WELCOME & TRADITIONS

Back home after a trip to sunny Florida, President Angela Sullivan began the meeting by greeting April, sharing she loved that it is Environmental Month, a subject dear to her heart, before leading us in the Four-Way Test and finishing with her signature fifth element, “Will it be fun?”

• Filip, Stanley, and Isabel, our RYE students
• Wendy Skinner, guest of Nancy Potter
• Sam Queen, Finger Lakes ReUse, guest of Todd Nau
• Joyce Catalfano

Bob Gravani reminded us of the Spring Highway Cleanup scheduled for Saturday, April 19^th to coincide with Earth Day weekend.  We are looking for Rotarians to volunteer—especially since there were more community members than Rotarians participating the last time!  As usual, we will meet in the Tops Triphammer parking lot a bit before 9 AM and then head out to Route 13 for about two hours.  If interested, let Bob know directly (rbg2@cornell.edu) or sign up on ClubRunner!

Tina Nilsen-Hodges graciously introduced speaker Jeff Smith, President of the Endwell Rotary Club and a Past District Governor of our former District 7170, as “a Rotarian who is quietly using the power of networks to transform the future of our environment, our economy, and our community.”  Representing the New Roots Charter School and Finger Lakes ReUse, she and Diane Cohen are especially honored to welcome Jeff to the club.  Both organizations are among those in our region contributing to Connected Communities, a project led by Jeff and ESRAG member Brian Braginton-Smith of the Yarmouth Rotary Club on Cape Cod.

With April being Environmental Month, Rotary International President Stephanie Urchick wants Rotary to be more involved in certain high priority projects, and Jeff shared her points from the latest Rotarian that he and his colleagues follow to get things done:

• Identify emerging needs
• Mobilize resources quickly
• Foster collaboration
• Commit to ongoing involvement

1. The Southern Tier and CNY have a once in a lifetime opportunity
2. Holistic strategies are important:  community, economy, environment
3. Rotary can be the connector on very significant projects
4. Broad collaboration is required to make a difference

• Nancy Potter: glowing after a recent mission trip to Costa Rica with Agua Viva Serves and their mission to bring fresh water to communities, Nancy was one of ten who summited Costa Rica’s tallest mountain, Cerro Chirripó (12,536 ft), and declared she’ll be giving $10 a week through the Rotary Donor Advised Fund at the Community Foundation.
• Diane Cohen: how could I not be happy after a meeting like today?  Diane thanked Jeff Smith for his presentation and acknowledged ReUse’s work and the power of collaboration.
• Tina Nilsen-Hodges: happiness and gratitude that Jeff Smith joined us today; she had great news that the New Roots Charter School was just approved for another five-year renewal and an approval to expand to grades 6–8 (in addition to the 9–12 the school currently offers).  Tina is the founder, Principal, and Superintendent of New Roots Charter School, now in its 16^th year.
• Sherrie Negrea: happy to announce that Ithaca will have its third benefit concert for a Rotary project in Ukraine.  She is looking for volunteers to help coordinate planning, marketing, and fundraising for a late summer event that welcomes back Kommuna Lux, an urban folk band from Odesa, Ukraine.  Please reach out to Sherrie via email (sherrie@versatilewriting.com).
• Sarah Segal: thank you to Tina Nilsen-Hodges for picking up Stanley and Filip at school to attend today’s meeting.  She reminded all that our three exchange students attend the first Rotary meeting of each month and would encourage anyone who can help transport them to come forward because “driving in a car with teenagers is really a wonderful thing.”
• Dale Flinn: happy dollars in honor and celebration of thirty years of Cornell Hockey with coach Mike Schaefer and, while the Ithaca Rotary Adult Hockey Club did not win the championship this year, the good news is now he doesn’t have to buy them all lunch!
• Angela Sullivan: while away in Florida she visited a sea turtle hospital and was so happy about it; she took hundreds of photos of turtles getting care.  She also will donate through the Community Foundation.

Sofia Darling from Zoom:  “I was disappointed that I couldn’t be there in person today, but I’m really appreciative of the ability to share the Thought for the Day.  April reminds us that that change is all around us.  The snow melts (hopefully), the days stretch a bit longer, and the world begins to wake up.  It’s also Environmental Awareness month, as we all know, a time when we are especially called to notice the world, our impact on it, and the beauty of the renewal that surrounds us.  And as we talked earlier, it’s also a milestone for me this month so I found myself looking at familiar things through a different lens.  It’s this time of year, or maybe it’s just the way life has a way of inviting us not to see what it is, but what it could be.  So perhaps whether it’s rethinking a habit, taking a new path that we walk on, climbing a mountain perhaps, or taking a walk or run or whatever it is for you, it is simply pausing for us to appreciate that something we overlooked—perhaps there’s a value there sitting in our lens.  I truly believe that when we welcome change and not fear it, we open ourselves up to growth, gratitude, and perhaps maybe even a little bit more renewal, so what we see depends mainly on what we look for.  Here’s to April, a month of possibility, awareness, and perspective.”