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Red Wings Announcer
Posted on Oct 09, 2019
          Sports fan Eric Chapman introduced today’s speaker Josh Whetzel, announcer for the Rochester Red Wings Baseball team.  Josh started out by stating that he had heard the
Coverlet Museum was haunted.  He noted that the Red Wings used to host a haunted house during the Halloween season and one year put out a fake news release that the stadium was actually haunted.  A couple years later ESPN did a story about haunted stadiums and interviewed Josh.  Josh kept up the ruse and never admitted that Frontier Field is not haunted.
            In an unplanned moment Josh told about his cancer diagnosis at age 17 where he had to have a lung removed.  The Dream Factory sent him to see the LA Dodgers where he was interviewed by a local radio station.  After the interview he was offered a job interview and has been doing radio ever since.  Josh has been in Rochester since 2003. 
One of his favorite memories was being able to work with Joe Altobelli who later went on to coach and manage the Orioles to the World Series. 
DG Dave Hannon spoke earlier in the month and
gave a check for $100 to be used for a new
Literacy project
President Maurina gives Johnny a Pal-Mac Rotary
duffle
Red Wings announcer Josh Whetzel addresses the club
 
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Changeover Picnic
Posted by Kim Clement on Jun 26, 2019
        On Wednesday June 26th the club conducted its changeover picnic at Gravino Park.  President Leslie, leading her last meeting, had Sophia Clement lead the Pledge of Allegiance after which she led the club in the National Anthem as well.  (Such a shy kid!)  After a great pot luck dinner with hots and burgers cooked by Bob Yost and Mark Clement, awards were handed out.
 
Mark Clement gave this year’s Rotarian of the Year Award to a very deserving Marie Fessler
 
Jim Bush gave out this year’s Margaret Brooks Distinguished Award to our own Anne Morrell for all the years of service to Rotary and our community.
 
Bob and Dianne Sloan were thrilled to give 2 Paul Harris Awards to Bill and Marya Doyle for their Green Angels Project that has helped so many Wayne County residents in need.
 
Leslie then brought her President’s year to a close with different Rotarians reading quotes from former Interact Club members about volunteering.  She then thanked Rotarians for all the work this year and handed the gavel to new President Maurina Schmidt.  Maurina then handed Bob Yost his President Elect Pin.
 
50-50 winners were Kim Brooks and Bob Yost (who gave his winnings to Nacho)
The next meeting will be at the Legion on July 10th.
 
Editorial privilege here:  Let’s hope we have more members attend than attended the June 19th meeting…a RECORD BREAKING (Not to the good)  10!!!!!  C’mon club.  We can do better
Sophia Clement and President Leslie reciting the
Pledge of Allegiance
Marie Fessler accepting her Rotarian of the Year Award
Margaret Brooks Award winner Anne Morrell and
Jim Bush and previous winner Joan Shaffer
Dianne and Bob Sloan with Paul Harris Fellows
Bill and Marya Doyle
 
 
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Garbage, Birthday bags and Votes
Posted on May 29, 2019
Head to the adjoining room to fill up 20 birthday bags to be donated to Palmyra and Macedon Food Pantries
PE Maurina announced next year’s slate of officers-
            Pres.  Maurina
            Pres. Elect  Bob Yost
            VP TBA
            Sec. Joan
            Treas. Margaret
She also noted the changes in the Board of Directors from 9 to 13 members.  Two positions need to be filled. 
            The club accepted the changes by a unanimous vote in favor.
            Maurina also explained changes in the by-laws regarding raising yearly dues to $135, up $3 from the previous year.  She noted district dues have risen over $20 in the past few years and the club has covered most of the cost.
            Maurina also explained that the New Member Initiation  fee needs to be raised to cover the cost of pins, booklets and aprons.
            The club agreed unanimously,
            Leslie also brought up the possibility of moving our meeting from Parkwood to another location.  Looking for suggestions.
            Leslie mentioned that she would like to see checklists for Rotary events ie: Christmas Party, Changeover Picnic etc. to make it easier for those responsible for organizing the events
  Dianne and Bob, Sparky, Rollo, Kim C. and Maurina and
photographer Bob Yost adopting route 21S
         
Nacho, Nicole Coccia, Maddie Kier and Jamie Walker
Members and students loading bags with birthday
party supplies
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Students at Risk
Posted by Kim Clement on Jun 12, 2019
Our own President Leslie discussed social and emotional learning at school.
She noted how kids with adverse experiences often struggle at school.  An ACE survey was handed out to members.  ACE refers to Adverse Child Experiences that might include childhood abuse, sexual abuse, family isolation, alcohol abuse, mental illness and more.  Those scoring over 3 ACEs are considered at high risk.  Those with 7 or more ACEs have a higher death rate due to numerous causes including suicide and physical health issues.  Adverse experiences affect the brain and students are more likely to engage in high risk behaviors. Pal-Mac has programs available to students and their families to help control some of these issues.
Pres. Leslie
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Night to Shine
Posted by Kim Clement on May 15, 2019
Anne and Dianne put on a great presentation about this year’s Night to Shine event put on by the Crosscreek Church.  This event gives people with special needs from age 14 and up the chance to attend and be crowned king or queen of the prom.  Participants were able to get glammed up with hair and make-up, jewelry, clothes tailoring and even a shoe shine!  Participants loved the red carpet, photo booth, limo rides and even karaoke   The photos shown were proof of the joy the program brought to not only the guests, but their volunteer partners as well. 
            The idea started with Linda Price who has a child with special needs.  She contacted the Tim Tebow Foundation and they were happy to have her start the project in Palmyra.  Our own Rotrians Anne and Dianne were integral in getting it off the ground.  Several Pal-Mac Rotarians volunteered their time as helpers.  Around 150 guests attended the special event this year and they are hoping for 170 next year.
            The Night to Shine had a rocky, or should I say windy start.  The large tent that had been set up to greet the guests was blown down by heavy winds the morning of the event.  Not to worry, church and community members rallied around and built a wooden structure in its place in about 8 hours.  Because of this the event got more media coverage than they originally thought.  A great time was had by all and the group is always looking for volunteers.
 
           Our presenters Anne and Dianne
 
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Hill Cumorah Update
Posted by Kim Clement on May 08, 2019
            Rollo introduced Ed Nabroczky, who has held many positions over the years in the Mormon Church.  Ed was here to give us an update on the state of the Hill Cumorah Pageant. He applauded all the great work of Pal-Mac Rotary and is pleased that we are part of the pageant.
            Worldwide leaders of the church met last year to discuss options moving forward in the church.  The leaders decided to discontinue the pageant for several reasons.  They felt they wanted to return the sacred Hill Cumorah site to a more historical accuracy rather than the “carnival atmosphere” of the pageant.  Ed also noted declining attendance at the pageant and felt that outdoor productions were no longer as popular.Safety concerns were also a factor in discontinuing the pageant.  The church presently has security measures including the FBIlooking for possible problems.
            The leadership in Salt Lake City decided to stop funding the pageant.  The local council will need to determine what if anything will take its place.  Possible ideas include youth events, more historical excursions and inviting our community to give input.
Rollo and Ed Nabroczky
           
 
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Interact and Amber
Posted by Kim Clement on May 01, 2019
           Interact President Tayler McDonald  gave the club an update on all their programs for this year.
Members have volunteered at the Haunted Hayrides, led 3 blood drives (since 2013 they have collected 306 units) and sponsored an angel tree that garnered gifts for 16 kids.  The Interact club also funded bus transportation for volunteers at this year’s Night to Shine event as well as sending holiday cards to veterans.  They will also be giving out an Interact scholarship this year for up to $500.
            They noted difficulty in getting new members in the past, but are excited for the number of freshmen who joined this year. The club is also getting a new advisor Jessica Roethel who plans to extend to age group to include 7th and 8th graders.  A big Thank-You to our own Leslie Vecchhiotti for her leadership of Interact for the past several years.
President Leslie presents flowers and cake to
Chef Extraordinaire Amber Jenkins in thanks for
her years of service to Pal-Mac Rotary
Bob Ike has stolen Amber from us to become his
 Secretary.  A smart move for both
Nacho, Emma Arnold, Tayler McDonald, Kiara Eaton and Lila Cote
President Leslie with RYLA rep Maddie VanGordon
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Club Assembly
Posted by Kim Clement on Apr 24, 2019
The club gave out checks to representatives from the Creative Environment
 Day Care and to representatives from Macedon and Palmyra Food Pantries.  All were very thankful for the monies and noted how many people were helped by the funds.
 
Auction items supplied by Leslie, Vicky, Kim Clement and Pat netted $70 for the foundation
Creative Environment reps Stacey Denniston, Heather Hitchner and Emily Henning
Macedon and Palmyra Food Pantries reps
Dave Nagle and Lucille Hamlin
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Pal-Mac Robotics
Posted by Kim Clement on Apr 10, 2019
      Andy Wahl introduced Kevin Schlegel and members of the Robotics team as an example of one of the Wonderful Things in School these days.  We tend to hear only the bad news these days and the robotics Team represents one of the positives in education.  This program engages the students so much it is hard to keep them out of the building! The students learn much more than making robots.  They are responsible for fundraising and promoting the program.  They learn how to speak to others over the phone and in public forums. 
            The program started in 2008 and is now one of 3,790 teams worldwide.  There are 22 members and 14 mentors, some of whom are former team members as well as those from local businesses.  All teams receive specifics of competitions on the same day and have 6 weeks to design, build and test their bots.  Students need to be self-motivated and willing to try new things.  Students put in hundreds of hours in the course of the program.  What a great hands on program for our students to learn real world skills.
                                                                         Zoe Bird, Zach Johnson, Mr. Kevin Schlegel and Alex Wadsworth
Visiting students Olivia Cotterman, Jade Carroll ,Nacho and Joe Christman
 
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Paper and Pencils
Posted by Kim Clement on Mar 20, 2019
Marty Medina introduced Howard Grossman, an executive at Excellus Blue Cross Blue Shield, who started a foundation called Paper and Pencils to supply school supplies to teachers in Rochester Schools.
 
            Howard gave us statistics about students in the Rochester City School District.  The number of students eligible for free or reduced lunch in Rochester is 86% of  those attending.  The number for Pal-Mac is 45%.  The Rochester City School District has a graduation rate of 51%, whereas schools in Buffalo, Syracuse and New York City have rates in the 70% range.  Pal-Mac has a graduation rate of 86%. 
            Howard explained that the average cost to a family for yearly school supplies is around $500.  Many families simply cannot afford this cost in their budgets.  He also noted that the national average for teacher spending for supplies for their students is $600-$1,000.  After seeing how many children were in need the program Paper and Pencils was started with a $10,000 donation from Excellus.  Wegman’s donates carts and print shop materials.  Their warehouse on Jay Street looks like a “Borders” store.
            Teachers form high poverty school districts are allowed to get supplies once per semester.  Forty to fifty teachers usually show up each day.  Howard noted that the program can use donated new or used books as well.  If interested contact Marty Medina.
Howard Grossman and Marty Medina
Students BriannaDiliberto, Catrina Dinehart and Motia Gravili
Marty Medina introduced Howard Grossman, an executive at Excellus Blue Cross Blue Shield, who started a foundation called Paper and Pencils to supply school supplies to teachers in Rochester Schools.
 
            Howard gave us statistics about students in the Rochester City School District.  The number of students eligible for free or reduced lunch in Rochester is 86% of  those attending.  The number for Pal-Mac is 45%.  The Rochester City School District has a graduation rate of 51%, whereas schools in Buffalo, Syracuse and New York City have rates in the 70% range.  Pal-Mac has a graduation rate of 86%. 
            Howard explained that the average cost to a family for yearly school supplies is around $500.  Many families simply cannot afford this cost in their budgets.  He also noted that the national average for teacher spending for supplies for their students is $600-$1,000.  After seeing how many children were in need the program Paper and Pencils was started with a $10,000 donation from Excellus.  Wegman’s donates carts and print shop materials.  Their warehouse on Jay Street looks like a “Borders” store.
            Teachers form high poverty school districts are allowed to get supplies once per semester.  Forty to fifty teachers usually show up each day.  Howard noted that the program can use donated new or used books as well.  If interested contact Marty Medina.
Howard Grossman and Marty Medina
Students BriannaDiliberto, Catrina Dinehart and Motia Gravili
Read more...
 
 
Join us on Wednesdays!

2nd and 4th Weds of month 12:05 p.m. Alling Coverlet Museum - Lunch Meeting

3rd Wed of month 6 p.m. Flaherty's, Macedon -  Dinner Meeting

 

2nd and 4th Weds of the month at 12:05 pm:

Alling Coverlet Museum

112 William Street, Palmyra 

 

 

3rd Wednesday of the month at 6 pm:

 Flaherty's Macedon
 113 Pittsford-Palmyra Rd, Macedon

  

 
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