Northwind 7/26/07
Whatcom
Northwind
July 26, 2007
MEETING TO ORDER: President Greg Thulin called the meeting to order at 12:30 and Winton Smith gave the invocation.
VISITING ROTARIANS: Ron Jepson, Phil Gubbins and Bob Morse from
GUESTS: Jim Bliss introduced his children Barbara, Meredith and Michael.
BIRTHDAYS: Ken Richardson July 30th and Phil Bratt July 31st.
RETURNING ROTARIANS: Mel Hollinger returned from a warm trip to
ANNOUNCMENTS: Committee assignments have been sent out and will be posted on the website under Site Pages; the Rummage Sale grossed $6,325.74 before expenses; next Thursday will be a Club Assembly to debrief on the rummage sale; Stan Dyer, from Bellingham Bay Rotary, said his club has committed $100,000 for the Bellingham Food Bank and is having a fundraiser at Boundary Bay Fish Company on Sunday August 5th from 2:00 to 6:00 p.m.; Mel Hollinger announced that the District Governor is visiting our club on August 16th and wants to see a good turnout from club members as a sign of respect for the District Governor's commitment to Rotary; Randy Carr announced that August 17th is Golfun and if interested contact him ASAP; there will be a short Board Meeting following today's regular meeting; Laurie Lloyd was awarded her Blue Badge; Lex Ludtke asked for help following today's meeting to help off-load one of the rummage sale trailers; and Rick Staeb announced the need for volunteers for the Tour de Whatcom, scheduled for Saturday August 4th, with all proceeds going to the Ferndale Boys & Girls Club.
HAPPY BUCKS: Greg Thulin for a 21-mile backpacking trip with his son's Boy Scout Troup and his 13th wedding anniversary, Brian Finnegan for his 17th wedding anniversary and to payoff a $5 IOU, Randy Carr paid off his IOU's (after adding them up and doubling them) and paid "guilty bucks" for missing the rummage sale, Dick Donahue for 25-years of sobriety, Jim McKellar for the effort put forth by the volunteers at our recent rummage sale, Rose Abbaspour for spending a week with her oldest granddaughter, Bob Bowman for Jim Bliss and the new Lummi Island Ferry Boat, Maureen McCarthy for the rummage sale and for five members of Dave Engels family volunteering to help out at the rummage sale, Marlene Sexton for something good â¿¢ I just didn't catch it, Jim Bliss for having his children in attendance today, Greg Iwasaki for something his son did and Dick Donahue for the Mariner's recent losing streak.
FINEMASTER: Today's Finemaster was Max Legg. He fined everyone who rides a bicycle for all the Doping going on at the recent Tour de France, Jerry Landcastle for driving a new vehicle, Jim Bliss because his children/grandchildren sure didn't get their good looks from him, July Johansen for encouraging Mel Hollinger to use the microphone, Pete Ruese for something about "guns" at the Border, Greg Thulin for putting a 30 pound back pack on his 60 pound son, Laurie Lloyd, Tony Cubellis and Dick Donahue and all the "bankers'' for the recent surge in the stock market, Kathy Vander Giessen for Lynden not taxing their citizens to fix county roads, all Exxon Stock holders because the company is making so much money, Ken Richardson for something about the Ferry costing too much, Gary Tomsic for the "wall conflict" in Blaine, and Maureen McCarthy for the new downtown Bus Station opening on Labor Day.
BANNERS: None
PROGRAM: Our speaker today was Heidi, from
who talked about the Stepping Stones Program and Amy's Place. Amy's Place is a drop in center for street folks, mostly young. It is open Friday and Saturday nights. They provide a safe haven for the chronically homeless, mentally ill, vulnerable youth and those who suffer from substance abuse. The organization began in 1980, after receiving a Federal Grant of $25k per year for five years. In 2007, they helped 541 persons with 106 between the ages of 16 and 21. Their biggest needs are donations and computer games. AMY stands for Assistance, Mentoring and Youth Driven. Anyone interested in helping can contact Heidi at
Drawing: Nine of Hearts, no winner
Editor this week: David Engels