After Gail Moseley opened the meeting with the Pledge of Allegiance, Dick Hall followed with the invocation. She then thanked Steve Denton and Dave Renninger for getting us checked in this morning. Guests Noah Brown, Terri Whiter, Penelope Covey and Amanda Murray were welcomed.
CELEBRATIONS:
Wedding Anniversary: Gail and Jack Moseley will celebrate 49 years of marriage on March 1.
Drawing: Congratulations to Linda Trevorrow and Leslee Salhany for having the winning ticket but the rest of us will have another chance as they pulled the 3 of hearts.
CONCERN:
President Annette Oborn shared that Michael J. Johns, our Past District Governor and Past Rotary International Director has passed away. He was a very influential Rotarian for over 40 years.
ANNOUNCEMENTS:
Zoom Meetings: If you find you cannot attend a meeting in person, use the zoom link at the end of these minutes.
Membership Event: Tomorrow evening will be our Membership Recruitment Event at the VFW, beginning at 6:00. There are about 40 people on the list to attend. If Rotarians can help with set-up, be there about 5:00.
Foodbank: Our next volunteer time will be Wednesday, March 13 from 4:30 to 6:30 at the Foodbank. Five have signed up so far, but we can use more. Think about adding your name to the list when you sign in next week.
Bunny Trail Hop: Steve Dunton is looking for volunteers to help with this event, which will be on Saturday, March 23. There are two shifts, 9:30-11:30 and 11:30-1:30, so also sign up to help as you check in next week.
Cluster Project: Last Friday we helped fill 12 housewarming baskets for NAMI. Only half of the funds were used so we will be doing this another time.
Input Needed: John Pribonic that next Tuesday, March 5, community members will gather at City Hall at 6:00 to look at what we have and what we need to do to address the needs of people in our community as far as things like food insecurity. At this point food issues are part of the lives of 13% of our school students. Be there for the discussion if you can.
Bulldog Bags: And continuing on the subject of food insecurity, Bulldog Bags needs the following items from us by next Tuesday, March 6: macaroni and cheese cups, fruitsnacks, band-aids and hand sanitizer, 32 oz. boxes of pancake mix and 24 oz. bottles of pancake syrup, and peanut butter.
PROGRAM:
Dick Hall, Program Host and coordinator of Career Tech Month, presented Terri Whitmer, who has been a teacher in Stow since 2000 and now teaches Computer Science. She works with the Six District Compact in the Computer Science Pathways Program. She introduced students Penelope Covey and Noah Brown to present the program. Amanda Murray, principal of the High School was also with us.
Noah began by explaining that this part of the Six District Compact immerses students in the world of computer science. Students are involved in studying things like computer logic, coding, creating apps and creating websites. Some students go on to college to delve into these subjects further but others are able to find jobs in those fields right out of high school.
Penelope shared that it is possible to earn up to 12 college credits through the program that are honored in any public college or university in Ohio. They earn credentials that include practical skills in the IT field including cyber security and AI. There are many paid internships available as well as opportunities for a variety of degrees. The program also includes many collaborations with industries and institutions that can further both education and job possibilities. There is continual networking with companies who are looking for interns and employees and field trips to visit those entities. For the future, Noah intends to attend Northwestern where he will major in Computer Science on the way to a degree in Computer Science Engineering. Penelope will attend The Oho State University to further her work in the IT Field.
President Annette closed the meeting by leading us in the Four-Way Test.
DATES TO REMEMBER:
Thursday, February 29, 6:00-8:30, Membership recruitment event at the VFW Hall.
Tuesday, March 5: Bulldog Bag items due
Tuesday, March 5, 6:00 p.m at City Hall, community meeting to look at the needs of Stow families.
Wednesday, March 6, 7:30 a.m. morning meeting at Bellacinos with Wendi Polman speaking about Long Distance Walking, the good and the pitfalls.
Friday, March 8, 7:15 a.m. Rotary Board Meeting at City Hall
Wednesday, March 13, Four-Way Speech Contest that the High School
Wednesday, March 13, 4:30-6:30 p.m Volunteer time at the Akron-Canton Foodbank.
Saturday, March 23, 9:30-1:30 Bunny Trail Hop at Silver Springs Park.
Saturday, May 11, Heroes Day
Friday, June 14, Golf Outing at Fox Den
Friday, June 21, Board Retreat
Wednesday, October 9, Reverse Raffle/Silent Auction at Guy's Party Center
Submitted by Andy Denton