Four high school students from the Harrisburg School District will deliver speeches on Monday, December 7. Assisted by our very own, Toni Mark, each student has prepared a speech applying Rotary's Four-Way Test to a pressing issue in their life.
"His long-time involvement in Rotary included roles as President of the Harrisburg Club, District Governor, and Rotary International grant efforts. Those who knew John will remember him as a man who deeply loved his family and had a tireless commitment to medicine and his patients."
Memorial contributions can be made to the Harrisburg Rotary Foundation, designated to the Peace Garden fund or the Water Project for Haiti Fund.
Contributions can be made by credit card using the links below.
Who in our club has dedicated service to our club for the past three years, exemplifies the Rotary Four-Way Test throughout their life, and has the potential to serve as a club president in the future?
The recipient of the "Robert D. Hanson Rotary Excellence Award" receives a seat on the 2021-2022 Board of Directors as well as a stipend to attend Rotary development and training for use within two years.
See the attached nomination form for more details including selection criteria.
Nominations are due to Addeline by December 31, 2020.
President James welcomed us all promptly at 12:00 PM. We had a big crew with us today – several schools in our Club’s catchment area, plus our speaker panel and, of course, our members. (Prior to the meeting there were lots of jokes, folks, so if you liked bad “egg yolk jokes” you were in for a treat…). Our invocation by Vladimir Beaufils requested “soft blessings” on Rotary and thankfulness that John Judson was such a good Rotarian.
We received extremely sad news last week - our beloved member, John Judson, has died. John was the epitome of Rotary in every way. His whole life was one of “Rotary Spirit” and he lived the 4-way test in all that he did. He stood for Rotary and got involved in the District as well as making many, many trips to Haiti to help people there; he also got several members of our Club involved in those trips.
On a lighter note, “Joy to the Burg” is out and is selling like hotcakes so get yours SOON. Our lunch money today goes to the Jewish Community Foundation of Central PA’s “Food for Children” campaign. Pres. James thanked all our club members and corporate members (Capital Blue Cross, Highmark, UPMC, Harrisburg Regional Chamber of Commerce and Hospice of Central PA (HCP)).
John Morefield introduced our program today, noting that it has been a “long time coming, originally having been scheduled for March 2019”. A panel discussion moderated by Alicia Richards of ABC27 was held to discuss the film, “Expedition Chesapeake,” how we all impact the Chesapeake Bay, and its watershed, and our role in making/keeping it healthy. In attendance were several classes of students from schools in our Club’s catchment area. John noted that with care, our children and grandchildren will be able to enjoy the Chesapeake Watershed.
Panelists included Michael Hanes, Whitaker Center Film Productions, Cindy Adams Dunn, Secretary of the PA Department of Conservation and Natural Resources, and Joel Rotz, Government Affairs, PA Farm Bureau. Mike Hanes gave a history of the production process which took several years from start to finish. His crew travelled 12,000 miles in the process of making the film, did 60 days of outside filming, osprey recovery and identification, and took LOTS of photos including bridges, birds, buildings, etc. The Smithsonian lent 4 boats and four staff to the project, and James Neihouse, renowned photographer, was the lead in capturing images of the Chesapeake.
It was noted by Secretary Dunn that PA farmers have been working for three decades to improve the health of the Chesapeake. Progress has been good to date but that there is still a long way to go in making the System and Bay healthy as the practices of the past have more than caught up with us. She noted that counties and communities are working with DCR but that everyone needs to understand that every time we turn on water, we impact that system.
Moderator Alicia Richards started off with a question to panelist Michael Hanes, asking how he decided to pick the Chesapeake as a topic for the film. He said he looked at the issues, the relevance to our communities now and in the future, the audience, the impacts the System makes on us and vice versa, and finally, how this could benefit students. The project took several (8) years to complete and had a group of 35 advisors meeting on a regular basis to decide what to include. It was noted at the start that farmers play an integral role in the overall health of the System, primarily in PA, but in New York State as well.
Secretary Dunn noted that anything that happens on land affect our water and the system. Never can we go wrong by planting a tree. (Her dragonfly pin signifies the System in that the insect needs clean water to survive).
Alicia Richards referred to the “Sins of the “Past” and what we need to start or continue to do. With soil enrichment, our society gets $136 Billion of food from farms in the Chesapeake watershed. New technologies are better able to hold rain in place on the soil and newer technologies have helped with run-off from the farms, but stormwater, hardscape and our own use of water every day impacts the Chesapeake.
Several students asked questions. One particularly good question was: “How do we get people to care?” (Editor’s note: WOW, somebody is tomorrow’s activist!!) Answer: plant grass, plant trees, plant perennials, write letters, do a local planting, become a volunteer.
“What was the hardest part of the project?” was another question directed at Dr. Hanes. He didn’t hesitate to note that June, 2018 – August, 2018 were the wettest three months on record, making it very hard to do anything outside, especially filming. He also said that getting good footage of river otters proved to be difficult as they are very elusive (but fascinating).
A question directed at Joel regarding farms was what makes them so difficult to manage. Mr. Nolt said that the primary difficulty is that farmers must pay for everything privately – there is very little outside funding available. Plus, there are over 30,000 farmers in the Watershed who need to understand how their participation can help.
The Secretary answered a question about improving the oyster population, noting that some communities are developing oyster beds that will help filter the water. Also, a question regarding impact of the fishing industry noted that fishing is a “real protein factory” and that fishermen need a chance with decreased pollution to do well.
A question regarding agricultural runoff and farmers’ roles in such was answered that farmers are continually being told that they need to do more, but too much regulation without any “carrots” is very difficult. In order to “fix” the problem totally, OVER $300,000,000 per year is needed. And, if the farmers leave due to increased costs, the land may become coverless concrete and promote even more runoff. It was suggested that individuals can help by doing rain gardens and permeable patios, etc. There are several watershed groups that try to help with the problem as well. Finally, it was noted that there are 63,000 streams in PA and half of them are in the Bay watershed. The primary rivers that are part of the Watershed are the Susquehanna (responsible for ½ the water), the Potomac, and the James River.
Alicia Richards applauded the students for their interest and participation. She then thanked the participants, Secretary Dunn, Dr. Hanes and Joel Rotts.
In closing, President James noted that we are at 1:00 PM sharp. He thanked Ms. Richards for her role as moderator, all the panelists, the students, those who helped develop the film and make it possible for Rotary to show it, and the members of Club #23 for their attendance. He noted that sanitation is one of RI’s areas of interest and suggested we check it out. Next week will be the 4-Way Test Speech Contest finalists/winners.
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