Vice President Greg Gentille opened the meeting at 12:30, filling in for Doug Brent.
John Pencer led us in the pledge of allegiance.
Guests
- Richard Bobis introduced his sister Nancy from Florence, Italy
- Andrew Howard introduced his friend Cyrus Fazeli
- Nava Fathi introduced Eric Cennich, here with Bliss Zin
Judy Rodriguez gave our inspiration
She is focusing on our core values this month. Today’s message is that we are all different but we take those differences and mobilize them for the good of our community. We give gratitude for both our individuality and our common bond.
Greg announced our March birthdays and membership anniversaries
Thank you to all who served dinner at JW House. We were able to assist people who have family members with extended stays at Kaiser Hospital. Thank you Nancy, John, Lissa, Jeff, Nicolette, and friends!
The eggs for St Lukes Tuesday breakfast were decorated with a St Patrick's Day theme.
We hear from two new members presenting their red badge bios. Welcome to the club Bliss Zin and Derrick Du.
Bliss Zin
She thanked Nava Fathi for sponsoring her. Bliss grew up in Daly City CA and is currently a dentist here in Los Gatos. She got into Rotary because she has always been involved in service. She spoke about being particularly influenced in college by a trip to Costa Rica to provide basic dental needs and dental education, inspiring her to become a dentist. She has since participated in dental service trips trip to Mexico (indigenous Huichol), Fiji, Burma, Cambodia, and Uganda! She closed with a video of gorillas playing in the forest of Uganda.
Nava then presented her with her blue badge. Welcome Bliss!
Derrick Du
He thanked Ramon Ware for sponsoring him. Derrick grew up in the Minnesota lakes, doing all the fun things you do on lakes. He studied at the University of Minnesota and while a student he worked on some amazing projects such as at Siemens to rebuild Iraq’s power grid, at Honeywell’s to work on the first thermostat with an LCD screen, and with a team investigating a B2 bomber crash, among other things.
He then worked at Lockheed Martin where he participated in a couple of launch teams (the go/no-go rooms you see in the movies). While at Lockheed he volunteered with LEAP programs to encourage kids in STEM, as well as other service groups such as Habitat for Humanity and RAFT.
He then completed an MBA at Kellogg and worked at a bunch of tech start ups.
Derrick married Karen in 2022 and they are expecting a baby boy this summer. He enjoys gardening, woodworking, and cycling.
Ramon then presented him with his blue badge. Welcome Derrick!
February Board update
- Moved the March board meeting to March 25, same time and place
- Approved 2 new members: Carol Goedde, Marjorie Brent
- Approved revised agreement with Shir Hadash
- Reviewed quarterly scout report
Upcoming Events
- March 15 - our Red Cross Blood Drive at St Lukes in Los Gatos We are all full! Thanks to all who are volunteering or giving blood. See you Saturday!
- March 29 - Rise Against Hunger at Prospect High - please sign up for this great service opportunity
- April 7 and 14 - Hunger at Home volunteer opportunity - see email for signups
Rotary Family- Mike Frangadakis
Ron Cassell announced that we all need to check the accuracy of our info on clubrunner - we are each responsible for our data.
Lisa Cheskin introduced our guest speaker
Caroline Cocciardi: Leonardo da Vinci’s Room of Knots
In all of his paintings Leonardo Da Vinci leaves an interlocking knot as his signature.
Caroline shared her research on his mathematic and artistic genius with knots showcased in the the little known and not well preserved Room of Knots at Sforza Castle in Milan. It was Da Vinci’s final great fresco. In it, golden cords thread through sixteen intricately patterned trees on a 2500 sq foot domed ceiling. Each cord is one of a kind and creates distinct patterns. The sixteen trees give a feeling of being in a cathedral, showing off his interest in architecture.
Unfortunately it will be too difficult to restore it - it came into disrepair and then an architect in 1900 tried to update it to a beaux artes style, ruining much of Da Vinci’s cord work. Caroline is trying to recreate the design as it would have been through digital restoration- and then displaying it at the DeAnza planetarium because Da Vinci designed it to be seen above in a large space. She deconstructed for us the complex over-under pattern of the cords that she digitally restored with help of a mathematician. You can see Da Vinci’s trademark interlocking knot on one of the tree trunks.
Only two historical documents refer to the Room of Knots, one in 1498 with Da Vinci promising to finish it and one a few months later indicating a vineyard granted to Da Vinci for completing the work. There are no preliminary drawings or mentions in his codices or journals. He did all these intricate patterns without known sketches and completed it all quickly- especially for someone with a reputation for taking his time.
Caroline runs a non profit to try to preserve Leonardo’s work and showcase it in planetariums. She sells pins of his signature knot.