President John rang the meeting to order just past high noon. Arnold Oliver then gave the invocation followed by president elect Cara leading us in the pledge and sing along. The song of the day was “do re mi” and then a round of ROTARY. There were no visitors today but we did receive good news that Arnold’s wife was on the mend and getting around. That’s the kind of sunshine report we like to hear.
There were no special announcements today but there were a few brags. Cara gave a report on her Rotary trip to Cozumel where she and 130 other Rotarians worked on various youth projects. David Kelley’s daughter was taking her real estate license test and Lisa said she was recognized at a recent meeting in Austin of appraisal district workers. Will’s daughter continues to be an outstanding athlete as she made the all district first team.
The Boys and Girls Club youth of the month was presented by Tori Smith. Dixon Gamble is a 13 year old 7th grader at Kirby middle school and a club member for seven years.
John then introduced the executive director of Patsy’s House as our program. There are about 70 such organizations in Texas/nationally and ours includes Wichita County as well as nine other surrounding counties. It has been around since the mid-eighties. It is a children’s advocacy organization which works to help children involved in sexual abuse or human trafficking. There are eight people who work in the office located at 1411 Tenth Street. They receive referrals from the CPS office and police departments. The individuals there are trained to interview children and strive to get all the facts in order to help the children involved and offer free counseling. The interviews are always recorded which are provided to law enforcement and they may be called upon to testify in court. They can also help with obtaining basic needs such as food and clothing. Funding is approximately 50 percent provided by state and federal sources with the balance coming from local foundations and donations. It is hard to believe we need such an organization but luckily to have people such as Denise to be there when needed. It takes a special person to fill those shoes. Thank you Denise.
Meeting was closed with the four way test and a ringing of the bell.
Patsy’s House Wish List
Kitchen Area
Bottled Water (small 8 oz size)
Individually packaged snacks (snack crackers, fruit snack pouches, granola bars, etc.)
Paper Towels (rolls)
Paper Plates, Bowls (please, no Styrofoam)
16 oz “Solo” Cups
16 ox Styrofoam Cups
Plastic Utensils
Office Area
Copy Machine Paper
“Forever” Postage Stamps
Post-It Notes (3x3)
Black Oxford Twin-Pocket Folders, Textured, NO Prongs
BLUE Smead 1/3 cut Tab Letter Size Folders
Manilla File Folders (Letter 1/3 tab)
Blank Discs DVD+R
32 GB USB
Batteries (AA, AAA, C, 9 Volt)
Craft Items & School Supplies
Pens, Pencils, Crayons
Markers, Glue, Scissors
Notebook Paper
Notebooks
Backpacks
Resource Room (new items only please)
Non-Perishable Food Items
Sleeping Bags
Sleepers (Babies)
Solid Colored Basic Sweatpants & Tops
Light-Weight Jackets
Receiving Blankets
Other Items
Toilet Paper
Facial Tissue
Light Bulbs (60 & 75 watts)
Dish Soap
Baby Wipes
Clorox of Lysol Wipes
Disinfectant Spray
Hand Sanitizer
New Fleece Blankets of Fleece to Make Blankets
Gift Cards to Purchase Items Needed
They also have an Amazon wish list:
https://www.amazon.com/hz/wishlist/ls/27AVM3GQUAO1F?ref_=wl_share