New president, JD Miller leads his first meeting with a discussion on our annual Pancake Breakfast at Scituate Heritage Days.
Rotary Club of Scituate, MA
Meeting Minutes: July 9, 2014 held at The Scituate Country Club
Members in attendance: JD Miller, Joe Kelley, Sue and Walter Heller, Mike Johnson, Joan Powers, Lucille Sorrentino, Bernie Westerveld, Luella Harlos, Janet Schmitz, Bart Nuboer, Bob and Sandi Schipul, Lois and Lambert Brandes, Dietrich Bilger, our newest member, Kathy Ball, and Lisa Tompson.
Pete Rhoten, a member of the Rotary Club of the North Palm Beaches joined us once again.
Stephanie Jones was our special guest this evening. Stephanie is a student at Bates College in Maine and for the past three years has been an intern at the Magical Moon Foundation in Marshfield.
JD Miller opened the first meeting of his presidency by welcoming members and guests; he also congratulated our new member, Kathy Ball. Bernie gave his treasurer’s report and told us that there is $3170.70 in our Rotary account, while the Queen holds $406.00 at the moment.
JD made some announcements that included acknowledging a letter from Scituate High School thanking us for our ongoing scholarship support and mentioning the terrific coverage that Ruth Thompson has been giving us in the Scituate Mariner. These recent articles featured long-time DARE officer Dom D’Archangelo receiving the special Rotary community service award, and Brendan Barry, the young man who spoke so beautifully at last week’s barbecue at the Michael Jason Kelley Memorial Bridge on Route 3A.
JD also mentioned the South Shore Arts Center summer events program; the upcoming Friendship House Golf Tournament; and, on Monday, September 15 at Hatherly Country Club, the St. Mary of the Nativity/Father Daniel J. Kennedy Memorial Golf Tournament in aid of capital projects planned at St. Mary’s.
JD then invited Lucille and others to discuss the upcoming annual Scituate Rotary Pancake Breakfast, which is a major fundraiser for our club to be held on Saturday morning, August 2 from 7 to 11 a.m. during Heritage Days. St. Mary’s Parish Hall is booked, but ads need to be sold for the placemats at $55.00 per ad or $100.00 for two. It was decided that breakfast tickets would be $7 per adult, $4 per child and $20 per family. We will also offer a take-out breakfast to be delivered by runners and a Shelter Box will once again be on display. Each member will be given a packet of ten tickets to sell for $50.00.
Walter distributed the tickets for Happy/Sad Bucks; Lucille drew the winning ticket, but, alas, not the elusive Queen!
After dinner, JD held up some Rotary pins and car decals that are available to purchase. He also discussed how funds would be dispersed to our scholarship winners. Jess Tassini is spending her first semester at Northeastern University in Australia, so her check will be sent directly to the university prior to her leaving for “down under.”
JD also mentioned the Board meeting conversation that was held prior to tonight’s meeting. It included Heritage Days, the Giving Tree campaign and the Scituate Rotary phone book production, the cost of which is huge to produce and is it really relevant. JD asked the question, what else could our club do to raise funds? Two ideas have been put forward so far: a money raffle and a household mailer, for which ads would be sold.
JD invited Dietrich to talk about the South Shore Council, on which he has just been made chairman. He would like Rotarians to ask, “What can I do for Rotary,” with the goal being to make the council more relevant. Dietrich explained that the South Shore Council is a regional council, made up of three regions: Cape Cod, South Shore (21 clubs), and Rhode Island. It meets every third Wednesday and is a “communication island” between the district and the clubs. It is seeking input from the clubs and acts as a library for club projects and the sharing of ideas. Another goal is to help clubs improve their membership levels.
Stephanie Jones has committed the past three summers to working at the Magical Moon Foundation in Marshfield, whose mission “is to provide a safe haven for children suffering from cancer and other life threatening illnesses while also serving as a healthy living center focused on growing organic produce and educating the community on the importance of eating local and sustainable food.”
In the past, Magical Moon interns have been sponsored by organizations capable of providing the funds that allow the interns to forgo a regular summer job. The interns manage day-to-day farm operations from 9 to 3 every weekday and work on special projects and fundraising events, including the Magical Moon Gala that will take place on August 23. Stephanie needs financial help for her internship; all gifts would go directly through the Magical Moon Foundation as a tax-deductible donation. If you are able to help Stephanie, please contact her via e-mail at sjones3@bates.edu for more information. And, please visit the Magical Moon farm for fresh eggs and vegetables!
JD thanked Stephanie and reminded us that next week our special guest will be Scituate author Ron Wheatley.
Respectfully submitted,
Lisa Tompson
Secretary
