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Weekly Program
Meeting Notes for November 12, 2020
Veterans Day program
By: Priya Jhingan
 
As usual, we waited for Dr. Bill to get off the phone so we could start our meeting (it’s either him or Gobind). Top Gun welcomed us to the Rotary Club of San Ramon, with Mike Conklin live at Chris’s office to lead the special Veterans Day program.
 
After the pledge, Dr. Bill presented a thought for the day - “Praise the Lord and pass the ammunition”, an American patriotic song by Frank Loesser in 1942. This song was a response to the attack on Pearl Harbor that marked United States involvement in World War II. The song describes a chaplain, or sky pilot, with some fighting men who are under attack from an enemy. When asked to say a prayer for the men who were engaged in firing at the oncoming planes, the chaplain puts down his Bible, mans one of the ship's gun turrets, and begins firing back, saying, "Praise the Lord and pass the ammunition". Thank you, Dr. Bill, for a fitting quote to honor this special day.
 
 
 
Announcements
 
Top Gun announced that dear friend and Rotarian Don Jones passed away last week. Please keep his family in our thoughts and prayers, and if you are able, take a moment of silence while reading this to honor Don.
 
Past President Colette Lay provided a Blue Star Moms update. She mentioned that we were able to collect a lot of stuff for this initiative! And she thanked everyone for contributing.
 
Veterans Day Program
 
 
 
Julie McKinney shared a video of a POW-MIA Table she had set up to start our program. Thank you to Julie McKinney for taking the time to set this up, and reminding us of what the different aspects of the setup symbolize:
 
This special scene honors those who cannot join us at a local Post–prisoners of war or those who are missing in action. Please reflect when you see this table, knowing that our POW-MIA would give anything to join their family and friends for a meal.
 
  • The small table is set for one – symbolizing the frailty of one prisoner.
  • The table is round – showing our everlasting concern for our POW/MIA’s.
  • The cloth is white – symbolizing the purity of our men and women’s motives when answering the call to duty.
  • The single red rose – reminding us of the lives of these men and women – their loved ones and friends who keep the faith, while seeking answers.
  • The red ribbon – symbolizes our continued determination to account for them.
  • A slice of lemon – reminds us of the bitter fate of those missing, captured and held as prisoners in foreign lands.
  • A pinch of salt – symbolizes the tears of our missing and their families who long for answers after decades of uncertainty.
  • The Holy Bible – represents the strength gained through faith in our country, founded as one nation under God, to sustain those lost from our midst.
  • The candle – is reminiscent of the light of hope which lives in our hearts to illuminate their way home.
  • The glass is inverted – to symbolize their inability to share this evening’s toast.
  • The chair is empty – they are missing  – (silent moment) – and please remember their service and sacrifice.
 
Our program continued with Mike Conklin, San Ramon Rotarian and Founder of Sentinels of Freedom, a community of patriots focused on filling the gaps for severely wounded, post-9/11 veterans as they journey from the military, to school, to successful self-supporting citizens. Mike reminded us that this is an emotional day for our veterans and that no other demographic has done so much for our nation. This is a very dangerous job, and when those veterans come home with wounds and injuries, Sentinels of Freedom strives to help. This is a day that touches us all. 
 
Following are the veterans from our club and families and special guests, who we honored today. We have attempted to capture everyone, but if a name is missing in the following list, please let us know and we will send an update.
 
U.S. Army
  • Guy Greco (Sergeant E-6, 1963-69, Vietnam)
  • Horace Crawford (Intelligence, 1959-62, Korea)
  • Mike Conklin’s sons (Army Rangers)
 
U.S. Navy
  • Hermann Welm (Line Officer, 1963-69, Vietnam)
  • Melanie Emig’s Papa (grandfather), Gerard Stephany, who just passed away (in the Navy for 20+ years, WWII)
 
U.S. Coast Guard
  • Fred Nevarez (1970-1973, Deep Sea Diver & Small Boat Coxswain, Vietnam)
 
U.S. Air Force
  • John “Pat” Paterson (Captain, 1958-71, Cold War)
  • Glen Weber (Base Veterinarian, 1969-71) - not base “vegetarian” as initially stated
  • Geoff Disch (Tech Sergeant E-55, served 8 years, played lead Trumpet for Air National Guard Band)
  • Norbert Walz (E-4, 1961-65)
  • Jerry Marrs (Cryptologic Vietnamese Linguist 1989-1993, SR Airman/Sgt.)
 
U.S. Marine
  • Adriana C. Santos (E6/Staff-Sergeant, 2008-2018, President of the Student Veteran’s Organization at Las Positas College)
  • RH Huesman (Captain, 1963-1967)
  • Ed Duarte
  • Jerry Marrs’s son (Corporal, currently serving)
 
Other (*please provide us with more info if you’d like)
  • Will Harlan (Dr. Bill’s son, who joined us on Zoom)
  • Cheri Braga’s mother
  • Gobind Anand’s grandfather (killed in WWI)
 
For today’s program, Mike concentrated on the history, and recognizing the sacrifices that these veterans, their spouses, and their families have made for us over time. We learned about the ill treatment of veterans and the introduction of the GI bill and the Homestead Act. Something that most of us don’t know is that for every dollar spent on the GI bill, the US economy received $7 in return. Our younger generation doesn’t have a situational awareness of this history and context, so please educate every time you get the chance. 
 
This year, a lot of our veterans are isolated due to COVID19 - pick up the phone, call them, tell them you’re thinking about them, and that you're proud of the service they've done for our communities. When you see veterans, thank them properly - not just thank you for your service, but thank you for your service to our nation and our community.
 
Mike Conklin then played a really beautiful video honoring and educating us about our veterans. Over the years, 41+ million have served, and there are 12+ million living veterans. Most soldiers were boys when they died, and they gave up two lives: the ones that they lived and the ones that they would have lived. They gave up everything for our country and for us, in efforts to achieve lasting peace. Let us continue to stand for the ideals for which they lived and died.
 
Click here to watch the video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HHG_TA1T5mg&feature=emb_logo
 
We salute all veterans.
 
Shout out to Julie McKinney and Mike Conklin for putting this virtual Veterans Day program together. Top Gun officially adjourned the meeting, but many stayed on to socialize and teach Hermann Welm how to use Zoom. We also heard about what Will Harlan has been up to in Alaska.
 
 
Other post-meeting news included an update on the Live Auction event, which people loved. Gary Sloan ended up with a year of pizza, Renee Gallagher won the Ana Dominguez graphic designer bid, and, most importantly, Colette Lay won a cake. Also, Gary put out an official response to the nebulous Zoom auction bomber: “never a dull moment in 2020”.

 

Greeter Checklist
When you are called to be a Greeter for a Zoom meeting, take a sec to review the checklist Priya put together. Thank you, Priya!
 
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