July 26, 2010 Blastoff

President  David Coney ,  his first officiating,  kicked off the July 19th meeting with a mental scavenger hunt describing one of the club members and asked those in attendance to guess who it might be.  Needless to say, we've got folks with a very impressive list of Rotary accomplishments.  You'll have to make the meeting to see who gets "scavengered" next.  President Coney also reported that, thanks to last year's fabulous fund raising efforts, the Club has a proposed budget of $106,371 for the year.

  Melissa Beach and Kim Woodard , representing the Noah's Landing Foundation, announced that the Foundation is partnering with Extreme Home Makeover on another area project.  The Foundation has been asked to raise $50,000 to pay for such items as air conditioners, doors and windows.  The project is expected to be significantly different than prior Makeover projects, and will focus on more than one family in the community.  More details will be available July 25th.

Phil Sandlin  introduced Houston Police Department (HPD) Community Liaison Officer Randy Derr.  Officer Derr has served HPD for 31 years, 26 of which have been in Clear Lake.  The Clear Lake substation is responsible for a district that is bounded by Airport Boulevard on the north and NASA Road One to the south.  Officer Derr reported that the biggest problem in the general Bay Area has been car burglaries.  It is also one of the most preventable crimes.  He explained the difference between a robbery and a burglary, provided tips for personal safety and handling a robbery, and for office and home security.  Officer Derr answered a wide range of questions from the membership, and was presented with a thank you gift by President Coney in appreciation of his time.

Announcements included the August 14th Pancake Breakfast to raise funds for the Space Center Rotary Endowment Foundation, and the August 14th Membership Seminar to be conducted by Past President Jon McKinnie.  Roger Donnelly , Fellowship Chair, announced that the next family fellowship is scheduled for 6 pm on August 5th at Putt Putt Fun House.  The event is hosted by Jim Saxe, and is free of charge, so be sure to bring the kids, grandkids, neighbors kids...even the big kids!