May 18, 2022
Reporter: Margaret Frank
Wednesday’s meeting:
Jennifer Tavares, President & CEO
Tompkins County Chamber of Commerce
Meeting on Zoom only
Heidi Goldstein rang the bell to start the meeting, and President Catrina led us in the Four-Way Test.
Visiting Rotarian David Sowerwine introduced himself; he is a member of the Rotary Club of Woodside/Portola Valley in District 5150 (CA). If you would like to contact David, do so at
david@looma.education or visit his website:
http://www.looma.education
Jean McPheeters is still collecting donations for Soap for Hope and the Rotary Linen Closet; items can include toothpaste, toothbrushes, dish soap, bar soap, razors, diapers, linens, and more. Take your items to Beverly Baker’s house at 320 S. Geneva St.; there is a big plastic tub near the driveway where you can leave your donations.- NYS Special Olympics will be held at Ithaca College June 24-25, and the organization is looking for about 1,000 volunteers. You can sign up as an individual or in small groups—perfect for small groups of Rotarians! Sign up here.
- Kelly Buck announced that the Auburn Rotary Club is having their largest fundraiser of the year on the weekend of July 23rd. They desperately need volunteers for all aspect of the event for both days. Contact Kelly for details.
- The Enfield Rhubarb Festival was held this past Saturday, May 20th. Jean McPheeters made rhubarb crisp with orange liquor. She was able to keep 25 cents for every sample she served, which Jean is donating to our club’s Ukraine Fund.
- Heidi Goldstein announced that the Cancer Resource Center is hosting an event called Done in a Day and was looking for people to help stuff envelopes on Tuesday, May 24th.
JoEllen Hedlund shared that our District Governor put out a district-wide Diversity, Equity and Inclusion (DEI) statement that the club presidents will sign. If you want more information, email the district DEI committee at DeiDistrict7170@gmail.com. JoEllen also announced that at Rotary.org Rotarians can open an account and then go to the learning and reference center where you can find many courses and helpful information both for professional and personal development.
Geoff Dunn expressed thanks to June Losurdo, Brett Bossard, Linda Pasto, Dale Flinn, and Bez Thomas for serving on the nominating committee.
We need to vote on those nominated for the at-large board positions: Richard Kops, Serenna McCloud, and Susan Riley. Geoff moved the slate; Aly Evans seconded; all voted yes, so the motion carried. The three will start their terms on July 1st.
For the 2022-23 President Elect, we don’t technically need to vote because the nominating committee can fill vacancies in the officer elect positions—but Geoff felt more comfortable voting. Mary Berens, Geoff Dunn, Dale Flinn, Heidi Goldstein, George Gull, and Dale Johnson (six past presidents) are nominated to serve as President Elect. It was suggested the group be called something like “leadership team,” so a name change is in the offing. (I guess “Six Pack” wasn’t a favored decision!)
THOUGHT FOR THE DAY
Nick Romo presented a quote from Zig Ziglar: “People don’t care how much you know until they know how much you care.”
LAST WEEK’S PRESENTATION
Ron Provus introduced our speaker, Monalita Smiley, Project Director of the Community Justice Center.
The Community Justice Center was created to assist in the reimagining public safety initiative that the City of Ithaca and Tompkins County are committed to developing with input from the community, elected officials, and law enforcement. The CJC is focused on localized solutions for the community and will center on positively impacting people of color in Tompkins County. The CJC is there to engage the community so that their voices are heard, foster conversations with law enforcement, and report to the City and the County. There are several plans in progress including the City of Ithaca Department Redesign, Sheriff’s Office Pilot Program, Community Healing Plan, Alternative Response, and Officer Wellness. To find out more visit
http://www.publicsafetyreimagined.org, look at
Tompkins Weekly every week, or contact Monalita at
msmiley@publicsafetyreimagined.org.
MEETING UPDATES
President Catrina said work is being done to find a location so that we can offer a hybrid meeting option for next meeting. Information will be sent out soon.
Pass the Gavel has been pushed back to July 6th. The last Wednesday in June could be treated as a Club Service week; let Geoff Dunn know if you have any ideas for that week’s meeting.
President Catrina sent everyone into breakout groups.
THANK YOU ROTARIANS
Newsletter Reporter: Margaret Frank
Photographer: Mike Brown
Newsletter Editor: Loralyn Light
Set-up Zoom: Brett Bossard
Recording Archive: Paul Martin; click
hereClub Service Facilitator: June Losurdo
