President Janeane Coutu called the virtual meeting to order – it was the 4900th meeting of the Rotary Club of Nanaimo. A fun survey was conducted at the start.
Anniversaries
Club: Donna Hais, 18 years on April 19; Ed Borisenko, 30 years on April 20
Wedding: Dale and Joanne Huck, 28 years on April 18
Rotary Flashback Project
Thanks to Doug Cowling, this week featured Cottle Creek Park at 605 Nottingham Drive and Hammond Bay Road. Our club has contributed to the park through the City of Nanaimo Partners in Parks program. Janeane showed several pics taken during a walk of the lovely park that was added to the Nanaimo Park System in 2003. She had accessed the park from the entrance to Linley Valley Cottle Lake Park on Rock City Road and showed us the expansive areas around the lake;140 acres with a multitude of trails.
Announcements
Janeane: The Navy League declined our gift of $3,500 for its kitchen project and asked that the club contribute the funds to the community to help with the Covid-19 crisis.
Lucie Gosselin: Thanks to the members of the club, we have exceeded our goals for both polio and the Foundation general fund. Members may go online on the Rotary International to donate to the Disaster Response Fund, which is now focused on the Covid-19 crisis.
Janeane: District training on May 16 will now be online and free, with five one-hour sessions available.
The survey sent out last week carried the motion for Brechin Elementary School funding.
A fundraiser, “Rock for Relief,” will air tonight at 8pm to support the Nanaimo Community Response Fund for needs due to Covid-19. Musical talent from Vancouver Island, including International recording artists, will join forces to help raise funds. IWCD and Harmac are joining the cause by matching donations for the first $20,000. The money will stay in our community.
Lucie: Suggest we donate the funds from the Navy League for this fundraiser. Moved to make a $2,500 donation. Ian seconded. All in attendance voted unanimously in favor of the donation.
Happy IOU Bucks
Janeane: Happy that the committees continue to work together. Wendy and Doug on the Community Grants committee have been working with Denise to make changes to the Request for Funding page on our website. Denise will also be working on a page for our new garden in the park construction project.
Joyce Smith: Happy that she finished her coursework at VIU and is free again to focus on her secretarial duties. She will send out an announcement soon regarding attendance.
Dawn Hankins: Announced that there may be a Pub Trivia night via zoom, but needs her committee to respond to the request she sent out. She was also happy that she uncovered a 100-year mystery about her grandfather through an ancestry site.
Carey McIver: Happy that we finally got the application to Rotary International for the Nosaratra kindergarten project installing ten micro-flush toilets. It’s been a long process working with our partners in Sunyani, Ghana.
John Shillabeer: Happy for the action taken by the Navy League to decline our donation. He also surprised himself by passing the District Grant Management training.
Doug Cowling: Asked whether the seating arrangement in our new garden in the park will have “social distance” seating.
Dave Hammond: Plans are set so it is too late to change the design; there are armrests on the benches to discourage sleeping on the benches.
Rebecca Taylor: Happy to be able to continue working every day.
Debbie Narver: In support of local businesses, White Sails and Wolfe Brewing are happy to deliver their beer and wine. Rebecca—Wolfe is giving all their proceeds to the Hospital Foundation
Dawn Hankins and Doug Cowling: Would like to know how to pay the IOU bucks. Janeane will send out the email as to where to send the e-transfer.
