DIGITAL EDITION No. 289 October 10, 2018  EDITOR: Layne Bowen PHOTOGRAPHER: Nicole LeSavko PUBLISHER: Richard Lazovick

Our Program For Wednesday, October 17, 2018

St. Andrews Golf

Don McMillan

 

“Rotary Club of St. Andrews International Golf Tournament 2018”

Don McMillan, past-president, Rotary Club of Santa Rosa

Don McMillan, recently played in the 64th Annual tournament on the Old Course for Rotarians! 

Rotarians Kim Murphy and John Poremba joined Don along with 286 participants representing 20 countries from five continents!

Don will share his experience of a lifetime!

UPCOMING PROGRAMS

Wednesday October 24, 2018: Buck Institute – Dr. Eric Verdin
Wednesday October 31, 2018: Rotary Friendship Exchange Chair – Greg Freitas

UPCOMING SOCIALS

                 
Aug. 19-26, 2019 – Rotary Rhine River Cruise
Jackie says only 3 cabins are left for the 2019 Rhine River Cruise.
                 Click here  for pricing, itinerary, etc.
                 Click here for flyer.
                 Jackie McMillan and Eva Atkin

USEFUL LINKS

Visit our district at: http://www.rotary5130.org
Check out Rotary International at: http://www.rotary.org
Come see us at: http://rotarymeansbusiness

Opening Ceremonies

Pledge: Ray Giampaoli

Reflection: Cathy Vicini gave a poignant reflection about the fire and its aftermath.

What is it about loss that strikes so deeply in our souls. Is it about the letting go of something that contains past memories? Are you afraid of losing them if we can’t hold or touch them? Probably deep down in your stomach letting go feels like a grieving pain. Anxiety is brought with every wind. Will it happen again?

Last year we were all affected by profound losses. You didn’t have to lose your house to be affected by that horrific night. The fire stole our sense of feeling safe. Many lost loved ones whether family, friends, or pets. It was a painful night for everyone leaving in its place lingering painful memories of what was lost. 

In therapist language the house represents the self. So when your home burned you lost a part of yourself. But it’s now year later. It’s time to move forward and build a new self that is created by new memories to fill those rooms. However, sadly, people have moved away. Some are still living in rentals, and thankfully many are now being able to rebuild their houses. However we need to remember those who are in fear of where to move next but can’t because of no insurance or inflated rent. What does their future hold for them?

Just think, as our forefathers crossed the United States years ago looking for a new life and a place to settle, they never knew if they would make it. But they kept moving West. They never gave up hope or their dreams even when they lost friends and family to attackers, or faced severe hardships and loss in the Depression. We come from that tough survivor DNA stock. We are strong because we support each other by lifting a hand to help, opening our wallet to share, or lending an ear to listen. We don’t feel alone. We have a common bond. We are the only ones who can determine when we are ready to move forward. We are the only ones who can decide what it means to let go.

We get stronger as we carry grief and loss. With time, it begins to take up less space in our lives. But it doesn’t simply disappear. Grief will continue to remind us of our loss throughout our lifetimes, but for each it will be in a different way and at different times. Let’s move forward with our lives by embracing the fullness of it. Our loss has now become part of who we are now. We are the Sonoma Strong family.

President Tony then acknowledged all of us, especially those who lost their homes in last year’s firestorm.

Visiting Rotarians

Scott Bartley and Ted Athans visited our club today.

Guests

Ginny Cannon introduced Phillip Sullivan who shared some information on Measure M to help fund city and county parks. Vote YES! Also, welcome back Lena Humber!

Sunshine

Ginny reported that Jack Abercrombie is up and moving around better. Hope to see you back at Rotary, Jack!

Raffle

Shari Shamsavari shared that our pot today is just over $100. Matthew Henry couldn’t draw the winning marble and walked away in slump shouldered shame, but consoled by the $10 he was awarded for playing.

Cathy’s a Clown 

Cathy blamed Will Haymaker for her joke today. The buck “starts” here, right, Cathy?

Three Holy Men and a Bear…….. 

A Catholic Priest, a Baptist Preacher and a Rabbi all served as Chaplains to the students of Northern Michigan University at Marquette in the Upper Peninsula of Michigan. They would get together two or three times a week for coffee and to talk shop. One day, someone made the comment that preaching to people isn’t really all that hard, a real challenge would be to preach to a bear. One thing led to another, and they decided to do an experiment. They would all go out into the woods, find a bear, preach to it, and attempt to convert it to their religion.

Seven days later, they all came together to discuss their experiences.

Father Flannery, who had his arm in a sling, was on crutches, and had various bandages on his body and limbs, went first. ‘Well,’ he said, “I went into the woods to find me a bear. And when I found him, I began to read to him from the Catechism. Well, that bear wanted nothing to do with me and began to slap me around. So I quickly grabbed my holy water, sprinkled him and, Holy Mary Mother of God, he became as gentle as a lamb. The Bishop is coming out next week to give him first communion and confirmation.” 

Reverend Billy Bob spoke next. He was in a wheelchair, had one arm and both legs in casts, and had an IV drip. In his best fire-and-brimstone oratory, he exclaimed, ‘WELL, brothers, you KNOW that we Baptists don’t sprinkle!  I went out and I FOUND me a bear. And then I began to read to my bear from God’s HOLY WORD! But that bear wanted nothing to do with me.  So I took HOLD of him and we began to wrestle. We wrestled down one hill, UP another and DOWN another until we came to a creek. So I quickly DUNKED him and BAPTIZED his hairy soul. And just like you said, he became as gentle as a lamb. We spent the rest of the day praising Jesus. Hallelujah!”

The Priest and the Reverend both looked down at the Rabbi, who was lying in a hospital bed. He was in a body cast and traction with IVs and monitors running in and out of him. He was in really bad shape. The Rabbi looked up and said, “ “Looking back on it, ….circumcision may not have been the best way to start.”

Community Service Saturday

President Tony acknowledged all those who participated in community service this past weekend. 8 members participated in the Laguna de Santa Rosa project, 2 for Hands Up prosthetic hands and 17 for Gran Fondo. Give yourselves a hand, folks!

Announcements

  • Casey Carter announced that she needs volunteers to work with Tim Fawcett in reading and other activities. Tim’s family is giving him financial help, but he still can use a hand from his Rotary friends.
  • Steve Olson asked for help in growing the John Brown Memorial Scholarship Fund. Please donate to help this scholarship which honors John by helping veterans receive higher education.
  • Polio contributions can be given to Vicki Hardcastle after today’s meeting.
  • PP Julia Parranto has Rotary Club of SR hats for sale for $25 each.
  • Matthew Henry announced two socials. The first is the meat auction at Crane Melon Barn, the other is the going away party for Don and Jackie McMillan.
  • Steve Baime – made an announcement that those interested in attending a Santa Rosa Symphony event together contact him.
  • Paul Hamilton announced ticket sales for the upcoming vets program. Please buy a ticket for yourself, but also buy one to give to a vet. A panel if speakers will appear this year. Two volunteers from each Rotary Club will be asked to assist in setting up and tearing down for the event.

Rotarian of the Month

Peter Holowinski was recognized for his leadership in the WCS Committee and assistance to the board.

Program

State Senator Mike McGuire was today’s speaker. Mike covered A LOT of ground in his rapid-fire presentation. Mikes district covers 400 miles of northern California. Senator McGuire talked about his prune and grape growing aunt who helped shape his character. He then shared that his district is a national leader in wine, oysters, lumber, and marijuana production. California is in the 11th year of recovery and we are now the 5th largest economy in the world. During that time, we’ve had more job growth than New York and Florida combined. California is two years ahead of schedule and now has 15.9 billion dollars in the “rainy day” fund approved by voters. California leads in both business growth and reduction in greenhouse gas emissions, proving that business growth and care for the environment can be compatible.

Headwinds include issue of healthcare cost and public pension funding. Wildfires have impacted and will continue to impact the state. Senator McGuire discussed the expanded fire season due to extended drought related to climate change.  He discussed the new reality and his mission to improve the state response, both preventative and after an event. No opt outs on alerts such as Nixel, and improved overall universal alert communications are his goals. 1.3 billion dollars will be spent going forward for a variety of programs to prevent and respond to fires. This includes pre-stationing fire fighting units in areas such as Sonoma and Santa Barbara Counties during red flag alerts rather than waiting to dispatch teams after a fire has broken out.

Other challenges: Home ownership is currently the lowest it’s been since the 1940’s. 
Senator McGuire discussed the housing crisis as well as homelessness, including the 25% of the homeless who are vets. He told us of an across the aisle program being developed to house homeless vets. He also talked of successful housing programs locally and investment by local hospitals.  He shared how the veteran housing at the Palms in south Santa Rosa has decreased police calls and ambulance calls significantly since it opened.  He closed with discussing the new state law requiring equal pay for women and legislation to stop new oil leases off the California coast. Senator McGuire then took a number of questions from the audience, some of which he thanked for their community involvement.  

President Tony thanked the following members for their participation in making today’s meeting a success:

  1. Pledge: Ray Giampaoli
  2. Reflection: Cathy Vicini
  3. Raffle: Shari Shamsavari
  4. Visiting Rotarians: Craig Meltzner
  5. Lunch Tickets: Richard Lazovick
  6. Lunch Check-in: Ann Gospe & Bob Higgs
  7. Greeters: Robert Pierce & Ted Wilmsen

“Eagles fly because they take themselves lightly”

Extra Pictures

          

Governor, District 5130

Barb Spangler, Valley of the Moon Rotary Club

 

 

 

 

Attendance Secretary

Debi Zaft P.O. Box 505 Santa Rosa, CA 95402

Board of Directors

Club Service I, Membership, Ryan Thomas
Club Service II, Club Meetings, Jeff Kolin
Club Service III, Fundraising, Steve Baime
Club Service IV, Member Activities, Anne Gospe
Club Service V, Information Technology and Records, Brandon Urich
Community Service I, Member Involvement, Andrea Geary
Community Service II, Youth, Laura Held
Vocational Service, Carolyn Fassi
International Service, Peter Holewinski