Sunrise Rotary Bulletin – May 8, 2019

Posted by John Blair

Call to Order:  

-President Diana Taylor called the meeting to order.   Dennis Kratohwil led us in the Pledge of Allegiance and Rich Mittleman gave the prayer.  Dennis Kratohwil led us in “I’d Like to See da da da da, da da da da da da……etc., etc., etc”

Guests:  

Brad Gutzler, guest of Larry Neal

Brags:  

-Tony Collins’ son’s team won the world Robotics Championship.  This is amazing since something broke and the team had to rebuild the Robot just before the competition finals.  

-Rick Mittleman’s son is going to Wisconsin, and Diana did a great job of Emceeing the Charitable Giving Dinner on May 1st.

-Larry Neal has a Lexington Kentucky grad.

-Dennis Kratowhil has been married 43 years.

-Rich Babjak said the Misoricordia fundraiser was a success despite the snow storm.

Announcements:

- Greg Hill announced the Wine, Beer, and Cigar Festival tickets will be available June 1st.  Prices are the same as last year. The VIP wine tasting will be in the Libertyville Civic Center as contrasted to the tent as in the past and will be from 3:30 to 6:00pm.  There will be only one tent, not two as in the past. General Admission is 4:00 to 8:30pm. Greg is looking for ideas on how to use the open space.

-Dave Potts said his dental program “Smiles from the Heart” will be Friday, May 31st.

-Larry Neal announced the Mother’s Trust Golf Outing will be at Pine Meadows Golf Course on June 14th.

-Scott Hezner informed the club that Ken Chapin had a fall and broke his collar bone...he’s tired.

-Steve Risley said our next meeting program will be for Pads and the Lake County Haven.

-Rich Mittleman announced our next club social will be on Friday, 31 May, 3:00pm at the Arlington Race Track.

Fun and Frolics:  

-Patricia Bleck did a fun quiz game involving everyone…”What’s Your Favorite”.

Program:

Sarah Robinson, President of the Rio Grande Rotary Club and Director of Fundraising and Strategic Partnerships for Shelter Box USA was our guest speaker.  Shelter Box serves displaced persons throughout the world from conflict or disaster. The program started in England and initially provided tents, water filters, solar lights, and cooling supplies.  They’ve been in operation 20 years and have adapted to the needs of the users.  They learned early on that one size box doesn’t fit all, and boxes are customized by disaster type and location.  They even have shelter tool kits to repair homes and kits are pre-positioned throughout the world as it is cheaper to stock ahead of time.  Now they are providing more pelletized aid, such as a pallet just for lamps. Other specialized needs were water filters that filter 99% of bacteria, and winterized tents with stoves that vent outside. They are now providing thick plastic repair sheeting.

Shelter Box has a number of International Agreements, like with Habitat for Humanity, and distribution partners who know the political situation in a country.  They work with “gap fillers” who donate farmers land for shelter locations. The program impacts 1.5 million people in 100 countries, and 300 deployments. Funding requirements are $5.4M/year. They’ve been nominated for the Nobel Peace Prize.

Shelter Box Response Teams include local clubs with connections to smooth the process and get things done¸ such as getting equipment through customs.  Equipment is a gift to the affected community and is never returned to Shelter Box. They work with the Red Cross and the World Food Program, and other organizations for sanitation, water, and security.  There is a team in the United Kingdom that monitors conditions around the world and directs aid as necessary.

Raffle:  

The daily was won by Dennis Kratohwil.  Dave Potts did not win the progressive draw, so the pot  rolls.

Closing:  

Closed with the Four Way Test.