Meeting Recap for November 21, 2011
Ruthie Bolton showed Rotary Club of Sacramento that her talents extend well beyond basketball, serenading them with an a cappella rendition of “Amazing Grace” and then giving them a glimpse into her new book, “Ride of a Lifetime,” Monday at the Radisson.
Bolton a two-time Women’s National Basketball Association all-star with the now-defunct Sacramento Monarchs and twice Olympic basketball champion (1996 in Atlanta and 2000 in Sydney) told Rotarians that her life is characterized by grace—but the 16th of 20 children born to a Mississippi preacher wasn’t being boastful or engaging in self-aggrandizement.
She, who was introduced by Chair of the Day Bob Rosenberg, was talking about GRACE, an acronym which has guided her life and she is now ready to share with others through her book. “G” stands for giving, “R” for resilience, “A” for attitude, “C” for challenge and “E” for empower—all lessons she learned from her late father while growing up in a large household, playing college ball at Auburn University and from life in general.
Always one to walk the talk, the Elk Grove resident volunteers with Habitat for Humanity and Say No to Drugs while staying busy raising two children—and occasionally dabbles in gospel singing while working on her book.
RCS’s newest Paul Harris Fellow is going to receive double the normal recognition thanks to an oversight by club staff. Kim Mueller was ready to give Joe Wojciechowski his Paul Harris award Monday, with wife Rita on hand to share the moment, but alas, the award was still sitting on Club Executive Director Hal Shipley’s desk back at the Rotary office. He’ll be presented with the award at a future meeting.
Todd Sorensen, no relation to Past-President Scot, was introduced as the newest member of RCS. Todd, who is with Five Star Bank, was sworn in by President Ken Noack. He was sponsored by Dennis Dalton and Steve Heath.
Larry Knapp opened the meeting, providing the Thought for the Day by reading from Carla Genender’s book, Dogsense, which offers 99 tips on caring, affection, communication, acceptance, and appreciation that people can learn from dogs.
President Ken noted with sadness the passing of George Wong, long-time RCS member and founder of the Bel Air Markets chain. A eulogy will be presented at a future meeting.
Dick James and Michele Amaral of Dick James & Associates were the meeting sponsors. Denise Mazzucca-Barrett provided the pre-meeting wine reception and Elfrena Foord provided piano music during the reception.