President Christine Jensen rang the bell and welcomed club members and guests to the small, but mighty, Rotary Club of Arden Arcade. She thanked everyone for coming, we're having a fabulous year and it is not over yet.
Pledge:
Matt Ross
The Prez asked Matt Ross to lead the pledge to our flag.
The Prez then led the club in reciting the 4-Way Test:
1. Is it the TRUTH?
2. Is it FAIR to all concerned?
3. Will it build GOODWILL and BETTER FRIENDSHIPS?
4. Will it be BENEFICIAL to all concerned?
She then asked Bruce Stimson to provide the thought of the day.
Thought of the day:
Bruce Stimson
... and Guests!
Allison Hamaker - Visiting Rotarian
Matt Ross introduced Allison Hamaker, President Elect of the American River Rotary Club in the classification of Accountant.
Albert Chavez - Visiting Rotarian
The Prez introduced Albert is from the Historic Folsom AM Rotary Club and sits on the international board.
Peter Lelievre - Guest Speaker
Albert Chavez then introduced Peter as the primary guest speakers from the Flying Samaritans.
Ryan Harder - Guest of Emily Ballus
Emily introduced Ryan as her Director of Parks and Recreation. She is giving her staff a chance to get out of the office and prove to them she actually goes to Rotary on Tuesdays. Ryan specifically told the news editor not to mention that he is a member of the Kiwanis Club as he wanted to make sure they didn't find out he was at a Rotary meeting. (Does anyone have the email address for the Kiwanis president this year?... If so, please feel free to forward this newsletter to him/her!)
Ryan Driffill - Guest of Chris Lewis
Chris introduced Ryan as a former guest and a potential club member who will soon be turning in an application.
Jenny Davini - Bell Ringer X 2 &... Happy Bucks!
Jenny is ringing the bell twice in honor of her second granddaughter, Vivian Grace (Secret word is Grace). She is also donating Happy Bucks for not being born on March 15th, a tax deadline, and for being born in a room, as she was almost born in the hospital hallway.
Congratulations to the entire Davini Family,
especially its newest member, Vivian Grace.
Rolundia Mitchell - Sad Buck Bell Ringer
Rolundia is sad because she was just informed that her the the boarding school, that she went to in high school, is closing permanently. This is distressing news, worthy of ringing a bell in honor of the long history of the school located in Mississippi, and the lives changed by it.
Ben Fox - Bell Ringer
Ben Fox was ringing the bell as a way to say thank you to the club for supporting the Capital Community Athletics organization with the $400 donation to help them provide soccer services to the 200+ Afghani refugee children in the Arden Arcade and Carmichael area.
Joe Green - Happy Bucks
Joe was happy to contribute Happy Bucks because his daughter(?) is going to Kentucky/Louisville area on her mission trip and she needs a passport... The passport is not to go to Kentucky but to go on the mission trip to Mexico... at least that is what is sounded like. Joe was in the back part of the room, and spoke very quickly, with food in his mouth... well at least that is the way the recording sounded. Sorry Joe if this is not what you said... but we appreciate your happy bucks.
Duane Oliveira - Happy Bucks
Duane is happy to be at the meeting and is amazed at just what he has to do to make it to one of these meetings. He was in court in Cameron Park this morning and rather than driving all the way home and then back to to the meeting he went to Peet's and did some work. Coming out of Peet's, when all of a sudden, his feet go up and the rest of him went down, backwards without even bracing himself, and he hit his head resulting in his seeing stars. Luckily there was a kind samaritan nearby that helped him get to his feet. To clarify, Duane is not happy he fell, he is happy he is a hard headed Portege.
Steve Turner - Happy Bucks
Steve is happy that Duane is OK and he is here today. A little bit of history, Duane is the one that brought Happy/Sad bucks to the club. It has been about 10 years and we are very happy for all that Duane has done for the club.
District Governor, Steve Turner - Happy Bucks
Steve asked Rob how much he was committed to the sport of soccer. Rob paused, thought and answered $40. Steve matched his commitment. It was at this point that Rob, remembering the 4-Way Test, acknowledged that he needed to come up with an additional $20. Steve noted that as in global politics, so it is in Rotary... Trust but Verify! Only having $15 in his wallet, the remainder of his allowance from Vanessa, Rob asked if the club could trust him for the remaining $5. Al Cady does not take IOU's, so Steve offered to cover the remaining $5... just to keep Rob in the game. This is a subliminal plug for the upcoming poker tournament... we need more players!
Pins and Badges
Self Fine
Matt Ross - Rescue Bucks
Once again, Matt Ross steps in to save all those Rotarians that forgot to wear their pin or their badge. Not only did he offer to pay the fine but he gave everyone that needed one a new "Unite For Good" badge.
...especially if he is
bringing booze!
The Late Tom Goode
His fine was having to find a seat in the packed room,
not an easy task these days.
A New Badge Box?
Al Cady reminded the club that all badges are to be returned to the badge box. This is especially important at this time as a new- and-improved badge box will be hand crafted from wood obtained from our "unfriendly neighbor" to the north, Canada, prior to the imposition of tariffs on them. This is a project that has been in the planning stage for many months and will now be implemented by voluntold Rotary member, and newly appointed Assistant Sergeant at Arms, Chris Lewis... Now you know why Al is smiling like the Cheshire cat, he now has his very own minion.
AED Update
Matt reported that we have now completed 2 of the 3 AED installations. The second one was installed at Mira Loma High School. The high school has an amazing career path program that is training kids to be medical assistants. The Rotarians taught their beginning class CPR and their students helped with the class. They also taught them how to work an AED. The AEDs are amazing as they talk to you and tell you step by step what to do. They only have one more installation to do at Fulton - El Camino RPD in mid April. This will complete the $11,500 investment in our community. We will be close to 50 to 60 AEDs when all is said and done.
Richard Goore was asked if he wanted to say anything about the upcoming Fireside Chats and he asked the Prez if she had the signup sheets... she did not. Never-the-less, the Prez went on to remind everyone that they need to sign up once the sheets are back. Everyone is to pick a meeting that meets their schedule so the President Elect, Matt Ross, can take the feedback from the club and use it in his plans for the coming year.Tony Paulson will be hosting on Tuesday, April 1, Linda Bigler on Thursday, April 24, and Rob Olmstead on Wednesday, April 30. They all start at 6:00 PM and all will have alcohol and most likely, finger food.
Bruce Stimson was
Reluctant
to say the Secret Word
Reluctant
He won an IOU for a fantastic surprise gift,
soon to be delivered by Al
to Bruce, once he finds something he has too much of in his garage.
2025 Poker Tournament
Tom Goode thanked everyone that has worked hard to make this Saturday's tournament a huge success. This is its 14th year and we hope to have it continue for many more years. Tell your neighbors and friends that spectators are welcome and can watch and eat for $40. He reminded everyone that there is a fantastic whiskey barrel filled with expensive, top shelf, sippin whiskey. This barrel is a thing of beauty and sells for $500, as is, without any modifications. It will have doors and glass shelves, lights and whiskey, and is almost done... a voice from the back of the room, sounding very much like Al Cady, emphatically stated that "it is nowhere even close to being done." The value of the prize is well in excess of $3,000... even more if Al gets it completed.
Speaking of the Poker Tournament...
Rob Olmstead shared that his son called him in a panic and let him know that there was a guy trying to deliver a 55" TV to their house and wanted to know what he should do. Evidently, Tom takes great pleasure at shipping TV's to other people. Rob calmly said, 'sign for it. It is for the poker tournament." Now the TV can keep the poker table company in his garage and give his wife, Vanessa, one more thing to ask about with emphasis on why there is a TV in her garage and when will they be gone? Rob thanked Tom Goode for the added entertainment in his life and the opportunity to be of service to the club.
All Goode Things Must Come to an end!
Tom Goode became very solemn and announced that all good things must come to an end. He has lived in downtown Sacramento for 18 years, his family has lived there for the past two years, and it is time to move... to Carmichael, off of Walnut and Norris! They move at the end of the month and are very excited about it. They will have extra space and he will have a 30 minute commute, both of which he is excited about. For this, Tom will be a Bell Ringer. Also, his youngest daughter, Penelope, was recognized by the government as a U.S. citizen as of last Thursday. They had to fly back to Toronto to participate in an interview at the U.S. Embassy in the country of birth, to allow Penelope to get it done. When asked if she wanted to be a citizen of the United States, Penelope started crying... make of it as you will.
Dr. Lydia Wytrzes - New Club Member?
The Board has interviewed Lydia and has determined that she has met the club's high standards for membership. The Board is therefore recommending Lydia be approved for membership. Club members wishing to express their feels about her membership were asked to state them openly, or inprivate, to the Prez. Only positive comments were heard and the club voted her into membership. It should be noted that the female segment of the club is growing and could, if we are lucky, overtake the male counterparts. Tom Goode hadn't spoken in the last 3 minutes and found it necessary to once again fill the room with his melodious baritone voice, sharing that
Lydia was once a member of the Downtown club but her schedule kept her from being an active member. Her schedule has since been adjusted and she is ready to take an active role in a much better club. He is advocating for an affirmative vote on her membership. Dr. Dave expressed his regrets that he will no longer have the monopoly on being the only doctor in the club... but he is willing to share the prestige and looks forward to having another doctor in the club. John Gabriel noted that in the old, old, old days of Rotary, there was only one person per profession and Dr. Dave could have cast a deciding "No" vote. The Prez added that Lydia will be our guest speaker on April Fools Day... so she may or may not be our speaker. She also may or may not be inducted. Come and see.
Are You A Veteran?
The Prez needs to know who the veterans of the armed forces are in our club so she can forward their names on to the District. She did a quick show of hands and there were only 2 veterans in the meeting, John Gabriel and Chris Lewis. Please contact the Prez and let her know if you were a veteran. Al Frumkin felt it necessary to point out that going through a divorce does not make you a veteran of a foreign war. Michael Caplan was also recognized as being a veteran. We thank you all for your service to our country.
The Speaker Calendar is full... for the moment
Peter Lelievre, Flying Samaritans
Albert Chavez introduced Peter Lelievre by saying that he met Peter about a year ago at a time when he was trying to figure out his role in Rotary. Peter and the Flying Samaritans caught his attention and the more he learned the more he became shaken. Albert as the club if they "have you even been shook?" When you see the effect of the services provided by the flying samaritans on the people they serve, the miracle of clear sight for the first time, and the look on the persons face, that is being shook. There is a distinct contrast between our lives and conveniences and the everyday lives of the people who line up for hours just to receive health services. Please enroll yourself in what Peter has to share and you will see what shook him.
Peter's accent communicated that he was from Australia before he could actually say so. He came to San Francisco in 2006 with his family and have lived in Sausalito ever since. He was a CEO in Silicon Valley for many years and is now retired. He is a pilot and that is how he got involved in the Flying Samaritans.
Flying Samaritans has 1,500 members, 500 of them are active. Their mission is to fly volunteer doctors down to Baja California to provide free medical services, dental, vision, orthopedic and allied health services such as chiropractic care, to the underserved residence. Peter shared a video of their program. He noted that his chapter services San Quintin on the Pacific side of Baja and San Felipe on the Sea of Cortez side. San Felipe is primarily a vision clinique. The video he shared featured the farm workers that work on the tomato farm in San Quintin.
Volunteers from Sacramento, Stockton and Modest are picked up and flown down to Mexicali to clear customs before flying on to the final destination on Friday afternoon. The trip takes about 2.5 hours. On Saturday they provide their services. Saturday night they have a big dinner after working had all day. Sunday they fly back and arrive back in Sacramento at about 2:00 pm.
General health care is provided
Dental Services
Vision Services provide glasses,, most of which are donated by people from Sacramento.
Eyewear is needed., especially sunglasses and reader glasses.
Arden Arcade Rotary Club purchased the van previously given to Fulton El Camino RPD to help with transportation needs of FEC, Mission Oaks and Project Lifelong. The van was no longer useful for their transportation needs due to changes in DMV regulations. FEC sold the van back to Rotary for $1. Arden Arcade Rotary sold the van to Folsom Rotary for $12,000 with the proceeds to help purchase a smaller van that could be used for recreation transportation needs. Folsom Rotary donated the van to the Flying Samaritans for their transportation needs. The van was driven down to San Quintin this last December. It has been very helpful in transporting the volunteers from the airport to the hospital and around the city. Peter expressed their profound appreciation for our part in getting the van donated to them. This allowed them to utilize funds earmarked to purchase a new van for health equipment and supplies.
They are more interested in recruiting volunteers than donations. They need willing helpers to manage the intake and general needs. Spanish speakers are also very needed to help with communications.
Volunteers are needed to help provide the services. Medical personnel, doctors, dentists, nurses, medical practitioners are all needed as their members are starting to age out of service.
Staying connected to the Flying Samaritans will help them in their outreach efforts as well as helping them increase their network of supporting members and volunteers to aid them in their mission to provide needed health services to the poor in Mexico. President Christine thanked Peter for the presentation and the update on the van.
Please consider attending to help support our District Governor
President Jensen rang the bell, ending the meeting at about 1:00 PM, extoling all members to share the magic of Rotary.
Respectfully (more or less) submitted by,
Mike Grace
Reporter, Photographer and Editor
Hellen Weight
Ombudsman and Content Supervisor
DISCLAIMER - Some of the information provided in some of the articles, and possibly included in some of the "quotes" from club members, may have been a fabrication of a demented mind. It is up to you to determine fact from fiction. Individuals objecting to all or any part herein, are encouraged to go to Hellen Weight to lodge a formal complaint.
Club Information
Service Above Self
Tuesdays at 12:00 PM
Piatti
571 Pavilions Lane
Arden-Arcade, CA 95825 United States of America
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