We reflected on what is happening nationally. It is was hard to grasp the impact this may have on our democracy.
All three of our new Rotarians were on Zoom! Ariel lives in Enfield on the other side of the Lake from Cindy Jerome in Lakeview Condos.
Liss Mooney was able to join us tonight. It was great to have her back. She shared that the pressures on staffing at Dartmouth-Hitchcock is still very strong. It’s hard to find travelers and they have lots of folks out with illness, etc.
5:32 p.m. – Marilyn rang the bell to bring the meeting to order.
President Ron: “Welcome to the first meeting of 2021, hopefully a better year than 2020…Good riddance! “ Ron referred to last night’s D.C. episode, applying the 4-Way Test to the actions and coming up negative on all four.
Ron was saddened by last night’s activities but is buoyed up today as he is inducting new members into Rotary.
Dipak Niroula & Sharmila Niroula (Sponsor Ron Bedell) and Ariel Horowitz (Sponsor Marilyn Bedell & Paul Tierney) have been accepted for membership.
INDUCTION
President Ron: You have been admitted not only to Lebanon Rotary, but to a fellowship where you will be welcomed around the world. We ask that you attend meetings, perform your share of service, and place your knowledge and talents at the disposal of the club in its Rotary practices.
Ron virtually affixed Rotary pins on our new members, charging us all to welcome them and engage them in service projects.
Ariel Horowitz: Before moving here, he was in Schenectady, NY Rotary. One of the most meaningful things a person can do is public service and Rotary exemplifies that to Ariel. He spent time in Tanzania doing good works about which he’d like to speak in the future. He hopes to be even more involved in the future.
Senior Center meals project
Hank: We had about 75 people come through for liver and onions, a bag with peanut butter and produce, eggs, and Hank handed out mini-Hershey bars.
John: Half the cars had studded tires; Hank said that any car in which John was riding had a stud in it.
Senior Center
Marilyn read the thank-you note we received from Becky Foster, activities director at the Senior Center. She hopes we’ll come back in May to celebrate with a steel drumming group. See the full note below.
Listen
We had a communication from Valerie at Listen about the outdoor food pantry established at 60 Hanover Street by our Lebanon High Interactors:
Please put in only things like cereal, bread, macaroni, quinoa, rice – nothing that can freeze in a container, like baby food, canned food and liquids. We can drop off items either in the box or inside.
Paul Tierney – For our new members, Listen is the largest crisis service agency in the Upper Valley, providing heating fuel vouchers, serving 30-40,000 individual meals each year, offering summer camp funds for kids. Their huge Miracle Mile thrift store earns Listen the largest portion of its annual revenues. They just finished a fund drive during which an anonymous donor matched up to $25,000 on 2:1 basis, so they received another $50,000!
Meeting times
The board will discuss (5:30 p.m. January 19) changes in our club meeting times better to accommodate all members.
All Rotarians are most welcome to attend. Let Marilyn know you would like to attend, and she will send you the Zoom coordinates. About 9 of our members can never attend at 5:30. Board will be discussing possible changes to the meeting schedule. Anyone wishing to attend should write to Marilyn who will send the meeting coordinates.
Speech Contest
Our next meeting will be at a special time - Noon on Thursday January 14th to hold the speech contest – Philip Rentz
Since we have only a single candidate, Jane will take under consideration the idea of adding a classification talk to the agenda.
Speakers
Sean Fleming will be the speaker at our January 28th meeting – Jane Mason
Jane Mason, Program Chair: He will be speaking about the Lebanon Library renovations. City council has approved a $1.7 Millon to renovate the Carnegie Library in downtown. Changing the HVAC system, improving accessibility, major renovations to the teen center. Bill: There are naming opportunities. Charities will discuss this further at its next meeting.
February 11 – Kyle Fisher, Listen's Executive Director, will be our speaker.
NEPETS
DGE Mike Carrier sent a note about a virtual House of Friendship to exist during virtual NEPETS this year. 8 slots per district. If a club would like to be featured, get the idea in by January 31.
Jane: My favorite part of International Conferences was the House of Friendship. “If I ever go to another one, I’ll bring a sleeping bag and stay in the HOF all the time.
Dan: I’m one of the Rotarians responsible for the HOF. It will be virtual. You can choose where to visit by club or topic. Russell-Hampton will be there.
John: Maybe you can arrange different segments of entertainment, like a little band at 9:30 or someone playing the guitar for 15 minutes. Dan says there’s already music planned.
Dan: We don’t want to give the presidents-elect reasons to leave their tightly-planned sessions in the evening, so there will be opportunities for smaller group gatherings when the sessions aren’t happening.
Hank and Bruce explained a bit more about the importance, impact and reach of the Northeastern Multi-district Presidents-Elect Training Seminar (NEPETS).
What is Northeast PETS?
The Northeast Presidents-Elect Training Seminar (NEPETS) is Rotary’s training program for club Presidents-elect and Assistant Governors throughout New England and parts of Canada. The goal of NEPETS is to prepare Presidents-elect and Assistant Governors for their upcoming roles through provocative plenary speakers, in-depth breakout sessions, discussions with peers from various districts, and informal fellowship and networking with other Rotarians. NEPETS is a collaborative effort of eight Rotary districts and includes the states of Connecticut, Rhode Island, Massachusetts, Vermont, New Hampshire, southern Maine and southern Quebec.
Club Constitution and Bylaws
Our Revised Constitution and Bylaws were approved at our December 29th meeting and sent out January 4th. The are posted on the ClubRunner Web Page under For Members.
Members present at the meeting:
Marilyn Bedell
Ron Bedell
Paul Boucher
Hank Clarke
Dave Crandall
Ed Friedman
Cindy Jerome
Ariel Horowitz
Garlan Hoskin
Will Kopenheffer
JoAnn Lemieux
Jane Mason
Liss Mooney
Dipak Niroula
Sharmilla Niroula
Ernst Oidtmann
Bruce Pacht
Phil Rentz
Bill Secord
Marion Steiner
Steve Whitman
John Yacavone
Meeting adjourned at 6:19 PM
They Profit Most Who Serve the Best
Happy Thoughts/Concerns
Marilyn Bedell: By next week, each new member will receive a Welcome folder with your Rotary pin, a theme pin for this Rotary year.
Ernst Oidtmann: At the end of May, 2021, Lebanon Rotary will help build plank bridges at Boston Lot. Planks being ordered by Wright sawmill and the City will pay $800 according to the Conservation Committee. Mascoma River clean-up will come at the end of September.
Steve reminded everyone that requests for funding must go through a committee to the Board which would then pass its budget needs on to Charities. Though this effort will come during the current Rotary year, Bruce pointed out that the request still should come to Charities after the club board of directors has approved involvement in the project.
Ernst Oidtmann: Do any of the new members play piano or an instrument?
Ariel said he played trumpet as a child, and then played some piano as well; he’s now thinking of taking up the saxophone.
Dipak said he can play a “harmonium” (I think that’s what I heard.), a hand-crafted instrument from Nepal.
We all wished we were again meeting in person to hear all this music!!
Dave Crandell: He let us know he has the Rotary banner in his car until we can return it to the closet at APD.
Dan Affeldt: One of the engineers he works with is also a Rotarian who asked Dan if he were a Rotarian because “we talk different.” The fellow told Dan that some of the first tests of the Salk vaccine were given to his children.
Ron Bedell: A sad note – Frank Collins, Past RI Director for our region, passed away due to COVID complications. Bill Secord was in Frank’s club on East Hartford and remembers him as a Rotary “giant.” Many of us remember Frank’s work with the Rotary Leadership Institute as well as his contributions to NEPETS.
Cindy Jerome cautioned everyone that even though we are sick and tired of COVID restrictions, things are going to get quite a bit worse in the coming weeks before enough people have the vaccine. There is a growing concern coming availability of hospital beds in NH. She urged everyone to stay well and cautious and safe. APD Lifecare has just tested everyone and came out negative across the board. Cindy sent Marilyn COVID-19 Vaccine information. It can be found at the bottom of this newsletter after Rotary International News.
Ernst Oidtmann hiked up Smarts Mountain which, he reports, is a little higher than it was 10 years ago. On New Year’s Day he went up Moosilauke with 50 other people, one of the most beautiful days they’ve ever had on January 1.
Hi, Bruce: Just wanted to thank you so much for participating with us on the 30th. It was fun to have you here, and we appreciated your efforts to give an uplift to the seniors! We were hoping for a few more that day, but it’s quality, not quantity, right? (I think we still had about 75.) Also, I want to thank Bruce P for the great photos. I used them on the attached which will be in the newsletter in February as well as GCSCC facebook.
Hope you will come back and join us when it’s a little warmer – maybe in late May. We have some friends that play the steel drums, so it would be fun to have all here to celebrate the arrival of warmer days!
Thanks again!
Becky Foster
Activities Coordinator
Upper Valley Senior Center
10 Campbell Steet
Lebanon, NH 03766
603-448-4213
“Stay safe, stay distant, and wear masks.”
Club Updates/Announcements
Rotary District 7850 Event on Zoom
COMMUNICATION, COLLABORATION AND PRESENTATION WORKSHOP
featuring
HOLLETTEARLE
January 16, 2021 at 9 AM to 10:30 AM
Rotary District 7850 is pleased to announce a free Workshop from HollettEarle designed for business and community leaders on Communication, Collaboration and Presentation skills. Writer-Actor-Directors and alumni of The Second City improv comedy troupe, Shari Hollett and Chris Earle have been teaching communication, collaboration and presentation skills for over 20 years to corporate, government and non-profit clients across North America. As long-time directors and actors in theatre and comedy, they have developed their own special brand of workshops - using their performing and improvisation “know how” to create a fun, challenging, and invaluable experience for your group or business. With improvisation as their foundation, these workshops enhance existing skills, and develop new ones that help take your team to the next level.
“We are thrilled to have HollettEarle offer this engaging and fun workshop on communication, collaboration and presentation skills to our fellow Rotarians and to the public. Shari & Chris’s workshop will teach skills that can benefit for-profit and non-profit business leaders alike in this COVID and post-COVID climate,” noted Rotary 7850 District Governor Jamie Milne.
Listen Pocket Pantry
A message from Listen about our Outdoor Food Pantry
Do you know who is putting food in the outside pantry at LISTEN? We have been finding baby food and canned food in the mini pantry. These items cannot be frozen. Please let your members know to only put items in the mini pantry that will not cause risk if frozen.
Some ideas:
Cereal
Bread
Granola
Dried Fruit
Boxed or pouch items such as mac & cheese, quinoa, rice mixes.
Thank you,
Valerie
Volunteer Opportunities — Listen
From: LISTEN C/O Valerie Thompson <Valerie@listencs.org> Date: October 29, 2020 at 10:42:09 AM EDT To: Valerie Thompson <Valerie@listencs.org> Subject:Volunteers Needed
Hello Community Dinner Teams,
The dining hall is still not open to volunteers but we need volunteers in the Food Pantry. Please pass this information along to your connections and organizations.
LISTEN needs Food Pantry Attendants, Stockers, Drivers for picking-up bread and delivery food boxes
Food Pantry Attendant — Work directly with clients. Register shoppers; take orders and pack bags/boxes.
Stocking- Help restock shelves; unload trucks; and organize bread Pick-up by going to Shaw’s and BJ’s to pick-up bread, it is ready to go when volunteer arrives. Then deliver to 60 Hanover St.
Deliver Food Box- Every Friday we deliver to home bound clients through-out the Upper Valley.
The attendant and stocker also helps keeping the pantry clean and sanitized.
Rotary's 2019-20 annual report is now available. Learn how we focused on impact, reach, engagement, and adaptation, while navigating a global pandemic
Rotarians and Rotaractors worldwide unite in service to improve communities near and far. Together, we promote peace; provide clean water, sanitation, and hygiene; support education; fight disease; save mothers and children; grow local economies; protect the environment; provide disaster relief; and eradicate polio. This work takes commitment, knowledge, leadership, and above all, determination to take action.
We are guided by our Action Plan, which reinforces our vision, charts our future, and provides a strategy to steer us toward success. Our plan has four strategic priorities: increase our impact, expand our reach, enhance participant engagement, and increase our ability to adapt. Through this lens, we improve lives through service projects, community outreach, and personal and professional growth.
Rotary is about the power to connect, partner, and create change. Our work is methodical and steady, generating long-term results, like our decades-long commitment to eradicate polio. And when urgent needs arise, Rotarians respond — whether it’s by providing food and shelter after disasters or getting protective equipment to health care workers during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Click Here to scroll through the entire annual report.
State of New Hampshire COVID-19 Vaccine Information
NH Vaccination Schedule
January 5, 2021
CONCORD, N.H. —
New Hampshire health officials have outlined a COVID-19 vaccination schedule stretching into the summer that prioritizes health care workers and those at highest risk of developing serious symptoms if infected.
Gov. Chris Sununu said Tuesday that the decision was made to focus on risk groups, rather than on types of essential workers, other than health care workers and school faculty and staff.
"Those at highest risk get the vaccine first," Sununu said. "It's really that simple."
The timeline is an estimate and may change based on vaccine supplies or other factors, health officials said.
Under the timeline, Phase 1A is underway now and will last through January. It's focused on vaccinating high-risk health workers, long-term care residents and first responders.
Phase 1B will run from January to March and include anyone age 75 and older, along with people with medical conditions that put them at a significantly higher risk. Staff and residents of facilities for adults with intellectual and developmental disabilities will be part of this phase, along with corrections officers and staff members.
Phase 2A, running from March to May, will include anyone from 65 to 74 years old, along with K-12 teachers and school staff, and child care workers.
Phase 2B is also slated to run from March to May and will include people ages 50 to 65.
Phase 3A should begin in May and will include medically vulnerable people at moderate risk age 50 and younger. Phase 3B is set to begin at the same time and will include everyone else.
Granite Staters are urged to talk to their health providers and keep an eye out for state guidance to determine when they're eligible to get vaccinated. Information will also be updated on the state's COVID-19 website.
Sununu said health providers will have significant leeway to determine whether their patients are at particularly high risk, even if the patients don't have a condition specifically outlined in the state's guidance.
Dr. Beth Daly, chief of the Bureau of Infectious Disease Control, said New Hampshire has been doing well in distributing its vaccines. Data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention earlier this week had indicated that New Hampshire might be lagging behind other states, but Daly said those numbers can vary dramatically from day to day based on when providers submit their information to the CDC.
Daly said more than 30,000 people in New Hampshire have received their first dose of the vaccine, and second doses are beginning to arrive. She said more than 17,000 new doses arrived this week, and the state expects a similar number next week.
Fixed vaccination sites for first responders have vaccinated more than 5,000 people, and 20,000 have registered to be vaccinated, Daly said.
Health officials warned that even those who are vaccinated should continue to follow precautions such as maintaining distance, avoiding gatherings and wearing masks. The vaccines have been shown to be highly effective, but they aren't 100% effective. Until vaccination rates are high enough, the virus could still spread and threaten people's lives.
Estimated Distribution Timeline
The following is an estimated vaccine timeline for distribution from the state (updated Jan. 5, 2021):
Phase 1-A: Underway now through January
(about 110,000 people)
High-risk health workers
Long-term care residents
First responders
Phase 1-B: January to March
(about 225,000 people)
People 75 years old or older
Medically vulnerable at significantly higher risk, including family caregivers for those under 16
Staff and residents of IDD facilities
Corrections officers and staff
Phase 2A: March to May
(about 175,000 people)
People 65-74 years old
K-12 teachers, school staff, child care workers
Phase 2B: March to May
(about 200,000 people)
People 50-65 years old
Phase 3A: May and beyond
(about 325,000 people)
Medically vulnerable people 50 years of age and younger who are at a moderate risk
Phase 3B: May and beyond
(about 325,000 people)
Everyone else who has not yet been vaccinated
We are meeting via
Zoom!
We will be meeting every
Thursdays at 5:30 PM
Please join us if you can!!
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