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Robyn Settoin, Roz Rubin and Veronika Mitchell welcomed as new members of the Rotary Club of Framingham.
"Service Above Self" |
We meet Every Monday at 12:15 PM
Ken's Steak House 95 Worcester Road
Route 9
Framingham, MA 01702
United States
Come join us!
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Dick Manelis gave a quick update on the District project to install 100 stoves in homes residents in a village in Guatemala. Many homes lacked cooking stoves and the members of the households were breathing in harmful fumes due to lack of adequate ventilation. Rotary has taken on the stove project to help alleviate the risks.
Claire Kincaid spoke to the Club about her experiences with a project known as the Queen Tech Initiative in Ghana. Claire explained that the initiative was begun several years ago to improve and commercialize the production of a staple food crop that is essential to the people’s diets in both South America and Africa. The crop (a large tuber) requires a long, manual process to harvest and process into an edible food. The tuber contains a high degree of cyanide that dissipates in the production process to make it safe. Although the Initiative has made strides in its goal to improve and commercialize production, it has not achieved the level needed so work continues.Dr Koualmanda, of Beth Israel Deaconis Medical Center provided an excellent overview of her work on Diabetes, as well as the history and evolution the treatment for the 
disease. There are many types of diabetes including Type 1, Type 2, Gestational and others but the most destructive is Type 1. The incidence of diabetes has grown dramatically since the mid-1990's to about 27 million cases or about 10% of the US population and there are approximately 79 million additional people considered as pre-diabetic - it has reached epidemic proportions. Most of the root causes point to diet and a lack of exercise with other factors such as age, ethnicity and family history contributing to the overall rise in cases. Dr. Koulamanda recommended we try moderate exercise 3-4 times per week and adopt more of the Mediterranean diet - (more seafood, less meat), avoid sugary soft drinks and drink water and red wine.
disease. There are many types of diabetes including Type 1, Type 2, Gestational and others but the most destructive is Type 1. The incidence of diabetes has grown dramatically since the mid-1990's to about 27 million cases or about 10% of the US population and there are approximately 79 million additional people considered as pre-diabetic - it has reached epidemic proportions. Most of the root causes point to diet and a lack of exercise with other factors such as age, ethnicity and family history contributing to the overall rise in cases. Dr. Koulamanda recommended we try moderate exercise 3-4 times per week and adopt more of the Mediterranean diet - (more seafood, less meat), avoid sugary soft drinks and drink water and red wine. The African Exchange program that has been underway for about 15 years to help with school, water and public improvements in a village in Tanzania. Rob Schadt, who is the Chairman of the project noted it was started as mission for a Lutheran Church in Framingham started for education programs and quickly expanded to work on water wells (now up to 43 wells) that are able to provide fresh safe water. He attributes the reduction in infant mortality rates (down to 0%) to the work on wells and health care in the village. In addition, they were able to build and staff kindergarten and other schools. Spora then spoke about the secondary school program to teach both English and Swahili for 12-18 year-olds in both Private and Public schools. The Private school and boarding are funded by the Lutheran Church but both have challenges with large class sizes, shortage of books and of certain topics like science. Wingred spoke about the challenge with the sciences - namely that there is really no effective way to learn science with the current shortages. He spoke about the approach to sciences noting that the government is trying to help with funding expansion of facilities.
Ray Pfau, member of the Nashoba Valley Rotary, was our guest speaker and gave us an interesting presentation on the Repair Cafe - a service that helps guests repair various household items and return them to service-ability. Guests pay for parts 
that might be needed and participate with volunteers to help with the repairs. And the neat part is that not only does this concept save money by making products last longer, it keeps repairable items from being tossed into the landfills.
that might be needed and participate with volunteers to help with the repairs. And the neat part is that not only does this concept save money by making products last longer, it keeps repairable items from being tossed into the landfills.
Paul Joseph, President of the Metrowest Chamber of Commerce, was our guest speaker today. Paul explained how he became involved with the Chamber about 3 1/2 years ago - his goal in
taking on the President role was to grow the market for businesses in this area and make the "Power of Connections", the tag line for the Chamber, a meaningful Mission. He recognized the opportunity to close the gap between worker availability and growth demands for resources. the Chamber has been active in programs to help align the workforce with the needs of companies in innovative ways.
taking on the President role was to grow the market for businesses in this area and make the "Power of Connections", the tag line for the Chamber, a meaningful Mission. He recognized the opportunity to close the gap between worker availability and growth demands for resources. the Chamber has been active in programs to help align the workforce with the needs of companies in innovative ways. 
Susan Peghiny, District Assistant Governor, presented the Rotary Presidential Citation to the Framingham Rotary in recognition of the Club's good work last year across the served communities of Framingham, Ashland, Hollison, and Hopkinton. Accepting on behalf of the Club was Dick Manelis, Club Co-President. Joyce Graff, Brookline Rotarian, gave an account of her trip to India this year as part of the Polio Plus 
initiative. She recapped the Rotary's involvement with the program to eradicate polio which started in 1985 in the Philippines. Rotary was later joined by the World Health Organization in 1988. There has been great progress since then to reduce the number of active cases from a high of 1000 new cases/day in 1988 to just 37 total cases worldwide in 2018. But Joyce emphasized that the fight is not over. While India has been polio-free since 2016 - many infectious diseases, including polio, are only a train- or plane-ride away. India is bordered by Afghanistan, Pakistan and Bangladesh where active cases remain. The flight to eradicate Polio continues.
initiative. She recapped the Rotary's involvement with the program to eradicate polio which started in 1985 in the Philippines. Rotary was later joined by the World Health Organization in 1988. There has been great progress since then to reduce the number of active cases from a high of 1000 new cases/day in 1988 to just 37 total cases worldwide in 2018. But Joyce emphasized that the fight is not over. While India has been polio-free since 2016 - many infectious diseases, including polio, are only a train- or plane-ride away. India is bordered by Afghanistan, Pakistan and Bangladesh where active cases remain. The flight to eradicate Polio continues.Once again this year, the Rotary Club hosted about 50 children from the Framingham schools for a Children's Holiday Party. The children were treated to a chicken finger and tater tots lunch with Rotary members and each child received a gift bag with treats assembled by the Fuller Interact Club a couple of weeks ago. The children were so very grateful and gave the Rotary a hand-made card to express their appreciation. As the children were being entertained by a magician, news reached them that a special guest had arrived. Santa had made arrangements to make a special trip down from the North Pole to visit with the children and hand out the presents. The kids were ecstatic to see Santa. What a great event!!
The Rotary Club of Framingham presented its second Random Act of Kindness (RAK) award in early December to a little girl suffering from a number of serious physical and developmental problems, including severe breathing difficulty stemming from a mutation of the pign gene. The club’s provision of a portable oxygen concentrator for the two year old, will make travel with her mother to doctors and hospitals for treatment much easier than with the very heavy, bulky unit they have been using.
Several members from the Rotary Club of Framingham help out the Curtis Family Thanksgiving Dinner by cutting up turkeys the evening before.
The Framingham Rotary Club in late November celebrated the reconstruction of the dangerously crumbling front steps of the 1945 home of an elderly Ashland couple. The club’s Mark Rosen Random Acts of Kindness Award (RAK) financed the reconstruction. Rosen was a long-time member of the club; a fellow Rotarian funds the award program. The steps were clearly unsafe and had to be rebuilt to reduce the risk of falls and injury to the 94-year-old wife—who receives meals-on-wheels—and her disabled son. Both are in and out of the house daily to visit her husband, also 94 and a resident of a nursing home. Photos show the steps before and after the construction.
The Framingham Rotary Club of held its Annual Pancake Breakfast on November 3—it was the seventh in the series— at Keefe Tech High School’s East Room, which is the showpiece and training center of the school’s culinary and hospitality department. Over 300 guests, individuals and families from the City and adjacent towns enjoyed pancakes with genuine maple syrup, hash browns, sausages, juice, coffee, tea, and milk. All of the proceeds will support scholarships to selected high school seniors in Framingham, Ashland, Holliston and Hopkinton. www.framinghamrotary.org.
Framingham Rotarians, at the Stop & Shop on Old Connecticut Path collecting Dollars on Wednesday, October 24, to help Rotary International eradicate Polio worldwide. Members of the Fuller Middle School Rotary ‘Interact Club’ helped; they often join the adults on charitable projects within our community.
Rotarians in sister clubs all over the world raise money on “Purple Pinkie Day,” so named because children who line up at clinics for the anti-Polio vaccine must dip their little finger in a violet solution to prove they’re now protected against the crippling disease—and also to avoid a second dose! Polio still exist in three countries. We are very close to eradicating it but we cannot and will not stop until it is gone from every country on earth.
Sue and Les Bryan, members of the century-old Derby Rotary Club in England visited our club.
Victor Tom, an MIT Professor, discussed at our meeting today how he and his colleagues developed the system that measures whether a baseball pitch is a ball or strike by using cameras and software determining the exact location of the ball during its flight to home plate.
This photo is of the Outbound Rotary Exchange students taken on 7/25/ 18 for their last outbound orientation. Ben Tremblay, on the far right, is the student our club is sending to Colombia, South America, on 8/11/2018 for the next school year.
The Framingham Rotary Club, continuing its annual effort to help keep very low income seniors in public housing cool and healthy during hot weather, last week delivered thirty-seven 6000 BTU air conditioners for installation at units managed by the Framingham Housing Authority (FHA). The project, a collaboration among the Rotary club, the FHA, and the Callahan Center (the Framingham Council on Aging Senior Center), has now delivered 212 units over the past six years.
Shown in the picture are Rotarians and a representative of the Housing Authority (third from left) along with the recipient of one of the air conditioners (fourth from left), who is a veteran
Sharon Lisnow, Co-Founder of The Respite Center spoke at our Monday meeting. The Respite Center's mission is to provide a place where people with medical and developmental issues, or adults whose family needs help with day care, can come to allow families some space for the other things in their lives. The Respite Center provides adult day care, child day care as well as weekend and overnight care. The Respite Center gives families a break from the rigor of dealing with special requirements and allows parents time to focus on other children, each other or other members of the family. Sharon noted that the Respite Center welcomes volunteers who can help with projects for which the center doesn't receive assistance - from maintenance of the facilities to gardening and other projects to improve the living environment. Visit their website at www.HopkintonRespite.com.
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The Summer Carnival is open at the FSU parking lot on Rt 9. This full size carnival that draws many attendees from around the area requires two ticket booths manned by our Club members. Special "thanks" to Tom Sturiale for heading up this great fundraiser.
The Installation Dinner to formally install the new co-presidents and officers of
the Club was held on June 21st at the Framingham Country Club. Dick Manelis and Tom Sturiale were installed as Co-Presidents.
In addition several other awards were given out:
Eight members received Paul Harris awards in addition to the two honorary Paul Harris awards.Rick McPherson accepted the Organization of the Year award on 
behalf of the Framingham YMCA.
behalf of the Framingham YMCA. Bob Schecter received 
the Framingham Rotary's Rotarian of the Year award
the Framingham Rotary's Rotarian of the Year awardEdgar Kalinda was named the Citizen of the Year in honor of his Service Above Self acts in the community including the most self-less act of all - volunteering to donate one of his kidneys to help his mentor, and our club co-
president, Tom, with a much needed organ transplant.
president, Tom, with a much needed organ transplant. 
