I was a little preoccupied this weekend - staying close to social media, and being thankful for it, as my brother, and my mother, are located in the heart of the devastation in Texas. My brother is in Friendswood; my mother is in League City - now infamous for the 34.64" of rain it received so far in this storm - #Harvey.
The enormity of the situation is real - as real, and as big - as Texas, itself. My niece is stuck inside her highrise in Houston, unable to get out or go anywhere with floodwaters all around her. All I can do, from this vantage point, is pray, and text the Red Cross to donate, as they are on the ground organizing shelters and meals. I'm grateful when I hear of first responders from other states headed their way to help; we'll have to see what we can do as a club. If anyone from the club also has relatives in the area, or has ideas on an appropriate response we can organize together, please let me know.
I did receive an invitation for our club to come and help another group - our local Red Cross, as a matter of fact. They have a program where they go into neighborhoods and replace, or offer new, smoke alarms. They would like us to assist them with neighborhood blitzes in Bethlehem, offering help with installation, education, and documentation. I'll let you all know when the first and next opportunities will be.
Last week we had the distinct pleasure of Dr. Kamran Afshar providing an in depth review and analysis of the economic situation overall with major focus on the various elements impacting directly within the Lehigh Valley.
As always, his presentation was very thorough and especially interesting as regards our own geographic areas. We will be certain to invite Kamran again to share his exceptional knowledge.
I'm excited to help others beyond just our club, but our club is doing a lot, too, and we don't want to forget all those opportunities, as well. Thursday Wayne Achey talked about needing someone to champion the water station at the Ice Rink for the day of the race - will you please will step up and serve?
This Thursday, we will celebrate August birthdays together, and we'll hear from Deacon Rodney Conn about the Emergency Sheltering Program we have done, and are doing again, this winter.
We still need someone to do Greeter, $2/Week and 50/50 for this Thursday. In fact, I need to share with the club that our signup sheet is rather light these days...please be sure to look into your heart and see where you can help.
The kids are back in school; this weekend coming up we'll celebrate Labor Day, and so before you know it things will kick into high gear again! September brings RLI and our MSR Annual race; October brings the District Purple Pinkie 5K/10K and World Polio Day...the fun is just beginning!
Speaking of school - stay tuned for updates on how we'll move forward on the Thomas Jefferson "adoption" project! Principal Tracey is getting things together now, so expect to hear something once the students are settled in.
Happy First Day of School!
President Cheryl, Making A Difference
cheryl@equi-librium.org
