With us last week was Mohamed Kastiro of Free Volt Desert Solar Company. Mohamed’s company provides rooftop solar and uses Swizz panels which are more efficient than others. Also last week, Pres. Jerry Kress updated the club on a scholarship night held Tuesday evening were our club presented a Dr. Carreon Scholarship to an Xavier High School student. Our club’s $1,250 contribution was matched twice and helped provide a $5,000 scholarship. Palms To Pines also presented Xavier High School Interact Club founder Bryana Quintana with a $500 scholarship. Last week Palms To Pines welcomed three visitors to our club. Joining us from Palm Desert Noon Rotary were Mary Helen Kelly, Viola Benson and District Governor Nominee Ricardo Loretta. Richard Karp was a lucky $2 Rotary Raffle winner.

With no scheduled speaker last week, we took the time to socialize with our members, Sojourners and guests. Lillian Roberts was our Rotarian of the Week and her latest Rotary Moment occurred last week while listening to our RYLA representatives. It’s amazing to consider how much Rotary has changed since its founding and reassuring to see the next generation of Rotarians progressing in life. Great comments, Lillian! Pres. Jerry updated us on our upcoming meeting schedule (see below) and Kelli Cox told us about plans for Rotarians at Work (see above.) Kelli was also our lucky Rotary Raffle winner and pulled a Jack to collect $20. Be with us and buy tickets this week!

Bob Elias, director of social services for the Joslyn Center, was with us last week to talk about the Center’s Meals on Wheels program. Before getting into the Meals on Wheels program, Bob told us a bit about the Joslyn Center and shared the Center’s impressive weekly activities schedule with us. The Center truly offers something for everyone. The Meals on Wheels program serves 45 to 70 qualified seniors each week in Palm Desert, Rancho Mirage and Indian Wells. There is a fee for the service but no one is turned away, according to Bob. The program is funded entirely by donations and grants and 35 volunteers deliver meals Monday through Friday. Frozen meals are provided on weekends. The program allows seniors to remain independent in their homes and provides them with a balanced diet. Additional volunteers make calls to homebound seniors each month and the delivery volunteers take the time to interact with clients. According to Bob, Meals on Wheels serves as a lifeline for hunger and communication. The Joslyn Center also operates Penny’s Pantry, a twice monthly program which provides non-perishable foods and fresh produce to low income seniors in the area. Also last week, Kay Van Zandt pulled a queen from the deck to win the Rotary Raffle. Kay opted to let her $20 ride so this week’s pot will be over $100. You can’t win unless you buy a ticket!

Dawn Suggs of Desert Classic Charities was our speaker last week. Desert Classic Charities runs the annual PGA tour event now known as the Career Builder Challenge. Although we were scheduled to hear from Nick Raffaele, the director, Dawn has been with the tournament for 50 years and did an outstanding job telling us about its history and the challenges the event has faced and met along the way. The tournament lost money its first two years and then one of the supporters died suddenly of a heart attack. This fueled the conversation about building a mid-valley hospital. Bob Hope got involved with the tournament and donated the land for Eisenhower Medical Center and the rest is history. Dawn says the 60s, 70s and 80s were golden years for the event. Today, the tournament is held in the smallest market on the PGA tour and continues to reinvent itself to attract both players and golf fans. Career Builder signed on last year and has a five year sponsorship commitment. Also last week, Ray Roth reported that Sojourner Anita Ratchinsky is back in Canada and doing well and is already looking forward to seeing us again next year. Kay Van Zandt reports Sojourner Jim Eggers is continuing to recover from his fall and hopes to rejoin our merry band shortly. Incoming Pres. Richard Karp was an $8 winner in the Rotary Raffle. Buy tickets this week!

Erica Felci of the Coachella Valley Association of Governments (CVAG) was with us last week to update us on CV Link. This proposed 50-mile alternative transportation path has caused controversy and both supporters and opponents are passionate about the subject. The estimated cost of the project is $100 million and Erica tells us they are in the middle of environmental review at this time. The Cathedral City portion of the path should break ground within 30 days and, according to Erica, the entire project could break ground by the end of the year. Also last week, Jim Davis, who had a 50-50 chance of winning the pot the previous week, was our lucky winner again in the great Rotary Raffle. With only Aces remaining, Jim collected $294 in American money to take home to Calgary. Pres. Jerry Kress reports that Up With People is still seeking host families for their desert visit March 27-April 3. If you have an interest, contact Liz Kelly at ekelly@upwithpeople.org. Finally last week, Sojourner Don Kraft thanked Butch Hartman for his outstanding service on restoring and resizing Don’s wedding band. Butch is Mr. Service Above Self!

Kevin Hemp, an education specialist with Coachella Valley Water District, was our speaker last week. Kevin talked about the status of water here in our state and told us about the complex system used to allocate water throughout the state. Oroville Dam is the starting point for the state water project which brings water from Northern California to Southern California. CVWD holds the third largest contract for state water project water but never sees a drop from the project. Instead, CVWD trades state water project water for Colorado River water. Kevin reassured us that our valley should have enough water in future years so we can continue to survive and even grow. The district is bringing Colorado River water to area golf courses which, Kevin notes, are the district’s most efficient users of water. Using river water and continued conservation efforts should eliminate overdrafting our aquifer, Kevin says. Also last week, Donna Lee Ekstrom was our Rotarian of the Week and talked about the Rotary Club of Duarte, a club which was instrumental in opening Rotary to women. Buy Raffle tickets this week…over $250 in the pot!

Jeff Moritz, founder of The Convergent Center, was our speaker last week. Jeff was a Rotarian for 30 years and former executive director of Habitat For Humanity and president and founder of the Desert Communities Fuller Center for Housing. Jeff told us that California has the largest homeless population in the country (an estimated 145,000) and that over half have mental illness. Even with this huge number, there is no statewide plan in place to address the issue. Various programs waste a lot of money and 75 percent of the homeless are back on the street within a year after being in a program. Jeff’s group is hoping to form a public-private partnership and has plans for housing for our desert homeless. Also last week, we welcomed back more of our Washington contingent -- Sojourners Don Kraft, Harry Helliesen and Lee Gingrich. Welcome back! MIA last week was Sojourner Jim Eggers. Jim celebrated his 92^nd birthday last Wednesday! Jim Brock was our lucky Rotary Raffle winner last week. Jim won $10 but decided to let it ride. Our pot will be over $200 this week so make sure and buy extra tickets!