Rotary Log for January 9, 2020
President Leo had warned us that the Portsmouth Country Club was undergoing renovation. What we didn’t know was that dining tables and chairs had been replaced. The new ones are rectangular in shape and situated in a different floor arrangement. These changes caused some consternation! Your scribe noticed several Rotarians wander about aimlessly while trying to re-connect with their habitual seating chart. Out with the old, in with the new!
Leo opened with the Pledge of Allegiance. Senor Rice led our singing. Guest Lori Waltz-Gagnon delivered the invocation.
GUESTS
Among the guests (and Rotarian hosts) were: Leona Beck (Leonard Seagren), Lori Waltz-Gagnon (Leo), and Judith Salisbury (son-in-law James Petersen).
TREE SALE POST-MORTUM
Jon Flagg and Justin Finn (in absentia) thanked everyone for their hearty support during the Christmas tree sale. The project netted nearly $45,000. Jon recounted down the “Top Ten Lessons Learned” from this year’s sale. True to Jon’s form, each lesson was more hilarious than the prior one. Your scribe’s favorite was Lesson Number Five: “Don’t put the chainsaw’s chain on backwards and expect it to cut wood.”
ANNOUNCEMENTS
Past President Bud Watt passed away last month at the age of 91 years. Past President Mort spoke affectionately about Bud, who was his early Rotarian mentor. Separately, Mort will chair the committee to celebrate the 100thAnniversary of the Portsmouth Rotary Club in 2023.
Voting was held during the meeting to place three past presidents on the Nominating Committee. Elected were Ben Wheeler, Dave Underhill and James Petersen (Chairman). Exhibiting his political adroitness, James promptly announced his policy of having no meetings.
Jessica Parker introduced our newest member, inductee Elizabeth Buss. Elizabeth has been active in several Seacoast service organizations. These include Great Bay Services and Crossroads. She is now eager to participate in Rotary-sponsored projects. Welcome aboard, Elizabeth!
The $71 raffle was won by Bill Simpson. He followed up by winning the $150 match.
GUEST SPEAKER
Leo introduced our guest speaker, Jacey Chavez. Jacey’s Rotary involvement began after attending the Rotary Youth Leadership Awards (RYLA) program. He joined Rotaract at Portsmouth High School and was awarded a Rotary scholarship upon graduation in 2017. Jacey is president of the UNH Rotaract Club and co-president-elect of the newly forged New Voices Rotary Club.
Jacey prefaced his talk by thanking the club for our past and present support of RYLA and Rotaract programs.
Last year, Jacey and 10 fellow UNH Rotaracts took part in the Rotaract 2019 Puerto Rico Project. Their efforts helped several families rebuild their homes and lives in the aftermath of Hurricane Maria. Jacey showed a video depicting the team’s work.
Another Rotaract team shown was from St. Joseph’s College. They performed similar home-rebuilding activities and helped operate a dog sanctuary.
It was a fine display of Rotaract in purposeful action. With young people like Jacey Chavez involved, the future of Rotary is auspicious indeed.
Respectfully Submitted, Richard Greulich
