As has become our custom, we visited and socialized for fifteen minutes before officially starting the meeting.  “What time is it, Les?” asked Veronica, and when he replied that he had a minute to seven we continued chatting. After her official call to order Leon played a slow version of O Canada.  It sounded good but was more difficult to sing along with, so most Rotarians just watched and listened.

     Announcements:  Rotary Opens Opportunities; the 50/50 Mega Draw has now reached $67 670 in sales; District 5050 is having a friendly and voluntary blood drive competition: Lee’s Trees will be moving plants and trees from Les’ place to the Arboretum; Les and Allan will lay a wreath on Nov. 11.

     We welcomed Glen Brown from the Rotary Club of Port Moody as our guest once again.  Glen updated us on the container shipped to Belize which has now arrived in that country.  He went on to tell us about the large Kenya Global Grant Project focusing on water and sanitation, but also on education and food security.  The Sunshine Coast Rotary Club is heading this project and other clubs are encouraged to become involved.  A shift is being made from pit latrines to the use of composting toilets.  We also heard how students may rent solar lamps to help them do homework, rather than having to burn gas lights inside their homes.  Kenya Connect wants to provide greenhouses to schools in Kenya.  Click November 5, 2020 to see some of the slides from Glen’s presentation.

  Foundation chair Wayne read The Rotary Foundation announcement for this week.  Click on Memorial and Tribute Gifts to read the information.

     Happy and sad dollars were pledged, we raised our glasses to Canada, and our meeting was done.

   

 

     As has become our custom, we sign in on zoom starting at 6:45 and visit with each other, enjoying the social time.  Guests included Sue McCulloch from Langley memorial Hospital Foundation, and Alex Carmichael from the Rotaract Club of the Fraser Valley.  A familiar voice announced, “Well, Veronica, it’s time you got going.”  Our president called the meeting to order at 7:01.  Leon played a version of O Canada that showed many people singing in tune.

     Announcements:  Rotary Opens Opportunities, and we’ve had the opportunity to visit with Rotarians from Brazil; the 50/50 Mega Draw has now reached $54 340 in sales.

    Alex announced that her Rotaract club has a calendar fundraiser, featuring photos which illustrate Rotary’s areas of focus.  Calendars sell for $25 each and monies raised will go to Starfish Packs for school children.

     Sue is the manager of LMH’s annual giving and donor relations.  She thanked our club for donating $115 151 to LMH over the years.  We certainly can be proud of that accomplishment.  Sue spoke about the new MRI the hospital has just received (but not yet paid for) which develops a magnetic field 30 000 times more powerful than Earth’s.  The new Emergency Ward at LMH will greatly increase the space available, allowing much more privacy and comfort for those needing the emergency services.

    Foundation chair Wayne read The Rotary Foundation announcement for this week.  Click on Rotary’s Polio Challenge to read about Rotary’s contributions to Polio Plus.

     Our Membership committee reported to the club members, indicating that we will be using Rotary branding more on Facebook and twitter.  Once we are allowed to meet in person, we recommend that at least once a month we meet via zoom, utilizing the technology which is becoming more familiar to us.  Classification talks from older (been in Rotary longer) members will be encouraged so our newer members can learn more about the Rotary pioneers and our club history.

     Happy and sad dollars were pledged, we raised our glasses and cups in a toast to Canada, and the meeting was done. For more photos please visit October 22, 2020.