With eight members attending the meeting at RIC this week, our guests Lee Harman and Alexandra Hudson spoke before a cozy group. Wayne, John, Allan, Nav, Rudy, Merle, Brendan and Stephen were present, with regrets received from Nora, Gertrude and Leon.
Following the call to order and O Canada, guests were introduced, any Rotary business was looked after (Nora, Merle, Wayne and Rudy will be helping sell 50/50 tickets this weekend), and then we were on to our main speaker. Rotarian Lee Harman was unable to bring Miss Vicky as he’d planned, as she is undergoing some axle repair work at this time. With no wifi and no projector, Lee improvised and showed his slides on his laptop. With our cozy gathering, this worked!
Lee Harmon and Miss Vicky
Miss Vicky is a 1931 Ford Model A with fifty-four modification upgrades. Lee and his partner-in-travel plan to drive 7600 miles (12 000 km) in thirty days from Anchorage, Alaska to Cabo San Lucas, Mexico as part of a large car rally. His goal is to raise awareness about Rotary’s push to end polio (and the need for this to be done), and to raise funds to help the cause. He is asking individual Rotarians to pledge one cent per mile, or $76 US, and is asking clubs to donate $7600 to polio plus to help us reach RIP Jennifer Jones’ pledge of $150 million over three years to end polio in this world. With contributions from the Gates Foundation, our pledges get tripled. With only one reported case of the wild polio virus in Pakistan in 1923, we could become polio free as early as 1926.
In 1984 the world was seeing 350 000 cases of polio every year, and 50 000 people died from the disease. One person in 200 was paralyzed, with no cure. We are so thankful that Dr. Jonas Salk did not patent the polio vaccine but instead gave it free to the world. His work and generosity, and that of Dr. Sabin, have allowed us to take on this disease and almost eliminate it. We have given over ten billion doses to more than three billion children over the past ten years, and it is estimated that had we stopped ten years ago fifty million more children would be paralyzed. We must finish the job! Go to raise.rotary.org/Miss Vicky/Challenge to donate.
Lee talked about the car rally with all cars being of pre-1947 vintage. Drivers have to be on time at each of the check points, as they earn extra demerit points for arriving early, because that means they must have been speeding. Lee invited Rotarians to join the rally drivers at the overnight stops, and especially at the “rest” stops when maintenance and any needed repairs are done to the vehicles.
Scholarship Update
We heard from Alexandra (Alex) Hudson, a soon-to-be graduate from Brookswood Secondary School. She appreciates how Rotary takes action and changes so many lives. She helps guide young dancers to reach their full potential by volunteering at her dance studio twice a week, and helping teach alongside her dance teacher. Alex loves teaching and aspires to become a dance teacher in the future.
Alexandra has been in the Girl Guides program since age five, participating in many volunteer activities with them, is a highland dancer, and is going to be studying at SFU’s Burnaby campus in the French co-hort program. Her goal is to become a French teacher in an elementary school.
Rotary Moment with Wayne
Next we were on to the Foundation Moment read by Wayne.
WHAT CAN A $100 GIFT TO THE ROTARY FOUNDATION DO?
A $100 donation to The Rotary Foundation provides textbooks for one elementary school in Zambia, hearing aids for a child in Pakistan, de-worming tablets for 112 children in the Philippines, cataract operations for three people in India, or 230 blankets for elderly people in Korea. And these are just a sampling of how your donation might be spent to help others in our world.
Can you commit to give $100 or more per year to the Foundation to do good in the world?
The answer is yes for our club members.
The Light Touch
For The Light Touch Wayne deferred to Brendan who read a story to us. It involved a fellow who seemed to always make the wrong choice, a big hand rescuing him, and Saint Francis. You’ll have to talk to Brendan to get all the details.
Other updates
Happy and sad dollars were pledged for: a granddaughter going to her first school dance; our two presentations (repeatedly mentioned); being a Brookswood grad; going out for dinner for the first time in months to celebrate a wedding anniversary; recalling iron lungs; sad that Allan and Joan won’t be having an open house to celebrate; and more for Alex’s presentation and Dr. Harman’s emphasis on polio prevention.
We toasted Canada with mostly imaginary glasses, packed up the chairs and tables, and bid each other good night. Next week we’ll hear from another scholarship winner. Remember to let Wayne know when you will be available to help with our 50/50 ticket sales.
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