Rotary Meeting Minutes
February 13, 2023
Our weekly Rotary meeting began at 12:10 p.m. with a warm welcome from President Mihmet. After an invocation, singing, and saying the pledge of alliance, the members greeted each other, warmly and enthusiastically.
After an introduction of a guest, we listened to Christian Cassidy Amstutz, a new Rotarian, who is a grant coordinator for Central PA Food Bank. During high school, he was a Rotary exchange student in Germany, and is an Ithaca College graduate.
President Mihmet strongly encouraged the members to use Rotary Roundup for registering for activities and events such as packing boxes in March, April, and May at the Food Bank. The president also welcomed and thanked our corporate sponsors.
Scott Stevens informed us that there will be a social event on Feb. 21. The location will be announced soon. Steve Schwartz reminded attendees of the need for volunteers to serve three local men’s shelter opportunities over the next few weeks.
President-elect Ellen Brown introduced Craig Shuey, PA Turnpike Commission chief operations officer. Mr. Shuey informed us that the Commission is a billion-dollar enterprise responsible for 550+ linear miles, 10 tunnels, and 136 facilities. Currently, there are 153 miles of the turnpike being reconstructed, 83 miles are in design and five miles are under construction. The Commission employs 1,300 people.
The Turnpike first opened in 1940, and 500,000 drivers currently use the turnpike daily. The first state with a turnpike, PA Turnpike Commission consistently outperforms its peers in the safety and reliability of our roadways and is highly respected in the industry.
We also learned that 87% of the customers who use the turnpike use the EZ-Pass system which can be used along the East Coast. The turnpike is minimizing unpaid invoices and using new ways to recover unpaid tolls.
After a couple of questions, madam president informed us that there would be no luncheon next week. The meeting concluded at 1:03 p.m.
Submitted by Rotarian, John "Ski" Sygielski
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