The Rotary Club of Beaumont, TX, is a large and diverse fellowship of inspired business, professional, and civic leaders with significant community connections that foster the ideals of Service Above Self and high ethical standards.
Weekly meetings are being held using Zoom. Sign into the meeting between 11:30 and Noon and you can enjoy some social time with other members before the meeting starts at Noon.
PROGRAM PREVIEW
June 3, 2020
"BEYOND THE STORM: Business is Booming"
Travis Woods
Owner & General Manager
T & L Solutions, LLC
With over 40 years experience in the construction industry, Travis Woods and his wife Lois, formed T&L Solutions, LLC, to offer the advantage of experience to companies that were struggling or planning for an expansion or growth. T & L also works with project owners to locate competent and qualified contractors to fit the projects' specific needs. You might say T & L Solutions is an industrial matchmaker, bringing industry and contractors together for success.
Travis and three other businessmen started the Gulf Coast Industrial Group in Lake Charles 10 years ago by having monthly meetings bringing plant folks in for their contractors to visit with. As a result of this, the group has grown to Baton Rouge, Port Arthur, Conroe, and Corpus. The group now boasts of 750 members across the Gulf Coast.
Travis Woods started and is chair of the Contractors Business Development Group of the Port Arthur Chamber of Commerce. The group meets once a month with area contractors to network, exchange contact information, and learn of new or existing projects.
Mr. Woods will talk about the area's recovery following the devastation of Hurricane and Tropical Storm Harvey in 2017 and what is on the horizon for the area as we look "Beyond the Storm."
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Head Table for June 3
Invocation:
Lynn Hill
Co-Owner
Nuvation Tek
Pledges to USA & Texas Flags:
Wesley Shipley
President
Ranchers & Farmers Mutual Insurance Company
Introduction of Guest Speaker
Kristie Young
Community Volunteer
Would you like to take part in the weekly meetings in a more active role? Don't wait to be asked. Volunteer for one of the weekly assignments! Choose your role and a date that is convenient. Link to the online signup systemor contact Jennifer Burch, Chair, at409-201-3016.
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CALENDAR OF ROTARY EVENTS
(Club events & opportunities for meeting makeups)
June
5
Service Above Self: Distributing Southeast Texas Food Bank boxes; 2:00 p.m., Babe Zaharias parking lot
14
Show Your Colors Flag Project for Flag Day
18
District Governor Becky Mason's Installation; 7:00 p.m. using Zoom
23
Board of Directors meeting; 11:30 a.m. online in Zoom meeting; members who would like to join in the meeting live, please send a request to receive the link by email to: admin@beaumontrotaryclub.org
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BOARD ACTION
In recent Board Action, the Board of Directors:
shared thanks expressed by the Southeast Texas Food Bank regarding the $10,000 donation and the volunteer hours of service rendered;
approved the return of Tish Cornell, Marketing Specialist with CommonCents Credit Union with classification: "Finance-Credit Union-Marketing";
terminated the membership of Mike Ireland;
extended the time of holding meetings using Zoom through the end of July;
considered the Room Assessment fee that went into effect in January, deciding that members are due a credit for the weeks that we are not able to meet at the Elegante. Members will see that reflected on the invoices that will be issued in June for July-December dues.
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Dues invoices will be sent out this month with payment due July 1. If the pandemic has had a negative effect on your employment and you are unable to pay your dues all at once this time, you ARE able to spread your payment over the 6-month period. Speak with Jacque to arrange a payment plan.
If the worst has happened and you find yourself unable to continue your membership in the club now, we sincerely regret it. Please remember to submit a letter of resignation by June 15 so you are not assessed July-December dues. Non-payment of International and Club dues creates a bad-debt on your Rotary financial record, and you cannot return to membership in this or any other Rotary Club until the bad-debt is paid. If you resign in good-standing before dues are assessed and your account is clear, you will be able to return to membership at a later time without a problem, and we will look forward to you doing so.
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The Southeast Texas Food Bank needs our help. A few weeks ago, Rotarians helped to assemble boxes for the Southeast Food Bank's food distributions during the pandemic. The boxes are ready to go and now they have asked for our help with the distribution. We need 10-20 volunteers on Friday, June 5 at 2:00 p.m. at Babe Zaharias parking lot. Workers should wear comfortable shoes and a hat to block the sun. Wear protective face covering of your own or there will be some available at the site too.
We are looking for volunteers to fill the positions at the virtual head table. We need volunteers to lead the invocation and lead the pledges. All dates for June have no one to serve in either capacity. Please help! You'll find the link here:
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THANK YOU, FLAG VOLUNTEERS!
(Article is reprinted this week because two names were omitted.)
Thank you to the Rotarians who demonstrated "Service Above Self" by posting 460 flags for "Show Your Colors" subscribers this morning for Memorial Day. Even with threatening storms, the team went to work in the early morning hours. For some, the threat became reality and they finished the deliveries much wetter than than started!
We are appreciative and proud of this team:
Virtue Alexander
David James
Bill Allen
Cindy & Stacey Jeanis
with Matthew Bloodsworth
Pat Anderson
Dan Jeans & Paula
Larry Beaulieu
Robert Kocot
Brad Brown
John Lee
Lynn Castle & Kris
Becky Mason
Cindy Cherry
Chuck Mason
Tony Clark
Rebekah Maxwell
Ty Coudrain
Gigi Mazzola
Deborah Drago
Gary Moncla
Phil Dunlap
Vernon Pierce
Carolyn Fernandez
Kevin Reed
Rene Greenwald
Amber Sawyer
Van Greer
Tisha Self
Chuck Heare
Tim Sudela
Gary Hidalgo
Mitch Templeton
Allan Higgins
Ellen Zimmerman
You are great examples of Service Above Self!
If you are able to serve for either or both June 14 and July 4th, please contact Pat Anderson or Gary Moncla as they have begun recruiting volunteers for both dates
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It is with great sadness that we inform you
our friend and fellow Rotarian
Bessie Fisher Chisum
has passed away.
March 22, 1945 - May 31, 2020
Bessie has been a member of our Club
since July 10, 1991.
We will remember Bessie with a moment of silence
at the beginning of the meeting on Wednesday
and will recognize her service and leadership
at a future time.
Information on services has not been released at this time.
May she rest in peace.
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Kevin Reed
June 2
Derina Holtzhausen
June 8
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We send wishes for a quick recovery to our friends and fellow Rotarians who are ill, are anticipating or recovering from surgery, or just in need of encouragement, support and good wishes.
Kari Dolan
Stephanie Shoemaker
and all Rotarians who are not able to join us using Zoom.
If you know of members who should be added to this list, please advise the office staff at 409-842-1913.
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PROGRAM REVIEW
May 27, 2020
"What Does an Army Chaplain Do, Anyway?"
Reverend Doctor Tony Clark
Rector
St. Mark's Episcopal Church
by Paula Bothe
Dr. Clark is currently Rector at St. Mark’s Episcopal Church and is a retired U. S. Army Colonel who served our country for thirty years. Twenty of those years were as an Army Chaplain.
“What does an Army Chaplain Do, Anyway?” According to Dr. Clark, the three duties of a chaplain are to nurture the living, care for the wounded and to honor the dead. Dr. Clark illustrated how he fulfilled those duties with a soldier whom he knew and with whom he served.
Specialist Jeffrey Wershow was a paratrooper and a member of the Florida National Guard who served in Iraq. Fulfilling part of his duty to “nurture the living,” Dr. Clark made a trip to the oldest Synagogue in Savannah, Georgia along with Jeffrey and several other soldiers of the Jewish faith. Following the service, several members of the congregation invited Dr. Clark to dinner. Initially, he declined, but Jeffrey encouraged him to accept and he gained a further understanding of the young men’s faith.
Jeffrey carried the flags of Florida and America as U.S. troops entered Iraq. He was chosen to carry the flags because of the respect his commander and his fellow soldiers had for him. While securing the University of Baghdad, Jeffrey was mortally wounded on July 6, 2003. Care for the wounded is a joint activity shared by doctors and chaplains and the Chaplain who served Jeffrey related his experience to Reverend Clark.
Fulfilling the third part of a Chaplain’s duties was a heart-breaking experience for Dr. Clark because he knew Jeffrey and had served with him. The casualty notification came to Dr. Clark at his home. Time was of the essence because CNN was ready to release the news and was not going to wait for the family to be notified. Although they encountered difficulties, the two officers were able to make the casualty notification before the news was released. Jeffrey was laid to rest on his family’s property with Dr. Clark fulfilling the duty of honoring the dead.
Reverend Dr. Clark’s remembrance of a fine young man was very touching and revealed how deeply he cared for those he served. I could not keep tears from my eyes when Dr. Clark shared this quote: “Regard your soldiers as your children, and they will follow you into the deepest valleys; look upon them as your own beloved sons, and they will stand by you even unto death.” What an appropriate and moving tribute for our club to hear two days after Memorial Day, 2020.
You can watch the presentation Tony gave via the recorded meeting.
or link to the Zoom page which includes all of the past recorded sessions
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Dues invoices will be sent out this month with payment due July 1. If the pandemic has had a negative effect on your employment and you are unable to pay your dues all at once this time, you ARE able to spread your payment over the 6-month period. Speak with Jacque to arrange a payment plan.
The Southeast Texas Food Bank needs our help. A few weeks ago, Rotarians helped to assemble boxes for the Southeast Food Bank's food distributions during the pandemic. The boxes are ready to go and now they have asked for our help with the distribution. We need 10-20 volunteers on Friday, June 5 at 2:00 p.m. at Babe Zaharias parking lot. Workers should wear comfortable shoes and a hat to block the sun. Wear protective face covering of your own or there will be some available at the site too.
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