The vision of the UC Master Gardener Program of Sonoma County is to “Cultivate environmental stewardship one garden at a time.” As a 42-year-old volunteer organization in Sonoma County, we have had to adjust to the times. From the droughts, the fires, and the changes we see in what can be grown in our gardens, we have had to expand our scope to consider the changes in our climate while preserving the joy of gardening.
What do we do? We provide science-based horticultural information to home gardeners. As UC-trained volunteers, we operate an information desk, public workshops, and lectures, demonstration gardens, Garden Sense, a collaboration with the Water Agency for lawn conversion, information tables, school garden advisors, composting workshops, collaboration with the Resilient Landscape Coalition on fire-wise landscaping.
The UC Master Gardeners of Sonoma County took on the challenge of reviving the garden and the program at Valley of the Moon Children Center that was destroyed by the Glass Fire of 2020 and then went unused due to COVID. We started work in February of 2023, and now the garden produces vegetables for the children at the center and has a pollinator and sensory garden. Our next step is to expand our youth education program will launch next spring with a focus on under-served schools across the County.
Along with our ongoing programs, we are working on a Master Plan for Los Guilicos for teaching and demonstration garden that will provide a laboratory for Sonoma of the best sustainable gardening practices during our times. Home gardeners are at the forefront of changing garden practices that will help us develop resiliency to the changes. We have the science for sustainable practices; we can teach gardeners what sustainability is, but a place where we demonstrate the methods will be an asset to public education.
We hope you will join us at the opening to host a Jamboree with Susan Gorin, our supporter, “cutting the ribbon,” to celebrate the garden's restoration on Oct. 14th
Clio Tarazi is a retired urban planner who focused on affordable housing policies and financing she worked with many major western cities. Clio joined the Master Gardeners in 2016. As a Master Gardener, Clio served on the Board for five years and as President for three. As an all-volunteer organization, Clio has worked in many of the organization's roles, from Farmers' Markets, Firesafe Landscape Task, Climate Change Task Force, Fund Development, and social media. Now, she leads the team planning the Los Guilicos Teaching and Demonstration Garden. Learning from scratch all aspects of gardening has been both a struggle and a joy for her. The mission of the Master Gardeners for sustainability aligns with Clio’s commitment to practical environmental work.
Pat Decker is a retired executive from the wireless industry. She joined Master Gardeners in 2008. She served on the Board for six years, including two years as Co-President in Marin County. She served on the Board in Sonoma for two years. Throughout her volunteer service, she has focused on youth educational programs. She ran several youth education programs throughout public schools and venues in Marin, established Youth Education Standards and Curriculum for Sonoma Master Gardeners, and currently leads a team of volunteers at the Children’s Garden at Los Guilicos. She also is part of the editing team for the bi-weekly Master Gardener column “Advice To Grow By” in the Press Democrat, which features a quarterly “Kids Corner” article.
Lorez Bailey, Publisher of the North Bay Business Journal
Our speaker for Thursday, August 10, 2023 was Lorez Bailey of the North Bay Business Journal. Lorez was named Publisher of the Business Journal about 2 years ago. She previously had a distinguished career working with local non-profits, including Chops, Social Advocates for Youth (SAY), among others. She is also on the Board of Directors of Pepperwood Preserve. Lorez was named “Woman of the Year” in 2019 for Sonoma County by Representative Mike Thompson. Lorez earned both her bachelor’s and master’s degrees from Sonoma State University.
The Business Journal has been operating for 36 years. It serves Marin, Napa, Sonoma, and now Solano Counties. The Journal helps businesses engage with other businesses. It is a true “B to B”, that is, it is story of businesses that want to know what’s going on in business and want to engage with other businesses. It puts on 16 events each year related to business issues, including the popular 2023 Economic Outlook Summit. Each event offers valuable business marketing opportunities. The Business Journal is published weekly and has a website. Upcoming events and publications include “Best Places to Work,” “Diversity and Leadership,” and “Women in Wine,” among others. The Business Journal also has categories for “55 and Above,” “People with Disabilities,” and ”Neurodivergent people.”
The Journal is owned by Sonoma Media Investments (SMI), which owns a host of other local publications, including the Press Democrat. SMI is one of the strongest news companies the United States. Lorez hears from many other local news companies who are impressed with the SMI news organizations and with the engagement of North Bay readers. Without SMI, Sonoma County would be a “news desert.” Traditional news organizations are struggling, partially because many people no longer engage with traditional news. Younger people tend to get their news on social media and often want quick and fast news. Disinformation and misinformation can flourish under these circumstances, and people need to learn to be critical consumers of information. News sources such as SMI and the Business Journal can help people understand what news is reliable. People in Sonoma County are engaged in news and want to retain their reliable information sources.
Many thanks to Lorez for giving us an update on the Business Journal and SMI. Keep up the great work and we’ll continue reading and discussing!
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!
August 9, 2023, was a tragic day for our Rotarians, families, and friends on the Island of Maui. The fires across the island have changed lives forever. Truly devastating. Our sympathy, thoughts, and prayers are with everyone impacted.
As people of action, we can take immediate action. As we come together to recover and rebuild, we need to support each other. We need to Create Hope for Maui.
Through our Rotary District 5000 Foundation, a relief fund has been established. Foundation President Dave Hamil and Treasurer Sharon Amano will handle all donations. A committee will be organized shortly to find the greatest needs for the distribution of monies. A single fund will be the most helpful over time to provide the most significant benefits.
Elsie Allen High School Lobos Teachers were treated to a great lunch from Lola's Market. Over 90 educators, continuing and some first year, were greeted with appreciation and fantastic food at their first day of the new school year orientation on Monday, August 14th. Sunrise Rotarians Carolyn Anderson, Merle Hayes and Rich Randolph were on hand to welcome and add Sunrise support. Merle and Carolyn are Elsie Allen Scholarship Foundation members and Rich serves on the Community Board. The foundation provides student scholarships, Sunrise offers Teacher Grants for special projects like field trips and supplemental curriculum aids. Rotary District 5130 also has granted funds for Visual and Performing Arts equipment, and musical instruments Our sponsoring of Interact has engaged hundreds of students in likely their first community service experience.
Creativity requires energy and today the faculty and staff started their year off with gusto and academic exuberance! In the Library, Foundation President Vince Figueroa gave a brief overview of recent generous support from Poppy Bank founders John and Cindy Gallagher and local radio media owner, Lawerence Amaturo.
Over the summer, students renewed quad steps paint, adding their handprints.
Yet something was still missing??
Yes! As Emilie DeMeo, Foundation Board member shows, her hand of support! Add yours too!
M.J. Girard is currently an on air personality on KOWSfm.com His “Roots of Rock” is broadcast every Sunday morning at 7 AM
“North To Alaska” …a great tune from our musical heritage. Recall who sung that tune?
As you know, Rock music is my forte, having been reared in San Francisco with a very liberal mother who adored the early artists like Elvis, Little Richard, Fats Domino, et al. But Mom also appreciated Mantovani and light Opera as well, instilling in me the beauty and depth of variety.
Variety truly is the spice of life, I often take different approaches to achieve the same goal, thereby alleviating boredom and making the journey more enjoyable. We all fall into patterns that allow us to feel comfortable and confident about ourselves but pushing ourselves through “detours” can bring an exhilarating experience and expand our understanding of what it means to be a human being.
We are about to experience a transformation that will be explosive, Artificial Intelligence, e.g., machine deep learning, is on the precipice of changing our world. Hopefully for the better, but definitely “A Change Is Gonna Come” (another great tune!)
Every day is a Gift…that’s why it’s called the “Present” so enjoy the moment and the journey, which is its own reward. Please consider the catastrophe in Hawaii as an opportunity to help others as we celebrate life, that precious moment of living.
Stay Well…Stay Healthy…Stay Happy!
(Johnny Horton & Sam Cooke)
.MJ. Girard
Girard.org
Join MJ and friends at the proposed Mark West Area Community Park site to take a tour and see what can be with your donation and help!
When: Saturday, August 26
Time: 11am -3pm
Location: 4614 Old Redwood Highway
A food truck will be available to enjoy lunch while taking your personal tour of the proposed park site!
A yuppie opened the door of his Tesla, when suddenly a car came along and hit the door, ripping it off completely. When the police arrived at the scene, the yuppie was complaining bitterly about the damage to his precious Tesla.
"Officer, look what they've done to my Tesla!" he whined.
"You yuppies are so materialistic, you make me sick!" retorted the officer. "You're so worried about your stupid Tesla, that you didn't notice that your left arm was ripped off!"
"Oh my gaaawd," replied the yuppie, finally noticing the bloody left shoulder where his arm once was, "Where's my rolex?!"
President Debra Adjourns Our Meeting with this Message:
On National Laziness Day, Debra had this to say:
Life is too short to be in a hurry. If we are always on the go, we are reacting to the exigencies of day to day life rather than allowing ourselves the space to create a happy life - so go out and be lazy today - you deserve it!
At the 2023 Rotary International Convention in Melbourne, I asked all Rotary members to become champions in our effort to illuminate mental health needs near and far. This includes helping one another feel more supported, advocating for mental health services, and building bridges with experts in the field to expand access to treatment.
It’s an important task and a big ask. But it’s also something that should feel familiar to every Rotary member — because everything we do is in the spirit of caring, giving, friendship, and compassion, and has been from the beginning of our organization.
We’ve grown into an amazing global network of 1.4 million interconnected community leaders — leaders who share a deep commitment to doing good in the world. But what makes Rotary powerful isn’t just what we do for the communities we serve. We also support and empower each other, by creating a safe space for our members to bring their whole, authentic selves. We show each other comfort and care.
These connections are deeply meaningful. The U.S. surgeon general recently declared loneliness a public health epidemic. Dr. Vivek Murthy said, “We must prioritize building social connection the same way we have prioritized other critical public health issues such as tobacco, obesity, and substance use disorders.” I am proud of what Rotary has done across generations to build those kinds of social connections — and this magazine focused on loneliness and what Rotary can do about it in its January 2023 issue.
Our worldwide community and our foundational value prioritizing Service Above Self makes Rotary a powerful global advocate for mental health. A recently published study by Ohio State University found performing acts of kindness was the only one of three mental health interventions tested that helped people feel more connected to others. Study co-author David Cregg said, “Performing acts of kindness seems to be one of the best ways to promote those connections.”
This research suggests what we’ve known all along — that doing good helps transform not just the communities we serve, but it also transforms us. As we put a greater focus on mental health, let’s not think of this effort as something new to Rotary, but rather as something we can do better and as a result have a greater impact on ourselves and the people we serve.
We are not starting this effort from scratch. The Rotary Action Group on Mental Health Initiatives has been focused on these kinds of issues for several years — and we will be looking to members of that group for leadership as we continue to build awareness.
Mental health care fits comfortably within several of our areas of focus. As of May, there are 41 global grant-supported projects with a mental health focus. Many of them have tremendous promise, and we will be highlighting them in the months ahead.
So let’s work together to erase the stigma associated with emotional well-being, raise awareness of mental health needs, and improve access to preventive and interventional mental health services.
This year, I urge all of you to think big about The Rotary Foundation. To reach our goals and make the impact we know we can make, we must think outside the box and embrace innovation. We must make bold plans to expand our reach today, tomorrow, and in the future.
Start by thinking big about Foundation-supported projects. If your club hasn’t engaged in a Rotary Foundation district grant or global grant, make this the year you do. Collaborating with your Rotary counterparts in another district on one of Rotary’s seven areas of focus can make a lasting impact beyond your wildest dreams. Explore Rotary Showcase at rotary.org/showcase or arrange a meeting between your club and your district Rotary Foundation chair to start a conversation.
Let’s also think big about our polio fundraising this year. Begin planning your World Polio Day fundraiser now for 24 October if you haven’t already. Let’s see how Rotaract and Rotary clubs can make this year’s fundraisers our best ever.
Thinking big about the Foundation also means remembering that through it, our impact goes beyond the current Rotary year. We see this through not only the emphasis on sustainability in our grant projects but also in initiatives such as Programs of Scale. The third Programs of Scale recipient will take on a big challenge: combating cervical cancer and enhancing women’s health in Egypt through awareness-raising and improved access to preventive care.
The success of the Programs of Scale grant model lies in our approach of closely collaborating with partners to amplify proven methods. Each year, The Rotary Foundation awards $2 million to a member-led program that has demonstrated success and has the potential to reach more people through scaling up over a three- to five-year period.
Our Programs of Scale are the epitome of thinking big: Through them, we aim to establish sustainable partnerships and cost-effective programs that deliver tangible benefits beyond the funding period. This way, Rotary and its Foundation can reach and assist more people in more places.
Lastly, let’s remember that our efforts to make the world a better place should extend beyond our time on earth. As we strive to reach $2.025 billion by 2025 for Rotary’s Endowment, consider how you can leave a legacy by making a gift or a commitment to a Rotary endowment. This will ensure that Rotary’s future generations will have greater financial resources to create positive change, just as so many are doing now, in so many ways.
Members of the Rotary Club of Milano International-Net organized an amateur ski race in March to support a local charity’s initiative to donate defibrillators to try to prevent cardiac arrest deaths. The ski event attracted about 20 Rotarians, family members, and friends to Aprica, a resort nestled along a pass between Lake Como and the Dolomites. “There were also many nonskiers who enjoyed a beautiful day of sunshine, friendship, and conviviality,” says Chiara Giudici, the club’s immediate past president. The entry fee and sponsorships brought in more than $1,750 to purchase a defibrillator for a city park, says Giudici. In October, the club again supported the initiative, which raises money through sports events, by sponsoring a 50-participant tournament of padel, a racquet sport compared to pickleball. That competition provided a defibrillator to the police department.
Indonesia
The Rotary Club of Jakarta Metropolitan has offered free health checkups since 2015 for older people, mothers and their children, and others. For its eighth medical fair in February, the club expanded its screenings to include homeless people. X-rays detected signs of tuberculosis, bronchitis, or pneumonia in 97 of the 223 people screened. The club followed up to help them overcome barriers to treatment. “Our solution is to involve the civil registry service office to help with the homeless peoples’ identification so that they can apply for government insurance and later go to a hospital,” says club member Inne Ongkodjojo. “From this incident, we see the need to provide for public health screening, especially for TB, which has a fast and widespread transmission,” says Arry Basuseno, the club’s immediate past president.
This story originally appeared in the August 2023 issue of Rotary magazine.
Rotary projects make a difference in communities around the world.
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Members of the Rotary Club of Milano International-Net organized an amateur ski race in March to support a local charity’s initiative to donate defibrillators to try to prevent cardiac arrest deaths. The ski event attracted about 20 Rotarians, family members, and friends to Aprica, a resort nestled along a pass between Lake Como and the Dolomites. “There were also many nonskiers who enjoyed a beautiful day of sunshine, friendship, and conviviality,” says Chiara Giudici, the club’s immediate past president. The entry fee and sponsorships brought in more than $1,750 to purchase a defibrillator for a city park, says Giudici. In October, the club again supported the initiative, which raises money through sports events, by sponsoring a 50-participant tournament of padel, a racquet sport compared to pickleball. That competition provided a defibrillator to the police department.
The Rotary Club of Jakarta Metropolitan has offered free health checkups since 2015 for older people, mothers and their children, and others. For its eighth medical fair in February, the club expanded its screenings to include homeless people. X-rays detected signs of tuberculosis, bronchitis, or pneumonia in 97 of the 223 people screened. The club followed up to help them overcome barriers to treatment. “Our solution is to involve the civil registry service office to help with the homeless peoples’ identification so that they can apply for government insurance and later go to a hospital,” says club member Inne Ongkodjojo. “From this incident, we see the need to provide for public health screening, especially for TB, which has a fast and widespread transmission,” says Arry Basuseno, the club’s immediate past president.