Police Captain with the Santa Rosa Police Department
John Cregan has twenty-two years of law enforcement experience and serves as a Police Captain with the Santa Rosa Police Department. Captain Cregan currently manages the Special Services Division which includes the Investigation Bureau, the Professional Standard Team, the Recruitment and Hiring Team, and the Training Team.
Captain Cregan serves on the Board of Directors for the National Alliance on Mental Illness and is passionate about creating long term solutions to help police officers better serve those suffering from mental illness in our communities. He is leading the effort to reimagine the City of Santa Rosa’s mental health response model.
Captain Cregan holds a bachelor’s degree in Criminal Justice Administration and a master’s degree in Law Enforcement and Public Safety Leadership. Captain Cregan is a recent graduate of the California P.O.S.T. Command College and is currently attending the Leadership Santa Rosa program.
Captain Cregan was appointed to serve as the interim Chief of Police as of May 2, 2022 and he will be competing for the position of the permanent position.
Our speaker for Thursday, March 17, 2022, was Marcy Smothers, an author and “foodie” who now spends much of her time chronicling Walt Disney and the history of Disneyland. Marcy is a former host of the Guy (Fieri) and Marcy show on Food Network. She is also the author of Snacks: Adventures in Food, Aisle by Aisle, Eat Like Walt: The Wonderful World of Disney Food, and Walt’s Disneyland; a Walk in the Park With Walt Disney.
Marcy’s most recent works are a deep dive into the history of Disneyland, including its construction and the creative genius of its creator, Walt Disney. In Walt’s Disneyland, she has tried to create a history that reflects how some of the park’s most famous areas were imagined. Marcy told us about Walt’s determination to build Disneyland and his basic response when asked why he wanted to do it: “I just want it.” Marcy also related the story about Tom Sawyer’s Island; when Walt saw the drawings, he decided to take them home and redraft them. His original map is still in place on the island! She also talked about the “drop” in Pirates of the Caribbean and how Walt designed it to deal with a space limitation. Many of the features of Disneyland were designed by Walt from his travels in Europe; he found the “Monorail” while travelling in Germany and the castle is largely based on castles he was when he visited Europe. Walt was also a huge train fan, and the Disneyland Railroad reflects his childhood fascination.
Thank you, Marcy, for the enjoyable insights into the world of Walt Disney and Disneyland.
Click HERE to view Marcy's presentation. It will be available for the next week or so.
On a regular basis, our resident photo pro Warren Smith, submits pictures of what is going on at the weekly meetings. You can always find the most recent pictures at the websites photo journal called "Meeting Sighting" Please note that all the meeting photos for the entire Rotary year are at this location with the most recent on the last page.
Thanks for all the great pictures Warren!Link to Meeting Sightings. The most recent are on the last page!
Dreamy, watery Pisces waved goodbye to us this weekend. It is officially fiery Aries season. Aries is the go-getter of the zodiac. Ruled by the planet Mars, which is the Roman god of war and passion, those who are Aries are fearless, they're not afraid to take charge, and lead. On March 20th (the same day as the spring equinox), we entered Aries season.
What does this entail for us Rotarians? This will lead us to feel energetic and upbeat. Aries is the first sign of the Zodiac, and this 2022 season is truly going to be a cosmic fresh start. It's New Year's with an intense urge to spring clean. It is no surprise if you feel rejuvenated, and are motivated to make your dreams a reality.
This is the time to get stuff done! Time to submit your manifesto for publication, run a marathon, clean your garage, submit your photography collection to an art show, or enter a body-building competition. "Rotarians: People of Action," has a whole new meaning right now.
Another exciting cosmic element occurred on March 20th: Mercury aligned perfectly with Jupiter, bringing us positivity and abundance. This conjunction of Mercury (the planet of the mind) aligning itself with Jupiter (the planet of luck and fortune) has the potential to attune our intuition and expand our minds.
Not only is it spring, but it's going to be a glorious time to manifest all your dreams into your reality. Money, health, romance, and/or fame are all at your fingertips.
As we countdown to our Super Raffle drawing on Saturday, April 23, several Super Selling Rotarians and their teams are stacking up sales, as reported by Steve Zwick. As of March 15, approximately $32,000 in ticket sales have been reported. This is slightly over 50% of our goal.
Leading teams are:
Steve Heron's - Baltimore Ravens - 126 tickets
Steve Zwick's - Carolina Panthers - 123 tickets
Marty Behr's - Chicago Bears - 97 tickets
Leading ticket sellers are:
John Jones - 167 tickets sold
Leroy Carlenzoli - 48 tickets sold
We are half way there... Let's step up sales and aim to go over our goal!
President Jennifer led a marathon Board meeting last Tuesday evening at Landmark Vineyards (which may have been the cause of the marathon) that covered many issues:
Treasurer Steve Herron reported (1) all members have made the latest assessment payments, (2) our Foundation Service Fund (DAF) has $44,950 as of February 28, and (3) a reconciliation of 2021/22 grant approvals and disbursements will be provided at the April meeting.
A motion was made and approved to spend $300 for a Recognition plaque for Founders and Beneficiaries of our Foundation Service (DAF) Fund.
Steve Amend proposed, and after discussion the Board approved, a motion to set aside $50,000 of the Branson land sale proceeds not earmarked for the Sabalos Surgical Clinic to be offered to The Living Room if it can be used as part of a down payment on a house acquisition. The offer is extended until December 31, 2022 and Steve Amend and Steve Herron will meet with their Board to discuss details.
Service Chair Paul O’Rear reported (1) the Club will have its monthly Volunteer evening at the Redwood Empire Food Bank March 31, (2) at the school’s request our Elsie Allen High School Clean Up Day is being postponed until the week before August school opening, (3) we may be participating in the EAHS Senior’s Breakfast on June 1, (4) the Club will have a Volunteer Morning at Forget Me Not Farm on April 9, (5) Rich Randolph is pursuing locations for Adaptive Swings to be installed with the Santa Rosa Parks & Recreation Department and (6) Paul reported that he has been unable to find a location among 10 agencies and non-profits approached that would accept the 200-250 native trees/shrubs which are the subject of Sunrise Rotary’s District Grant; he made a motion, that was approved, that the District Grant funds and the club’s matching funds be donated instead to the R.I. Foundation Disaster Relief Fund for Ukraine.
Membership Chair Stacy Drucker-Andress reported that Mathew Crooks will be joining Sunrise Rotary this Thursday (!!) and that there are two additional candidates nearing membership.
President Nominee Debra Robertson gave a report on progress for the 2022 Super Raffle. Steve Herron and Steve Zwick have been looking after ticket sales and sponsorships and at this point we have sold about 50% of the number of tickets sold last year.
Foundation/SRKSEP Chair Shauna Lorenzen reported (1) we are 79% of the way to our 2021/22 Foundation Club goal, and (2) she has been in touch with representatives of the Kagoshima Rotary Club and there is still a possibility that they may be sending students to Santa Rosa this summer.
International Chair John Jones reported (1) different ways that Rotarians and/or the club might give funds to help Ukrainian refugees most effectively, (2) Rafael and Ninoska will be in Santa Rosa end of March, (3) the next Nicaragua trip is tentatively set to leave January 27, 2023 and (4) John will travel to Nicaragua to meet with one of our medical partners to discuss needs for a cataract surgery mission.
President Elect Jack Strange gave an enthusiastic two-thumbs-up on the 2022 PETS conference held last week.
Rotary’s network enables rapid humanitarian relief for Ukrainian refugees
By Rotary International
The crisis in Ukraine is having devastating consequences on civilians as families flee their homes. According to the United Nations, more than 2 million people, most of them women and children, have sought refuge in neighboring countries and across Europe, while about 1 million more people have been displaced within Ukraine.
Rotary and Rotaract clubs in Europe and around the world have taken swift action and are working with members nearby to provide food, water, medical equipment, and shelter for refugees.
Rotaract Europe
The European Rotaract Information Centre, a multidistrict information organization that serves Rotaractors all over Europe, created a United for Peace site that compiles information for refugees and volunteers.
The site offers information about free rail, bus, and air transportation available to refugees and lists details about what’s needed and how to help at specific national borders.
It also has fundraising details for hospitals in the western Ukraine city of Lviv, as well as for clubs that are helping in various places and for other organizations in the region.
The site lets Rotaractors coordinate shelter for refugees stranded at the border. Volunteer hosts can sign up through an online form and specify how many people they can house and for how long. Begun as an initiative to help fellow Rotary members leaving Ukraine, it’s now being used by Rotaract and Rotary members all over Europe to offer help.
A tool on the site links a demand for goods with available supplies. It was created within 48 hours after a team of 60 members from 10 countries met by videoconference about how to meet the most urgent needs.
Ukraine
Ukraine has 62 Rotary clubs and six satellite clubs with about 1,100 members, and 24 Rotaract clubs with more than 300 members.
District 2232 (Ukraine and Belarus) formed a committee to help people affected by the crisis. It has launched an appeal to Rotary members worldwide for funds to provide basic necessities.
The city of Lviv has had an influx of people displaced from other cities around Ukraine. The Rotary Club of Lviv International, working with local authorities and major hospitals, created an online spreadsheet of relief items that can be accessed by people who want to help. Members arrange for the donated items to be delivered to hospitals and coordinate storage with local warehouses.
Poland
Poland has taken in more than a million refugees, and Rotary clubs all over the country created a central account for contributions.
The Rotary Club of Olsztyn is collecting and managing donations for more than 150 Ukrainians who are staying at Ostróda Camp, a conference and recreation center. Most of the occupants are unaccompanied children whose parents stayed in Ukraine. Four cars full of supplies including food, clothes, toiletries, and toys were donated hours after the center began accepting refugees.
Members of the Rotary Club of Zamosc worked with a member of the Rotary Club of Wolsztyn, who owns a medical supply distribution company, to coordinate a partnership with other organizations to collect supplies and equipment.
The Rotary Club of Gdansk Centrum is providing accommodations for four refugee families, and members who own businesses are offering them work.
Other countries that border Ukraine
The Rotary Club of Kisvárda, Hungary, is coordinating contributions and mobilizing members to donate necessities and deliver the items to where they’re needed.
Rotary members in Romania and Moldova have created a central fund for contributions and set up WhatsApp groups that organize food donations and coordinate shelter for refugees.
In Slovakia and the Czech Republic, clubs have partnered with a railway and cargo company to offer transportation to nearly 2,300 refugees.
Kim Widlicki and Claudia Brunner contributed to this article.
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