Congratulations to Sharon Laird, our $3000 grand prize winner, and to 2nd and 3rd place, Heartland Youth for Christ (thanks to Janette's generosity) and Kathy Varney, who won $500 and $250, respectively.
Thanks to everyone who bought balls. 3180 balls were sold. All the money raised will go to support the kids programs at HACAP and Van Buren School, who need all the help we can give them! Final figures for sponsorships, sales, and expenses will be announced within the near future.
Thanks also to our sponsors, Cedar Rapids Bank & Trust, IMON, Oasis Paychex, Skogman, Bankers Trust, Anderson Bogart, RSM, Hills Bank, Larry and Kim Kudej, GreenState, and our host The Olympic South Side Theater and Anna Hobart, for allowing us to do a safe, socially distant event!
A special thanks to those folks turning out on Saturday to assist Tom with the drop. Dennis, Charles, Larry, Lijun and David, Janette, Betsy and Dave, Dana, Jim, Penny, and Amy.
Susan Chadima, DVM, spoke to us about Afghanistan. She is a 1972 graduate of Washington High School in CR! She completed her veterinary education at Iowa State University and then moved to Maine with her husband, Mike Steitzer, where they raised their family, and continue to live and work. Sue has had a long career in clinical veterinary medicine working with companion animals. For the last 15 years, her professional and personal interests have broadened into the world of international veterinary medicine with a particular focus on Afghanistan and the challenges of helping to rebuild the country's animal health care system with a particular focus on supporting basic services to rural livestock owners. Since 2005 she has spent approximately 5+ years working in the country with Afghan colleagues. Her most recent trip was December 2019. Her slide presentation gave us great insight as to everyday life in Afghanistan.
We celebrated Betsy's September birthday led in song by Charles. Also celebrating September birthdays are James Nelson and Dave Mally.
Mike gave us the news, and Jamie led the invocation, pledge, and test.
Ball Drop details for Saturday were discussed. Sales of balls were to close online at 5 that day. You could still purchase balls by check to Tom by Friday. Over 3000 balls had been sold.
Full minutes of the meeting are available on our website.
Financial and membership--Our finances are tight in light of a declining membership, as well as lack of timely payment of dues.
Zoom meetings for rest of year--The Museum has the opportunity to rent out the hall for the rest of the year. A motion was passed to suspend meetings at the Museum through the end of the year and meet by zoom. In the meantime, we will continue to explore options and opportunities regarding in person meetings at other locations depending on COVID. Matthew 25 and The Olympic are possibilities.
Interact--Washington High School will likely not get back into its building until after January 1. Larry Simons, the staff contact, will be visiting with club officers to see how they want to proceed. We continue to look for a replacement for Rochelle. If interested, please contact Larry. You will need to receive youth training to qualify.
Van Buren--Kim talked to Jan Hanks. Her health remains a concern. We should continue to collect HyVee receipts. The school has numerous needs, including gifts and coats at Christmas. Kim will continue to be our contact at the school, working with both Jan and the principal.
Lijun is arranging speakers to take us on a tour of the world this month and again in November.
This coming week's speaker's info is below. His website is www.pjmooney.com if you would like more info. Should be interesting. Please join us.
Title: Vietnam Through A Journalist's Eyes
Speaker: Paul Mooney
Bio:
Paul Mooney is an American freelance journalist who has reported on Burma, China, Taiwan, and Hong Kong since 1985. He has been on staff at Reuters, Newsweek, the Far Eastern Economic Review, the South China Morning Post, and Knight-Ridder Financial News. Paul, the recipient of a 14 journalist awards for his reporting on China, was based in Beijing from 1994 - 2012. In 2013, the Chinese government refused to renew his journalist visa, ending his 18 consecutive years as a journalist in China. Paul has been living in Vietnam since 2018.
