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.
Due to extensive renovations underway at the MCM Eleganté, the weekly meeting will be held at the Broussard's Centré, 1775 Calder Avenue.
PROGRAM PREVIEW
November 13, 2019
"We've Got a Lot on Our Plate"
Dan Maher
Executive Director
Southeast Texas Food Bank
Dan Maher, Executive Director with the Southeast Texas Food Bank, will be the guest speaker for the November 13th meeting of the Rotary Club of Beaumont.
In the State of Texas, 1 in every 4 children and about 15% of the elderly in Southeast Texas live in poverty. Nationally, about 15 percent of the population is deemed food insecure, meaning they do not have guaranteed access to three meals per day. Locally, that number is even higher in the eight counties served by the Southeast Texas Food Bank.
Dan Maher's presentation will look at the issue of hunger in Southeast Texas and the Southeast Texas Food Bank's strategic planning and programming activity that is designed to strengthen our community's response to hunger.
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CALENDAR OF ROTARY EVENTS
(Club events & opportunities for meeting makeups)
NOVEMBER
19
Board of Directors meeting, 11:45 a.m. at the Art Museum of Southeast Texas
21
Foundation Board of Trustees meeting, 11:45 a.m. at the Art Museum of Southeast Texas
27
No meeting - Thanksgiving holiday
DECEMBER
4
Election of 4 Board members and a Foundation Trustee; at meeting (A member must be present to vote.)
14
Salvation Army Red Kettle Bell-Ringing; 10:00 a.m. - 6:00 p.m.; Parkdale Mall, Food Court entrance
17
Board of Directors meeting, 11:45 a.m. at the Art Museum of Southeast Texas
17
Holiday Party; Amelia Farms and Market; more details coming
18
No meeting; please attend Holiday Party as the meeting for the week
To ensure that the club is meeting the needs and expectations of its members, the Strategic Planning committee is evaluating meeting format and location options. So your voice may be heard, please provide feedback via this survey, on questions the committee is considering in its research and eventual recommendation to the Board.
It is a brief questionnaire of only 8 questions, and it does not require that you enter your name or email address. You do not have to register to participate and we really want your opinion. LINK TO THE SURVEY HERE. Please respond! We have received only 21 online responses and 23 written responses at the November 6 meeting.
We need to hear from you in order to ascertain the general opinions of our members regarding meeting venue, schedule, timing, and price of meals. We are anxious to hear opinions from as many members as we can in order to make a recommendation to the Board about how to handle the price increase to be implemented at the Eleganté in January 2020.
If you do not care to complete the online version of the survey, there will be printed copies at the November 13 meeting for you to complete.
Thank you.
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Did you enjoy a particular wine that you tasted at Wine Down With Rotary? Or perhaps you had to miss the event but would like to taste a wine that was served.
Would you like to serve some delicious wine at your Thanksgiving meal?
Do you need some to serve for your holiday party?
Would you like to give a bottle as a holiday gift for a neighbor or friend?
We have bottles of both red and white wine left from Wine Down With Rotary and we are making them available for a minimum donation of $25 for reds and $15 for whites. Please call the Rotary office at 409-842-1913 if you are interested in purchasing one or more bottles. At the same time, you will be making a donation to the Beaumont Rotary Foundation!
Rotary After Hours at Mackenzie's Pub on November 11 was terrific fun for everyone. Thank you to Gigi Mazzola for making the arrangements for us - twice - because of the cancellation on September 19 due to the flooding created by Tropical Storm Imelda.
Pictured left to right: Deborah Drago, Stephanie Roberts, and Gigi Mazzola
Pictured left to right: Kevin Reed, Sandra Whitmire, Gigi Mazzola, guest
Pictured left to right: Kevin Reed, friend, Sandra Whitmire, Vernon Pierce
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THANK YOU, FLAG VOLUNTEERS!
Thank you to the Rotarians who demonstrated "Service Above Self" by posting 502 flags for "Show Your Colors" subscribers this morning for Veterans Day. The number of flags was the largest number we have ever put out and it was the largest number of volunteers also!
We are appreciative and proud of this team:
Virtue Alexander
Gary Hidalgo
Pat Anderson
Allan Higgins
Larry Beaulieu
Karyn & Ronnie Husbands
Mellie Bevilacqua
Cindy Jeanis & Stacey
Brad Brown
Dan Jeans & Paula Jeans
Pat Calhoun
Robert Kocot
Lynn Castle & Kris
John Lee
Cindy Cherry
Gary Moncla
Tony Clark
Sandy Moschettieri
Ty Coudrain
Lane Olson
Amy Dansby
Vernon Pierce
Phil Dunlap
Kevin Reed
Carolyn Fernandez
Amber Sawyer
Rene Greenwald
Stephanie Shoemaker
Van Greer
Tim Sudela
Mark Hall
Mitch Templeton
Scott Hatcher
Dana Timaeus
Chuck Heare
Ellen Zimmerman
Thank you for your service!
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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.
Roy Huckaby
If you know of others who should be added to this list, please advise the office staff at 409-842-1913.
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Our sympathy is expressed to Rotarian
Cheryl Bilyeu
on the loss of her father
Cecil "Don" Bilyeu
March 18, 1938 - November 4, 2019
Mr. Bilyeu's services will be in his hometown of Tulsa, Oklahoma.
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Sharon Almquist
November 11
Joe Domino
November 13
Linda Williams
November 15
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CELEBRATING ROTARY ANNIVERSARIES!
Your membership in our Club is important to us, so we remember when you first joined!
Frank Eastman
November 11, 1981
38 years
Scot Babineaux
November 12, 2014
5 years
Michele Cobb
November 12, 2014
5 years
Kevin Dodson
November 12, 2008
11 years
Jay Wilson
November 12, 2014
5 years
Juan Zabala
November 12, 2003
16 years
Fred Kristiansen
November 13, 1974
45 years
Angela Baker
November 14, 1990
29 years
Natalie Shifflett
November 14, 2018
1 year
Leonard Juncker
November 14, 1979
40 years
George Perrett
November 15, 2006
13 years
Bobby Celli
November 16, 1983
36 years
Rob Glassey
November 16, 2011
8 years
Leslie Harrison
November 16, 2011
8 years
Dave Mulcahy
November 16, 2011
8 years
Gary Troutman
November 17, 2010
9 years
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PROGRAM REVIEW
November 6, 2019
"The 842nd Transportation Battalion at Work"
and
"A Salute to Rotarian Veterans"
LTC Gordon E. Vincent
842nd Transportation Battalion Commander
and
Colonel (retired) Randall L. Fluke
U. S. Attorney
by Bobbie Applegate
LTC Vincent commands the ports of Beaumont, Port Arthur, Corpus Christi and Gulfport, MS for the Department of Defense’s cargo in and out of the Gulf of Mexico. The command has sent and received Army transportation pieces to the Middle East and Europe on a regular basis. The strategic impact of our waterway cannot be overlooked. In LTC Vincent’s words, we hide in plain sight and ship cargo all over the world. This month 2,500 pieces will be received for Ft. Riley in Kansas.
At headquarters, there are 28 Army and civilian staff members. The job that is done here is done in hand with the local community. There are many partnerships between the Army, Coast Guard, Port stevedores, and business. The headquarters staff could not do their job as efficiently without everyone else in the community. The Coast Guard is one local partner who acts as security on the water for the cargo. Houston and Lake Charles labor assistance has also been invaluable in being able to efficiently send and receive cargo. Last month all four ports were up and running full force. It is important to the Army to be able to receive cargo in the shortest possible amount of time in order to have the combat power. The Army has 12 total ports, some outside of the US. The Beaumont port has an excellent reputation with the Army.
In January/February 15,000 to 20,000 pieces will be moved from this area for an exercise with the European command. The importance of maintaining and increasing our waterway here is that larger ships could carry more pieces quicker.
Col. Randall Fluke, (Ret.) presented a tribute for Veterans Day. He based his comment on a speech made by Ronald Reagan asking the question, “Where will we get the men who will commit to a life that at any time might be ended during war or in protection of peace?” Who are the men who would put down their lives in the protection of our country? Who would unselfishly serve so that we are free to pursue our lives? Who will watch the skies at night waiting for the pilots that will never return? (Please note that the word “men” is meant to be universal).
The answer to these questions is very simple. They lived with us and came home to us.
Randy then presented the veterans of the club by introducing them with their titles. Of the Vietnam vets, Randy extended a special tribute by a welcome home that they did not receive upon return. Our club members saluted our veterans with a standing ovation of gratitude.
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Did you enjoy a particular wine that you tasted at Wine Down With Rotary? Or perhaps you had to miss the event but would like to taste a wine that was served. 
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