Thursday, April 29, 2021

April 27, 2021 Meeting Notes




President-Elect Kathleen McNalty, in President Earl Crowe's absence, opened the hybrid meeting at 7 am. Erik led the Pledge of Allegiance to the Flag; Jim gave the Invocation. Sherrie provided a great breakfast and coffee set up!

Announcements

Jim Adamson spoke about the Club Spring Training Event is Sat., May 1st. There will be 3 breakout sessions the morning of Sat., 1 May 2021 (9:00, 10:00 & 11:00 am), each with 11 different topics and each at a unique Zoom meeting. The Zoom links for each session/subject will be sent out soon in an email to each club member, so you can register for the subject(s) you wish to attend. If you need help, Kathleen will help you sign up!

On Sat., May 1, sessions are 9:00 am - 9:50 am, 10:00 am to 10:50 am and 11:00 am to 11:50 am. Each session has the same subjects in the same order. Subjects are:
  • Leadership
  • Club Secretary
  • Club Treasurer
  • Membership
  • Public Image and Marketing
  • The Rotary Foundation and International Service
  • Community Service
  • Fundraising
  • Youth Services
  • Adapting to Grow Rotary
  • Rotary 101.
Regarding CSTE, District 5060 says: "To be MOST effective, every club should participate with AT LEAST 10 CLUB MEMBERS attending at least 2 of the 3 breakout sessions. Following the morning sessions and a lunch break, it is expected that EVERY CLUB will hold a Club Planning Session at 1:00 pm on the afternoon of 1 May. Note that every member of the Club Board should participate in the training, but it is valuable for every interested Rotarian in your club. There is NO COST for participation, just your time!"

Wenatchee Confluence Rotary Club is organizing a Cinco de Mayo Blood Drive at Pybus Public Market on Wed., May 5th from 10 am to 3 pm. They thought it would be fun to challenge other area Rotary clubs to see which club can donate the most blood. They're also raffling off $50 Pybus bucks that will go to a random donor that day. Here's the link the local Red Cross to sign up to donate: http://rcblood.org/3lFy7wG. Click on the RED CROSS over Pybus, then More Dates to get donation scheduling information.




The Rotary Foundation will have an on-line fundraiser gala on Wed., May 12th from 5 pm to 6 pm. Cost is $110 to join and $100 of it is donated toward your next Paul Harris award. There will be a variety show featuring lots of entertainment and worthwhile speakers. Meet in the board room at Pybus to participate together if you're up for it. Food will be provided including desserts from "La Vie En" bakery and drinks as well.

Afterwards, at 6:30 pm, will be the
Rotary District 5060 Awards Ceremony. Click this link to register for just the Awards Ceremony:
District 5060 Awards Zoom Registration
There is no cost to attend the District 5060 awards ceremony so if you can't attend the Foundation Gala, be sure to attend the District awards ceremony. We'll be getting together in our normal meeting area in the Pybus Event Center, but both the Gala and Award Ceremony will be hybrid events (Zoom and Live at Pybus). Special bonus is a cash bar during the District 5060 awards ceremony.


Again, we will be doing the "takeovers" of the Wenatchee Valley Farmers Market at Pybus starting on May 15th and continuing October. It's on the 3rd Saturday of each month. There will also be non-profit tables this year where we'll have one for kids activities and brochures for the parents. Sign-ups will begin next week so check your calendars and come ready with your availability.









Rotary International 2021 Virtual Convention is now available for registration.

The 2021 Virtual Convention will be better than ever, opening more innovative opportunities to learn and to engage with the family of Rotary, near and far. You’ll be able to network in virtual lounges, meet new partners in service, and join fun activities with Rotary members from around the world.

This event is open to all Rotary members and participants from 12-16 June 2021. Registration fees are as follows:
  • Promotional rate: US$49* through 7 May, 2021 (11:59:59 Chicago time - CDT) 
  • US$65 - 8 May through 16 June. 
Click this link to register for the 2021 Virtual Convention: REGISTER for 2021 Virtual Convention

The Wenatchee Sunrise Rotary Club Board of Directors has received a request to terminate membership by Matt Eastman. We'll miss you, Matt. Keep in touch!

Brags and Confessions



Carol Adamson bragged (after the meeting) about the Women in Rotary gathering last Tuesday, April 20th at the Hilton Garden Inn. A good time was had by all!




Kathleen confessed/lamented about her laptop giving her fits. It shuts off after 1 hour of use! Working on figuring out why!!

John Schapman's kids' sport team played Matt Eastman's kids' team. John's team won! John also asked if anyone had ideas of how to get rid of a Northern Flicker Woodpecker that has been annoying his household. PJ offered the suggestion of building a house for it; that seemed to work at his home!

Alan bragged about the Community Action Council's mobile food pantry truck being on the front page of the Wenatchee World newspaper. Full color! He also said his son has been accepted to a graduate program for Sports Medicine at CWU in Ellensburg.

John McDarment bragged/confessed to having his 80th trip around the sun and celebrated a birthday on April 3rd. He donated $100 to the Community Foundation for NCW.

PJ's two fellow members of the National Demonstration Ski Team qualified for something.....dangerous, no doubt at Jackson Hole, Wyoming!! They're twins, but not with PJ!

Program

John McDarment introduced Dan Frazier, Chelan (Public Utility District) PUD's Director of Shared Services, and the Service Center's Project Sponsor. He has been working on facilities planning since joining the PUD late in 2015. Dan spent 11 years with the City of Wenatchee and 4 years with the City of Quincy as Public Works Director prior to joining the PUD. Dan spent most of his nearly 30 year career planning, designing, building and maintaining public facilities and infrastructure. Dan and his wife have 3 grown children, and before CoVid, spent their free time traveling, mostly recently with an extended holiday in the UK.


In 2015, the PUD gathered to discuss a 50 year plan for the PUD and its facilities. The six year result of the planning is the Chelan PUD Service Center.








By bringing in the contractors during the planning phase of the building, many cost-saving ideas were incorporated early. This helped cut the time of the overall build while saving money.








The work on the Service Center started in August, 2020, after jumping through many qualification hoops. Over 13 agreements were signed in a single day authorizing various phases of construction. Many new methods of construction are being utilized in the building.




The Customer Service area will make it easier for you to find where you can pay your power bill! And, yes, there is PARKING available! With 500 employees working at the new campus, an adjacent 4 acre lot was purchased just for parking!




The future of the 5th Street Facility is still being debated. It would be most advantageous for the PUD to sell it as a whole, but it may be broken up for many different uses. The PUD strives to work with the downtown merchants, not to compete with them. An older building onsite might lend itself to a new life as a Brew Pub or Bowling Alley!

Dan answered questions:
Q: What about a parking garage?
A: For the number of parking spaces they need in a multi-level parking garage, it would cost about $30k/parking spot!

Q: Would the board room be available for public meetings?
A: Yes! The PUD decided against an auditorium because they have an arrangement with the CTC to use their meeting spaces.

Q: How is the new traffic bridge across the Wenatchee River into Old Station going to affect your operations, if at all?
A: The traffic will be East of the Service Center. Some streets might be dead-ended in the Old Station area. No major impact to PUD operations.




Kathleen thanked Dan for his presentation! The Wenatchee Sunrise Rotary Club will donate a children's book in his name to the Regional Libraries!

Progressive Marble Draw Raffle


Wayne showed everyone the silver marble to prove that it was in the bag. When Carol Adamson's ticket was drawn, her delicate fingers found the treasured, silver marble in the bag to win $74! Congratulations Carol to showing everyone how it's done!



Kathleen closed the meeting at 8 am.

Friday, April 23, 2021

April 20, 2021 Meeting Notes

 

April 20, 2021 Meeting Notes

President Earl Crowe opened the hybrid meeting at 7 am. Carol led the Pledge of Allegiance to the Flag; Milt gave the Invocation. Sherrie and Ruth provided a great breakfast and coffee set up once again!

Announcements


Carol Adamson reminded everyone of the Women in Rotary get-together on tonight at 5 pm at the Hilton Garden Hotel by Pybus. Men welcome too!


The Club Spring Training Event is Sat., May 1st. 
There will be 3 breakout sessions the morning of Sat., 1 May 2021 (9:00, 10:00 & 11:00 am), each with 11 different topics and each at a unique Zoom meeting. The Zoom links for each session/subject will be sent out soon in an email to each club member, so you can register for the subject(s) you wish to attend. If you need help, Kathleen will help you sign up!

On Sat., May 1, sessions are 9:00 am - 9:50 am10:00 am to 10:50 am and 11:00 am to 11:50 am. Each session has the same subjects in the same order. Subjects are:
  • Leadership
  • Club Secretary
  • Club Treasurer
  • Membership
  • Public Image and Marketing
  • The Rotary Foundation and International Service
  • Community Service
  • Fundraising
  • Youth Services
  • Adapting to Grow Rotary
  • Rotary 101.

Regarding CSTE, District 5060 says: "To be MOST effective, every club should participate with AT LEAST 10 CLUB MEMBERS attending at least 2 of the 3 breakout sessions. Following the morning sessions and a lunch break, it is expected that EVERY CLUB will hold a Club Planning Session at 1:00 pm on the afternoon of 1 May. Note that every member of the Club Board should participate in the training, but it is valuable for every interested Rotarian in your club. There is NO COST for participation, just your time!"

Wenatchee Confluence Rotary Club is organizing a Cinco de Mayo Blood Drive at Pybus Public Market on Wed., May 5th from 10 am to 3 pm. They thought it would be fun to challenge other area Rotary clubs to see which club can donate the most blood. They're also raffling off $50 Pybus bucks that will go to a random donor that day. Here's the link the local Red Cross to sign up to donate: http://rcblood.org/3lFy7wGClick on the RED CROSS over Pybus, then More Dates to get donation scheduling information.

The Rotary Foundation will have an on-line fundraiser gala on Wed., May 12th

from 5 pm to 6 pm. Cost is $110 to join and $100 of it is donated toward your next Paul Harris award. There will be a variety show featuring lots of entertainment and worthwhile speakers. Meet in the board room at Pybus to participate together  if you're up for it. Food will be provided including desserts from La Vie En bakery and drinks as well.

Afterwards, at 6:30 pm, will be the Rotary District 5060 Awards Ceremony. There is no cost to attend the District 5060 awards ceremony so if you can't attend the Foundation Gala, be sure to attend the District awards ceremony. We'll be getting together in our normal meeting area in the Pybus Event Center, but both the Gala and Award Ceremony will be hybrid events (Zoom and Live at Pybus). Special bonus is a cash bar during the District 5060 awards ceremony.

District 5060 has decided there will not be a dues increase next fiscal year. Additionally, there was a $30,000 surplus that wasn't able to be spent on travel, etc. this year, so they are rolling that into grants for clubs.

A decision on our club's participation in the youth exchange program will need to be made. It's a commitment, but very rewarding for those involved.

There are also open positions at the District level for those interested. Email Marjolein Lloyd at marjolein.lloyd@icloud.com if interested.

We will be doing the Farmers' Market takeovers again this year, starting on May 15th and continuing through the summer on the 3rd Saturday of each month. There will also be non-profit tables this year where we'll have one for kids activities and brochures for the parents. Sign-ups will begin next week so check your calendars and come ready with your availability.

Rotary Moment


Wayne supplied the Rotary moment regarding Maternal and Child Health month.
Almost six million children under the age of five die each year because of malnutrition, inadequate health care, and poor sanitation - all of which can be prevented.


Women in the 20th and 21st centuries have achieved significant progress in the economically progressive areas of the world, but women and girls in non-developed countries have a much more difficult life and must accept an unjustly inferior social status and tend to fall into traditional roles.


In April, Rotary worldwide has recognized this all so important bond of maternal and child health as one of our seven areas of focus.

Wenatchee Sunrise Rotary Club has supported both in contributing to The Stove Team, a Nicaraguan enterprise for producing basic, fuel-efficient cooking stoves for third world countries. These stoves significantly reduce the amount of smoke in their homes. Multiple contributions from Northwest Rotary Clubs helped build factories to produce concrete stoves using local paid labor. Mothers using the stoves acted as saleswomen and were paid a small amount for each stove sold. Several factories were completed.


Brags and Confessions



Jim Adamson
 confessed that he has been sending our meeting reminder emails out for over a month not realizing the Wheelchairs for Nigeria continued to be sent out as an attachment each time. It's a great organization, but come on!

Robin survived three days with grandkids and she even found time to sell stuff on Facebook Marketplace, her grandma's stool. And it wasn't just a sample, either! Someone from East Wenatchee purchased it and when Robin dropped it off, the woman gave her a bunch of Rotary pins since she saw it on Robin's Facebook profile. Included in the memorabilia was Jim Wade's Paul Harris medallion!

Dan bragged that he and Jackie are flying out to Maui to celebrate five glorious years of marriage, eight total! Just kidding, I'm sure they've all been wonderful! Congratulations!

Program


The 2021 Apple Blossom Royal Court was in full attendance with chaperone Debbie Gurnard. The 
festival website has all of the event details for the week, which will be a little bit later this year, the week of June 3-13; Grand Parade on Saturday, the 12th.


Full bios are available on the Royal Court website, but they spoke about some of their accomplishments, their hopes for the future, and their love of the valley's Apple Blossom Festival. Oh and the food fair, my favorite!

They sang a wonderfully in-tune song that they made up to the tune of Mama Mia and also spoke to some things that weren't in their bios. Kamryn has been able to travel on mission work and hopes to be able to visit Belize after graduation to do more. She also has been active shining a light on the difficult time many kids have had during the past year with COVID restrictions. Her mental health research has made it all the way to Olympia. Some of the findings included that one third of high school kids are failing at least one class and dropout rates have risen due to a significant decrease in motivation. See her full report and student responses
here. They all are excited to be around kids and meet people through Apple Blossom. Great ambassadors for the festival and our valley.

It was interesting that Queen Brooke is the youngest of three, Kody is the oldest of four, and Kamryn is an only child. That pretty much covers it folks!

Both Eastmont and Wenatchee graduate on June 4th and the all service luncheon will be June 9th.

This year's Apple Blossom art print is by Jan Cook Mack.

Carol presented thank you gifts and cards plus a promise of a children's book donation.


Progressive Marble Draw Raffle

Wayne showed everyone the silver marble to prove that it was in the bag and when John Schapman's ticket was drawn, he graciously removed a different marble to make it easier for the next person. Thanks John!

If you thought the stakes were high this week, wait until next week, when, that's right, they'll be EVEN HIGHER YET! Next week's winner could take home more than $50.

Closing


Earl closed the meeting with this quote from Will Rogers, "Don't let yesterday take up too much of today." A good reminder for all. 

See you at the social tonight or next week!

Thursday, April 15, 2021

April 13, 2021 Meeting Notes

President Earl Crowe opened the hybrid meeting at 7 am. The Pledge of Allegiance to the Flag; Carol Adamson gave the Invocation. Members at Pybus enjoyed the return of food and coffee service! Thank you, Sherrie, for setting it up and thank you, Ruth, for ordering it from Glaze Bakery.

Announcements


Jim Adamson reminded us of the Club Spring Training Event on Sat., May 1st. There will be 3 breakout sessions the morning of Sat., 1 May 2021 (9:00, 10:00 & 11:00 am), each with 11 different topics and each at a unique Zoom meeting. The Zoom links for each session/subject will be sent out next week in an email to each club member, so you can register for the subject(s) you wish to attend.

On Sat., May 1, sessions are 9:00 am - 9:50 am, 10:00 am to 10:50 am and 11:00 am to 11:50 am. Each session has the same subjects in the same order. Subjects are:
  • Leadership
  • Club Secretary
  • Club Treasurer
  • Membership
  • Public Image and Marketing
  • The Rotary Foundation and International Service
  • Community Service
  • Fundraising
  • Youth Services
  • Adapting to Grow Rotary
  • Rotary 101.

Regarding CSTE, District 5060 says: "To be MOST effective, every club should participate with AT LEAST 10 CLUB MEMBERS attending at least 2 of the 3 breakout sessions. Following the morning sessions and a lunch break, it is expected that EVERY CLUB will hold a Club Planning Session at 1:00 pm on the afternoon of 1 May. Note that every member of the Club Board should participate in the training, but it is valuable for every interested Rotarian in your club. There is NO COST for participation, just your time!"

Carol Adamson announced a Women in Rotary get-together on Tues., April 20th at 5 pm at the Hilton Garden Hotel by Pybus. 

Wenatchee Confluence Rotary Club is organizing a Cinco de Mayo Blood Drive at Pybus Public Market on Wed., May 5th from 10 am to 3 pm. They thought it would be fun to challenge other area Rotary clubs to see which club can donate the most blood. They're also raffling off $50 Pybus bucks that will go to a random donor that day. Here's the link the local Red Cross to sign up to donate: http://rcblood.org/3lFy7wGClick on the RED CROSS over Pybus, then More Dates to get donation scheduling information.

The Rotary Foundation will have an on-line fundraiser gala on Wed., May 12th from 5 pm to 6 pm. Cost is $110 to join and $100 of it is donated toward your next Paul Harris award. Afterwards, at 6:30 pm, will be the Rotary District 5060 Awards Ceremony. There is no cost to attend the District 5060 awards ceremony so if you can't attend the Foundation Gala, be sure to attend the District awards ceremony. Both the Gala and Award Ceremony will be hybrid events (Zoom and Live at Pybus) in the Local-Tel Event Center and the Board Room next door. More info to come.

Board Meeting Summary


Club Secretary John Schapman gave a summary of the Mon., April 12th Board of Directors Meeting:
  • Service Projects (proposed):
    • Service Clubs' sign board at Wenatchee River Bridge, cleaning and painting
    • Goathead Warriors attacking the infamous Goatheads throughout the Wenatchee Valley
    • Mixology event
  • Pybus Hybrid Meetings
    • Hybrid meeting will continue as long as there are club members who feel unsafe in a public venue. If anyone needs help in setting up Zoom, contact Earl or Robin.
  • Board of Directors Retreat
    • Sat., May 22nd at 2 pm.
    • Half of the time with be Kathleen discussing her goals for the club
    • The other half will be Strategic Planning for the club
  • It was decided that a laptop computer to use at Pybus during Hybrid meeting was required and purchase was authorized.
    • Erik suggested someone within the club donate a recent/decent laptop computer. Erik Holmberg said he might just be that member.

Brags and Confessions


Kevin beamed with joy and forked over $10 to brag about his youngest daughter's first born baby girl, Audrey Marie. She was born three weeks early weighing only 6 pounds and has been gaining weight. Congratulations, the Loves!

Robin went camping at Steamboat Rock State Park and went Geocaching. They about got blown away. A neighbor's tent became a cocoon around him in the high winds. Her Blackhawks are in the top 16 hockey teams! Woo--hoo! $5 please!

Alan said the Trivia Night that had been set up netted 6 teams! Check out this link on the Chelan-Douglas Literacy Council for more details: Lit Council Fundraiser. Come on out to have fun and support the Literacy Council fundraiser. It's only $2.

Jim Adamson bragged about the 10 hardy souls who braved the cold and wind to have a social at the Martin-Scott Winery on Sat., April 10. Those in attendance were Pete, Rebecca, Craig & Tracy, Jim & Carol, Kathleen & Steve, Ruth and Dan. Hopefully, more socials with warmer weather are forthcoming!



Rebecca 
confessed that her daughter and friend had contacted the Wenatchee Police Department to ask them if there was anything they could do for the community. The PD found some graffiti they could eliminate, and put the 2 girls to work painting over some. Rebecca was so proud of the girls!


Craig, our treasurer, reminded the club about the new Marble Bag Raffle. Today's winner would receive half of the raffle money collected from the 3 previous meeting ($53.50 for today winner. See later results in this blog.)


Program


Erik Holmberg introduced his travel partner, Lester Cooper from the Lake Chelan Rotary Club. Lester is part of a group called Brighter Future Project, doing work in Kenya. The Lake Chelan Rotary Club originally started the project.

The project is primarily within 3 Kenyan cities, Nkoilale, Kisiriri and Iltumaro. 






The project's focus was to renovate classrooms with desks, doors, windows, lighting, floors and walls.
Corrugated tin roofs painted with red lead paint had to be removed and replaced. The water from the roofs helped fill water tanks for drinking water.






Bright classrooms with electric lights, wooden floors, and glass in the windows helped make an environment for learning. Primitive desks were replaced with study, safe, functioning desks.










Separate toilets for girls and boys were a huge improvement over the open pits previously used. Separate showers were also provided.


Water tanks provided potable water for the schools and the support villagers. Ground water contained large amounts of mercury and fecal materials.



As a result of the project the following measurable results were achieved:
  • National testing scores improved by 15 points
  • Number of students attending school increased from 629 to 854
  • Girls staying home during their periods has been reduced rom 90% to 5%.
Other accomplishments include:
  • New Rotary Club was chartered
  • Feeding program for the sick and elderly was started
  • Student recognition program was established
  • Primary school mentorship program began.


A welding program was started which helped construct desks for the students.







Other programs started were computer and sewing programs.
Sewing machines were used to make masks, which were sold to provide income for the students.













The project has these future goals: 
  • Continue to support 3 students in secondary school
  • Support the building of a 600,00 liter water tank for Nagaswani hospital
  • Support the renovation of Iltanaro primary school.

The Lake Chelan Rotary Club will match your $60 donation for a desk with one of their own. Please send your donation(s) to: Lake Chelan Rotary Community and International Fund, PO Box 601, Chelan, WA 98816 USA. Make checks payable to "Lake Chelan Rotary Club", and put BFP on subject line.

President Earl presented Lester with a children's library book that will be donated in his name to our Regional Libraries.

Carol Adamson requested thoughts and prayers for Katie Blair, a founding member of the Wenatchee High School INTERACT club member in 2005 and a former Rotary Exchange Student to France in 2006-2007. Early in this COVID pandemic, Katie was stricken with COVID-19 while living in New York City. She documented life in her tiny apartment as she struggled with the disabling virus. She eventually partially recovered from it, but now must use a walker to get around, and she has had some major surgeries. Please keep her in your thoughts and prayers. (See the April 7, 2020 Wenatchee Sunrise Rotary Club blog for Katie's full story.)


Progressive Marble Draw Raffle

Had Craig stayed the entire meeting, he might have been the winner with his raffle ticket that was drawn. Sadly, he could not and someone else was allowed to draw on his behalf. Kevin was task to select the winning marble for Craig, but failed to do so. Next Tuesday's raffle money will be added to the $107 from this meeting for an even bigger pot to win. Where's that silver marble?!?!
Better luck next week when the stakes will be EVEN HIGHER!

Closing

Earl closed the meeting at 8 am with this quote from Chuck Norris (Jim Huffman, this one's for you as you recover!): "A lot of times, people look at the negative side of what they feel they can't do. I always look on the positive side of what I can do!"

April 23 Meeting Notes

  The meeting was opened by President Craig Reese, who introduced visiting Rotarian John Fishburn from Leavenworth.     John gave an announc...