Monthly Archives: October 2012
NEXT MEETING: November 2, 2012Richmond Rotary's Role in RotaCare  We’ll hear an update about the RotaCare medical clinic to be operated at the Richmond Family Strengthening Center on Macdonald Avenue near 27th street. The Center is part of Brighter Beginnings, a non-profit organization started in 1984, with centers also located in Oakland, Antioch, and Bay Point. The mission of Brighter Beginnings is to “support healthy births and successful development of children by partnering with parents and helping to build strong communities“. Richmond Rotarians will coordinate with Rotarians in nearby clubs to support the RotaCare clinic. If you’ve already indicated your willingness to lend a hand, please plan to attend an orientation meeting on one of 4 Tuesday evenings: October 30th, November 13th, November 20th, or November 27th. You need to register for an orientation. Please contact Drea Riqueime, at 510 903-7516, or richmondclinic@rotacarebayarea.org. To learn more about volunteer opportunities, please download this orientation flyer. MEETING OF October 26, 2012WelcomePresident Jim Young called to order a well-attended meeting of the Richmond Rotary Club. Felix Hunziker lead us in the Pledge of Allegiance and Stoney Stonework invoked us to think of lofty things. And as we all know, it’s the thought that counts. We enjoyed a good turnout but there were no visiting Rotarians or guests on this beautiful fall day. Speaking of which… The Sunshine ReportEarl Brown is at home and recuperating. Announcements
RecognitionsCharlie Wong celebrated an 87th birthday, and misses everyone. Happy and Sad Dollars
Norm’s NonsenseThis guy was on the beach in San Francisco shooting seagulls with a shotgun and putting them in a bag, when a cop arrested him and told him it was against the law to kill seagulls. The guy explained, “But I am homeless and these seagulls are the only food I have to eat.” After hearing the shooter’s tale of woe, the judge said, “I’m going to let you go with a warning. You can’t kill any wildlife in the city limits.” Then the judge became curious and asked, “Tell me, what does a seagull taste like?” PROGRAMClub Assembly
Today’s meeting was the first Club Assembly held in many years. President Jim Young led the meeting, beginning by reporting that the Club currently has 60 active members. The board recently voted to drop several non-active members, and is now focused on recruit new members who will be active in the Club. Tom Waller, a board member, provided the membership with a succinct but detailed statement of Club income and expenses for the 2012–2013 fiscal budget. Connie Tritt, Foundation Chair, described the several subcategories of the Foundation that members may choose to apply their contributions to. She also informed members how they could obtain replacement Paul Harris pins. Membership Chair Josh Surowitz was unavoidably absent on this day. Filling in, Jim Young said that the Club’s board has established that membership growth and increasing membership involvement in ou events together comprise the most important things we must all focus on. To that end, Jim went on, the board has discussed using a scorecard for determining Rotarian of the Year and assessing the activity level of each member. Implementation, he said, was being considered for January 1. A short but energetic discussion followed about the pros and cons of quantifying membership participation. Jim recognized that we needed to consider the topic again in a following meeting. Program Chair, Michelle Itagaki, asked for assistance from the membership to help her continue to identify suitable programs for future meetings. Nick Despota handed out an overview of specific community service projects funded under the now-approved 2012-2013 budget. He also expressed a hope that this or a similarly formatted report be produced in coming years, a snapshot of the projects and programs to which we contribute our dollars and volunteer hours. Because not all of the topics for the Club Assembly could be addressed in the time available today, those topics will be carried over to future meetings for further discussion. – Rotating Scribe, David Keystone |
NEXT MEETING: October 26, 2012Club Assembly
This week we’ll conduct the first Club Assembly in many years. The Assembly is an opportunity to get an overview of what Richmond Rotary is doing and where we’re headed. You’ll hear reports on projects and programs Richmond Rotary is currently supporting. It’s also a chance to voice your own thoughts on board proposals and our longer range planning. All members are expected to attend. See you there! MEETING OF October 19, 2012WelcomePresident Jim Young gaveled the meeting to order. Darlene Almeida led us in the Pledge, Stoney called for a moment of silence for peace, freedom and justice on Earth. Sunshine ReportErle Brown is recovering from back surgery. All went well and he is is out of pain but faces a couple of weeks of rehabilitation. He doesn’t want guests for now. Sid Chauvin reportedly has a contagious disease, but didn’t sound bad on the phone. Tom Waller stopped by to say hi to Betty Hardison. She expressed her thanks to the Club for the flowers and our attendance at Don’s funeral. Announcements• President Jim called for a volunteer to coordinate a group trip to go see the new movie, “Lincoln”, just before we’re to have a program on the 16th President. A Funny Thing Happened Nov. 2-4, 2012 WHY ALL ROADS • District Conference in Napa: be sure to sign up. RecognitionsDarlene had a birthday but worked until 8:00 then hid under the covers until it was over. Special EventsConnie Tritt presented a Paul Harris plus 2 to Tom Butt. Thank you, Tom! Happy and Sad Dollars• Alan’s 88-year old father who had a stroke is walking around his apartment with a cane. Great progress! Norm’s Nonsense-A Scotsman went to a baseball game and enjoyed it, but when one batter got a walk, tossed the bat aside and strolled to first base, the Scotsman stood up and yelled, “Rrrrun, man! Rrrun!” The fan next to him said, “He doesn’t have to run, he’s got four balls.” PROGRAMThe Bay Area Crisis Nursery
The Bay Area Crisis Nursery takes care temporarily of babies and children whose families are in crisis. The organization has two centers, the Nursery for infants through five-year-olds, and the Dahlstrom House for children aged between 6 and 11. Both are in Concord. Family crises that may lead to the need to have children cared for by the organization include medical problems, unemployment, homelessness and stress. There are no geographical limits to the service area, nor income guidelines for those to whom service is provided. Since 1981, the organization has cared for more than 24,000 children. Children may stay for up to 30 days. The organization also tries to provide services to the families to resolve the need, such as referrals to housing services. – Pinch-hitting scribe, Josh Genser |
NEXT MEETING: October 19, 2012The Bay Area Crisis Nursery
The Concord-based Bay Area Crisis Nursery works to prevent abuse and neglect of children by providing support to families who are in stress or crisis. It is the only one of its kind in the Bay Area. Their slogan is, “When parents care but temporarily can’t cope.” MEETING OF October 5, 2012WelcomePrez Jim Young, welcomed the assembled crowd with his now repeating relentlessly his litany of R words. Remarkably, they have yet to be recorded in the Flywheel. Ergo: “Welcome to the relatively rambunctious, reasonably respectful, remarkably resilient, resolutely Rotarian, Richmond Rotary Club.” Following that, allegiance was dutifully pledged, and higher thoughts suitably invoked. Et cetera, amen, and all that. Visiting RotariansWe were joined by Assistant District Governor Fred Collignon, and Cecil (Pauncho) Padilla, a Rotarian from Winters, CA. Rotarians with GuestsToday’s guests were Rotarian spouses: Herb Cole introduced Norma, Michelle Itagaki introduced Jay, and District Governor Laura Day introduced Don. Sunshine ReportThough this item properly belongs under the Visiting Rotarians heading, Rich and Lisa Brandes, Past-president of the Richmond Rotary and current President of the Mendocino Rotary, brought sunshine to our proceedings with their attendance today. Announcements1. The Celebration of Don Hardison’s Life will be held on Friday, Oct. 12th, 2 PM: A Funny Thing Happened Nov. 2-4, 2012 WHY ALL ROADS 2. Its Fall and there is a lot going on: RecognitionsJoe Bagley led the Rites of Extraction, beginning with birthday congratulations for: Club anniversaries: And finally, wedding anniversaries were also recognized, kicking off with this exceptional fact: Special RecognitionsDavid Brown was awarded his Paul Harris +6, and Stoney, his Paul Harris +4. These awards are significant recognitions of their generosity and community-mindedness. Thank you both. In addition, the Paul Harris Major Donor Award, was given to Herb and Norma Cole. Congratulations and thank you! Happy and Sad DollarsPeople were happy, people were sad, but sadly, their names were not recorded by our scribe. Norm’s NonsenseA man goes into a shop to buy a car radio and the salesman says, “This is the latest model. It is a voice-activated car radio. You just tell it what you want to listen to and the station changes. No need to take your hands off the wheel.” So the man has it installed and takes off down the road eager to give it a try. He says, “Classical!” and a public radio station comes on with a Mozart symphony. Then he says, “Country!” and a Garth Brooks song comes on, and he listens to that. Then someone drives by really fast and cuts in front of him, so he yells, “Stupid!” and the radio changes to Rush Limbaugh. PROGRAMA Presentation by District Governor Laura Day
Governor Day explained that the District Governor serves for 6 years: two in training, one as Governor, then three in service to the then-serving Governor. The District Governor has about 100 people on the leadership team. Governor Day gave “Rotary Rocks” awards to the suffering, supportive spouse of Richmond’s leader, Linda Young, and to one of Richmond’s most traveled members on Rotary business, Normie Cole. Governor Day talked about Polio eradication, which is the number one goal of Rotary International. In an effort that has lasted 27 years, the goal of complete eradication s in sight. To get new members into Rotary, we must love Rotary, and all of these are reasons to do so. -Jim Young and Josh Genser, pinch-hitting scribes |
NEXT MEETING: October 5, 2012A Visit from the District Governor
District Governor Laura Day returns to Richmond Rotary to give us her view of the Rotary World. As a no-cost extra Laura will also demonstrate the arcane and nearly forgotten art of toga-tying (not to be confused with tie-dying). Evidently both the attire and its proper display are de rigueur for attendance at the District Conference in Napa Nov. 2nd to 4th. More on that below. MEETING OF September 28, 2012WelcomePresident Jim Young repeated his “R” word opening. The Pledge of Allegiance was initiated by Dan Sanders. Stoney offered an invocation. Rotarians with GuestsJoshua Surowitz introduced his guest Judy Herman, a voice-over actor. Sunshine ReportA reminder: A celebration of Don Hardison’s life will be held at First Presbyterian Church, Berkeley, Friday, Oct. 12th at 2 PM. Announcements• Board Members we will meet al La Revolucion Restaurant (Hilltop) before next Friday’s regular meeting, from 10:30 to 11:30, and then go on to the Richmond Country Club. Location: There is parking across from the church. The location meets ADA accessibility standards. It is also a lot closer to Berkeley and South Campus than the RCC for those going to Don Hardison’s Celebration of Life and you may need the extra time to find parking and/or walk. The District Conference will be held in Napa Nov. 2nd to 4th. (Click “Learn More” link on right.) Besides the much discussed Hospitality Night/Toga Party Friday night the following ‘A List speakers will be addressing the Conference: • RI Director John Blount, Past District Governor, District 5130, Member of RI International teams including New Models, Rotary Action Groups & three PR President nominating committees. • Stoney, our Christmas Party chairman, confirmed the Party’s date of December 15th. It will be at the RGCC. Price to be determined. Special EventsInteract Coordinator Henry Moe introduced the new co-Presidents of the Salesian HS Interact Club who both attended Camp Royal last year. They produced a short Power Point program about the Camp Royal experience: confidence building exercises that make up the core of the camp experience. They thanked the club mightily for the opportunity and for the new confidence it helped them develop as Interact Leaders RecognitionsJim asked if anyone see something different on their way into the meeting today? Something you’ve never seen before in Richmond? That’s Right, a Rotary sign on Giant Road pointing to our meeting, and we have Joe Bagley to thank for that. Happy and Sad Dollars• Josh Genser happy dollars for a second chance (round) to experience his Scotch Tasing event. Nov 17th. $200 per head.. Norm’s NonsenseMore Ponderisms: PROGRAMBurning Man for Beginners
Jim Young welcomed our very own Burning Person, or ‘Burner’ as they are sometimes called, Michelle Itagaki, to shed a little dark, fire & light on Burning Man for the uninitiatesd. A brief history… The annual event now known as Burning Man began as a bonfire ritual on the summer solstice in 1986 when Larry Harvey, Jerry James, and a few friends met on Baker Beach in San Francisco and burned a 9-foot wooden man as well as a smaller wooden dog. Harvey has described his inspiration for burning these effigies as a spontaneous act of “radical self-expression.” Today Burning Man is a week-long annual event held in the Black Rock Desert in northern Nevada, in the United States. The event begins on the last Monday in August, and ends on the first Monday in September, which coincides with the American Labor Day holiday. The 2012 Burning Man Festival took place between August 27 and September 3. It takes its name from the ritual burning of a large wooden effigy on Saturday evening. The event is described by many participants as an experiment in community, art, radical self-expression, and radical self-reliance. Burning Man is organized by Black Rock City, LLC. In 2010, 51,515 people attended Burning Man. 2011 attendance was capped at 50,000 participants and the event sold out on July 24. In April 2011, Larry Harvey announced that the organization had begun the process of transitioning management of the festival over to a new non-profit called the “Burning Man Project”. Michelle gave us the rules and regulations to survive the week. They are:
Black Rock, Burning Man’s location, becomes the third largest city in Nevada, It has it’s own bank, airport, kids’ camp, police force. People get married here and there is a temple for all that is burnt on the last day. – Alan Blavins Apprentice Scribe |
Governor Day exhorted us to be more enthusiastic about Rotary, and to recruit new members. She said that Rotary should be fun (but we, at Richmond, already knew that, didn’t we?). In fact, the District theme is “A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to…” The general public is ignorant about Rotary. There are, worldwide, 1.2 million Rotarians, 34,000 Rotary clubs, in 200 countries. Membership, however, is static, with numbers of new members equal to departing members. We need to get our message out to our communities to recruit new, younger members.
