Meeting called to order by President Doug Brent at 12:30pm.
Lisa Cheskin led the pledge of allegiance.
Judy Rodriguez gave our inspirational message about a boy who wanted to buy a puppy; not just any puppy, but the one who would always limp and never run, jump or play like the others. The shopkeeper told the little boy that he would give him the puppy; but the boy insisted that the puppy had the same worth as the others and he would pay full price for him. Besides, the boy rolled up his pantleg to reveal a brace that supported his atrophied leg and told the shopkeeper that he didn’t run so well either. With a down payment of $2.37 and a promise of 50 cents every month until paid, the boy and puppy were united and would share a bond of understanding and support that would last a lifetime.
Moral of the story: What might seem like imperfections can be viewed through a lens of shared experience and compassion, creating a deep connection.
VISITORS
Mike Norcia’s son Zach who is involved in Youth Rotary at UC San Diego.
Decorated eggs St. Lukes Pantry— March Madness
Announcements:
Inner Wheel—Thank you Rotary!
Jenna Mittleman—Principal at Dave’s Avenue and co-chair of the 2025 Great Race. Save the Date: August 30, 2025. Recruiting committee members; first committee meeting April 15, 2025.
--Rise Against Hunger—March 29, Prospect High School. Still looking for about 20 sign-ups.
--April 5 and 12—Hunger at Home in Willow Glen
--Opportunity to sponsor Rotary Speech Contest at District level; seeking $25 donations.
--First Tuesday—April 1 at Nicolette’s 5:30pm-7:30pm
--Nicholas --April 1st and 2nd Community service meeting to allocate funds. Total: $106,000
Blue Badge Bio: Barbara Rogan
- Barbara is a native Los Gatan who went to Dave’s Avenue, Fisher Junior High and Los Gatos High. College at Claremont McKenna, first law degree at UCSF; 2nd law degree at Santa Clara in intellectual properties.
- She is passionate about education and was convinced she would always be a courtroom attorney; she was a District Attorney for Los Angeles County and Santa Clara County; but switched careers and became an attorney building networks in the tech sector. Barbara worked at Cadence, NeoPhotonics and Penguin working in software design and A1 computing.
- She met her husband on a blind date when she was 18 (he had a car)! They have been married for 27 years and counting. Barbara is very proud of her girls: Molly, a senior at Mount Holyoke College and Kate, a freshman at Claremont McKenna College. Also included in the family are their two dogs, a retriever and a black lab.
- She is and was inspired by John K. Roth, Professor Emeritus of Philosophy at Claremont McKenna College and founding director of the Center for the Study of the Holocaust; now called the Mgrublian Center for Human Rights.
- Barbara is not only passionate about education, she is also passionate about volunteering and is proud to count Los Gatos Rotary as one of them.
- Welcome Barbara!
Rotary Family: Dan Synder and his wife Ann in Japan.
30 For 30:
- Terri Trotter—This is the last meeting for Erin Hartnett, she is moving to Costa Rica. We will miss you, Erin. $50 to Scholarship fund.
- Lissa—April 7th, monthly Monday morning movie at Los Gatos theater. La La Land, $10.
- Meghan—She is happy that her parents raised her to surround herself with people that hold different perspectives because she can continue to be friends with Doug Brent, even though he admitted to being a Dodger fan. $30 to Scholarship
Speaker: Ben Taylor, President of the San Jose Giants, interviewed by Mike Norcia
- Ben oversees the day-to-day stadium, marketing, event and ticketing operations of the organization.
- A graduate of UC Davis, he is a San Jose native who brings 10 years of experience in the sports industry. He began his career with his hometown team and in his first four seasons with the San Jose Giants served in various digital, marketing operations and media relations capacities. He facilitated the team’s social media growth into the top 5 in all of Minor League Baseball; he was presented with the 2014 Larry MacPhail award.
- Following 2015, Ben and his family moved to Colorado where he served as the Director of Marketing and Promotions for the Colorado Springs Sky Sox. During his tenure, he oversaw a number of improvements to the in-game experience and ballpark along with single game attendance records.
- Ben returned to San Jose in 2019 in a leadership capacity, working in community development and community outreach to make the San Jose Giants interesting and exciting. For example: Beer Batter: if the designated batter strikes out, the beer is half off. The San Jose Churros, which was started to engage the Latin community packs the stadium when they play. The person making the churros has been making them by hand for over 40 years.
The Savannah Bananas were so popular that their tickets were higher than Taylor Swift tickets.
The San Jose Giants have a long lease extension and will stay where they are for the foreseeable future.
Meeting adjourned at 1:30.