best chance for successful lives free of violence. We can’t just “start” promising new programs but we must also “sustain” proven ones like the Police Activities League and others that are struggling to survive financially.

Magnus supports establishment of a local Family Justice Center where various support services for families and youth can be brought together in one place. A building at the corner of 24th and Macdonald is being considered. A primary focus of the Center will be reduction of domestic and sexual violence. We don’t want to continue having our young people exposed to and imitating wrong behaviors.

Another issue to watch is the effects of AB-109, Sacramento legislation that calls for increasing numbers of imprisoned folks being set free and returned to communities (often referred to as “re-entry”). There are a number of non-profits and community-based organizations like Rubicon vying for federal and state funding to help returnees with job-search, housing, and other needs. Magnus sits on a County committee where he continues to advocate for a greater percentage of these funds flowing to local entities instead of just building up larger County bureaucracies to oversee things.

Many thanks to Richmond Police Chief Chris Magnus for visiting our Club and providing his candid overview of continuing challenges.


Rotating Scribe, Tom Waller

NEXT MEETING: May 10, 2013

Richmond Police Chief Update

Richmond Police Chief, Chris Magnus, will update us on programs, practices, and progress in the work of the Richmond Police Department. What are the accomplishments and what are the challenges? For viewing before the Rotary lunch program, click on this link to watch a recent video with some important remarks from Chief Magnus. [The video is about three minutes in length, including an unavoidable 15-second intro ad, and can be displayed full screen by clicking on the second-from-the-right symbol just beneath the time indicator under the video display box. Press the “Esc” key to exit full screen mode. Once Chief Magnus begins, left-click the computer mouse on the screen to pause/restart the video.]

MEETING OF May 3, 2013

Welcome

President Jim Young rang the bell and called the meeting to order. Felix Hunziker led the pledge of allegiance and Stoney Stonework asked for a moment of silence for freedom, peace, and justice on earth.

Rotarians with Guests

Henry Moe introduced his guest, Pete Sklover, a BART retiree and long-time volunteer at Salesian High School.

Sunshine Report

A celebration of Henry Kelman’s life will be held with family and friends at La Strada restaurant in San Pablo from 2pm – 6pm on Saturday, May 11. All Rotarians please attend.

Announcements

  • Got your tickets yet? Opening night for the Lost Secrets play at the East Bay Center for the Performing Arts is Friday, May 17, at 7pm. The play will last about one hour. Three more performances will take place on May 18, 24, and 25 at 7pm. There will also be two Sunday matinee performances, May 19 and 26, at 3pm.
  • On the May 17 opening night of the Lost Secrets play, Rotary District Governor, Laura Day will host a Champagne reception at the East Bay Center after the play’s performance. Let’s ensure good attendance.
  • Herewith some comments from the Flywheel Scribe … Why, really, does the Lost Secrets play matter? What’s the big deal and why is Rotary involved? Since it was published in 2009 and introduced into local school classrooms, the book has done much to capture the imagination of area youth and promote reading literacy. The world-premiere play at the East Bay Center serves to dramatically reenergize the magical story while bringing to life the unlikely friendship and caring relationship of young Maisha and Mario – all of which can help point the way to better tomorrows and peace in our City. Recall Rotary International President Sakuji Tanaka’s theme for this year: “Peace Through Service.” Let’s do all we can so that the Lost Secrets play – made possible by the Rotary Club of Richmond – will have a positive and meaningful community impact that is remembered and sustained. The impact may not be easily measured but it need not be insignificant.
  • Last Thursday night’s fund-raising concert at Freight and Salvage in Berkeley featured Lacy Dalton providing an enjoyable evening of acoustic guitar duos and vocals. The event was a successful fund-raiser for Richmond RotaCare. Lacy Dalton has written two special tunes for Rotary: “We Are Rotary” (a toe-tapping recap of the Four-Way Test, a taped version of which was played at the Friday meeting) and “This Close” (about Polio-Plus). Lacy and her band will be performing at the Rotary District Conference in Chico, CA, on October 17-19.
  • An anonymous Berkeley Rotarian who generously donated a $2000 matching grant for Richmond RotaCare has also donated a $1000 matching grant for the Lost Secrets play project. At Friday’s meeting, Richmond Rotarians pledged $600 on the way to a “match”. For members who were absent on Friday (or anyone else for that matter), please let Jim Young, David Brown, or Alan Baer know about further contributions in order to get to the $1000 match.
  • Henry Moe announced that the annual Rotary District Boat Cruise of San Francisco Bay for local Interact Clubs will, for various reasons, cost considerably more this year compared to prior years (perhaps $55 compared to $30 previously). Josh Surowitz and others pledged to cover extra charges for up to four Salesian Interactors to go on the cruise.
  • The Holiday Auction Barbeque at Mark Howe’s home on April 27 was enjoyed by all who attended. Stoney did the cooking and showed off his secret BarBQ sauce, which is probably nearing public launch as a likely category killer. For putting together and pulling off this fun event, kudos also go to Mark Howe, Richard and Kathryn Alexander, and Joe Bagley (for all the tunes).
  • Speaking of Holiday Auction items, Heather Kulp announced that the South African Cuisine event is being postponed until sometime in September. The Kulps are in the process of moving to a new residence. She said not to worry about the event because they’re “still promising to serve up some weird [but really delicious] food”.
  • The Bocce Ball Tournament in Martinez is still scheduled for June 8. Pam Jones and Rafael Madrigal already have teams and Josh Genser is apparently looking to field a third one.

Recognitions

  • Sid Chauvin was recognized for his ninth anniversary in Rotary, for which he gave a $100 check to the Rotary Foundation.
  • Also recognized for Club anniversaries were Lilian Koziol (7 years), Tom Waller (7 years), and Henry Kelman (36 years on May 6).

Happy and Sad Dollars

  • Hank Covell had happy dollars for his granddaughter, a junior at the University of Arizona. She’s on her way soon to Italy for five weeks with 15 other students (purpose being, of course, to spend long hours studying, well, studiously).
  • Herb Cole was quite happy about the upcoming trip to the Rotary International convention in Lisbon, Portugal at the end of June. Herb, Erle Brown, and Jon Lawlis (with wives, of course) will be attending. After the convention (assuming Europe can contend with this fun-loving group), they’ll be visiting Barcelona, where global legal-beagle, Josh Surowitz, has an apartment and office. Apparently, lunch is on Josh.
  • David Brown exuded happiness as he looked back one year ago on Friday to his first flight lesson.
  • Michelle Itagaki was happy for her partner who just retired from Federal law enforcement after his 34 years of service.
  • Sid Chauvin provided happy dollars for his wife who just retired after a full career that started in administration at Wells Fargo in 1964. She later became a legal secretary.
  • Joe Bagley was happy to see Pete Sklover (Henry Moe’s guest) at the lunch on Friday. Joe credits Pete and his positive commentary at a parent organization briefing about Salesian High School as the reason Joe and Rita enrolled their daughter at Salesian years ago.
  • Jim Young was proud and very happy for his daughter, who lives in Singapore with her family. She’s currently performing as an overseas thespian in a local production of Shakespeare’s Othello, for which her role received best-of-cast rave reviews in The Singapore Straits Times newspaper.

Norm’s Nonsense

A New York man was forced to take a day off work to appear for a minor traffic summons. He grew increasingly restless as he waited hour after endless hour for his case to be heard. When his name was called in the afternoon, he stood before the judge only to hear that court would be adjourned, and he would have to return the next day.

“What for?” he snapped at the judge.

His honor, equally irked by a tedious day and the sharp query, roared, “Twenty dollars for contempt of court. That’s why!” Then, noticing the man checking his wallet, the judge relented, “That’s all right. You don’t have to pay now.”

The man replied, “I’m just seeing if I have enough for two more words.”

PROGRAM

Jane Fischberg and Graham Thomas made a presentation about Rubicon Programs, which is celebrating its 40thanniversary as one of Richmond’s standout non-profits. Jane is the President and Executive Director of Rubicon and Graham is the Business Services Manager.

Rubicon’s mission is to prepare very low-income people to achieve financial independence and to partner with people with mental illness on their journey of recovery. In guiding people to jobs, housing, and health services, Rubicon strives to find support that’s right for each individual.

Rubicon takes its name and inspiration from the pivotal moment when Julius Caesar crossed the Rubicon River in Italy and changed history. For those who work in and with Rubicon Programs, there is a commitment to decisions from which there is no turning back, to journeys about positive, transformative change and improved lives.

With an annual budget of $14 million, Richmond-based Rubicon now has additional offices in Hayward, Berkeley, Concord, and Antioch. Money is raised from a mix of earned income (43%), government contracts (47%), and private donations (10%). Rubicon asserts that 95% of every donated dollar is spent on programs for low-income families.

In furthering its mission, Rubicon generates earned income by operating social enterprises – businesses owned and managed by the non-profit organization – that train and employ economically disadvantaged individuals. For example, Rubicon Landscape is a fully licensed (C-27) landscape maintenance and installation business with 60-80 employees and trainees.

Jane provided the following highlights of Rubicon accomplishments in 2012.

  • Served more than 3000 people
  • Placed more than 500 unemployed people in jobs
  • Helped 222 families and individuals find housing
  • Reduced hospitalization rates for people with serious, persistent mental illness by 54%
  • Helped 1400 children thrive by providing tools to their parents to achieve financial independence
  • Awarded a nationally recognized grant (one of only six awarded to USA non-profits) to help fathers coming out of prison take care of their children
  • Awarded a Chevron Economic Development grant to support partnerships with East Bay employers to create jobs for low-income West County residents

Click on this link to view an inspiring short video about “Michael” and his life changes that have come about with the help of Rubicon Programs.


Rotating Scribe and Editor, Tom Waller