October 12th Meeting Notes

Madam President called the meeting to order with Jackie leading the Pledge of Allegiance to the flag followed by Ruth with the invocation. Kathleen welcomed two visitors, Alison Pauw via Zoom and Amber Hallberg was also welcomed back. After that, Kathleen said and I "quote" "You get a howdy! You get a howdy! And you get a howdy!" Everyone was very excited.

ANNOUNCEMENTS

It's Rotary Grant season! Club(s) put up money and the District has match money available. Kathleen and the board are soliciting ideas. If you have an idea that fits into one of Rotary's seven areas of focus, please pass it along to a board member. Ideas need champions of course for them to be successful!

Ideas so far:

• Update of Coyote Corner - the museum's area for kids.
• Convert drinking fountains to fountains that include water bottles fillers.

Grants are on a first come, first serve basis and we may partner with other clubs.

Craig gave the financial report and although there are many ways to give, he highlighted three funds.

• Rotary International Paul Harris Fund - more on this next month
• WSRC funds at the NCW Community Foundation
• Donor Advised fund - a 501c3 fund
• This fund has about $53,000
• Donations are tax deductible
• This fund can give gifts to other 501c3 organizations
• No other restrictions on this money
• Can spend any or all of this money
• Salisbury Fund - not a 501c3 fund
• This fund has over $300,000
• Donations are not tax deductible
• This is a permanent fund
• Can only spend interest and earnings; not principal
• The fund is self-sustaining now

The board has authorized spending up to $5,000 per year from the donor-advised fund. With the Salisbury Fund being self-sustaining now, it is desired for future donations to go to the donor-advised fund.

Three years ago Rotary started a campaign for every community to put up a Peace Pole. Jim A presented us the design for a Peace Pole project at Rotary Park for much more than a pole. It looked great! They have some donations already and plan to sell sponsorships etc. They are also looking for donations in kind and other discounted work. Including planning, it will be a one to two year project.

Rebecca reminded us of our October Fellowship event this
Friday at 5:30 at Kathleen's house.   It’s an Oktoberfest Celebration and we’ll have beer and brats (of course), along with some other German fave’s (rumor is there will be homemade apfelkuchen for dessert).  We do ask for a $5/person donation to help cover the costs of beer and food.  If you don’t like beer, please feel free to bring another beverage!

 

We’ve also got the chance for you to test your Oktoberfest trivia knowledge, a German singalong (or lip sync, whatever you prefer), and a couple of games for those willing to test their prowess after a beer or two (no darts or axe throwing though…)

 

We currently have 17 club members and friends signed up, and we hope to see you all there!  Dirndls and lederhosen welcome but not required.

 

Any questions?  Please feel free to contact Rebecca at Rebecca.lyons@waapple.org or phone/text (509)230-9378.

 

November Fellowship Event – Friday, November 19 at 5:00 at Tap n Putt in downtown Wenatchee.  More fun and games with fellow club members!

 

December Holiday Party – Thursday, December 9 at the Wenatchee Valley Museum and Cultural Center, featuring the (in)famous white elephant gift exchange along with a talent show – here’s your chance to practice your stand-up comedian skills or show off your musical abilities

November 9th our regular Tuesday morning meeting will be at the Rocky Reach visitor center. Meet there at 7am, not Pybus!

Earl invited everyone to a fundraising meeting at 6pm here at Pybus. Road Apple Roulette details will be discussed.

Make a difference day - after making a difference through our labor, reward yourself with a lasagna dinner for two! $55 fills your belly and a portion of the proceeds goes toward Rotary Internation's effort to end polio. The meal includes lasagna, Caesar salad, and bread for two. Order online at https://www.eventbrite.com/e/polio-awareness-day-tickets-186994123457. For more information, call 509-679-5214. Pick up is at the Wenatchee Valley College Parking Lot off Ninth Street.

BRAGS & CONFESSIONS

Kelly bragged that after helping move her kids into a new place in West Richland, she can still move! No broken backs, it's a win!

Ruth showed a $2 bill that she tried to sell to Mansour for $5, but alas he said no. He drives a hard bargain. She also said that she saw her first Russian opera in Russian last Saturday. I guess that's why they call it a Russian opera!

Jim gave a dollar that didn't have to see a Russian opera and bragged that he was in a golf tournament this weekend and had two, count them two taco bars!

PROGRAM

Zach was born in Seattle and grew up in the Green Lake area. He loved sports including baseball, football, and soccer. His mom loved the Mariners and he was in second grade in 1995 when he was bitten by a love for the Mariners as well like so many others. He also acknowledged that it's been a rough 20 years... However, the Mariners future looks promising which feels like the opposite direction the Seahawks are going...

A love for travel started early in his life. At 10 his family was invited to the Netherlands for his grandparents 50th and 55th wedding anniversaries. He is 100% dutch. He is the youngest of three and his parents are each one of six so there are lots of aunts and uncles. After the celebrations, they traveled around to Barcelona, Normandy, and elsewhere.

His dad is an immigration lawyer and has been invited to visit many places as a result. They went to Kenya when he was in high school where they did a safari and also climbed Kilimanjaro in neighboring Tanzania. Not so intense of a climb as it sounds as they require you to use local sherpas to carry your gear and cook your meals. He has a hard time keeping up with his dad, but still loves hiking here in the Pacific Northwest. His dad lives in LaConner now.

He wanted to stay local so attended college at Seattle U where he double majored in Accounting & Finance. His first professor was a partner in Arthur Andersen who had spent time in Russia with people who had ties to the KGB. His stories put an exciting spin on being an accountant.

In high school and after, he worked in grocery stores and met some amazing lifelong friends. He was promoted to cashier and was a horrible experience because he was on his feet for the entire shift just working the checkout line. He moved on to a smaller grocery store a year later where they mixed things up so you didn't have to work the cash register for the entire shift and he really enjoyed it there.

After college graduation, he worked as local public accounting company in Bellevue and his focus was with not-for-profit and benefits. It was a lot of hours. At the end of 2016, his mom was diagnosed with a brain tumor. This changed his focus as he reassessed what was important in life. He quit in mid-2017 to go to work for Big Fish games. His mom passed away at the end of the year, surrounded by love.

Zach met his wife Alison at the end of 2012 and they were married in 2015. She is a Wenatchee native and her folks live on Wenatchee Heights. She studied dental hygiene at Eastern and now works for Erik.

They were in Seattle until last year. They had visited Wenatchee many times and had developed a love for the area. They thought about moving for several years as Seattle has gotten very crowded and doesn't feel like the city he grew up in. They considered Oregon and Colorado, but when the pandemic happened, he talked to his boss about permanent remote work and an opportunity to move to Wenatchee came available. They saw a house online on a Thursday, they toured it on Saturday and loved it and the deal was done. Since he was working from home, he started looking for a fun club to give back, but settle on ours instead.

Together they have traveled to Greece, Santorini, and many other places. COVID has shut things down but they are looking forward to getting back out there. This past March they welcomed their first child into the world - Audrey. She lights up their day and has inserted a wrinkle into their travel plans.

His dad's dad was in Rotary in Southern California and was a founding member of his club. His grandfather used to invite him to events when they would travel down for visits. He loves bowling, history, and music although he is not musically inclined himself although not from lots of lessons and trying! He loves the 90's music scene, especially Soundgarden, etc. His favorite artists include Tom Petty and Chris Cornell.

A future Rotary social was proposed at the bowling alley! He has enjoyed bowling regularly since he was younger and his best game was 222, clean. A clean game means that you knocked down all the pins either by strike or spare.

Great talk Zach, glad to have you in the club!

ROTARY MOMENT

A three-minute video on Rotary was shown that was put together. It's fun and funny, watch it again! https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AQrjLPVgQN8.

RAFFLE & CLOSING

Kathleen thanked Chris for the "amazingly witting and delightful" blog each week. And more importantly thanked Jim & Earl for helping with setup/take down today and Carol & Ruth next week. We all appreciate not having to sit on the floor!

The raffle was up to $276. Amber picked Kelly's number. There were grumblings of a inside job, but Kelly quickly put those to rest as she drew a yellow marble. Next week it will be a new club record of over $300! Boy does this group have a flair for excitement.

Kathleen thanked everyone for their joke submissions and gave us one of the most recently submitted to her. Keep them coming!

Have a great week and we'll see you Friday for Oktoberfest!