Melissa Stewart has been at Chop’s Teen Club for 22 years and has been focused on youth development in Sonoma County for nearly twenty-five years. For twelve years, Melissa served Chop's as the Program & Events Director and is now Executive Director. She is passionate about creating an environment and opportunities that empower youth to expand their capacity to be confident and well-prepared for whatever future endeavors they pursue. Melissa has worked closely with teens of different cultural and economic backgrounds and helped to create programs focused on mentorship, sexual orientation, gender, juvenile justice, and much more.
District Governor Jim O’Grady visited us on September 5, 2024, to learn about Sunrise Rotary, introduce himself to us, and discuss RI and District 5130 projects for 2024-2025. Jim is a former educator and business owner and has been a member of Sonoma Valley Rotary for 20 years. He’s also an accomplished accordion player, which we can attest to since he brought his accordion and played it at the meeting!
The RI theme this year is “The Magic of Rotary.” What’s so magical about Rotary? As Rotarians we can influence events in mysterious ways. One of these keyways is that we build friendships and awaken joy and beauty in others and in our own lives. We build community by doing the little things with others, such as presenting a holiday gift to elderly shut-ins, reading to a small child, or serving a Thanksgiving dinner to those in need. Our District Theme is “Building Better Friendships.” Jim presented a District Friendship Award to our very own Penny Millar! Penny does it all, she brings in new members, nurtures them through the process of joining and beyond, hosts dinners and parties, helps people get to meetings, visits other clubs and club events, helps on all sorts of service projects and events, and trains new board members, among many other things. Penny brings joy to our club and her love for Rotary shows!
Jim also played a trivia game themed as “Rotary Friendship.” The game started with a series of Rotary-related historical questions. One interesting question was why did Rotary use the word “Plus” in the term “PolioPlus?” The idea was to express Rotary’s belief that an attack on polio would spur increases in immunizations against the 5-childhood vaccine-preventable diseases: measles, tuberculosis, diphtheria, whooping cough and tetanus. The second part of the trivia game was a version of “Name That Tune” with his accordion! He played songs from a variety of countries, including Poland, Greece (a program called Creating Friendships for Peace), Italy, France (which has a Rotary Fellowship for Francophones), the Czech Republic (which had to operate clubs underground during several periods), Mexico, and England (which started a Rotary Friendship Exchange with Sweden). District 5130 is working on setting up exchanges this year with Egypt and Peru.
Jim also gave us some District news. Our focus this year is on Human Trafficking. There are clubs and districts who work on this issue and come up with possible solutions. Our district has an expert in human trafficking, Raine Howe from the Petaluma Club, who would love to speak with us if invited. The district’s website has a Human Trafficking page with useful information. Jim also announced a multi-district World Peace Conference on January 24, 25, and 26 at the Doubletree in Rohnert Park. There will be great speakers and break-out sessions where we can learn how to bring peaceful practices to their homes, communities, and clubs. Many years ago, Jim’s club started a project in Uganda called “Adopt a Village.” They bought malaria nets, smokeless ovens, and similar items. They also started an education project for 19 children village children. 17 of the children graduated from college! As Paul Harris said, “Friendliness knows no bounds, it surmounts all barriers, and it navigates all seas.”
Thank you, Jim, for the wonderful presentation and for all your hard work in the district. It's going to be a great year for 5130!
Click HERE to see a limited time recording of Jim's talk. Don't miss the magic and the music!
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!
Posted by Rich Randolph Jack Strange on Sep 09, 2024
Wildfire Recovery A Community Legacy
Take a few minutes to meet the many who jump started Trailside Park recovery in 2017. Their plantings and perspiration are a tribute to collaboration, resilience and tenacity! Take a look and listen. The Magic will inspire!
Click HERE for the story on www.Youtube.com, Middletown Trailside Park tree planting March 25, 2017.
In the ensuing seven years, soil, sun and water have been restoring the landscape of Trailside Park in Middleton. Denuded in the 2015 Valley Fire, these acres were ground zero for a large-scale community collaborative replanting project stretching from Marin and Napa to Sonoma and Lake Counties. "LARCA" Lake Area Rotary Club Association was formed in response to fire relief. The US dept of Agriculture and University of California Cooperative Extension partnered with nurseries for 100,000 seedling fir, pine and other plants for regional reforestation.
Gaining about a foot a year the seedlings have survived seven seasons and their pivotal role in habitat and climate influence is apparent.
Since the March 2017 planting crew of over 400 youth and adults alike slogged through the boggy meadow.
The Magic of Rotary is belonging, and it’s a feeling that can appear when you least expect it.
Earlier this year, I was in Slovakia serving as a president’s representative during a six-week trip through Europe. When I wrote to Katarina Cechova, governor of District 2240 at the time, I mentioned that my grandmother Veronica Zilka grew up in a small village in the area before settling in the U.S.
It wasn’t long before Cechova tracked down my grandmother’s village, Jakubova Vol’a. She even organized a visit for me, where I received an unforgettable Slovakian welcome.
When I entered the community center of Jakubova Vol’a, a small crowd of people dressed in traditional Slovakian clothing greeted me. They sang with beautiful and powerful Central European voices that reminded me of my grandmother.
A lot of families play cards or games when they get together. When I was young, my father would pick up his accordion and lead my family in song. My grandmother would sing along with her impressive voice.
When I walked into the community center and heard traditional music from my childhood — when I saw a woman play the accordion the way my dad played — I suddenly felt like a little girl sitting at my grandmother’s house in Monessen, Pennsylvania. I burst into tears of joy at the memories.
But the magic didn’t stop there. District Governor Cechova really outdid herself. A local genealogist worked with a videographer to make a short film about my grandmother. We watched the video together in the community center.
When the video ended, I turned around and saw a man standing in the back of the room. I quickly learned that this stranger, Frantisek Zilka, was my second cousin. His grandmother and mine had been sisters. I felt like I had been struck by lightning.
I visited my newfound cousin’s home, which happens to be the home where my grandmother was born. There, he shared old photographs I had never seen of my dad, my uncle, and my grandmother.
Since then, I can’t stop thinking about my family of Rotary. When I refer to you as my family, I’m not just being kind. I really think of everyone in Rotary as my family. But I never would have imagined that my Rotary family would introduce me to long-lost personal family.
Sitting in that community center listening to traditional Slovakian music from my childhood filled me with joy and a profound sense of belonging. I am so grateful to District Governor Cechova and everyone who helped create that magical experience.
As members of Rotary, we have a unique opportunity to share the same magic with each other and with the world. I encourage you to consider how you can help spread that magic and ensure other members of your club — other members of our Rotary family — feel like they truly belong.
You can find all prior "RI President's Messages" at this LINK
“The great use of a life,” wrote American philosopher William James in 1900, “is to spend it for something that outlasts it.”
Some leave a legacy through family and friendships, others through faith or principles, and still others through their professions. The Rotary Foundation offers another powerful option.
As a believer in the power of passing down a legacy through The Rotary Foundation Endowment, I was humbled that my wife, Gay, and I were able recently to help others in Rotary leave their legacy.
Our district (6860 in northern Alabama) had never organized a fundraising dinner focused on the Foundation’s Endowment before, but we knew it was time. We called it a legacy dinner, emphasizing giving’s long-term impact.
Progress was slow at first, and there were skeptics who doubted we could raise $1 million, our initial goal. However, we remained optimistic, setting a date for 23 February 2024, Rotary’s anniversary.
During this campaign, committee members traveled throughout northern Alabama, meeting with small groups in fireside chats about contributing to the Endowment. Then, significant gifts began coming in. One Rotarian made a $25,000 commitment, handing over a check for $10,000. Soon, other members followed suit, and we had more than $200,000 in gifts and commitments.
We still had far to go but if there is one thing I know about Rotary, it is this: If you present the opportunity to members, they will respond. Topping off the district’s generosity were two surprises. One was a bequest commitment of $500,000, and then another of $560,000.
By the end of the campaign, our committee had exceeded our greatest expectations: We had raised $2,729,863.14 for the Endowment, nearly triple our goal. The impact of those gifts will create a legacy that will keep on giving forever.
No single club or district alone will achieve our goal of fortifying The Rotary Foundation Endowment to $2.025 billion by 2025. Not all of us can give $25,000 now or as part of an estate plan. But I also know many of us can.
Please help us reach that Endowment goal and in doing so leave behind a legacy and further the work of future generations of Rotary members by visiting rotary.org/legacy. On behalf of the Foundation Trustees, I am grateful for your Rotary legacy.
You can find all prior "Messages from the Foundation Trustee Chair" at this LINK
Christopher Hill was diagnosed with a heart condition at age 38. A past president of the Rotary Club of Bolton Lever in Greater Manchester, he has since become an advocate for automated external defibrillators. In 2022, Hill’s club joined five other Bolton-area Rotary clubs to purchase a nearly $1,900 defibrillator for the Bolton Steam Museum. “When you are out there in the countryside, you can be miles and even hours from one,” but when needed, Hill says, “it is needed in minutes.” Hill takes to area trails as leader of a walking group, prompting the Bolton Lever club to acquire a portable, single-use defibrillator that Hill carries on the treks. All 33 club members have attended training sessions and refresher courses on how to operate the machines.
Italy
Brushes and rollers in hand, members of the Rotary Club of Torino Lagrange converged on a youth center to supply a fresh coat of paint. The club members spent a weekend in April and about $1,500 sprucing up the facility, which offers counseling services and a gathering place for people ages 14 to 28. “The aim is to help young people overcome difficult moments and face changes in a welcoming, confidential, and judgement-free environment,” says club member Raffaele Battaglini. The club partnered with students at an arts high school who made paintings for the center.
This story originally appeared in the September 2024 issue of Rotary magazine.
Rotary projects make a difference in communities around the world.
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Christopher Hill was diagnosed with a heart condition at age 38. A past president of the Rotary Club of Bolton Lever in Greater Manchester, he has since become an advocate for automated external defibrillators. In 2022, Hill’s club joined five other Bolton-area Rotary clubs to purchase a nearly $1,900 defibrillator for the 
Brushes and rollers in hand, members of the Rotary Club of Torino Lagrange converged on a youth center to supply a fresh coat of paint. The club members spent a weekend in April and about $1,500 sprucing up the facility, which offers counseling services and a gathering place for people ages 14 to 28. “The aim is to help young people overcome difficult moments and face changes in a welcoming, confidential, and judgement-free environment,” says club member Raffaele Battaglini. The club partnered with students at an arts high school who made paintings for the center.