The Rotary Club of Kirkland held a meeting on June 20, 2022 at the Courtyard by Marriott hotel.
President Dave DeBois rang the bell at 6:15 p.m., calling the club meeting to order.
Pete Anderson led the membership in the Pledge of Allegiance.
Attending were George Anderson, Pete Anderson, Gary Cohn, Terry Cole, David DeBois, Donald Dicks*, Jocelyn Ellison*, Doug Evanson, Michael Hunter, Jim Meniketti, Amy Mutal, Joanne Primavera, John Pruitt, John Storbeck, and Rick Walter. *Attended via Zoom.
Guests:
Guests this evening included former Washington State Supreme Court justice Faith Ireland*, returning guest Daren Penry, a local doctor who is interested in the club, and our speaker, Anahita Dalmia, chief executive officer of Alterea. *Attended via Zoom.
Greeter:
Our greeter this evening was Jim Meniketti, who was at the front desk to greet members and guests and collect dinner fees.
Announcements & Club Business:
Dave DeBois announced that Rotarian Margie Glenn was unexpectedly admitted to the hospital this past week. Hopefully, she will be able to return to Rotary in a week or so.
Dave announced that the Transition Dinner would be held in the larger meeting room upstairs at the Courtyard, that he would still like to know who is coming in order to get a good count for the hotel, and that Zoom would be used to encourage former presidents to attend and be seen and heard.
Head Duck Gary Cohn announced that all Duck Dash ticket sales dates were scheduled and all signups are available online through the ClubRunner website.
- At the QFC in Kirkland Urban we now have 5 weekends (10 days) to sell tickets. The windows of time are 10 a.m. to 2 p.m., comprising two, two-hour shifts. One table may be placed at the elevator, and one table at garage entrance if desired.
- At the Kirkland Wednesday Market we have only three Wednesdays to sell tickets. The windows of time are 3 p.m. to 7 p.m., comprising two, two-hour shifts.
- At Summerfest booth is to be set up on Friday, Saturday, and Sunday. There are two shifts Friday, three shifts Saturday, and two shifts Sunday
- Supplies are at Shinstrom & Norman Insurance in the storage area on first floor, outside entrance on north side, and Rotarians should make pick-up arrangements with Steve Shinstrom before the weekend (closed weekends).
- Ticket supplies are at Banner Bank with Dave DeBois. Ticket packets may still be exchanged for different combinations of $5 and $20 tickets.
Gary noted that Duck Dash day of race sign-ups are still critical, as some of our veteran day of race volunteers are unable to be present this year. At Summerfest the booth will be similar to or same as 2021, the race is at 2 p.m., and MORE VOLUNTEERS ARE NEEDED TO CONDUCT THE RACE.
Gary also reminded members that the annual dues statements should appear in members’ email inboxes on July 1. Dues payments are due before August 1. Members may pay by clicking the “PAY NOW” button with the embedded link in the statement. Gary asked Rotarians PLEASE DO NOT REUSE THE LINK; delete afterward or store the statement where you won’t be tempted to use it for other payments, especially donations.
Program:
The program this evening was Anahita Dalmia, chief executive officer of Alterea, presenting the spy-themed educational video game Agents of Influence that teaches middle and high school students to combat online misinformation. With the unprecedented spread of misinformation related to COVID-19, the elections, and the Black Lives Matter movement in 2020, the Alterea team recognized an urgent need to better prepare people to navigate the deluge of digital information they see every day. Their goal is to equip the next generation with the skills and knowledge to identify reliable information that enables them to act responsibly in their personal, civic and social lives.
Anahita walked through the game's elements, explaining how students use communication, research, analytical, and decision-making skills to separate good from bad information and to research sources to ascribe credibility to data. She described some examples of school experiences, and took questions from Rotarians. President Dave described the importance of the skills, and called on Dr. Cohn to describe how this game might be implemented in schools.
Joker Pool:
There was not a Joker Pool this evening.
Adjournment:
President Dave rang the bell at 7:17 p.m. to adjourn the meeting.
Respectfully Submitted,
Gary Cohn, Acting Secretary