MANDATORY PARTICIPATION EVENTS FOR ALL THOUSAND OAKS ROTARIANS:
STREET FAIR - SUNDAY in OCT 18, 2026 SEE CRYSTAL EVANS
CHILI COOK-OFF-2027 TBD- SEE MARISSA BUSS
WINE FESTIVAL- June 13th 2027 - SEE DAVE MASCI
_____________________
Keith Wintermute International Chair- Polio Plus
Don Moors receives 31 Years of Service recognition from Marc Feigen and President Michelle
__________________________
BECOMING A ROTARIAN IS A MEANINGFUL EXPERIENCE....
Invite a friend, family member, colleague to join Rotary.
Encourage Them to Be Part of Something GREAT!!!
Why wouldn’t you want them to be part of an organization that feeds the hungry, cures the sick, provides education to women and children, provides clean water and sanitation. And now is taking on the environment. And have fun while were doing it!!!
President Michelle opened the meeting with a cheerful, “Welcome, welcome, welcome! So happy to be here with all of you!”
She reminded everyone that last week we completed—and surpassed—our challenge of providing 2,026 volunteer hours in honor of America’s 2,026 birthday year. The club reached the goal ahead of schedule, averaging more than 200 volunteer hours each week!
Michelle also reminded everyone about our other challenge for the year: 5,200 Random Acts of Kindness. These acts can be as simple as saying hello to a stranger, helping someone load their groceries, or simply being kind to others.
To honor the spirit of kindness, Michelle asked everyone to stand up, turn to the person next to them, and share something they like about that person. Soon the room was filled with chatter, laughter, and happiness as members recognized one another for the things they appreciate and the kindness, they have shown.
Michelle then welcomed Roger Benson back to the meeting. It was great to see him again!
INSPIRATIONAL MOMENT
Pat Hanley reminded us that inspiration comes from many places—and then added, “You all inspire me!”
She talked about the cupcakes and candles passed out at last week’s meeting to celebrate completing our 2,026 volunteer-hour challenge. The special treat brought smiles to everyone’s faces and was a wonderful reminder of what we can accomplish together.
Pat thanked everyone for being “a candle that lights up our community” and closed with a heartfelt message: “You all inspire me. Keep up the good work!”
SONG
Following the Pledge of Allegiance, Michael Ladd led us in singing “My Country, ’Tis of Thee.”
GUEST INTRODUCTIONS
Jason Corey introduced our one guest, Julie Schaler, a guest of Jessica Sassalos
President Michelle kicked off the announcements by having everyone sing “Happy Birthday” to Rotarian Gary Siegel. What a great way to celebrate!
Monica Murrietta reminded everyone about our pumpkin decorating event on October 4th (Sunday). She asked any Rotarians who are growing succulent plants at home donate some and bring them to Rotary next week so they can be used for the pumpkin decorating.
Laura Conway, along with her team, Marc Feigen and Dorothy Sullivan, came forward to talk about Charity Karaoke. Laura thanked everyone for allowing her to share information about this fun event and reminded us that our Rotary Club is a big part of it through Team Rotary. Marc explained that for a donation of $1 or more, you can join Team Rotary and receive a ticket to the Charity Karaoke event. Team Rotary members will also have the opportunity to go on stage and present all the money collected to the winner of the best performance. Dorothy announced that $2,002 has already been collected, and the team hopes even more Rotarians will participate. Laura shared that last year’s event raised more than $52,000, which was distributed to nonprofits throughout the area. She hopes te event can surpass that amount this year!
Victor Hayek announced that the Nominating Committee will soon be meeting to develop the slate of next year’s board members. If you are interested in running for the board, please let Victor know by October 10th.
Sarah Collins reminded everyone about our upcoming off-site meeting at the Thousand Oaks Inn Hotel and The Pizza Cookery. Sign-up sheets were available on the table, and anyone planning to attend needs to let Sarah know.
Victor also reminded everyone that Rotary will once again participate in Trunk or Treat on Halloween, a fun event for children in the community. He asked everyone to try to donate at least one bag of candy to be passed out at the event.
President Michelle then announced that we will be collecting donations for K-9s for Warriors, a nonprofit our club has supported for many years. The organization provides therapy dogs to veterans, and Michelle shared that the suicide rate among veterans declines significantly after receiving a service dog. Nate Harimoto will be at next week’s meeting to tell us more about this wonderful program and how we can help support it.
HAPPY DOLLARS- Kyle Lundberg carried the Happy Cup
President Michelle started off Happy Dollars by celebrating her daughter Chloe, who is on Day 4 at her new job! Chloe wanted everyone to know that she misses being at Rotary this week and that the last few weeks of attending Rotary have been the highlight of her week. Michelle and her husband, Shannon, thanked all of the Rotarians for being so supportive and welcoming to their daughter.
Darin Arrasmith shared that he spoke with Pat McCoy, who had knee replacement surgery just two days ago. Pat is experiencing some pain but is doing pretty well and is looking forward to returning to club meetings on October 22nd.
Darin also shared some exciting news about one of the students who attended RYLA. The student organized a fundraiser to raise money and collect supplies for the less fortunate in Mexico. They found an adult chaperone this week., so that means the students will be able to take the money and supplies they raised to Mexico this week.
Marc Feigen said modern medicine is amazing! Having undergone abdominal surgery just six days ago, he was happy to be back at Rotary and ready to “put some bread in the jar” in the form of Happy Dollars.
Keith Wintermute put in $10 and shared that he and his wife, Jody, had a wonderful trip to Scotland and London. They are happy to be home, although Keith admitted they may have enjoyed a little too much Scotch along the way! He also reminded everyone on the International Committee to look at the email he sent and vote on the grants discussed there so they can be presented to the board.
Victor Hayek shared that he had just returned from the President-Elect Retreat. During the retreat, attendees talked about what their Rotary clubs do and the fundraisers they organize. Victor said the experience made him realize just how incredible the Rotary Club of Thousand Oaks is. He was amazed by how much our club does compared with other clubs.
Monica Murrietta shared that she participated in the Ronald McDonald House fundraising walk last week. There was a special area for Rotarians, and three other Rotary clubs participated—one from Santa Paula and two from Ventura. Monica especially enjoyed sitting down and talking with the other Rotarians.
Karen Albaum put in a Happy Dollar to commemorate Gary Siegel’s birthday.
Jessica Sasselos took a moment to remember her mother, who was also a Rotarian in the Boston area. Her mother’s role was to bring speakers to the club meetings. Jessica said she knows her mother is looking down and shining on her because this week it was Jessica’s turn to bring a speaker to our club.
Finally, Gary Siegel put in a Happy Dollar to share that he attended the T.O. Rotary board meeting this week and left feeling filled with joy from all of the wonderful things our Rotary Club does. He expressed his gratitude for our kindness, our gratitude for the community, and for knowing all of us.
Keith Wintermute, the club’s International Chair, reminded us of the devastating impact polio can have on children. He asked everyone to imagine a child who is healthy and able to run and play, and then suddenly is unable to walk because of polio. “That is what polio does to children,” he said.
Keith explained that there is no cure for wild poliovirus and that polio can cause irreversible paralysis. Rotary continues to lead the fight to eradicate this devastating disease, providing more than $50 million each year toward polio eradication efforts. The Gates Foundation then matches Rotary’s contributions 2-to-1, helping fund vaccinations around the world.
Keith emphasized that the fight is not over. Afghanistan and Pakistan are currently the only two countries where wild poliovirus remains endemic, and he noted that 36 cases of wild polio have been reported this year.
He reminded everyone how important it is to continue supporting Rotary’s fight to end polio and encouraged members to continue donating generously so that one day no child will have to suffer from this terrible disease.
President Michelle asked Marc Feigen to come forward to recognize a Rotarian who joined the Rotary Club of Thousand Oaks 31 years ago.
That Rotarian is Don Moore, a graduate of Washington State University who has a special love for his grandchildren.
Marc presented Don with a certificate recognizing his many years of service and dedication to Rotary. The club then gave Don a well-deserved standing ovation in appreciation of his 31 years as a member of the Rotary Club of Thousand Oaks.
Monica Murrietta, the club’s Foundation Chair, came forward to congratulate four Rotarians who were being recognized for receiving their first Paul Harris Fellow.
The Paul Harris Fellow is awarded to an individual who contributes $1,000 to The Rotary Foundation, recognizing their generous support of Rotary’s humanitarian work around the world.
Congratulations to Michael Ladd, Keith Wintermute, Jody Wintermute, and Gary Siegel on this meaningful achievement! Their generosity helps Rotary continue making a difference in communities around the world.
From Left to Right-Foundation Chair- Monica Murrietta, Paul Harris Recipients-Michael Ladd, Keith Wintermute, Jody Wintermute and Gary Seigel. Also pictured- President Michelle Nash
SERVICE ABOVE SELF.....Things to do and/or help in our Community..
Rotary Board Meeting - 2nd Monday of Every Month 5:30pm Cancer Support Community office 4195 E. Thousand Oaks Blvd.
Day of Service- Oct 3rd- helping The Hub (non-profit) ready their facility. See Nelson Buss
Craft Day-Oct 4th Pumpkin Art Project making succulent arrangements in pumpkins-Bing your own Pumpkin- Succulents and other supplies provided to join the fun see Nancy Wohl
Peace BBQ for the Homeless Thrive Grove October 10th Sign Up to provide Food and Volunteers needed (see Mike Ladd)
Charity Karaoke- October 11, Canyon Club
Offsite Meeting Thousand Oaks Inn- October 15th- See Sara Collins
Street Fair October 18th.... ALL HANDS ON DECK
October 24th Trunk or Treat for Kids See Jessica Sassalos
October 39 Todd Road Jail-Storebook Project- See Trevor Tyloch
Jessica Sasselos came forward to introduce our guest speaker, Lila Faz. Jessica shared the wonderful story of how she and Lila first met—in the diaper-changing room at Nordstrom’s at the Thousand Oaks Mall. Both women were on maternity leave with brand-new baby boys. They exchanged phone numbers, met for coffee, and soon became close friends.
Jessica described Lila as a brilliant marketing mind and welcomed her to the Rotary Club of Thousand Oaks.
Lila began her presentation by sharing that she worked for a marketing firm for 10 years before eventually developing her own marketing company, Hunt/Craft. Her company focuses on getting a better diagnosis of a company’s underlying issues so that the best marketing solution can be developed. Lila emphasized that the first step is always to define the problem.
She often refers to a quote attributed to Albert Einstein:“If I had one hour to solve a problem, I’d spend 55 minutes thinking about the problem and five minutes thinking about solutions.”
Lila spent several minutes explaining how to actually define a problem and shared a four-level approach for getting beneath the surface of an issue:
1. State the problem or opportunity as you currently understand it.
2. Ask, “But why is this happening?” What may be driving the problem?
3. Take the answer and ask again, “But why?” What might be underneath it?
4. Ask one more time, “But why?” Keep going until you reach something more human, specific, and meaningful.
Her message was that by taking the time to truly understand the problem beneath the surface, we can develop solutions that address the real issue rather than simply treating the symptoms.
Following her presentation, several questions were asked and answered, giving members an opportunity to explore Lila’s ideas further.
President Michelle then asked Lila to sign a book that will be donated to a Title I school in her honor.
Michelle thanked Lila for sharing her expertise and thanked everyone who participated in today’s program. With that, the meeting was adjourned.
