Call to Order
President Paul Johnson called the meeting to order at 12:30. Great flexibility was demonstrated by all as our A/V system wasn’t available, Ryan scrambled to get a sound system from his band, and Paul began by just quieting us down and speaking very loudly.
Pledge of Allegiance
Karen Briones led the pledge of allegiance.
Karen Briones led the pledge of allegiance.
Visiting Rotarians and Guests
(Not possible to hear everyone’s names)
(Not possible to hear everyone’s names)
Rotarians
- The President Elect from Saratoga Rotary visited. She invited us to join them at the Saratoga Art Festival this weekend.
- The President Elect from Campbell also visited. Campbell is a small club; and she is interested in learning more about how our club runs.
- Nancy from Saratoga Rotary; she is co-chair of the membership committee.
- Isabel from Saratoga Rotary; she is Red Badge member visiting as part of her Rotary learning journey.
Other Guests
- Luis from Grande Center El Salvador.
- Art Rabitz introduced his son Greg Rabbitz.
- Skip Brewster brought his daughter Susie.
- John Pencer introduced Chuck, a long time friend and town resident.
- Dan Snyder introduced Ajay who is visiting our club for the second time.
- Jeff Blum introduced George who is also on his way to becoming a club member.
Blue Badge Presentation
Suzy Deline Blue Badge Presentation
Without slides, mic, or apologies, Suzy did a great job of giving us headlines about her life. (This performance was a great ad for her consulting business, https://www.digitalartisans.biz)
Suzy Deline Bio:
- Chapter 1 - Suzy grew up on a farm in Wisconsin; and offered to help any of us learn how to milk a cow.
- Chapter 2 - She attended NorthWestern (and had a chance to meet Michael Jordon!).
- Chapter 3 - She came to Silicon Valley in the 90s. She worked at Intel among other places. Met her husband there. And, during a several year family posting in Asia, had children there.
- Chapter 4 - Since the family returned from Asia, she has been running her marketing consulting business, Digital Artisans.
- Chapter 5 - After 15 years of thinking about it and talking about it, she is joining Rotary!
Inspiration
Elaine Ware
(She noted that husband Ramon just passed his second finance test at Fidelity, which got a big cheer from the club.)
Elaine’s mother died about a year ago, and she wanted to share with us a poem from her mother’s funeral - Gone from my Sight by Henry Van Dyke (https://allpoetry.com/gone-from-my-sight)
This is a moving poem about how we think about those we lose.
Elaine’s mother died about a year ago, and she wanted to share with us a poem from her mother’s funeral - Gone from my Sight by Henry Van Dyke (https://allpoetry.com/gone-from-my-sight)
This is a moving poem about how we think about those we lose.
PolioPlus Fundraising
Rachelle Lopp reminded us that Rotary and our partners have enabled 20,000,000 people to walk who otherwise wouldn’t and more than 1,000,000 children’s lives have been saved. We must continue the work to eradicate polio. Rachelle will personally match the gift of any first-time donors this year.
- How long do we need to go without a reported polio case for an area to be declared polio free - 3 years.
- When was polio+ founded and name someone in the room who was a Rotarian at that time. 1985, John Colwell.
- How much does one polio dose cost? $.17 for the vaccine. Full cost: $3 for the syringe, medicine and delivery of a vaccination.
Hunger at Home
Lissa Kreisler talked about the recent volunteer experience. She presented our foundation’s grant check to Hunger at Home, to a lot of gratitude. Volunteers arrived at 8AM, packed food, then at 9AM the line of cars began to form. Close to 300 cars, some bringing food for multiple families, were served. Lissa estimates that 1500 families were served. All of this food would have gone to the landfill.
The May service opportunity is already full, but there will be another in June. Check your email for service events.
Member Spotlight
Nicollette announced Greg Gentile. Greg joined Rotary in 2014, sponsored by Mike Norcia. He wanted to get involved with a local service club on his way to retirement. Greg recalled many Rotarians past and present. He served on the Club Board in 2014 with presidents Andrew Howard and Suzanne Boxer Gassman. He encouraged members to join now, contribute what they can, and increase involvement later.
Special Presentation
Jolie, a seventeen year old student from Leigh, performed a magic act. During ELC recruiting she asked Mike Norcia if she could perform at our club. The trick involved two decks of cards and ended with her correctly guessing cards held by audience members and revealing names written secretly at the beginning. Jolie had great presence, great skill, and everyone loved the performance.
Quick note about the photos included in this CatTale:
A slight red tone is present in the photos due to the venue lighting, which lacked neutral white light.
A slight red tone is present in the photos due to the venue lighting, which lacked neutral white light.