PROGRAM: CRAFT TALKS BY NEW MEMBERS CHRISTINE HOLLAND AND LIZ SMITH
Christine Holland and Liz Smith
One of our favorite programs is hearing the craft talks given by new members. At Wednesday's program we will learn more about the lives, professions and hobbies of Christine Holland and Elizabeth (Liz) Smith.
The Rotary craft talk reveals the essential elements of a Rotarian’s approach to the craft of living. Rotarians share their life stories and experiences that have shaped their character. A craft talk may include a brief history of life and career, how and why they became a Rotarian, characteristics most needed for success in their business or profession, hobbies and family life, and often include humorous stories.
This month, we are celebrating the 36th anniversary of the founding of our Rotary Club in 1985. Here is an excerpt from a brief history of the club compiled and edited by Bill Abel for our 25th Anniversary Gala Celebration on March 6th, 2010:
"The Rotary Club of Santa Barbara Sunrise was nudged into existence by a jovial group of well meaning Rotarians from the six clubs of Group 8, Rotary District 524 (now District 5240) on or about December, 1984. Prominent among the founding fathers were Norman Anderson, Jack Cunningham, Fred Allen, Jim Johannsen and, destined to be our first President, Brooke E. Sawyer, Jr.
The group gathered together at what is now the International House of Pancakes (then Turnpike Lodge Restaurant) near highway 101 and Turnpike Road. Rotary International was interested in expanding its membership. Rotary Clubs tended to be territorial, so it was not possible to garner new members from existing territories. With the establishment of breakfast clubs with no territorial boundaries, expansion of Rotary membership was possible."
Of the twenty-seven charter members, two still remain club members: Steve Boehm and E. Russell Smith. Congratulations to both them! Over the years, the Club has met at the University Club, the Mar Monte Hotel (Sheraton/Radisson), Cabrillo Arts Center, Santa Barbara Yacht Club and the Santa Barbara Club, as well as various business and non-profit organizations for special vocational or charitable occasions - and now, of course, by Zoom!
HIKING WITH JUDITH, PAUL AND BELLA THE BOXER ON MARCH 6TH
The group near the beginning of the walk
Attendees were Judith and Paul McCaffrey, Bella the boxer, Christine Holland, Diana Cecala and her dog Hershey, Jann and Kirk Greene, Connard Hogan and Janet Napier.
We met in Isla Vista at 9 AM and enjoyed a beautiful, sunny 4 mile walk on the Bluffs, exploring the old Campbell property, birdwatching at Devereaux slough, walking around the new nature area created on the old Ocean Meadows golf course, and strolling on Sands Beach. It was a great day for a fun walk and some even better Rotary fellowship. Join us next time!
Heading to the beach
At the end of the walk
ANOTHER HIKING OPPORTUNITY!
Saturday, March 20th- Explore the trails for Summerland's Greenwell Preserve (4 miles, mostly flat terrain, a couple steady hills).
Let's get outside for a hike with your Rotary friends! We'll all mask up! We'll be careful and practice social distancing which won't be a challenge on the trail. Group will be limited to the first 8 people who sign up. Please RSVP in advance and be confirmed to participate. When you RSVP, you'll receive the directions regarding where to meet. Dogs welcome and encouraged, but they need to be on leash!
Please bring a mask, some water, sun screen and a hat! Hiking sticks are always good if you've got them. Let's get out and enjoy the outdoors and some fellowship!
Steve Zipperstein is the former Chief Assistant United States Attorney in Los Angeles, where he served alongside current Congressman Adam Schiff. Zipperstein also served as Counselor to Attorney General Janet Reno, and as Counselor to then-Assistant Attorney General Robert Mueller. Zipperstein reported directly to former Attorney General William Barr for more than a decade during their private sector careers.
Following his tenure as a federal prosecutor, Zipperstein served as the Chief Legal Officer of Verizon Wireless and of BlackBerry. Zipperstein currently teaches in the Global Studies and Public Policy departments at UCLA and is a Senior Fellow at UCLA’s Center for Middle East Development. He has also served as a Visiting Professor of Law at Tel Aviv University. He has recently published his first book, Law and the Arab-Israeli Conflict: The Trials of Palestine, which will be the focus of his talk.
TAKE OUT THURSDAY HAPPY HOUR 3/25/21
Join the Sunrise Rotary party-goers on Thursday, March 25th at 5:30 p.m. by Zoom and order a dinner or hors-d'oeuvres take-out from one of your favorite restaurants.
GREAT NEWS FROM THE ROTARY FOUNDATION - GLOBAL GRANT APPROVED!
Ropes Course at Camp Whittier Photo: United Boys & Girls Clubs
Camp Whittier Climbing Wall Photo: United Boys & Girls Clubs
Archery Range at Camp Whittier Photo: United Boys & Girls Club
We recently received some very exciting news from The Rotary Foundation. They have approved the Global Grant we submitted to provide a camp for sixty 10-12 year old children at the United Boys & Girls Clubs Camp Whittier. The original grant application, with a different focus subsequent to the Whittier fire, was submitted four years ago by another club but it was eventually denied.
Boys & Girls Clubs' CEO and Downtown Rotary Club member, Michael Baker, asked Luz Maria and Janet if they could resurrect the grant. A new application was submitted with a different focus and, after some tweaking, has been approved for a week-long camp that incorporates peacebuilding/anger management/anti-bullying training along with nature oriented sessions, and lots of fun. Together with the Camp Whittier staff, we are collaborating with CALM therapists to deliver the training. The camp will be followed up by a parents' group training to support what their children learned during the week of camp. Dates of the camp have not yet been set pending the lifting of some of the COVID-19 related restrictions.
Every four years, our District, together with our three sister districts in Mexico and South Korea, join forces to do a Global Grant to benefit one of the districts. They each contribute $5,000 of District Designated Funds towards the project. Four years ago, when it was our district's turn, then District Governor Sandy Schwartz requested that Camp Whittier be the focus of the grant. Because of our long-time relationship with Camp Whittier, our Community Service Committee also committed $5,000 to this particular project and was joined by the Santa Barbara Downtown Club which committed $2,500. The grant is for $47,143.
Photos from prior Camp Whittier Work Days (L to R): Dana Goba, Luz Maria Ortiz, and Chris Tucker
Since 1997, the Rotary Club of Santa Barbara Sunrise has invested a day of hands-on work to make improvements to Camp Whittier, the 94-acre resident camp operated by the United Boys and Girls Clubs of Santa Barbara County. Our annual work day, led by longtime Rotarian Tom Heath, has resulted in valuable upgrades to this beloved property and is a favorite activity of club members.
This year, the Rotary clubs of Group 8 are collaborating to bring Rotarians together for this work day project. Projects will be set-up for social distancing. Everyone will be screened upon arrival and required to sign releases. Wear close-toed shoes, and bring your own work gloves.
RSVP to Kim Fly, Assistant Governor-Group 8, by email at flymanor@mac.com.
CLUB MEETING NOTES 3/3/21
Pay and Tell: Club President, Eric Ryan, opened the social part of the meeting at 7:00 a.m. Captain Dennis Johns and second mate, Scott Burns, joined the meeting from Dennis’ sailboat, Libertad, as they motored down the coast to Ventura Harbor for hauling out and repairs. They saw dolphins off the bow! Oscar told us he was leaving the meeting early to head off with a group on a motorcycle ride to Carrizo Plains past Ojai. Eric said that he and Kirk Greene were planning to go hang gliding later (joke) and Jann said she was planning to enjoy her morning tea. Kirk said he had been on a fast “cigarette boat” that ran a 100-mile race in one hour in the Puget Sound. They stood up through the 5 to 6-foot chop and wore helmets. Kathy Scroggs commented on the fast boats in Ventura area.
Judith McCaffrey said, according to her weather app, there was going to be snow in Goleta next week. Jim Ruh said he was in Vail and it was in the 40’s and sunny. They really needed that snow! Judith put up her “snow” background for Jim. Karen Kawaguchi had a lovely zoom background and let us know it was Palace Gate, Udaipur, India. Ellen Chase said it was starting to feel like the beginning of tax season again! Judith talked about her new beautiful, colorful quilt top on display behind her. It was made from one inch squares of different colors and called a "postage stamp quilt." She plans to add batting and backing and quilt it herself. She thinks it came from South Dakota, may be 100 years old, and some of the fabric was from feed sacks.
Lily said she is moving April 1st and may be in SB for a couple of weeks as she moves. She might be available for lunch – sandwiches anyone? Tina Ballou gave us a cheery hello! Joanne announced she was getting her 2nd COVID vaccination soon and then plans to travel to Seattle. Oscar said his wife took 2 Tylenol prior to the 2nd shot and had no bad reaction. Liz Smith said she enjoyed joining many of our members on the walk last Saturday, with Judith, Paul and Bella leading our group.
Notes by S. O’Meara
Call to Order: President Eric called the meeting to order at 7:31 a.m. The flag salute was given by Hannah Rael, the invocation by Lily Carey and Janet Napier provided the raffle prize which was won by Jann Greene. In addition, Judith provided eggs that were won by Liz Smith, Sandra O’Meara and Joanne Orenstein.
Guests: Liz Smith; Rich Block, speaker.
Presentation: Eric awarded Paul Harris Fellow pins, named after the founder of Rotary, to the following members for their donations of $1,000 or more to The Rotary Foundation: Connard Hogan +3, Kathy Scroggs +8, Gary Jensen +6, Jody Dolan Holehouse +7, Lily Carey +5, Sandra O’Meara +6 and Tom Putnam +5.
Committee Reports
International Service: Oscar announced that we will be submitting a District Grant to provide musical instruments for youth in the municipality of Ciudad Sandino in Nicaragua.
Club Service: Judith reported that a group of nine had a great hike last Saturday; it was a beautiful day. There will be another hike this Saturday from Isla Vista through the Campbell property; there is room for four more people. Diana W. announced that there will be a Happy Hour on March 25th at 5:30 pm and it will be “Support your local restaurants” day; order dinner or appetizers. Share where is your favorite place to order out during the pandemic.
Vocational Service: The Spark event will take place on March 18 at 6:30 p.m. The speaker is Steve Zipperstein, an expert on law and Israel.
Public Image: Karen will do an announcement for the Spark event.
Membership: the committee will meet next Tuesday at noon. We will be inducting a new member later in this meeting.
Youth Service: RYLA will be virtual this year. We have reserved two slots. We hope to have a student from Bishop Diego and one from La Cuesta.
Announcements: Sandra has purchased tickets to fly to Michigan and Colorado in April to visit her son and daughter. Chris Baxter recognized Hannah who will be attending the virtual PETS training this Friday and Saturday. There will be a Rotary work day at Camp Whittier on April 10th from 8:00 a.m. to 1:00 or 2:00 p.m. to do painting, carpentry, weed abatement, cutting logs, etc. This year it will be a Group 8 project. If you can attend, let Kim Fly know. Connard announced that he had an opinion piece published in the Independent on line, called Echoes of 1861.
Induction: Hannah introduced, inducted and welcomed new member, Liz Smith, to the club. Janet will be her mentor.
Liz Smith
Program: Joanne introduced Rich Block, the Executive Director at the Santa Barbara Zoo. Their focus is on preservation, conservation, science and education. On March 17, 2020, they had to close down because of the coronavirus. It had a tremendous impact, including canceling events and fundraisers. They had to lay off staff. They reopened, then had to close again on December 7th. The good news is that they invested time into planning. They started planning for reopening as soon as they closed: timed ticketing, masks, protective panels and sanitizing areas. They have provided special programs by Zoom and received lots of media coverage.
Rich Block, CEO of the Santa Barbara Zoo
Attendance at the Zoo was high in September 2020, and October had the highest in the history of the Zoo. They reopened on January 30th, 2021, and found that families were looking for things to do. Instead of 3 days at Halloween, they ran Spooky Zoo for two weeks. They have also been running a modified camp program and camp-in-a-box. They have continued their conservation program of Snowy Plovers and Condors.
Animal welfare is their highest priority. They are hoping a new white-faced leopard will mate with their existing leopard. They have a baby male giraffe. They lost Lucky the Penguin who had a compromised foot. Two flamingo chicks hatched in November/December. The lion couple, Felicia and Ralph, had a baby cub, named Pauline, on November 5th. The staff had to pull the cub out and hand feed her at first, then reintroduce her to the mother, then the father. She is most active in the early morning.
Baby Lion Cub Pauline
They are now turning the former elephant enclosure into an Australian Walkabout with emus, kangaroos and wallabies. Guests will be able to walk around among the animals. It will be open this summer.
New Addition to Zoo this Summer - Australian Walkabout
The Zoo has 15,000 member households. They received a PPP loan in the first round which made a huge difference. Then they received a second round of PPP loan which enabled them to give a cost-of-living raise to their staff. Their first preschool program at a Zoo on the West Coast is fully subscribed. It has been challenging to hire people. The Zoo has a volunteer group but they haven’t brought them back yet except in a few animal care cases.
Adjournment: Eric adjourned the meeting at 8:33 a.m., thanking Rich and informing him of the dictionaries.
WHAT IS ROTARY?
We're a leadership organization of local business, professional and civic leaders.
We meet regularly, get to know each other, form friendships and, through that, we're able to get things done in our community and in the world.
EDITOR'S NOTE: This is a weekly newsletter of the Rotary Club of Santa Barbara Sunrise. Please submit questions, comments, corrections, submissions, or photos to Janet Napier at janetnapier@cox.net. Deadline for submissions is every Friday for the next week's issue.
