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WORLD INTERACT WEEK ISSUE OCTOBER 31, 2026
VOL. 7 NO. 12
DISC GOLF COURSE DEDICATION
NEWS-NOTES-NONSENSE
Taking some time off for some much needed knee surgery. Hopefully, your next Eastender News will arrive on November 21st.
Meeting note-Our November 12th gathering with be held at the Keasler Complex-615 3rd street in East Alton. The parking lot is located in the rear of the complex (you may also park on 3rd street).
On Thursday JoeS took the microphone and spent a few minutes offering us a “day of opportunity”.He reviewed our event calendar for the next year and asked for members to chair and assist with organizing our events. He and MarkS circulated updated activity calendars.
Prez Patti announced that we would soon be looking for a Prez-Elect to serve as our club Prez during the 2028-29 Rotary year, following GlennB's term. Please give serving as out esteemed leader careful consideration.
After our meeting we gathered at Belk Park for the disc golf course dedication funded by a $15K grant from our foundation. It looks great!
Early arrivals includeJoeS, LoriP and AllenH.
Heads up-If your program presenter needs AV equipment please let BradP know right away.
FYI-Our meeting/event photos are posted in a variety of places. All of them can be found in our photo albums by year/event. The albums can be accessed on our main web page. Select photos will also be posted on our members only Facebook page and on our Instagram account.
The Turkey Fund jar is now circulating. All donations will be given to Operation Blessing. If you plan to donate via check, please make it payable to Operation Blessing. Thanks for your generous support. To date-$413 has been collected.
Post-nooners-GeorgeM, CoryG, ChrisH and GlennB.
Upcoming birthdays-RobertP-Tomorrow, RobinK-8th, CherylM-14th, MattK-17th, LindseyH-18th and MarkSm-20th. Birthday wishes to each one!
If you have outstanding Chili Dinner ticket $'s pleasse remit to BradP ASAP.
Slide-right-inners-GlennB and ChrisH.
The sign-up sheet for our November 7th basketball tournament is now making the rounds.
Our Christmas party is ticketed for December 17th @ Rustic Roots. MarkSm could use an assist with the games. You in? Let him know.
DianeS announced that we now have 18 students interested in our Interact club. The next meeting is on November 10th. She would appreciate an assist from some Rotarians that day.
Opening duties were covered by CherylM, MarkSm and BillP.
Post-nooners included ChrisH, GeorgeM, CoryG and DaveA.
RobinK announced that a dine-to-donated event to benefit Ooperation Blessing is scheduled for the Wednesday before Thankgiving @ Roma'sPizza.
Club service anniversaries-HenryS-57 years, BradP-36, MikeK and PaulG-27. and DianeS-16.
20 members dined on roasted red pepper tomato soup, ham sammies, fresh fruit tray, raw veggies tray, salad and cake.
SAA RickH recruited MattK as the Finemaster. RobinK wants her birthday celebrated this coming Thursday, BillP will make sure that happens. We answered 3 out of 4 trivia Q's correctly. Have you ever played a round of disc golf? No? pay a $. But wait, if you would be attending the dedication @ 1:30, put the $ back in your pocket.
The $141 jackpot was claimed by AllenH. Congrats!
ALLEN COLLECTS HIS $$
"DAY OF OPPORTUNITY"
ALL THINGS TRIVIAL
Despite inflation, one fuel will start the heating season about 19% cheaper thsn last year. Which?
A-Oil
B-Electricity
C-Propane
D-Natural gas
(Find the answer near the end of the newsletter)
Today is National Doorbell Day
The fear of insects is known as what? Entomophobia Arachnophobia Ailurophobia
Answer-Entomophobia
DISC PICKERS
RIBBON CUTTING
PLAY ON!
FROM OUR ARCHIVES
Sourced from the Eastender News, Make-Up and Banner newsletters
October 2021
Lee Cox and Kevin Frakes joined us to talk about the Alton Little Theater.
The Eastgate Halloween Party on the Plaza was a great success. Thanks to those who donated candy and assisted.
We would sponsor a COVID vaccine clinic on November 19th.
Prez Lindsey distributed new member recruitment pamphlets.
HenryS, PaulG and MikeK celebrated club service anniversaries.
MarkVaughn announced that our Salvation Army bell ringing will take place on December 11th.
JoeS was looking for trivia players. Pro tip-according to PattiA, you want JohnP at your trivia table.
The Turkey Fund had reached $285.
JoeS announced that it was last call for basketball t-shirt sponsorships.
PHOTOS OF THE WEEK
DATELINE:ROTARY
WHY ROTARACT IS NEEDED
MORE THAN EVER
By Roshan Karki, president-elect, Rotary Club of Rudramati Kathmandu and the Rotaract Club of Manohara, Nepal
We live in the most interconnected era in human history. With a single tap on a screen, we can exchange thoughts across continents in a heartbeat. Knowledge, opportunity, and global perspectives fit effortlessly into the palms of our hands. Technology has truly made the world smaller. Yet, as the boundaries of space shrink, a quiet, troubling paradox emerges: As we connect so seamlessly to the digital world, are we slowly drifting away from each other in the real one?
Today’s youth possess boundless potential. They are inventive, tech-savvy, globally minded, and driven by a burning desire to create impact. But beneath this bright surface lies a subtle, deep-seated crisis. The virtual world is no longer just a tool for living — it has become the epicenter of life itself. Curated digital identities are overshadowing authentic human relationships; online validation is taking precedence over genuine achievement; and screen-bound observation is replacing lived experience.
Technology itself is not the enemy. The crisis begins when the tool starts to master the user — dictating our time, our attention, our thoughts, and our values.
Millions of young people spend hours adrift in virtual spaces. They are plugged into a global network, yet often emotionally distant from those sitting right next to them. They can like a thousand posts about social injustice yet feel disconnected from the tangible needs of their local communities. They consume endless information, but is that information being transformed into real-world responsibility?
This digital reality fosters a dangerous habit of instant gratification. Answers arrive in seconds, entertainment in milliseconds, and digital connections with a simple click. But real life does not operate on an algorithm:
Real success demands patience, discipline, and sustained effort. Deep relationships require vulnerability, sacrifice, and time. True leadership is forged through shared struggles, accountability, and experience. Meaningful social change takes relentless commitment.
“The distance is nothing, when one has motive."- “Jane Austen"-(Pride and Prejudice)
“Do you really want music in the shower? I guess there’s no better place to dance than a slick surface next to a glass door."-Jerry Seinfeld
“Decide whether or not the goal is worth the risks involved. If it is, stop worrying."-Amelia Earhart
“Love and a cough cannot be hidden."-Japanese proverb
SMILE
Frog parking only, all others will be toad.
If your car is running I'm voting for it.
I want to grow my own food, but I can't find any bacon seeds.
What happens when you get scared half to death twice?
This is my step ladder. I never knew my real ladder.
My wife said that I never listen to her, or something like that.
I checked into the hokey pokey clinic and I turned myself around
Is there ever a day that mattresses are not on sale?
THE NUMBERS
A study in the Journal of Foot and Ankle Research suggests as many as 72% of people wear shoes that don’t accommodate either the width or length of their feet
Nearly half of Americans did some Halloween shopping before October last year, compared with just over a third a decade ago-National Retail Federation
This year 34% of US consumers say they are “very or “extremely willing” to use AI tools or chatbots to find holiday gifts-Gartner
29% of Americans between the ages of 25 and 29 owned their homes in 2025, down from 32% a decade earlier-Federal Reserve
The Georgetown University Center on Education and the Workforce projects U.S. businesses will face a shortage of 2.9 million managers in 2032
On average, Americans 15 years and older spent 43 minutes a day on food preparation and cleanup in 2025-Labor Department
Goldman Sachs forecasts that autonomous trucking will become cost-competitive with human-operated trucks in 2028 in the U.S. (Trivia answer-D)
Rotarian Code of Conduct The following code of conduct has been adopted for the use of Rotarians: As a Rotarian, I will 1-Act with integrity and high ethical standards in my personal and professional life 2-Deal fairly with others and treat them and their occupations with respect 3-Use my professional skills throughRotary to: mentor young people, help those with special needs, and improve people's quality of life in my community and in the world 4-Avoid behavior that reflects adversely on Rotary or other Rotarians 5-Help maintain a harassment-free environment in Rotary meetings, events, and activities
