Editor: Marilyn Bedell and note taker, Bruce Pacht...Thanks for the help!
Upcoming Programs/Speakers
October 8, 2020 – William Sullivan will share information about Osher at Dartmouth Lifelong Learning institute and the plans to expand our program more broadly throughout the Upper Valley. Mr. Sullivan is currently president of Osher@Dartmouth Lifelong Learning Institute. He has taught courses at Osher on The Road to Iraq; Understanding the Middle East: Culture and Conflict; and U.S. Intelligence: Past, Present, and Future. He has been a member of Osher at Dartmouth since 2004.
October 15 Meeting Cancelled.
Plan to join the Rotary District Special Event on October 17, 2020
October 17, 2020 from 5-6:30 PM. Rotary District 7850 Special Event
From the District: THIS IS BIGGER THAN BIG Joey Coleman As part of our Education program we plan to bring three interesting, dynamic and reflective speakers. The first in the lineup is, Joey Coleman on October 17th, 5 - 6:30 pm presenting: NEVER LOSE A CUSTOMER AGAIN. Read more about Joey by clicking here.Joey has worked with Volkswagen, Microsoft, Whirlpool, Deloitte, NASA, Zappos, Google, John Hancock
His appearance will be virtually available to all Rotarians, all business owners, all people of Vermont, New Hampshire, Quebec (the presentation will be in English) and anyone around the world. Our ability to bring a national speaker of Joey’s caliber to our District is based on PDG Richard Fox’s connection with Joey – as they say Rotary Opens Opportunities. Do not missed this opportunity! Invite business owners and non-Rotarians. Get the word out to save the date. This is an opportunity to reach out to non-Rotarians.
We will share the registration information when we get it from DG Jamie Milne. Please invite others in the business community to join in...you can then ask other to register too.
October 22, 2020 - Paul Coates,Lebanon's Recreation and Parks Director, and perhaps his wife, Kristen, will be our speaker(s) for our October 22 meeting. They recently completed a sabbatical trip and will share with us that experience and its relevance to Lebanon.
We welcomed our Rotary District Governor, Jamie Milne to our meeting. DG Jamie is from the Rotary Club of St. Johnsbury, Vermont. His biography is posted below.
DG Jamie shared that as he worked to prepare our District club presidents for the 2020/2021 Rotary year, he tried to focus on the role our presidents would play in being agents of change. Even though his last meeting with the 2020/2021 presidents was just before the Covid-19 shut down, he never realized how important it would be for club president and the club's board of directors to be agents of change and to find new opportunities.
During training sessions he challenge all presidents to make one change in their club. He then went on to reflect that if he had suggested in February and March that presidents should consider holding 4 virtual meetings, not many presidents would have taken this on a a challenge...but look at our Rotary world now...Most clubs are now online. He is hoping that when when we get on the other side of this pandemic, that we won't just revert back to our old ways. Clubs should continue to challenge members to think of ways to continue to evolve in this new virtual environment. DG Jamie then asked members to share some reflections about the good and distressing parts of our changing environment for Rotary:
Steve Whitman reflected that he has really missed the time to sit around a table at a meal prior to the start of our Rotary meetings. He enjoyed talking with fellow members over a meal...a chance to get to know his fellow Rotarians in new ways. He really misses this aspect of Rotary. He hopes we will continue to keep our club a good mix of various vocations. That variety in our membership leads to better service projects.
John Yacavone shared that it seems to be easier to organize public service projects via our Zoom meetings and using Doodle to sign-up to serve as volunteers. We seem to be looking for more ways to be visible in our community. We have done a better job of having a positive public image.
JoAnn Lemieux gave Kudos to Bruce Bergeron for all the community service projects we have been doing. Our Mask Up Upper Valley helped us to have a larger presence in our community.
Paul Tierney reminded us that change isn't everything. Much of our progress is still dependent on segment leaders...members who are willing to take on the challenge of organizing projects and fund raisers. There is value in having institutional knowledge to help make positive change possible.
DG Jamie then challenged us to spend some time thinking about what our club might look like post Covid-19. He reflected on the message from Ri President Holgar Knaack. President Holgar is encouraging Rotarians to seize the many opportunities Rotary offers to enrich our lives and the communities we serve.
DG Jamie shared that new club models should be considered that have the potential to attract new members. He spoke about women in Rotary, and the nomination of Jennifer Jones to be our first woman president. He shared that our new, seventh area of service, Support the Environment, might be appealing to those who are concerned about global warming and other impacts on the environment.
Rotary Strategic Plan should be reviewed by clubs and considered as club engage in strategic planning at the local club level.
He ended his talk reminding us of our #1 priority, the eradication of polio. Our work in Rotary has propelled the Rotary Foundation to be considered one of the top 10 charities as rated by Charity Navigator. He asked us to do our part to support: the Annual Programs Fund/Share; and the Endowment Fund. Finally he encouraged us to continue supporting our efforts to eradicate polio. Our work in polio eradication has propelled us to be one of the top 10 charities as rated by Charity Navigator.
BIO for JAMIE MILNE, ROTARY DISTRICT GOVERNOR - 2020-2021 DISTRICT 7850
Jamie is the owner of Milne Financial Planning, a fee-only financial planner and investment advisor. He works with clients nearing retirement to ensure they make the right decisions as they enter into their next phase of life.
Jamie also serves as Treasurer of the Thaddeus Stevens School, a private Pre-K through 8th grade school in Lyndonville, Vermont. He’s a founding member of the NCEF (NAPFA Consumer Education Foundation) a foundation of NAPFA (National Association of Personal Financial Advisors) and served both as Vice President and President for many years. He is current a member of the fundraising committee.
Jamie first joined the Barre, Vermont Rotary Club and served as President for the year 2001-2002. He is currently a member of the St. Johnsbury, Vermont Rotary Club serving as Secretary and was President for the year 2012-2013. He was Assistant Governor for the years 2013-2017. Jamie is a Paul Harris Fellow.
Jamie grew up in Barre, Vermont and attended Spaulding High School (Class of 1977). He went on to graduate from Babson College with a BS in Finance and an MBA. He has three grown daughters, two sons-in-law and two grandsons. His daughters live in Somerville, Massachusetts; Littleton, New Hampshire and West Burke, Vermont.
Jamie lives at Joe’s Pond in West Danville, Vermont and, in what free time he has, he loves water skiing, snow skiing and garage-time working on a variety of car projects.
Book in honor of Jamie Milne going to the Kilton Library Children's Collection will be:
Eraser by Anna Kang, illustrated by Christopher Weynant.
Eraser is always cleaning up everyone else’s mistakes. Except for Ruler and Pencil Sharpener, none of the other school supplies seem to appreciate her. They all love how sharp Pencil is and how Tape and Glue help everyone stick together. Eraser wants to create so that she can shine like the others. She decides to give it a try, but it’s not until the rubber meets the road that Eraser begins to understand a whole lot about herself.
Inspired by a school essay their daughter Kate wrote in the third grade, the author and illustrator behind Theodor Seuss Geisel Award–winner You Are (Not) Small have created a desktop drama about figuring out who you are, finding happiness, and the importance of second, third, and maybe even fourth chances.
President Ron started the meeting today by reciting the Rotary Code of Conduct instead of the 4-Way Test.
ROTARIAN CODE OF CONDUCT
As a Rotarian, I will:
1. Act with integrity and high ethical standards in my personal and professional life
2. Deal fairly with others and treat them and their occupations with respect
3. Use my professional skills through Rotary to mentor young people, help those with special needs, and improve people’s quality of life in my community and in the world
4. Avoid behavior that reflects adversely on Rotary or other Rotarians
5. Help maintain a harassment-free environment in Rotary meetings, events, and activities; report any suspected harassment; and help ensure non-retaliation to those individuals that report harassment
Members at our meeting today included: Dan Affeldt, Ron Bedell, Marilyn Bedell, Bruce Bergeron, Paul Boucher, Hank Clarke, David Crandall, Cindy Jerome, JoAnn Lemieux, Jane Mason, Ernst Oidtmann, Bruce Pacht, Bill Secord, Paul Tierney, Steve Whitman, John Yacavone and District Governor Jamie Milne.
Club Updates/Announcements
DOODLE POLL WAS SENT— Hoping you can help with a few of our upcoming service projects.
From Bruce Bergeron - Community Services Chair
Here is run down of the events:
Saturday October 3rd
8:30 am – 9:30 am. Load clothes we collected 8 weeks ago for Epilogos. We will meet at Jake’s Coffee Shop at 8:30 and then going to Guaraldi Insurance to pick up rest. (6 volunteers)
9:30 am – 1 PM. Deliver clothes to Savers in Manchester NH. (2-3 volunteers)
Saturday October 10th
8:30 am – 1 pm. Assist with the Drive Thru vaccination event at the Plainfield NH Elementary School. The Public Health Council of UV is coordinating this event. (2-4 volunteers)
Wednesday October 14th
1 pm – 3 pm. Drive Thru Food Drive at La Salette Shrine Parking lot to benefit Enfield food pantry, managed by Friends of Mascoma. This project will be in conjunction with the Drive Thru Vaccination event sponsored by Public Health Council of UV. (6 volunteers)
Wednesday October 14th
3 pm – 6 pm. Drive Thru Food Drive at La Salette Shrine Parking lot. (6 volunteers)
Saturday October 24th
9 am – 1 pm. Boston Lot Trail Maintenance Project. (10 volunteers)
Saturday, October 31st
8:30 – 1 pm. Assist with the Drive Thru vaccination event at Canaan Elementary (2-4 volunteers)
Below is a Doodle link to indicate which events you wish to volunteer for.
Alice Ely, ED of the Upper Valley Public Health Council, is planning flu vaccinations without having people going into buildings. They will do drive-thru vaccinations. We have offered to help at the following clinic. See Doodle sign up...link listed above.
In addition, we are supplying funding for the supply van to take to each clinic.
Dates:
October 3 - Orford
October 10 - Plainfield
October 14 - Enfield with food drive
October 31 - Caanan with food drive
From Rudy Fedrizzi
Ron (and club),
I was happy to read about the club’s financial support of Alice Ely’s request for a van to move flu vaccine supplies from one clinic site to another in the coming month (you may recall that I’m the Board president of Alice’s Public Health Council). Controlling flu so that it doesn’t amplify COVID this fall and winter is an important strategy and I’m proud to see my club doing all it can to pitch in.
Hello to my fellow club members and I hope everyone stays well.
Rudy
Epilogos Update - Tim Guaraldi
Rotarian volunteers are needed on Saturday, October 3, meeting at 8:30 AM at Jake’s Coffee shop to load clothing and other soft goods into a truck that is being provided by Garlan Hoskin. Volunteers then need to go to Tim Guarldi's office to load other items being stored at Tim's insurance office on Bank Street. A few volunteers are needed to follow the van to Savers in Manchester, NH to help unload the truck. Please consider helping with this activity.
Masks - Marilyn Bedell: Tuesday, October 6 at 10:00 AM — Come and Welcome the Rotarians delivering the masks to us. Our portion of the masks will go the the Lebanon School District. Here is the invitation from District Foundation Chair Louisa Tripp.
----If you go out and make some good things happen, you will fill the world with hope--you will fill yourself with hope---- Barack Obama
On October 6, 2020, a large truck wrapped with Rotary and Million Mask logos will roll into the WRJ Town Hall parking lot at 9:30am carrying disposable face masks.
Masks will be distributed to 60 Rotary clubs throughout Rotary Districts 7870 and 7850 in New Hampshire and Vermont.
Welcoming ceremonies will start at 10:00am. Several local and State dignitaries will be present for remarks and Rotarians from many clubs will be present to hand out and receive the masks.
The Million Mask Challenge found its beginnings with Ted Rossi, an East Hampton, CT Rotarian and business man. Ted is active in many civic activities and a strong supporter of the Rotary Foundation. He and his District Governor arranged to deliver 200,000 masks to first responders and essential workers in his District 7890 when the pandemic closed the US.
Ted's contribution of the 800,000 masks to District 7870 is unprecedented and emphasizes how Rotary uses our professional backgrounds diverse perspectives, and global connections to create a better world.
All are invited to attend this event at the WRJ Town Hall, October 6, 2020, at 9:30am. Please be assured that physical distancing and masks requirements will be maintained.
Charities Bylaws Review
Bruce indicated that only one of our members beyond the Bylaws Committee has provided any feedback about the bylaws. Based on the feedback he received, he will compile Version #8 for member review. Even if you have nothing to offer in the way of comment or changes, please let Bruce Pacht know this. Marilyn Bedell strongly asked members to do this review so we can get the bylaw approved, and move to set up our Charities Board. An e-mail with Version #8 has been sent to the entire membership. AGAIN...PLEASE REVEIW and be ready to Vote at our October 29th meeting.
Jerry Coleman will be speaking at a District-wide meeting on October 17 5-6:30 PM.
See the information about Joey at the top of the Newsletter. Remember our October 15, 2020 meeting is cancelled and this will be our meeting for the week. DG Jamie Milne talked about this during his remarks too.
District Treasurer
DG Jamie Milne is looking for a Rotarian to take on the position of treasurer for our Rotary district, Rotary District 7850. If you are interested in taking this on, let Marilyn Bedell, Ron Bedell or Bruce Pacht know and they can share you contact information with DG Jamie. We can also give you contact information for our current treasurer, Lynda Carmire, if you want to ask her about the time commitment for this role.
Boston Lot Trail - Ernst Oidtmann
Saturday, October 24 – meet at Boston Lot parking area at 8:30 AM rain or shine. Mostly we have to move boards up to the area where they will be placed across mud holes. Richard Wright is a sawmill operator who has done this before – he has boards available. City Hall has enough money to cover 5-6 of these mudholes with 4-6 spikes in each board. Tim Guaraldi will provide a vehicle to pick up the boards; Tim has an ATV with trailer to move the boards. Tim says he also has two grandsons to help. Ernst thinks we need 15-16 persons to do the job. Ron Bailey, a man in his 80s will be there – he’s been working on Lebanon’s trails for 60 years.
1st Grade Reader Update - Bruce Pacht
We sent a letter to the superintendent of the Mascoma Valley Regional School District and the two principals of the Enfield and Canaan elementary schools.The Enfield principal replied positively right away.If Bruce hasn’t heard from the superintendent this week he will follow up by telephone next week. Update: Bruce leaned that the Lioness Club in Canaan has been providing these books in Canann.
Bedell Classic Golf Tournament - Ed Friendman
Bruce Bergeron reported that the final accounting for the gold tournament will should be competed in the next couple of weeks. Stay tuned to learn how much money will be available for charitable giving.
Holiday Party – Ron Bedell
Ron Bedell needs to know by October 8, 2020 our thoughts about dinner and a Yankee Swap at the Quechee Inn. Ron will send all members details about the precautions the Inn is taking, and will ask you to RSVP yes or no by October 8, 2020
Alzheimer's Walk - Hank Clarke
Hank will poll members to see if anyone wants to participate in the walk.
OPEN DEMOCRACY - Bill Secord
Along with several others in the Upper Valley, Bill Secord is working with a non-partisan effort sponsored by Open Democracy to educate people on how to vote under pandemic guidelines. Open Democracy is running an educational campaign Especially tailored to include such voters as the homeless (people can join a Zoom session just using their phones).
The Open Democracy session scheduled for Thursday, October 8,at 7:00 p.m.
Here is the website we want to publicize. The effort is nota Democratic or Republican program.
Cindy Jermone was happy to report that thanks to help from John Yacavone, that led her to Bill Babineau, she now has a lovely apartment in Lebanon.
Hank Clarke reported he was successful in selling Carol's Saab.
Ernst Oidtmann reported that he planted elm trees behind KMart at Two Rivers Park.
Paul Tierney has started excavating his new home site in Meriden.
John Yacavone was looking forward to getting a piece of pie at P&H Truck Stop in Wells River, but quickly headed back to his car when he realized no social distancing or masking was being followed. They then headed to another restaurant in Woodsville.
Marilyn Bedell teased Ron that when he mentioned the Quechee Inn as the site for our Holiday party, he didn't mention that they had their 46th Anniversary dinner there on Wednesday evening.
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Community Service Planned for 2020/2021
Epilogos Clothing Delivery - October 3, 2020
Vounteers needed to load the trucks, to get the clothing to Manchester, and then to unload the trucks at Savers in Manchester. See announcement above.
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Drive through Flu Vaccine Clinics
October 10 - Plainfield
October 14 - Enfield
October 31 - Caanan
Assisting the Public Health Council of the Upper Valley (PHCUV) with drive through flu vaccine clinics. Helping with traffic coordination. This may be combined with a food pantry donation request.
Dan Affeldt coordinating this activity (see announcement above)
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Listen Dinners 2020/20210
Hoping to be able to cook in December, February, April, June, August and September. Hank Clark will let us know when we can be back in the kitchen again.
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United Way Day of Caring
September 2020 - We will have to wait for next year.
Bruce will give us more information once we know this event can happen in September
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Our Park Clean-Ups
October and April
Baker's Crossing
Riverside Park
Willy Koppenheffer and Bruce Bergeron will organize these events
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Airport - Air show Memorial Area Clean Up
Bruce Bergeron will organize this event
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Listen Food Drives
Hopefully we can do one before too long...
Tim Guaraldi will organize these events.
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Working with Cover on a Winterizing Project
Winter 2020/2021
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First Grade Reader Distribution
April, May
Bruce Bergeron will organize this event.
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Mascoma River Clean-up &
Rail Trail Clean-up
Summer 2021
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2020 Holiday Service Projects
Listen Holiday Basket Helpers Gift Card Purchases. We can' be on site for basket review this year. Donations will only be gift card this year. members will be asked to donate gift cards.
Working with our Interactors 2019 (the good old days)
Email sent to club members about the plan for this dinner with social distancing. PLEASE RSVP by 8 October 2020. Ron Bedell needs to let the Inn know if we will be coming or if we need to cancel.
If enough members want to participate it will on on Thursday, December 17, 2020, at the Quechee Inn at Marshland Farms. Cost will be the same as 2019...$40/person
Facing the challenges of COVID-19, Rotary clubs and partner organizations are finding new ways to support access to education
by Arnold R. Grahl
Recognizing that education is a pathway out of poverty, Rotary and other organizations have made significant progress in increasing access to learning in communities around the world.
Parents who were already on the edge about sending their kids to school are just going to throw up their hands and not do it.
— Carolyn Johnson
Now, the COVID-19 pandemic is threatening to erase many of those gains. More than 91 percent of students worldwide have been impacted by temporary school closures, according to the United Nations. By April, close to 1.6 billion young students were out of school.
Some experts fear school closures and the loss of some family incomes could keep children out of school indefinitely. “We have worked so many years to get kids in school, get them enrolled, and get them to stay in school,” says Carolyn Johnson, a Rotary member from Maine, USA, who helps Rotary clubs design grants that support education. “This is going to put those efforts back years.
“Parents who were already on the edge about sending their kids to school are just going to throw up their hands and not do it,” she adds. “They are literally starving and need the money their kids can bring in working.”
The COVID-19 crisis has created significant challenges in education. Developing remote learning plans and using new technology compounds the already complex task of teaching children and achieving the desired educational outcomes. Rotarians are quick to want to help, but not all responses have the same kind of impact. Read these suggestions for Rotary clubs wanting to support education sustainably through a global grant project.
Always start with a community assessment.
Meet with community leaders, parents, teachers, and students to learn what initiatives are already in place and what the community is capable of and willing to support.
Don’t reinvent what already exists.
After you’ve determined if other organizations, particularly governments, are addressing the problem, coordinate your efforts with them to complement their approach.
Prepare and equip teachers.
Teachers need to be supported and trained before they can embrace alternatives to in-person school that are dictated by physical distancing, such as remote learning plans.
Focus on the longterm.
It’s tempting to want to fix a problem immediately. But sustainable solutions take time to develop and implement.
Communicate with regional grants officers.
Many education efforts involve components beyond the basic education and literacy area of focus. Connecting with Rotary’s grants officers will ensure that efforts across multiple areas of focus are concentrated on a comprehensive solution.
Facing the challenges of COVID-19, Rotary clubs and partner organizations are finding new ways to support access to education.
It is a pleasure to share with you a report from the Rotary International Communications team outlining media coverage stemming from the African region’s wild poliovirus-free certification announcement, which took place on 25 August.
Rotary and its members received significant positive coverage in leading media outlets for our leadership in eradicating wild polio in the African region, with our spokespeople quoted frequently.
Our global media strategy enabled Rotary mention in coverage throughout the African continent and in top international outlets, as well as coverage in priority countries such as the United States, Germany, Australia, Canada, and India. Of course, Rotary wasn’t in every single media report, but was mentioned in a substantial majority as you can see below. In many instances, Rotary and WHO were the only Global Polio Eradication Initiative partners mentioned. Here are some highlights:
Leading media outlets around the world published more than 90 stories that highlighted Rotary’s role in eradicating wild polio in the African region, with the majority of coverage quoting Rotary spokespeople, including Rotary International President Holger Knaack, Nigeria National PolioPlus Committee Chair Dr. Tunji Funsho, and others.
Examples of media coverage include TIME, Reuters, New York Times, Good Morning America, BBC, and Le Monde. Top regional media covering the milestone include SABC, Tageszeitung, Forbes, El Pais, The Guardian (Nigeria) and numerous other outlets in Africa.
A joint op-ed by Rotary International President Holger Knaack and WHO Director-General Tedros was published in at least 10 outlets, including top-tier outlets like Al Jazeera, Frankfurter Allgemeine, and Die Welt.
Rotary Public Image Coordinators (RPICs) throughout Africa were instrumental in securing additional media coverage of the milestone. Working with members of the Public Relations team, RPICs and other Rotarians with media expertise secured over 80 pieces of coverage in Africa and Europe.
Efforts to provide Rotarians globally with a toolkit promote the milestone in their communities resulted in further global coverage, including extensive coverage in the UK.
Social media posts on Rotary’s channels reached 4 million people and resulted in 517,000 video views and 93,000 likes/comments/shares. Celebrities like John Cena, Ade Adepitan and Itzhak Perlman posted and tagged Rotary on social media. Between 25-27 August, Rotary was mentioned more than 22,000 times on Twitter and Instagram.
Please see below for a selection of coverage in leading global media outlets. We hope you’ll share the good news with others.
Regards,
The PolioPlus Team
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