Mini Calendar

Click highlighted dates to see details.
November 2024
S M T W T F S
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31
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04
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Weekly Meeting Speakers
Jerry Munson, International Service Chair
Nov 06, 2024 12:00 PM
The Rotary Club of Tehachapi's Global Water Works Project.
District 5240 Governor Sherry Sim
Nov 13, 2024 12:00 PM
Official Club Visit
Karen Rivers, President Pink Ladies Auxiliary
Nov 20, 2024 12:00 PM
Pink Ladies Auxiliary
DARK
Nov 27, 2024 12:00 PM
Happy Thanksgiving Everyone!
Julia Morse
Dec 04, 2024 12:00 PM
Rotary Peace Chair
Tex Hoppus
Dec 11, 2024 12:00 PM
USO Building
Kim Metcalf
Dec 18, 2024 12:00 PM
Rotary Club Service Director
DARK
Dec 25, 2024 12:00 PM
Merry Christmas to All and to All a Good Night!
DARK
Jan 01, 2025 12:00 PM
Happy New Year!
 
Club Executives & Directors
President
President Elect
Past President
Secretary
Treasurer
Club Service
Club Programs
International Serv
Community Service
Vocational Service
Membership
New Generations
Awards Chair
Interact Advisor-BHS
RYLA Coordinator
The Rotary Foundation
Executive Secretary
Interact Advisor-ICS
Sergeant-at-Arms
Home Page Stories
On Halloween afternoon High-Desert-Haven will be holding a Trunk-or-Treat for the kids of the REALMS Charter School. They are in need of donations of additional candy for the residents to hand out during the event. If the spirit moves you to donate a bag of candy, bring it to one of the next two Rotary meetings and Stephanie Hudson will collect and deliver it. Your donation will bring the Halloween Magic to the children of REALMS and the residents of the Haven.
 
With the arrival of the Rotary Logo racks, and the donations of bicycles and riding gear, the Club’s Bike Rack project is rolling forward! For information on the project, or the planned placement of the racks, contact Howard McCauley. To inquire about donating bikes or gear, speak with Stephanie Hudson.
 
Last Sunday, Eight Rotarians and friends walked to end Polio. Starting from, and
returning to Olveras’ on Balsam Street, this hearty band, led by International Director
Jill Bradford, raised a combined total of $840.

Our walkers were Dan, Sean, Eric, Don, Al, Jill, Stephanie, and
Andrew. Mary Kus & Mary Lundstrom joined the celebratory
luncheon. The two sponsors were Jill and Sean, who had pledges
of $585 and $255 respectively.

Well done everyone! A huge thank you to Jill Bradford for her
leadership on this effort!
 
Look for the

We’re still collecting change for Polio Plus. Bring your pocket change, bowl-o-
Pennies, or just the coins in the dusty coin drawer in your car and dump them in the
collection box at this week’s meeting. All proceeds will be donated in the name of
the Rotary Club of China Lake.
On Friday the 18th, Stephanie and Peter hosted this year’s Rotary Halloween Party at the Haunted Hudson House. Rotarians and friends enjoyed an evening of conversation, relaxation, and a costume contest.
 
The Hosts.
 
A couple of days ago the McCauleys, on an adventure bicycling thru the Redwoods, spotted a “Rotary” sign along the roadside in the Prairie Creek Redwoods State Park.  Linda and Howard asked a Ranger about the sign and were told that Rotary had made a donation to the Rescue the Redwoods League, and the League put the sign up to honor the contribution.  Linda wrote about the occasion, “We were proud to see Rotary doing good work helping save the Redwoods.”
 
 
Rotarians everywhere, serving their communities. Well-done Rotary!
 
Photo courtesy of Howard and Linda McCauley.
Last Sunday evening, Rotarians and guests gathered at the Saint-Amand house to wish Rotarian Bob Gould “Fair winds and following seas” as he departs for his new home in Virginia.  Bob has been a member of the Rotary Club of China Lake since 1983, 41 years of association!  To mark the occasion, District 5240 Governor Sherry Sim sent Bob a letter of congratulations on his years of service.
 
 
In addition to being the club Sgt.-At-Arms for two decades, Bob is a Rotary International Foundation Major Donor Level 2+, a Bequest Society Member Level 2, and has personally sponsored numerous STEM scholarships for graduating High School Students via our club’s annual Scholarship Awards Program.
 
Thank you for your service Bob.  Farewell.
Rotary International's theme for the month of October is Economic and Community Development.  Rotary programs and projects provide training for, and access to good-paying jobs, and access to financial management institutions designed to assist, promote, and develop new businesses.  All with an aim toward helping people and communities thrive and break the cycle of poverty.
 
From the Rotary International Web Site: “ Nearly 1.4 billion employed people live on less than $1.25 a day. Our members promote economic and community development and reduce poverty in underserved communities through training, well-paying jobs, and access to financial management institutions. Projects range from providing people with equipment to vocational training. Our members work to strengthen local entrepreneurs and community leaders, particularly women, in impoverished communities.”
 
For more information on Rotary’s efforts visit: https://my.rotary.org/en/Node/180961.
On Sunday morning, September 29th, the first of the cleaned and polished service-club signs were bolted to the Welcome to Ridgecrest billboard on Inyokern Road by  Rotarian David Saint-Amand and Friend-of-the-Club Steven Griffin.  The billboard, erected by the Chamber of Commerce in 1963, was originally a project lead by Archie Meyer, the father of our very own Mary Lundstrom!
 
Photo courtesy of David Saint-Amand.
 
Thank you to all the Rotarians and Friends who helped with this project over the years!
 
Rotarian Tim Johnson was out and about in August and came across the annual Garlic Festival in Bennington, Vermont.  What’s more, he found the local Rotary booth!  I’m not sure what Tim’s infraction was, but here he is experiencing some colonial justice.   Note the inflatable Rotary Wheel in the background.
 
Tim is pilloried for an unknown offense.  Photo courtesy of Tim Johnson.
 
Saturday, September 21st, 2024, the Rotary Club of China Lake’s Peace Chair, Julia Morse, attended the PeaceBuilder Relay Culmination event held at Validation Ale in Santa Barbara, California.  At this event the three Peace Batons, signed by Rotarians, Civil Servants, and elected officials throughout District 5240 were brought back together in a ceremony to celebrate the United Nations Day of Peace, and Rotary’s commitment to conflict resolution.  Julia was responsible for our region’s baton and for bringing it to the event.  Well done Julia!
 
Rotarian and Rotary Club of China Lake Peace Chair Julia Morse.
August 17th, Linda McCauley and eight of her crew, composed of Rotarians and friends, took to the streets for the quarterly Road Cleanup.  Starting extra early in the morning so as to avoid August’s mid-day heat, they collected 21 bags of rubbish from alongside of Highway 178, aka China Lake Blvd, within the City of Ridgecrest.
 
 
Kudos to Linda for bringing this project to the Club and for leading the effort, and thank you to the Rotarians and Friends who are making Ridgecrest more beautiful.
 
 
Photos courtesy of Linda McCauley.
On August 13th four Rotarians and one friend from the Rotary Club of China Lake dropped by the Ridgecrest Corps of the Salvation Army to help prepare for the Free Farmers Market.  Sorting and packaging different fresh foods, these five helped feed our community with high quality produce.
 
Pictured from left to right: Esther Sires, Stephanie Hudson, Gina Silong, Jill Bradford, and Linda McCauley.
Last Wednesday evening at the beginning of the Ridgecrest City Council meeting, Mayor Bruen and the Council declared September 2024 to be Service Clubs Month in “appreciation for all the significant contributions these organizations make to our communities.”
Rotarian's in attendance at the Proclamation, from left to right, Andrew Bergman, Cheryl Saint-Amand, David Saint-Amand, Mary Lundstrom, Linda McCauley, Julia Morse, and event organizer Stephanie Hudson. Not pictured were, Solomon Rajaratnam and Ricca Charlon.
 
On August 7th Rotarian Julia Morse presented the District 5240 Peace Baton to representatives of the City of Ridgecrest; Mayor Bruen and the City Council.
 
Photo via Ricca Charlon.
 
From Rotary International: “More than 775 million people over the age of 15 are illiterate. That’s 17 percent of the world’s adult population.  Our goal is to strengthen the capacity of communities to support basic education and literacy, reduce gender disparity in education, and increase adult literacy. We support education for all children and literacy for children and adults.”
 
The Rotary Club of China Lake has a tradition of supporting education through our annual Scholarship program, but there’s more that can be done.  Follow this link for more information on Rotary International’s efforts to support Basic Education and Literacy:   https://www.rotary.org/en/our-causes/supporting-education.
Firstly,  I want to thank Immediate-Past-President Pam Smith for her wonderful year as Club President.  Thank you Pam!  It was productive, effective, and fun for both old and new club projects and events!
 
President Pam Smith gives her farewell address to the Club.
Photo courtesy of David Saint-Amand.
 
One of the messages from the Club Fireside Chat was a desire for more social events and more participation from Club members.  I think you’ll find that every month in the Club Calendar, with the exception of July, has a Rotary event outside of the weekly club meetings.  They are a mix of projects, fund raisers, and club functions, but they all share a common feature: the opportunity to enjoy the company of people who feel a common passion about doing good in the world.  I hope that everyone in the Club takes advantage of that opportunity.
 
Our commitment to service continues with the on-going Adopt-a-Highway program, the new annual Community Clean-Up event, and Howard McCauley’s project Rotary Themed Bike Racks for the City of Ridgecrest.  There is renewed interest in constructing a Welcome to Ridgecrest sign up on US. 395 and there are plans to restart the Animal Shelter Fundraiser, formerly known as Wine and Weenies.  All those and more!  If anyone has an idea for a new project or for enhancing an existing project, please let the Board of Directors know.
 
Don’t keep your light under a bushel.  Join your friends in Rotary for service, fellowship, and fun!
It has been my privilege to serve as president this year.  I am so impressed with the quality of our club and the service-focused membership we have. As an organization, we donated significant amounts of money to students, the community, and other charitable organizations. And, as individual members, you donated significant amounts of an even more valuable commodity: your time. Service is at the core of what Rotary is all about, and service is something this club does exceptionally well. You have made being president this year easy with your graciousness, generosity, and selfless service.  I'm grateful to have been president, and even more grateful to be a member of such an amazing group of people. Thank you for supporting me as president this year; I look forward to next year under President David. 
Last Friday night, 31 May, was the Safe Graduation Night event at Cerro Coso Community College.   High School Graduates were treated to an evening of food, games, and fun.
 
While it isn't a Rotary Club event, Rotarian Stephanie Hudson is one of the key leaders of the event, and it was well supported by numerous volunteers from our club.  The volunteers assisted the event by transporting food to the party from Restaurants throughout the Indian Wells Valley.
 
Thank you to all the Rotarians who volunteered!
 
Well Done Stephanie !
On Thursday evening, May 30th, the Mesquite High School Graduation Ceremony was held at Ridgecrest's Kerr McGee Center.  A member of our club was there to present a Certificate of Recognition to our scholarship recipient Autumn Gannon.  The certificate was from California State Senator Shannon Groves and commended Autumn’s efforts to further her education in pursuit of a bright future.
 
Photo provided by David Saint-Amand.
 
Taken from the R.I. web site: “Rotary Fellowships are international groups that share a common passion. Being part of a fellowship is a fun way to make friends around the world, explore a hobby or profession, and enhance your Rotary experience.  How do I join a fellowship?  Membership in a fellowship is open to any interested individual.”
 
Wine, sports, travel, music, rare books?  Rotary International has a Fellowship for you.  Follow this link for a complete list:
 
Wednesday evening, May 15th, the Club celebrated those students who were awarded a scholarship.  The dinner was held at the Clarion Inn and the catering was delicious!  A special ‘Thank you’ to Cheryl Saint-Amand for organizing the event and to Stephanie Hudson and Sean Hancock for their presentations of the scholarships.  They had some thing personal and meaningful to say about each graduate making this event a very special occasion!
 
Photo courtesy of David Saint-Amand.
 
This annual event was the culmination of our Club’s 2023-2024 effort to raise funds to support the educational dreams of High School Graduates in the Indian Wells and Searles Valleys.
Thank you Jill Bradford for organizing Rotarians in support of the Wednesday, May 15th service event.  Free food and beverages were made available to service personnel, past and present at the new Base Chapel on the Naval Air Warfare Center, China Lake.  Thank you too to all the Rotarians who rolled out to honor those who serve our Country: Ricca Charlon, Bob Gould, Gina Noble, David Saint-Amand, and Patty Wharton!
 
Picture courtesy of Jill Bradford.
 
Red Badge Club
The Rotary Club of China Lake has a new member program that we call the Red Badge Club.
Membership Director Dan Kus assigns each new member a mentor.  
 
 
New members are assigned a mentor and given a list of tasks to complete to earn their blue club badge.
 
1.  Attend a Board Meeting
2.  Makeup at a Different Club
3.  Volunteer for a Club Project
4.  Attend a Club Social Event
5.  Help the Sergeant at Arms
6.  Be a Greeter
7.  Bring a Potential Rotarian to Lunch
8.  Give a Classification Talk
 
Red Badgers and their mentors are able to log-in and enter the date each task is completed.
 
Club Information
Welcome to the hottest Club in District 5240!
China Lake

Service Above Self

We meet In Person
Wednesdays at 11:45 AM
Clarion Inn
901 N China Lake Blvd
Ridgecrest, CA 93555
United States of America
 
Photo Albums
RSS
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