Meeting Minutes 5-25-2010
Posted by Winston Wood
Greetings, Felicitations and Salutations,
Returning to our normal room at the Clubhouse, we had quite a full
house this evening. 3 full tables + a few extra place settings on the
side. Remember when McInnis used to put out 4 tables for us every week ?
It's a lot easier to have a few empty spots at each table than to have
to scurry around to add place settings - invariably forgetting things
along the way. Maybe someone can gently suggest to Erich that we return
to the 4 table set.
So, anyway, scrunched as we were, the ebullient John Tanko called
us to order and asked Larry to lead us in the pledge. Which he did.
Followed by a thought for the day on not forgetting our soldiers some of
whom are stationed far, far away from home.
Next came the introduction of visiting Rotarians, of whom there
were several. Kim from San Bruno, who just could be nudged into joining
us on a regular basis - as in becoming a member. There was Jim Becker
from Petaluma, who brought along with him a Rotarian from Thailand, with
whom the Petaluma Rotary had done several joint projects. Following
these Rotarians, regular guests were introduced, of which there was but
one, the lovely Barbara, guest of Malcolm. Though I think there was
actually one other guest, as sitting next to me was Gene Duffy, who,
unless I'm mistaken, has yet to take the oath of office of our Club. You
can fine me next week if I'm wrong.
On to announcements, and the first one up was Allen Ng who
discussed with us the upcoming Nicholas Green award ceremony at Bolinas
School, where 3 students will each be awarded a $50 gift certificate and
have their names engraved on a perpetual plaque at the school. The
ceremony out in Bolinas, in a quite attractive setting, will take place
on June 9, and Allen is soliciting a volunteer or two from the Club to
make the presentation.
Eiko recapped our activity for this coming Saturday night, where a
group of us shall attend the Novato Theater Company's production of
Cactus Flower, starring our own Malcolm Cohen as Senor Sanchez. Eiko
told us more about the arrangements, but seeing as Saturday will have
passed by the time you read this, that's all pretty much irrelevant. Let
us hope that Malcolm performed admirably and that a good time was had
by all.
Patty then gave us a pitch for the Rotary Foundation (TRF),
suggesting that contributions weren't coming in as they had in the past.
At this point Keith chimed in and reminded us all of the importance of
the Foundation to the purposes of Rotary, and before one could even say Attention
K-Mart Shoppers ! at least two checks appeared and were given to
Patty. Thank you folks. Can we count on there being more to come ?
Jayne arose and reminded us of the Tanko Roast, which will take
place on Tuesday, June 29. A special meal will be offered, special
pricing will be effect, and a fabuloso time will be had by all. Except
perhaps by John, who will undoubtedly be humiliated and exorcised
throughout the evening. Still on the subject of Marin celebrations, Don
alerted us to the Boy Scouts of America breakfast on June 24, which will
be held somewhere in Marin.
Lastly on announcements, Keith suggested that we all be sure to
periodically visit our Club website, www.marineveningrotary.org.
Started by Bob Tuttle some 6-8 years ago, the site has tended to
sputter during much of its existence but now seems firmly under
control now that new member, Damyen Lofton, is running it. Check it out.
As for Good Times, Jayne expressed delight at the good attendance
and participation at the Planning Meeting at Al Shirley's house on
Saturday. Over half of the Club was there ! In another good time, Keith
told us that he and Holly had attended a fundraiser for the Greater
Mission Rotary, and had walked away with a one week's stay in Kauai for 4
for a mere $300. While there must have been more good
times to talk about, we were all pretty worn down by that point, so we
moved onto our raffle, a $50 gift certificate to the Club donated by
Larry Burnworth. Well, the value of the raffle item really brought out
the wallets, and we nearly ran out of raffle tickets. But when the smoke
cleared the winner was - who else, but - Holly Axtell.
So with that business taken care of, we were introduced to Brad
Smith, who spoke to us of One Block Off the Grid, a company which
organizes group purchases of solar panels to lower the cost of solar
energy on your home. Brad's talk was short, as we'd left him with little
time, but he did manage to explain to us some of costs and benefits of
going solar. According to Brad the greatest savings accrue to people who
use gobs of electricity, such as the amounts consumed by air
conditioning and/or a swimming pool. As one who enjoys neither of those
home accessories, I doubt that I'll be in the market for solar, but for
others it could apparently offer real cost savings.
Next week we will have the opportunity to learn about the
Nabataeans and their capital city of Petra, located within what is
now the country of Jordan. Our lecturers and slide show operators for
the evening will be that well traveled couple from the North Bay - and
the Marin Evening Rotary - Holly and Keith Axtell, who visited this
region just a few months ago. If you've always felt that you needed to
know the difference between a burqua and a chador, perhaps Holly will
show us. Holly ?
Hasta luego,
Your respectful editor