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Tomorrow’s meeting:
Peer Supports and WRAP: Staying Connected During a Pandemic Melanie Little, Certified WRAP Specialist, Mental Health Association in Tompkins County
Join the Zoom Meeting September 9, 2020
Newsletter Reporter: Kelly Buck | Photos: Mike Brown | Editor: Ted Schiele “There were bells on a hill / But I never heard them ringing / No, I never heard them at all / Till there was you”* Heidi Goldstein needs a new bell with which to open the meetings, President Geoff Dunn declared, one that can actually be heard across the Zoomosphere. President Geoff commented on the weather; Summer heat deteriorating into Fall chill within the week.  We have been reporting on President Geoff’s budding traditions, the most salient of them being his random pick of four members to recite the Four-Way Test. Alas, and sadly, this has not worked very well. Attendees are muted, don’t hear their name being called, don’t understand what they’re being asked to do, or (gasp!) don’t know the Four-Way Test. Sooooo, President Geoff is going to try something else in the future.
In the meantime, let’s go over this: - First, is it the Truth? Yes, there is clearly a gap in knowing the words to the Four-Way Test (of the things we do and say).
- Second, is it Fair to all concerned? Well, maybe not fair to expect everyone to know it without a banner to read from.
- Third, will it build goodwill and better Friendships? I’ll go Yes on this one, because we’re all in this together and no one is shamed.
- Fourth, is it Beneficial to all concerned. Yes, knowing the Four-Way Test is definitely beneficial to all concerned (though maybe putting people on the spot is a No).
 George Gull gave the Thought for the Day on tolerance in observance of the 19th anniversary of 9/11. Citing recent events — COVID-19, Black Lives Matter, an economy in turmoil, and the upcoming election — George questioned why so many are reacting to these as black and white issues; no gray.
The word that comes to mind, he said, is “Tolerance.” “Where has the tolerance in our daily thinking gone?” George then turned a corner to reflect on his career of building Spectrometers, and neatly brought this paradigm back to the concept of Tolerance. Please scroll down to the end of the newsletter to read George’s entire Thought. Rotarians introduced guests and visiting Rotarians. Maricelis Acevedo and Dennis Gray did the weekly DoGoodery raffle, which during September benefits The Lansing Lunchbox. This week, 103 tickets were sold in hopes of winning a $100 gift certificate to Coltivare. The winner was #79, the ticket belonging to Trumansburg Rotary President Peggy Haine! Next week is a gourmet wine selection. Buy tickets from Ray Brisson until 5:00 p.m. Monday night. More donations at the $50+ level are welcome. * “Till There Was You,” by Meredith Willson
 President Geoff mentioned that an e-invoice for August Happy Dollars has gone out from Mary Berens. Please pay up! He also put in a plug for Emergency Preparedness Month. He then called on Larry Baum, who gave an update on exciting news from the Ithaca airport: American Airlines will now offer one flight a day to Charlotte, and has dropped its service to Philadelphia for now. These are challenging times, and Larry urged Ithacans to fly from the local airport. Planes are the cleanest they’ve ever been.
Geoff thanked Heidi Goldstein for her efforts coordinating the 14th annual Rotary Harvest, which wrapped up the previous weekend. Heidi, in turn, thanked all the Rotarians who came out to help on the three Saturdays. She also asked for feedback on their deliveries that she can share with the school district. Aly Evans, co-chair of the Community Grants Committee, did a nice recap to close out our 2019 grant round. Usually, we would have had the recipients come and report back to the club in person, but you know how that went! Aly reviewed the 8 grants the club made last October for a total of $7,163. This year’s grant winners will be announced at our October 7 meeting.
 
 Angela Sullivan is in charge of September’s speakers, and she happily introduced her team from the Alcohol and Drug Council (ADC) — Emily Parker, Moira McJury, and Stacy Cangelosi — who engaged everyone in a game of Tompkins County trivia.  Especially during COVID, it’s been very important for this team and the ADC to maintain connections with the population they serve. Angela is proud of the good work her team has been doing.
The ADC team sent attendees into Zoom breakout rooms to answer three rounds of questions about local services provided. At the end of each session, all the participants came back to review the answers and a random person was drawn to win a $10 Ithaca Bakery coupon. Winners were: Heidi for round 1, Dale Flinn for round 2, and visiting Rotarian Lizzy Martin for round 3. It was fun, engaging and well done!
Workers:
• Thought for the Day, George Gull
• Introductions, Rotary hosts introduced their guests
Set-Up: Angela Sullivan
Bulletin Reporter: Kelly Buck
Photographer: Mike Brown
Bulletin Editor: Ted Schiele
Club Service Facilitators, Beverly Baker & June Losurdo
Sunshine Chair, Kellyann O’Mara
September 16, 2020
Join the Zoom Meeting
Peer Supports and WRAP: Staying Connected During a Pandemic Melanie Little, Certified WRAP Specialist, Mental Health Association in Tompkins County
Today, the 9th of September is two days after a National Holiday, Labor Day, and two days before the 19th observance of 9/11. Does it even seem possible? We are at a very interesting time in our country’s history; COVID-19, Black Lives Matter, an economy in great turmoil, and a presidential election in 55 days. Unfortunately we as a people seem to be reacting to these and many other events as a black or white issues. One word that immediately comes to my mind is “tolerance”. Where has the “tolerance” in our daily thinking gone? From the Merriam-Webster dictionary, one meaning of tolerance is, “sympathy or indulgence for beliefs or practices differing from or conflicting with one's own.” For many in our society we have become “black or white” on many issues of importance. I spent my entire professional career building instruments for astronomers, specifically something called “spectrometers.” Spectrometers can take light coming from a source and differentiate the light into different wavelengths. A star isn’t just white light, but is made up of many different colors of light. Just like people, stars are very different and a spectrometer allows an astronomer to tell the difference. As a people we become too focused on Black or White or Brown or Yellow, Right or Wrong, Straight or Gay, Good or Bad. The list goes on and on. I grew up in a very small town in southwestern South Dakota. We actually had racial diversity in my home town; we had two African American families, the Baileys and the Kerchervals — The Kerchervals were actually part of the General Custer expedition into the Black Hills in the 1870s, and they stayed. There were Mexican Americans, Native Americans and of course the dominant White Americans. One of the things that I absorbed during my growing up was from the Native Americans around me: ”never judge another person until you have walked a mile in his or her moccasins.” That is a great way to think about tolerance. I encourage all of you to think about bringing “tolerance” into your thinking patterns, especially in the coming days and weeks. Whether is it about BLM, rising violence in our country, or your views on the any of the candidates running for public office. Nothing is Black or White; there are many shades of grey in all that we do. Listen to what others are saying. You don’t have to agree, but I believe it is necessary for each of us to respect others in our society in a world that has many shades of grey! Thank you! George Gull
9/9/2020
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