13 local Rotarians and 4 Guests attended.  Our guests included PDG Don Watkins (RC of Peterborough-Kawartha), ADG Brenda Waugh, Gloria Aykroyd, and Rachel Parker.

Our speaker today was Rotarian Dr. Mohamed Abdalla, Chief of Intensive Care at TDMH.  Mohamed thanked everyone in the community for their support during the Covid-19 pandemic.  He advised us that there is now a Covid Screening Centre located at 17 Bear St. but by appointment only.  Anyone who is concerned about exposure and wants to be tested can call and arrange an appointment.  The Hospital is testing everyone who enters as a patient for Covid.

Re-opening the Hospital to normal care again will be a gradual process.  At present, the Outpatient Services are closed and he is seeing patients virtually.  The LHIN has addressed re-opening and if there is an increase in cases, then society will have to close again until the number of cases declines.  Social distancing has helped a lot but if only 55-65% of people comply with it, the number of cases will increase again.  So it is important to continue to keep our distance from one another.

Dr. Abdalla noted that as a result of the pandemic and isolation measures, the In Patient population dropped to 30% of normal and the Emergency Room was much less busy.  In some cases, patients who needed to seek hospital care had delayed attending because of fear of the Covid virus.  In some instances, this led to serious illnesses not being addressed as soon as they should have been.

The Hospital Staff had to develop protocols for working with patients to keep the Staff safe and yet provide necessary treatment.  They made plans to expand the ICU spaces and to re-train OR nurses to staff the ICU if needed.

Dr. Abdalla answered a number of questions.  He said that although no one knows for certain what long term sequellae may occur in recovered Covid patients, there may well be long lasting effects from the illness.  He also noted the effect on the healthcare workers from stress and mentioned psychological effects and Post Traumatic Stress Syndrome.

Work Party:  There is a work party at Memorial Park on Saturday morning in two groups of 5 each beginning at 8:30-9:30 and 10:00-11:00.  We will be cleaning up brush and watering our tree nursery.

Report from the Board of Directors Meeting:

The Club will donate $6500 to the Helping Hand Food Bank

13 local Rotarians were joined by guests Ryo Matsumoto (our ROTEX from Kanazawa, Japan), Brenda Waugh (ADG of District 1020 Scotland), Sheila Welham (RC of Burlington Central and a member of the District Youth Exchange Committee) and Dean Rutty who is the Chair of District Youth Exchange.

Speaker:  Ryo spoke to the Club about her home in Japan and her time in Tillsonburg.  She returns home on May 8. 

Japan is a smaller country compared to Canada but has 126 million people.  Ryo showed us her various school uniforms as well as her cheer leading uniform.  She showed us the Kimono, the formal dress for women in Japan.  It is a traditional costume mainly used now for special events such as graduation or when people come of adult age at age 20.

Ryo's first Host Family was the Mann family.  With them, she visited Niagara Falls and Toronto in the Winter.  She saw the Eaton Centre and dined atop the CN Tower.  Ryo also enjoyed the Mississauga orientation session for Youth exchange Students and their Christmas Party.  She attended the Winter meeting at Camp Wanakita with the Outbound Students and they slept in Quinsys, did Cross Country Skiing and snow shoeing.  Ryo described a Dog Sledding weekend in Haliburton with students from District 7070.

Her second Host Family was the Layman family and she visited Niagara Falls with them.

Ryo mentioned that she enjoyed attending our weekly Rotary meetings.

President John, Bob Marsden, Sheila Welham and Dean Rutty all thanked Ryo for her time with us and we will miss her.  She has been a great ROTEX!

Brenda Waugh also spoke to the Club about her experience in Tillsonburg 40 years ago.  She worked for Dr. Mary Wiltshire as a Nanny and also helped in the Veterinary Clinic.  Brenda joined Rotary in 2001 and has served as the District Communications Chair and is currently the ADG for District 1020.  When her term as ADG is completed, she will become the District Youth Chair.  In her vocation, she manages an Advisory Agency.  Brenda lives in Annan about 6 miles north of the border with England on the west coast of Scotland.

11 local Rotarians were joined on ZOOM by DG Lesley Barmania and her husband Aziz, PDG Doug Vincent, Peter Stam, Steve Zehr, and Anne and Don Soepboer.

President John Lohuis initiated the meeting with a Moment of Silence for the victims in Nova Scotia.

Speaker:  DG Lesley Barmania spoke about her experiences at the RI Convention in 2016 in Seoul, South Korea and how it relates to RI President Mark Maloney's theme of "Rotary Connects The World".  She spoke about how Rotary gives Hope and related their own experience in Seoul.  Her husband, Aziz suffered a medical emergency and was rushed to a hospital with internal hemorrhaging.  He was admitted to the ICU and underwent a number of diagnostic tests before the source of the bleed was identified.  He required emergency surgery and Lesley spoke of the wonderful support they  received from the local hotel, the hospital, the staff who helped translate for them, and the Rotary friends both Canadian and Korean who arranged to donate blood of Aziz's type (A neg).  The blood donations in  particular  were crucial to his survival.  Lesley showed us how Rotary is indeed one family worldwide and brings Hope not only to the communities we serve but in this case, desperately needed hope and help for one of our own Rotarians.

Our ROTEX, Ryo joined us today with her Host Mother.  Ryo will be returning to Japan on May 8 by way of a connecting flight from Vancouver to Tokyo.

Next Week:  Our speaker will be Kallista Chayil speaking on pitfalls with Wills and Estate Planning.

9 local members and Monica Clare, Don and Anne Soepboer, and Paul Gagnon (LPRCA) joined a very successful ZOOM meeting.

Our speaker was Paul Gagnon from the Long Point Region Conservation Authority speaking on "Healthy Watersheds".

The Conservation Authorities were formed in 1946 by Provincial Legislation and there are 36 of them in Ontario.  Their mandate is conservation, restoration and the development of water resources.

The areas on which they focus include Flood Control, Water Quality, Erosion Control, Natural Resource Development, and Park and Recreation opportunities.  Paul noted that Lake Erie water levels have been very high through January-march 2020.

LPRCA monitors water levels and quality but also things like aquatic insect populations (as a marker for water quality), water temperature and quality.  They check Brook Trout populations because they are a sign of good water quality.  Paul said they monitor ground water levels in the Norfolk Sand Plain Aquifer which supplies water for agriculture and municipalities in the area.  You can view the watershed Report Card on their website:  http://www.lprca.on.ca/pages/1317825417/Healthy-Watersheds

Drinking Water is important and they protect water from the source to the tap to ensure it is safe and of good quality for drinking.

Restoration is another focus for tree planting, meadow and prairie grass establishment, buffer zones, sediment basins and wetland creation.  Forests trap and store water and release it slowly.  Buffer strips (riparian zones) between agricultural land and streams use grass and trees to control erosion and improve water quality but controlling nutrient runoff.

Erosion Control includes rock embankments, catch basins and grass along banks.  Clean Water Programs  control nutrient entry into streams from manure, cattle and fertilizers.  Sediment basins trap sediments, clay runoff and nutrients leading to cleaner water. 

LPRCA also engages in public education of school children.

Next week, Brian Bennett and Darell Parker have a program on Membership.  Brian is the District Membership Chair and Darell is our ADG.

Future programs include the Harvard Aircraft Association, and Kallista Chayil on Will and Estate Planning.

The Tillsonburg Rotary Club announces the winners of the March Trip-of- the-Month Draw. On behalf of the Rotary Club of Tillsonburg, JOHN LOHUIS, President of the Rotary Club, congratulates the following winners of the Trip-of-the-Month draw:

1^st Prize: # 0402 – Jonathan Arnell

March Prize: Air Canada Vacations – Le Pavillion Hotel- New Orleans, Louisiana

2^nd Prize $100: # 0050 – Vanessa Aykroyd

3^rd Prize $75: # 0108 – Trudy & Dennis Vass

4^th Prize $75: # 0294 – Jay Luyt

5^th Prize $50: #0255 – Joe Haist

6^th Prize $50: #0136 – Laurel & Peter Beechey

7^th Prize $50: #0519 – Andrew Burns

Contact Information:

John Lohuis, President,

Rotary Club Tillsonburg

519-842-6780

ljohncanuck@hotmail.com

11 Rotarians and 3 guests attended at Corner Perk.  Guest:  Rachel Parker, Ryo (ROTEX), and Nancy Shields.

Rotary International's slogan for 2020-2021 is "Rotary Opens Opportunities".

President John Lohuis gave a presentation on Communities in Bloom for whom he is a judge and their visit to Lexington, Kentucky last year.

This is the 25th year for Communities in Bloom and they have been acquired by the Canadian Landscape Association. 

Communities in Bloom fosters civic pride in communities around the world and enhances green spaces.

Their criteria include tidiness, environmental factors, heritage conservation, urban forestry, landscapes and floral designs.

Lexington was founded in 1775 and now has a population of 330,000.  It is known as the Horse Capital of the World.

Until the 1840's, it had a large slavery commercial trade.  This continued for a while after that date despite regulations banning it.  John said the history of the Slave Trade in Lexington is mentioned but kept very muted.

The Rotary Club began there in 1915 and Rotary has been very active throughout the intervening years.  The Rotary Directory shows two clubs in Lexington today.

The city has pedestrian and bike paths, a historic clock (1830) on the street and decorative street lamps.  The streets have many (40) statues of horses located throughout the city.  John showed a photo of a street bench in the form of an open library book.  The first library was built in 1795 and in 1902, the Carnegie Library was constructed. 

There is lots of public art in the parks in Lexington.  John showed a photo of a downtown Off Leash Dog Park.  He also had photos of Keeneland Park, a large horse racing track and horse auction site.

The Tillsonburg Rotary Club announces the winners of the November Trip-of- the-Month Draw. On behalf of the Rotary Club of Tillsonburg, JOHN LOHUIS, President of the Rotary Club, congratulates the following winners of the Trip-of-the-Month draw:

1^st Prize: #0115 Marianne Sandham

November Prize: West Jet Vacations- Caesars Palace – Las Vegas, Nevada

2^nd Prize $100: #0057 Ken & Olga Patterson

3^rd Prize $75: #0406 Lindsey & Paul McLeish

4^th Prize $75: #0282 Olga Patterson

5^th Prize $50: #0452 Carla Cameron

6^th Prize $50: #0552 Gail Mabee

7^th Prize $50: #0370 Mary Lohuis

Contact Information:

John Lohuis, President,

Rotary Club Tillsonburg

519-842-6780

ljohncanuck@hotmail.com

The Tillsonburg Rotary Club announces the winners of the September Trip-of- the-Month Draw. On behalf of the Rotary Club of Tillsonburg, JOHN LOHUIS, President of the Rotary Club, congratulates the following winners of the Trip-of-the-Month draw:

1^st Prize: #0531 – Brad Hollister

September Prize: Great Canadian- Boston Sight Seeing Tour

2^nd Prize $100: #0074 Brad & Sara Clark

3^rd Prize $75: #0105 Marie Blake

4^th Prize $75: #0500 Patricia Phelps

5^th Prize $50: #0579 Wendy Phelps

6^th Prize $50: #0572 Bill Hodgkinson

7^th Prize $50: #0051 Linda & Dave Bertling

Contact Information:

John Lohuis, President,

Rotary Club Tillsonburg

519-842-6780

ljohncanuck@hotmail.com