Rotary Club of Casper WY
Meeting Summary
1/11/2016
Club President John Starnes called the meeting to order promptly at 12:27, and welcomed everyone to the club meeting. He asked if there were any Cincinnati Bengals fans in the crowd because of the scrappy game between the Bengals and the Steelers on Sunday; fortunately the Steelers won….. Evidently Steve Loftin was a Bengals fan, so the harassment started…..
Inspiration, Pledge, 4-Way Test:
Robin Mundell
Greeters:
Tom Crull and Bret Ladenburger were our greeters and Bret introduced guests:
First, Visiting Rotarians, Helen Bishop (Jackson Supper Club) and Tanya Lewis (Casper Five Trails);
- Grant Stumbaugh introduced Dennis Sun;
- Guy DeWitt introduced his children, Joan and Skyler;
- Hal Hutchinson introduced his son, Kendall;
- Vickie Diamond introduced Caryn Luberto (WMC Foundation);
- Robin Mundell introduced City Manager, V.H. McDonald;
- Tara Short introduced Kim Summerall-Wright(Casper Housing Authority);
- Martha Rakestraw introduced Rev. Mary Bates (1st Methodist);
- the parents of our Students of the Month were introduced, along with KW principal – Brad Diller and NC Principal – Shannon Harris, and;
- Our fabulous exchange student, Elise, was welcomed by club members.
4-Way Test Coin:
President John, in his usual humorous way, presented 2015-2016 RI-themed, 4-way test coins to club members for doing random things……. Ed Opella, for being honest to him at the grocery store; Robin Mundell for being nice to him in public; Brian Deurloo for talking favorably about President John and the coins; and Dennis Gazdiewich for being back to the club meeting after back surgery last week.
Song and merriment:
Dennis Lower lightened the mood and entertained us with a couple of jokes, and then Gary Pehrson led us in singing “Rotary” – he did actually lead us, because most members didn’t know the words……so learning them will become a 2016 resolution.
Students of the Month:
President John asked Eric Easton to introduce the students from Kelly Walsh High School – Grant Murphy (son of Rotarian Kevin Murphy) who plans to attend Notre Dame after graduation and major in Finance; and Ellie Rone, who plan to major in Kinesiology and Spanish, and then attend medical school. Martha Rakestraw then introduced the students from NCHS – Taylor Hatcher, who wants to become a homeopathic doctor and do mission work around the world, and Spencer Maple who plans to attend Montana State University and pursue film school. All four students were charming and it was a delight to listen to their stories.
Family of Rotary:
Kevin Murphy announced that former club member, Whit Bradley, is in a nursing home in Boulder, and is very happy.
Rotarians of the Week:
Robin Mundell nominated Dr. Michel Skaf for becoming a new U.S. citizen today. Tim Monroe nominated Mark Zaback for being nominated to the U.S. Federal Reserve Board in Kansas City. John Griffith nominated Mike Sullivan for being presented with the “Citizen of the West” Award at the Western Stock Show this week. Jim Anderson nominated Jason DeWitt for having the guts to wear a plaid coat to the meeting. Way to go, Rotarians!!
Club Announcements:
Liz Becher shared photos from the RI President’s Dinner in Denver over the weekend, and highlighted the presentations – Rachel Lonsdale, with the Gates Foundation Polio Division, updated the Rotarians on the financial commitment the Gates Foundation will continue to make towards eradicating polio in partnership with Rotary. She shared a video of Bill Gates thanking Rotary. RI President Ravi then discussed Rotary’s financial and “boots on the ground” involvement with polio eradication – specifically with the United Nations, World Health Organization, and International Centers for Disease Control. Pakistan will be the next country focus for polio eradication; leaving only Afghanistan. 530 Rotarians attended the dinner – 8 from Casper (DGE Barbara Redder and
Don, Casper Five Trails President Wayne Heili and his wife, PE Jim Ruble and Ann, Hal Hutchinson, and Liz.
President John reminded the members about the Club goal of achieving the RI Presidential Citation, and invited Board member, Heidi Foy, forward to update the members on the newest goal accomplishment related to Public Relations. Heidi has setup a Facebook page for our club!!! She encouraged the club members to “like it” – even if President John’s picture is on it.
Board member, Eric Easton, then reminded the members to sign up in My Rotary – which is another goal for the Citation. Rotaract President, Amanda Sutton, will be at the meeting next week to work with individual club members to get set up.
Stephanie Reid announced that the Rotary scholarships are available to high school seniors. See her for an application and the requirements.
Program (The Chamber of Commerce Leadership Casper Program):
President John introduced our program for today.
Chamber Director, Gilda Lara, started the program off by defining the goals of the Leadership Casper program – to identify, educate, and motivate future leaders in Casper, Natrona County, and the State. There were over 30 applicants this year for the program; 21 is the maximum class size. Gilda then introduced Leah Reeb, Business Development Manager for the Chamber.
Leah referenced the program brochures on the tables. The program is an 8-month learning session, but actually is a two-year commitment because the LC graduates volunteer their time to lead class sessions the following year. The class sessions include education, team building, tours, presentations, webcasts, lunch and learns, government overviews, industry speakers, non-profit updates, and volunteerism opportunities. Next, LC alumna, Tanya Lewis, shared her experiences from the program. She encouraged Rotarians to nominate employees. The cost is $850; the application process begins in June; the program meets the 2nd Thursday of each month from 8 – 5 (Sept-May).
President John announced that next week’s program will be an update about the Rotary Park project by Bill Schilling. PE Jim Ruble will be presiding over the meeting, as John will be gone. He adjourned the meeting at 1:26 p.m.
“Be a gift to the world”
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