Portland Rotary Windjammer September 12, 2023 (Sep 11, 2023)

Meeting of September 8th: Flags For Heroes Ceremony

at the Maine Mall | by Jake Bourdeau

The meeting on Friday was held at the Flag for Heroes exhibit at the Maine Mall. Paul Tully was the master of ceremonies for the meeting. Since 2019, Rotarians and non-Rotarians have honored over 500 heroes with flags and certificates of recognition. Paul expressed our thanks to the event’s corporate sponsors including Rowe Ford, Mercy, Hannaford, Northern Light Health Care, Maineworks, and Cianbro.

Veterans, spouses, parents, caring children, siblings, first responders, clergy, medical professionals, non-profit program founders and many other people have been recognized with American flags as a hero. After reflecting on the reasons for the event, Paul Tully introduced each of the speakers.

Margo Walsh from MaineWorks, who sponsored three heroes, shared her vision of helping people facing barriers to workforce re-entry due to incarceration or addictions. Joining Margo was Cecil Warrick, who was first helped by the program, and is now running MaineWorks. Cecil recognized Margo as his hero, noting that she was main reason he was standing there today.

Charlie Therrien, SVP of Northern Light Health and President of Northern Light Mercy Hospital, spoke about how our event affects him, noting that he has been surrounded by heroes his whole career, not just in hospital, but when doing things in the community. Many of the heroes he sees are behind-the-scenes and don’t get a ton of recognition. That is why the Flags for Heroes event is special to him.

Ray Richardson Jr. was selected as a hero for Rowe Ford as a faith organizer, father, grandfather and for his community service. Ray is a recognized radio host on Channel 6. Ray spoke fondly of the Rowe Ford owners, and noted they wanted Ray to speak from the heart. Ray said he lives in gratitude for the gifts God gave him, and understands there is a privilege to being born in this country. He humbly admitted that he felt uncomfortable being called a hero, and he thinks the word mostly identifies with soldiers, firefighters and first responders.

Charlie Frair was one of the primary event organizers and honored his best friend who had recently passed away. Charlie met Jerry who was an Army veteran and avid skier. Jerry broke his leg three times skiing, and his doctor told him he could no longer ski on that leg. Jerry took that to mean he could still ski on the other leg, and learned to ski one legged. His determination inspired 23 other children with amputations to learn how to ski. Jerry eventually became the head coach for US Paralympic Ski team.

Portland Rotary President Dick Hall then spoke and he thanked all for attending this 5th Flags for Heroes event congratulated all the Heroes, and thanked all the sponsors and business organizations involved. He gave

special thanks to Charlie Frair and Paul Tully and the dedicated event committed for their detailed organization and execution.

President Dick noted that in addition to being able to honor the special heroes in our community, the event also helps to support the work of the Portland Rotary club including many community Service activities. This includes supporting the St. Vincent DePaul Thanksgiving Dinner for Homeless, Salvation Army Red Kettle Campaign, Long Creek Youth Development Center Mentoring Program, tree planting on the Bayside trail and rebuilding of Andrews Square, and support for those in recovery from substance use disorder. Portland Rotary is particularly focused on youth services, including Providing winter boots and school backpacks to children of new Mainers, reading and donating books to kids in grammar schools, packing bags at the Locker Project, providing PATHS graduates toolships (like a scholarships), sponsoring a Learning Works graduation, and supporting Rotary Youth Leadership Camp.

In closing, Nannette Ranger-Duncanson provided a fitting close to the event by singing an inspiring rendition, a cappella, of“God Bless America.”

The 120 flags are on display at the Mall thru September 22nd. We encourage everyone to visit and

see the wonderful arrangement. It's a terrific program that we will keep growing every year.

Team Photo by Ava Kabouchy

Bits and Pieces | by Laura Young

Our Friday meeting was held at the Maine Mall, From 11:30 to noon, to celebrate the opening of our "Flags For Heroes" display of U.S. flags. Rotarians and friends gathered in a sectioned off area the food court of the Maine Mall. The fellowship was flowing but feedback was mixed about the impacts of their varied gastronomical choices. At 12:25 we all walked to the other side of the mall for the Flag ceremony.

A Message From The President, Dick Hall

In the interest of openness and transparency, the Board of Directors meeting minutes and the club Budgets are available on the Rotary Webpage. webpage. The Board meeting minutes are reviewed and approved by email in the week following the Board meeting. When approved, they are posted by the club secretary, Tom Nickerson. They can be found on the left side of the home page under Site Pages : Portland Rotary Board Minutes. The club operations and charitable budgets are submitted by the club president to the Board of Directors for approval at the first meeting of the Rotary year. Once approved, they were posted to the website by the club treasurer, and can be accessed from the blue menu bar: Club Operations and Charitable Budget: These are only available to club members, so you will be asked to enter user name and password.

B- Community Volunteering Event!

This Sunday, Sept 17th.

Amy Chipman has six but is looking for more volunteers to help at a really interesting event: "Barn Fest - A family-friendly fundraiser to save the 100-year-old barn at Hurricane Valley Farm". It is organized by the Falmouth Land Trust and our friends at Cultivating Community who own the barn. The barn needs repairs so that more people can grow their food year-round. The program trains farmers who have migrated to Maine from Africa and other countries, and currently 50 families grow their own food on the farm. FMI, Click Here for Barn Fest.

There will be a large event tent in the field so we will gather rain or shine.

Cultivating Community is asking if we can volunteer for the following tasks:

Set up Helpers - 1-2:30 pm

Parking attendants - 2:30 - 4:30 pm

Bar Tenders - 2-5 pm

Bar Tenders - 4:30-7 pm

Clean Up Crew - 7 pm until done

As volunteers, we are welcome to partake in the event for free. (Ticket price is $50)

Enjoy live music by Back Woods Road
Hop on the horse-drawn hay wagon and tour the farm
Visit the iconic white barn and sample farm treats
Say hi to some friendly goats
Kids: join in on fun activities and crafts then make s'mores
Adults 21+: enjoy complimentary beer, wine and cocktails (while supplies last)
Visit the local food trucks for an easy dinner
Make a donation at the event and receive a thank you gift
Get a friendly cornhole competition going
Relax by the bonfire

COASTAL CLEANING: Ellen Niewoehner has volunteer opportunities through our Environmental committee. We have a Coastal Clean-up day on September 20^th in conjunction with the Portland Sunrise group, tentatively 9am to noon. Rain day scheduled September 21st.

DISTRICT RECOVERY CONFERENCE:

Sept 21st, Italian Heritage Center, 8am-4pm. Bruce Moore announced that we’re very excited about the upcoming District Recovery Conference which will focus on recovery in the workplace and the urgent need for housing. Our speakers from the business community will talk about the successes and challenges of hiring and maintaining individuals with SUD (Substance Use Disorder) and a panel of speakers will discuss the need for housing to ensure recovery success. See the attached flier for details on who will be presenting. We have FOUR FREE TICKETS to the conference available because of our Club’s financial support. The tickets are available on a ‘First Come, First Serve’ basis! Please contact Jan Chapman (207 408-5802) or Bruce Moore (206 318-9424) if interested in the tickets or for more information. Otherwise tickets are $25.00 and may be purchased at this link:To Register, Click Here.