Newsletter for the Meeting of January 8, 2014
January 8, 2014 Newsletter
By John Hammer
Charlotte Shelburne Rotary
Wednesday, January 8, 2014, 7:15 a.m.
Trinity Episcopal Church Community Room
Welcome
President Dave Jonah opened the meeting with the Pledge. Kris Engstrom gave the invocation. Happy New Year!
Guests: David Gladstone – Member of Burlington Rotary Club and regular visitor
Al Gilbert – Member of Hands to Honduras – Tela Directing Committee
New Members. President Dave introduced the two new members inducted at the last meeting on December 11. They were Lara Keenan and Even Webster.
Upcoming:
January 9 – Board Meeting
January 14 – Committee Meetings
January 22 – Tiffany Loveling speaking on Vermont Works for Women
January 29 – Camilla Rockwell speaking on “The Art and Part of Aging”. She was Ken Burns’ director for ten years.
April 25-27 – 7850 District Conference, Hilton Hotel, Burlington
District 7850 Calendar: Hot Link http://www.clubrunner.ca/Portal/Events/EventsCalendar.aspx?accountid=50051
Announcements
Rotary Foundation
Pat Sokolowski presented the low-awaited knit cap to Elaine Dates. Pat is still accepting donations for Polio Plus and the Rotary Foundation with matching funds. Members can also donate online at Rotary.org. What do you think she is saying here to Elaine? Surely Steve’s look gives some indication.
Thank You – Thank Yous were received from the Charlotte and Hinesburg Food Shelves for the Christmas turkeys and all the fixings
District Conference – Steve Dates briefed on Robert Mayne’s committee that is handling sponsorships for the April District Conference. There will be a two-phased approach. Advertisements are being considered for the conference program. Other Rotary clubs will be asked to buy ¼ page for $125 and ½ page for $250. The other phase for commercial sponsors will be split into three tiers with one for each of $100, $200 and $300 levels. He circulated a list of commercial establishments and asked members to consider and sign up for potential contacts.
Sergeant at Arms – Richard Fox had to scurry, but some thought that scurvy* was a better word, albeit in incorrect use of the word.
It should be said that the vast majority of members today just paid a fine for being happy or for a Happy New Years wish.
Steve Dates – Just back from the PETS (President Elect Training Session) planning meeting in Framingham, MA where it was announced that the President Elect for Rotary International (RI) will be there as well as Ed Fooda, who was Secretary General of RI. Ed is well-known as a fantastic and funny speaker.
John Hammer – Happy to have just returned from four days of unbelievably great spring skiing in Mammoth Mountain California. He reported that his son and family had closed on a house on Shelburne Point, January 3rd.
Terrill Titus – Happy for Steve’s excitement about speakers, the ones that Richard Fox is going to have to listen to.
Linda Gilbert – Happy that she finally has gas in her home heating tank after having run out during the cold snap.
Kris Engstrom- For a great holiday season.
Lara Kennan – Thanks for all the help during the recent burst pipe flood at the Pierson Library.
Linda Barker – Off to see her new grandson in California next week.
Colleen Haag – Saw Fr. Leo Biledeau, a past member who now lives in Barre at a funeral last week. Fr. Leo sent his very best wishes and hugs to all his friends sat the club.
John Dupee – Happy to have a visit from his family in Florida and happy to see them go.
Fritz Horton – Gave $10 for having survived a crash of his PC. He likened PCs to having a child and being responsible for their upbringing and feeding. He is paying and begging for sympathy. He now has a new PC that he has assembled from multiple distant sources. He has named the machine “Old Baldy’s Beast.
Dennis Webster – Happy Shelburne has Paul Goodrich as its Road Commissioner and for his work during the trying weather we have been having.
Chris Davis – Happy to have his solar array finally installed in two weeks.
George Schiavonne – Glad for Pat’s work for the Rotary Foundation.
Richard Fox – Someone in his family lost her two front teeth for Christmas, he thinks it was his daughter.
Linda Schiavonne – Happy to see Bob Sanders back after a long absence.
The table seating Richard Fox, George Schiavonne and Russ Blodgett had the winning ticket and drew the Jack of Hearts. Roll over the pot of more than $304.
Speaker – Linda Gilbert for Hands to Honduras – Tela (H2H-T)
Linda had a slide show showing the Honduras program over the history. She began by saying that H2H-T was entering its tenth year of service. It has been great years of adventure, excitement, joy and frustration. The people of Tela understand what the program is doing and are very happy to see the volunteers. Tela, despite the violent reputation of Honduras, is quiet, or as she likes to say, tranquil. She handed out a list of accomplishments done over the past ten years and they are appended at the end of this newsletter.
This year, after a year’s hiatus, will see about 35-6 volunteers of whom 10 are Rotarians. One is a Past District Governor from Connecticut who is an international coordinator for Rotary projects. There are members from 6-7 other states coming as well.
Even though the program did not go last year, five projects were carried out with money sent from here and carried out by local contacts. These included work on a rural school and a teaching workshop space for the local penitentiary.
Linda went through showing where Tela is located, the luxury hotel developments that are changing the landscape (for better or worse), the security, hotels in which volunteers stay, the food, culture and volunteer free-time activities including the animals and places to be seen.
The programs for the trip down this February will include:
· The big project is to build a Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU) to replace the present one which is only 12’x14’. Presently there is one broken down incubator, three warming beds and many of the children are placed in milk cartons on the floor. The new NICU will be 30’x50’ and be similar to the Expectant Mothers’ building completed two years ago.
· Electrifying one or two schools
· Help finish or restore two schools.
· Provide a women’s health brigade to work in a continuing program to raise the level of women’s health.
· Bringing an orthopedic surgeon for training local doctors
· Provide dental fluoride clinics
· Sam Feitelberg will continue his shepherding of the Rehabilitation Clinic that is now fully independent. It includes now four buildings with an outside pool for therapy. There is a growing number of adult clients and the program is becoming more and more active in preventative training and health
· Sport team support with used uniforms and kit for soccer and baseball teams.
· A scholarship program for high school students is being underwritten by a Burlington Rotarian for 4-6 students.
· The rationale for all of the above is “The Kids” that are served. It is obvious from their smiles in the photographs.
President Dave closed the meeting with the presentation of a check for $5,000 for H2H-T from the club.
Word of the Day: Scurvy,
1. n. - A disease caused by a deficiency of vitamin C, characterized by swollen bleeding gums and the opening of previously healed wounds, which particularly affected poorly nourished sailors until the end of the 18th century.
2. Adj. – worthless or contemptible
