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May 24, 2017 I hope everyone had a lovely holiday weekend, and took some time to consider the meaning of Memorial Day (originally Decoration Day). My wife and I followed through with our traditions; watching the National Memorial Day Concert, Sunday evening on PBS, and then attending the brief ceremony at the West Groton Cemetery, just down the road from us. We see the neighbors we haven’t seen since last Memorial Day, and stand side-by-side to remember those who have served in the armed forces, and those who have fallen in war.
After Dale Johnson led the Four-Way Test, Brad Carruth stepped in with his Thought for The Day. Brad’s theme was Memorial Day, and he read three tight quotes: - There was one of two things I had a right to: liberty or death. If I could not have one, I would take the other, for no man should take me alive. I should fight for liberty as long as my strength lasted, and when the time came for me to go, the Lord would let them take me. — Harriet Tubman
- One of the indispensable foods of the human soul is liberty. — Simone Weil
- America did not invent human rights. In a very real sense human rights invented America. — Jimmy Carter
Brad stayed on to introduce guests and visiting Rotarians.
The Chautauqua Irrelevancy by President Dale (four weeks to go) Johnson was about the birth of Nat Geo, The National Geographic Magazine. Launched in October 1888 by the National Geographic Society as a way to spread knowledge about geography, the publication was a hit and soon became an American institution. People saved their copies, like they saved books, and were transported by the maps of and charts about distant lands, reports of great scientists and explorers, and amazing nature photography.
Membership in the Society ($5 per year) hit a plateau in the late 1890s, until Society president Alexander Graham Bell led a campaign by personally writing to inform people they had been “recommended for membership,” and their subscription would support new scientific explorations around the world. Nat Geo had many firsts in magazine photography, including color in 1910, flashlight photos of wild animals, natural color photos of undersea life, and pictures taken from the stratosphere. And while pictures of native peoples in colorful clothing was quite popular, native peoples from the far corners of the world wearing no clothing was even more so.
BTW, anyone recall another geographic event that occurred close by in 1888?
The red ticket drawing prize was two tickets to see former Vice President Biden at Cornell’s Convocation.
 A celebration of the life of Rotarian Carman B. Hill, who died on January 18, 2017, will be held on June 3, 2017 at 3:00 p.m. at the First Congregational Church of Ithaca, 309 Highland Rd. All are welcome to attend.
The Rotary Board Meeting was held last night (Tuesday) at the conference room at Hospicare.
Jean McPheeters sent out an email about the Rotary Diaper Drive, with thanks to all who have contributed time or treasure, and news that the diaper goal has been met. However, the mark for soap and personal care items is lagging a bit. Jean wrote the following: “Happily Catholic Charities is having a ‘SOAP FOR HOPE’ drive right now, so if you can bring in a few things either this Wednesday, May 31 or on June 7, it will count towards that drive and our numbers.”
Fireworks Planning is going strong and we need people to reach out to businesses and ask if they would put out canisters for donations. Tompkins Trust already has the canisters out. There are 100 canisters on the way. Talk to Jeff Becker if you have a business that has agreed to put out a canister.
Two new members were introduced: Kim Pugliese, Director of Development at Challenge Workforce Solutions, by her sponsor Joe Sammons, and Ryan Harriott, a Program Manager at the Women’s Opportunity Center, by Ron Provus on behalf of her sponsor, Kathy Nivison. Welcome Kim and Ryan!
 
 The highway clean-up crew got a round of applause along with heartfelt thanks from crew boss John Barradas. Mary-Lynn Cummings, Joe Cassaniti, June Losurdo, Bez Thomas, Jeff Becker, and JoEllen Hedlund rounded out the team.
 Happy Dollars celebrated Brian Wilbur (he is back!), weight loss (doctor’s orders) and a new job (Shakespeare’s orders), a daughter’s move to Baldwinsville, a trip to Italy, a successful pacemaker installation, and Bez Thomas gave $6 for the 6 days that he has been an American! Well done, Bez!
Larry Robinson introduced the speaker Laura Georgianna, Director of the Roy H. Park Leadership fellows in the Johnson School of Business.
 The presentation was titled “Johnson Park Fellows and Ithaca Community Partnership” and focused on the program that has been a part of the Johnson School for 20 years. The Triad Foundation funds the program which strives to push MBA students to grow as leaders.
In the program, 24 MBA students are offered a year of full tuition scholarship for the two years they are working towards their degree. There are no grades or credit for the Fellowship work; students have to want to put effort in. The program looks for the 4 Cs that are believed to help leaders be more effective – Competence, Character, Compassion, and Courage.
 Participants are expected to take on leadership roles in the community of Ithaca and Tompkins County. The fellows are a diverse group with varying experiences and backgrounds. They participate in community services that run the gambit from active jobs such as cleaning up areas, to developing solutions to a problem a local organization is struggling with. Each finds their own project based on true need of the organization and interest from the student. The projects start in the fall of the second year and can run through the next spring.
Laura would like to see the program become more engaged with the community and with Rotary. The fellows are a great resource to the community and the community is a great resource to the fellows program. The fellows work with local organizations to create a solution to whatever the problem is that will be sustainable even after the fellow graduates.
Ambassadors: None
Visiting Rotarians: Dann VanDervliet, Burlington (Vt.) Sunrise Rotary
Students: None
Workers:
• Greeter, Marshall McCormick
• Kettle, Bill Currie
• Thought for the Day, Brad Carruth
• Introductions, Brad Carruth
Set-Up: Ron Provus, Scott Russell, Dave Martin & Brad Carruth
Bulletin Reporter: Margaret Frank
Photographer: Mike Brown
Bulletin Editor: Ted Schiele
Club Service Facilitators, Beverly Baker & Joanne Lamoureux
Sunshine Chair, Kellyann O’Mara
Club Service Facilitator Emeritus, Dave Barr
May 31, 2017
Coltivare, S. Cayuga at Clinton St., Downtown Ithaca
Dr. Marvin Pritts, Professor of Horticulture, Cornell University: “Myanmar: An Enchanted Land of Boundless Potential”
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