Tynisha Clegg, Family Service Agency (FSA) Executive Director, gave Rotarians an overview of the agency’s response to the Covid-19 pandemic at this week’s meeting.
Natalie Heth, October Student of the Month, plans to work in health care administration.
Family Service Agency (FSA) Executive Director Tynisha Clegg gave Rotarians an overview of the agency’s response to the Covid-19 pandemic at this week’s meeting. Clegg noted that just before the outbreak of Covid the agency moved into newly renovated office space, recently assumed responsibility for the federally created Community Action program from county government, and had just coordinated assistance to victims of two major apartment fires (St. Albans in Sycamore and on Ridge Drive in DeKalb). She said the technology flexibility of their new headquarters coupled with the experience of the fire disasters and access to the Community Action resources gave FSA a strong background on how to approach services for the pandemic crisis.
Clegg said “Family Service Agency didn’t miss a beat” when shelter in place orders were imposed at the start of Covid. The agency went into its emergency response mode, said Clegg, and immediately began hosting coordination meetings with other agencies on determining community needs and resources. Among the resources FSA contributed were $200,000 for housing help countywide and an additional $250,000 granted through the City of DeKalb. She said their Center for Counseling services expanded by 150% mainly through telehealth contacts; 200 families entered their “Barrier Reduction” program which takes a wholistic approach to preventing evictions and helping adults reengage in the workforce; and 150 children were served by their Child Advocacy program (allowing multiple agencies to coordinate information gathering rather than each agency doing separate interviews). Clegg says FSA still has funds to help those facing financial stress from the impact of Covid-19 and that the various agencies coordinating the Covid-19 emergency response continue to meet monthly.
Tynisha Clegg has been with FSA for 14 years and Executive Director for the past three years. She said FSA key services are in the areas of Child Advocacy, Youth Mentoring, Counseling, Senior Services, and the Community Action program. Further information is available on their website at www.fsadekalbcounty.org.
The October Student of the Month is Natalie Heth, and she was a guest speaker at this week’s meeting. The Sycamore High School senior is very involved in the school’s Business Academy and credits it with helping her choose a career goal of health care administration. She noted how the program excels in teaching strong leadership and networking skills. Besides her academic successes, Heth participates in a variety of extra-curricular activities including the Rotary Interact program and tennis. She hopes to attend Loyola University after graduation. She is designating her $100 Rotary gift check to the “Pushing Together” non-profit in DeKalb which she learned about while participating in the Youth Engaged in Philanthropy program of the Community Foundation. “Pushing Together” helps youth develop life-skills while learning and practicing skateboarding techniques.
Donations are currently being requested for the Sycamore Food Pantry. Bring a bottle of laundry detergent...or $10 for Julie Sgarlata to purchase one. Money is easier to handle.
Personal hygiene items (bar soap, shampoo, etc.) are also being sought.
Posted by David Bills, District 6420 Governor on Sep 13, 2021
Dear Rotary Club Presidents, Club Secretaries, and All District 6420 Rotarians,
It is time for our clubs to consider nominating a Rotarian to serve as Governor for Rotary District 6420 for the 2024-25 Rotary year.
The qualifications to become Governor include being a member in good standing of a club in good standing, serving at least one full term as a club president, and being available in person to meet with the Nominating Committee on the date set by that committee. That interview date is tentatively set for Saturday, December 4, 2021.
The successful candidate will join the Governor Line, serving as the District Governor Nominee Designate in the second half of the 2021-22 Rotary year, District Governor Nominee in 2022-23, District Governor Elect in 2023-24, and District Governor in 2024-25.
There is an expectation that a Past District Governor will continue to serve the District in some leadership position for at least two years following the Governor year. A high-quality Governor training program is provided by Zone, Region, and Rotary International personnel.
A prospective candidate should contact me or any past Governor with any questions.
Each club is eligible to nominate one candidate, and the club must sign off on their full support for their candidate. Official nomination forms are available by contacting me. Also, the nomination forms need to be returned to me by the deadline for nominations which is Monday, November 15, 2021. Candidates will be contacted to set up interviews following the deadline.
PLEASE MAKE THIS INFORMATION AVAILABLE TO ALL YOUR MEMBERS.
Feel free to contact me with any questions, or for more information.
October 4, 1822 – 19th U. S. President Rutherford B. Hayes is born in Delaware, Ohio. He is known for the phrase, “He serves his party best who serves his country best.”
October 5, 1830 – 21st U. S. President Chester A. Arthur is born in Fairfield, Vermont.
October 6, 1846 – Engineer and inventor George Westinghouse is born in Central Ridge, New York. He developed air brakes for trains and later promoted the adoption of alternating current (AC) systems for electric power transmission.
October 8, 1890 – Eddie Rickenbacker is born in Columbus, Ohio. He is awarded the Medal of Honor for his fighter pilot heroics during World War I, for a time is part-owner of the Indianapolis Motor Speedway, and heads Eastern Airlines from 1934 to 1963.
October 9, 1940 – “Beatles” star John Lennon is born in Liverpool, England.
October 4, 1957 – The Space Age begins as the Russians launch the first satellite into orbit. Sputnik I weighed just 184 pounds and transmitted a beeping signal for 21 days.
October 6, 1927 – “The Jazz Singer” starring Al Jolson is released, becoming the first full-length feature film using spoken dialogue.
October 8, 1871 – The Great Chicago Fire erupted leaving 300 people dead, 90,000 homeless, and 17,450 buildings destroyed.
October 8, 1918 – During World War I in the Argonne Forest in France, Sergeant Alvin C. York single-handedly took out a German machine-gun battalion that led to the capture of 132 prisoners.
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