Highlights of February 17 Meeting

Welcome - Dan Coons
 
As members and guests were arriving for the meeting, they were greeted by Greg Okonowski.
 
President Dan opened the meeting by introducing himself then reciting the Rotary International theme - Serve to Change Lives.  He then reminded everyone of the Rotary Vision Statement:
 
Together we see a world where people unite and 
take action to create lasting change - 
across the globe, in our communities and in ourselves
 
 
The invocation was offered by Darl Andersen.  Polly Cady led the Pledge of Allegiance.
 
Rotary Minute - Ray Smith
 
Ray read from a framed Rotary document which he gave to Pam Cohen afterward to add to the collection of historic memorabilia that will be displayed when Mesa West Rotary celebrates it's 50th anniversary in June, 2023.
 
DECLARATION OF ROTARIANS
IN
BUSINESSES AND PROFESSIONS
 
As a Rotarian engaged in a business or profession, I am expected to:
  1. Consider my vocation to be another opportunity to serve;
  2. Be faithful to the letter and to the spirit of the ethical codes of my vocation, to the laws of my country, and to the moral standards of my community;
  3. Do all in my power to dignify my vocation and to promote the highest ethical standards in my chosen vocation;
  4. Be fair to my employer, employees, associates, competitors, customers, the public and all those with whom I have a business or professional relationship;
  5. Recognize the honor and respect due to all occupations which are useful to society;
  6. Offer my vocational talents to provide opportunities for young people, to work for the relief of the special needs of others, and to improve the quality of life in my community;
  7. Adhere to honesty in my advertising and in all representations to the pubic concerning my business or profession.
  8. Neither seek from nor grant to a fellow Rotarian a privilege or advantage not normally accorded others in a business or professional relationship.
Introduction of Guests
 
 
Robin Harris introduced Jim Jackson a visiting Rotarian whose home club is in Illinois.  Jim added a few words of his own.  He has been a Rotarian since 1969.  He is a PDG.  He said Rotary has enriched his life with fun and wonderful people.  President Dan also introduced our club's three newest members, Scott Ramsey, Diane Ware, and Mike Whalen.
 
Ace of Clubs Raffle - Chuck Flint
 
 
Chuck announced that the holder of the match to the ticket drawn would win $60 and the opportunity to try to draw the Ace of Clubs from the 28 cards remaining in the deck, with would make them the winner of the big pot which was up to $1,280.  He asked Shelly Romine to draw the winning ticket, which was held by Jim Erickson who happened to be sitting next to Shelly.  Jim's attempt to draw the Ace of Clubs was unsuccessful - he drew the four of spades.
 
Happy Bucks - Greg Okonowski
 
 
Prior to getting started, it was noted Bob Jensen and Pai Bethai were both attending via Zoom.
  • Shelly Romine announced that she had a bag of individual bags of Jamon Iberico to share.  She said her son, who has never been great at gift-giving, sent her and her husband a 17# Christmas ham in February.  Since it would take the two of them forever to consume the delicious 17# ham, she wanted to share it with her Rotary friends.
  • Ray Smith contributed $5 to honor Jeane Crouse.
  • Warren Williamson shared a story about an elderly couple.  The husband kept forgetting things and his wife kept urging him to write things down.  He was headed to the kitchen to get treats for them.  She asked him to write down what she wanted.  She wanted a dish of ice cream topped with whipped cream and a cherry on top.  He refused to write it down insisting he could remember.  After being gone a long time, he came back with a plate of bacon and eggs for his wife.  She said, "I knew you wouldn't remember what I wanted.  Where's my toast?"
  • Colleen Coons contributed $20 to honor the owner of Print USA who printed colorful cards for Rotaract District 5495.  Scanning the QR code on the cards will take you to the Rotaract website.  She said Arizona Rotaract is alive and well.
  • Jim Crutcher contributed because his phone had gone off during the meeting.
  • Dick Myren shared a joke.  Apparently there have been complaints to the NFL about Superbowls being played in the home state of one of the competing teams and that team being the winner.  The commissioners have come up with a solution that would ensure that wouldn't happen any more.  The will move the Superbowl permanently to Texas stadium.
  • Jack Rosenberg pledged $20 in memory of Jeane Crouse.
  • Chris Krueger contributed.  She had participated in "Hot Yoga" with Colleen Coons and Diane Ware on Saturday, February 12, resulting in Chris being a sore, sweaty mess afterward.  She was happy they were planning to do Pilates, rather than Hot Yoga together on the 19th.
  • Dave Brauchler contributed saying he and his wife had gone to the Glendale arena for a TobyMack concert.  Their tickets weren't being accepted by the admission scanners.  They found out the event they wanted to attend was in a different venue.  The reason their tickets wouldn't work was because everyone else was arriving for a Monster Truck Rally.
  • Chris Krueger pledged $50 to TRVFA in memory of Jeane Crouse.
  • Lu General contributed $10.  Wayne has held front row seats for the Arizona Opera season for 40 years.  There are a couple of upcoming events they cannot attend, and she would be glad to sell the tickets which are worth $250 per vent for $180 to anyone interested.
  • Jim Schmidt pledged $100 in memory of Jeane Crouse.  He remembered her arranging for him to enjoy an amazing cruise experience.  She befriended his brother and his children as well as Jim's father after his mom passed.  She would bring food to Jim at his office when he was working late during tax season. 
  • Penny May contributed.  She had received a call from her granddaughter, Lydia Jacoby, from Alaska.  She was surprised to learn the seventeen-year-old high school student was in Phoenix for a hockey tournament.
  • Allan Cady contributed.  He and Polly recently visited South Florida and enjoyed time with a good friend they have known about eight years.  Johny Williams has been with a dealership Allan worked with in Florida for 40 years and is well-enough known and liked that a street is named after him.  When Allan learned that Johny and his wife were members of an all-black church, he asked if he and Polly could attend church with them while they were in Florida.  He seld they felt at home and had a great time enjoying the service which lasted about two hours.  He said one prayer lasted ten or more minutes.  "It was marvelous - we hope to do it again."
  • Polly Cady contributed.  She was happy to see all three of our newest members at the meeting.  And her takeaway from the church service she and Allan attended in Florida was "Wear your church clothes every day."  
  • Dan Coons contributed saying a Rotary International employee resides in Mesa.  Colleen had lunch with his wife recently and encouraged her to come to Mesa West.  She said she would if she could get free business cards...  Colleen said she knew someone who might make that happen.
  • Pam Cohen pledged $100 to TRVFA mentioning that Jeane Crouse had hoped to host a fundraiser for TRVFA this February in her home.  She also pledged $150 to Ed Koeneman's sponsorship team for the work he did to get the microphone working.
  • Robin Harris pledged $20 in memory of Jeane Crouse.  He also made an announcement about an Easter Pageant at the Mesa Temple April 6-9 and 12-16.  He shared some impressive information about the quality of the musical score.  His daughter will be in the chorus and Darl Andersen's son is in the group.  
  • Jim McGown contributed and shared a story about when he first went to work in the police department in 1976, his captain was Lyn Kotsur, who eventually became Chief of Police until his career ended after he was in a head-on collision with a drunk driver resulting in Lyn being a quadriplegic.  His biggest heartbreak was that he could no longer communicate with his deaf son using American Sign Language.  Lyn's son, Troy Kotsur was nominated for Best Supporting Actor for his performance in "Coda."
  • Mike Whalen contributed - he was proud to have been Greg's sponsor when Greg joined Mesa West Rotary.
  • Bob Jensen pledged $100 to the Guaymas Hearing project in Jeane Crouse's memory.  She was extremely helpful in the early years of the project in arranging flights, raising money, etc.  He shared one time when she was helping him get through customs with three big boxes of medical supplies.  After he answered the way Jeane had instructed him "nothing to declare" and each box was opened disclosing the supplies, Bob was retained in a locked room until the Guaymas Mayor bailed him out.
Announcements
 
  • Polly Cady invited Bob Zarling to the front of the room so she could present him with his Rotary Leadership Institute (RLI) graduation certificate.
  • Shelly Romine reminded members there will be two Community Service projects in March
    • Friday March 11, Mesa West Volunteers will be painting the exterior of one of the residences at House of Refuge.
    • Saturday March 19, from 8:00 AM to 11:00 AM volunteers are needed to help at Street Light USA located at 6805 N 81st Ave
      Glendale, AZ United States of America 85303. Click on Sign Up to view available slots and book yourself directly online.  They rescue girls that have been victims of sex trafficking.  We will be working on their campus to provide some needed upkeep.  This will include either yard work, furniture moving, painting etc.  Due to the nature of their mission, they require all volunteers to fill out a volunteer sheet/ criminal background check prior to entering the campus.  CLICK HERE to download their form.  After you have completed it, send it to Shelly Romine as soon as possible.  For more information about this organization, visit www.streetlightusa.org. 
    •  
Program - Jeanie Morgan - The Rotary Vocational Fund of Arizona
 
 
Jeanie began by saying she felt like she was preaching to the choir since Mesa West Rotary is TRVFA's  top giving club in the state.  At the time, she said between our club members and Mesa West Rotary Foundation, TRVFA had received  $13,117.  At this writing, that number has increased to $14,817.  
 
In 1990, Dave Wastchak, a Rotary leader who was a member of Phoenix 100 and a very visionary individual believed he had an idea about how Rotarians could have a very worthwhile statewide Vocational Service program that could be supported with Arizona Tax Credit donations.  He got others involved and they went to work making that vision become a reality.  In 1991, The Rotary Vocational Fund of Arizona was incorporated in the State of Arizona.  In 1992, they were designated a 501(c)(3) public charity by the Internal Revenue Service.  In 1993, after 65% of all Rotary Clubs in all Arizona Districts voted to support it as an ongoing project, the Rotary International Board of Directors approved TRVFA as an ongoing multi district Rotary project.  When first operating, the Arizona Tax Credit category they operated under was for the "Working Poor."  That wording is no longer used in the categories used by the state.  TRVFA is now a Qualifying Charitable Organization for tax credit donations.  Individuals can give up to $400 annually and married couples filing jointly can give $800 to offset their Arizona State Income Tax obligation.  
 
TRVFA provides grants for vocational education to Arizona residents who are at or below the poverty guideline.  They do not fund 4-year degrees.  The longest term programs they fund are two-year associate degree programs.  
 
When Jeanie first joined the TRVFA board in 2018, she replaced Pam Cohen who needed to resign because she had found she was overcommitted.  At the first board meeting Jeanie attended, because of increased application activity, they elected to lower the maximum available grant from $3,000 to $2,000 so they could help more students.  Income has increased year-over-year, but application activity has also continued to increase, so that former $3,000 maximum has yet to be restored.  Grants are not made to anyone who has already achieved a four-year degree - they have many more options available to them than the individuals TRVFA strives to help.
 
Applicants range from young people just out of high school to older adults who have experienced life changes and are no longer able to qualify for positions that will offer a living wage.
 
Donations to TRVFA are not limited to Rotarians and they are not limited to tax credit donations.  Individuals, family trusts, private foundations, and charitable businesses can all help individuals lift themselves out of poverty by making donations to our 501(c)(3) just like any other tax-deductible donation.  If someone doesn't need a tax credit, or for some reason wouldn't benefit from a tax deduction, sometimes it just feels good to help someone because they want to help themselves and are willing to do the work to make it happen - they just need a hand up.  We all have neighbors, family and friends who probably have no idea this is something they could help us do.  We need to talk about it. and talk enthusiastically.
 
Allan Cady was invited to say a few words about his experience with TRVFA since being elected at the 2021 District 5495 Council on Legislation to begin a three-year term July 1, 2021.  Allan said that when Jeanie recruited him to be nominated for that seat she said she wanted him to be the TRVFA Fundraising Chair.  She told him that the successful Mesa West Sponsorship program was just training ground for bigger things.  He has a committee and they will be getting into action.  
 
Bob Zarling added to the content of the program remembering when he was Mesa West's Vocational Service Chair, he had the opportunity to interview several TRVFA applicants.  He remembered one in particular who was from Yuma but was attending a nursing program at East Valley Technical Institute (EVIT).  Her goal was to go back to Yuma and get involved with helping the children who arrive in this country illegally and often have been abused on their journey.  They are victims through no fault of their own and need to be helped by individuals who truly care.  She had a real passion for what she hoped to accomplish.
 
After being prompted by Lu General Jeanie pointed out that there are different categories of Tax Credit donations - Foster Care, Public School, School Tuition Organizations, in addition to the Qualifying Charitable Organization category TRVFA qualifies for.  When we are lucky enough to live in a state where we are allowed to direct where our tax obligation is spent, we haven't "maxed out" until we've given more than we owe the state, yet stayed within each category's limit.
 
Even though Mesa West is leading the state, we still have a long way we could go.  63% of our members are not yet represented by a donation this fiscal year, which began July 1, 2021.  Many members have indicated they want to make donations to honor Jeane Crouse.  CLICK HERE to easily make your donation on line.  In the blank at the bottom of the donation form where it asks for the club name just put "Mesa West in honor of Jeane Crouse."  Donations made by the April tax filing deadline can be used offset your 2021 or 2022 state tax obligation (but not both).