By: Gary Sloan
The meeting was called to order by our illustrious leader, Kathy (African Queen) Gailey at 12:20 pm to enable fellow Rotarians to get through the lunch line for a delicious Mexican oriented meal. It was a special day because Chris Gallagher was our Greeter for the day and he did not disappoint. Typically the greeter provides one thought for the day but Mr. Gallagher regaled us with THREE thoughts for the day:
- Don’t lose your dignity and select respect trying to make people love and appreciation you when they just aren’t capable.
- Life is too short to be serious all of the time.So, if you can’t laugh at yourself call me… I’ll laugh at you
- To be old and wise, you must first have to be young and stupid.
Golden vocal chords and always reliable Don Jones led us in My Country Tis of Thee and members were reasonably in tune.
Kathy shared that there were several announcements today including a very comprehensive report from our very active Interact Club:
The Cultural Fair hosted by the Interact Club was a smashing success with good participation from Rotarians including Chris Gayler, Patti, Dennis, Naim and, of course, Colette. Naim came to the event in Afghani traditional garb which was a huge hit. The event raised $320 meeting the clubs goal of $300. These funds will go to supporting the End Polio Now initiative.
This year, the Interact and Rotary District Conference coincided so Interact students were exposed to the larger Rotary organization and adults who attended were introduced to the vast amount of work our various Interact Clubs do. A presentation about Rotaract was given by Interact’s former President, Justin Lee and the District Governor of Rotaract, Taylor Lee was also on hand.
Another fund raiser at the Habit Restaurant was held on Wednesday but the results are not in yet. However, this scribe did enjoy a great burger and had a brief interaction with these extraordinary interact kids.
The interact club will be participating in the Sunny Glen Smoke Alarm Project first to identify individual resident’s interest in getting smoke alarms installed or updated and then again on April 22nd to assist the Rotary Club in installing smoke alarms at pre-established residences.
Another event taking place on April 22nd is the Science Alliance Fair where Interact members will validate science projects for 5th graders.
Finally, each year leadership is selected for the coming year’s Board members for Interact and the application process is underway.
WOW! THIS GROUP OF INSPIRED AND INSPIRING YOUNG ADULTS ARE TRULY DOING THE WORK THAT ROTARIANS STRIVE TO ACHIEVE.
Club Announcements
District Conference: Incoming 2017-18 President, Lucky Sandhu, shared his impressions of the District Conference held in Berkeley this year. Outstanding, informative speakers coupled with inspirational presentations by Rita Moreno and Clift Dockerman were among the highlights.
Educator of the Year: To be held on April 27th. Chris Gayler found four excellent presenters who will be presenting these coveted awards.
American Heart Association: Chris Gallagher will be representing the club in the Century (100 mile) bicycle event sponsored by the American Heart Association (AHA). Gary Sloan, a long time advocate for AHA will be sponsoring Chris rather than accompanying him on a trip that would no doubt result in admission to his own hospital. Others were invited to participate or donate to this good cause.
Run for Education Auction: This critical fund raiser has begun in earnest with Nina Voss distributing last year vendor participants and a request that Rotarians volunteer to contact these vendors by the end of May so new potential vendors can be vetted for the coming auction to be held in September. Nina indicated that the web site would be updated and a box for donations will be available at our coming meetings.
Trinity Lunch: Next week, the club will be meeting at St. Paul’s Church Parrish Hall. Rotaryians should park in the large parking lot across the street. The meeting supports the homeless and the work of the Trinity Center.
Young Professionals Conference: Held at the Round Hill Center, this event is almost fully subscribed and should be a good day of information for young professionals who might also be interested in Rotary Clubs membership.
Foundation Minute: San Ramon Rotary members look forward to the Foundation minute as the information imparted by our own Ray Giles is always informative and valuable in learning about how Rotary has an impact on the world. Ray shared that 775 million people in the world are illiterate. But this is not just a third world problem. 35 million Americans (1 in 7) are illiterate. The economic and human cost of illiteracy is staggering so Rotary has intervened around the world and in the U.S. setting up schools for young women in Afghanistan to break the cycle of poverty. Pro literacy tutors have been called upon in Detroit affecting 500 adults and improving reading comprehension by 4 grade levels. In short, Rotary efforts have been a good investment to improve our world. Rotary members are encouraged to support the Foundation and funds donated in April will be matched.
The Program: Heart Safe Committee – CPR and AED Training
Volunteers from the Fire District shared that Hands Only CPR was now the recommended approach. No more lip locking was necessary to save lives. It is more important to respond quickly because every minute lost reduces the chance for survival by 10%. When performing CPR Rotarians should remember to push hard in the center of the chest, 2 inches deep and push fast at a rate of 100 times a minute (Think “Staying Alive” by the Bee Gees). Lock your arms when compressing and compress with your upper body in the center of the chest.
The Automated External Defibrillator (AED) is used to assist early responders. Four AEDs have been distributed to each high school, two AED’s in each middle school and one AED in each elementary school. You should try to know where the AED’s are located when you are at a public place. (There is an APP for this). The AED will voice prompt the user so even a Rotarian can figure out how to use it. One of the volunteers had been shocked 9 times and lived to tell about it. After his recovery, he saved the life of a fellow golfer.
Signs of a Stroke was also discussed. When determining if someone has had a stroke, think BEFAST and check for Balance, Eyes, Face, Arms, Speech and Time. Please call an ambulance and do NOT drive someone to the Emergency Room. Treatment can be rendered in an ambulance and the response time for emergency ambulances is under 15 minutes.
Raffle: Among Chris Gallagher’s many passions is his passion for good wine. In this case, he bought 100 LBS of grapes, de-stemmed, crushed, put into barrels and racked 38-40 bottles of 2014 Zinfindel. AND the WINNER is Jay Tonz.
The raffle for $140 was won by Barry Toby but he drew the blue marble and won $10.
The meeting was adjourned with a reminder that we will be meeting at Trinity Center St. Paul Church next week.
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