Rotary International Theme 2024-2025	THE ROWEL Rotary Club of Durham		Rotary International President: Gordon McInally Rotary District 5160 Governor: Clair Roberts Durham Rotary President: Glenn Pulliam _____________ Editor: Phil Price Publisher:  Jen Liu
	March 4, 2025	Harvest Festival  2025 will be held on September 21, 2025

The Meeting Opening The meeting was called to order by President Peggi.  Peggi asked Malisa Crick, President of Paradise Rotary, to lead the pledge, which she did.  Peggi then asked Eric Hoiland to recited the 4 Way Test, from memory, which he did (not exactly word forward, but he had the meaning of each test). Jim Patterson presented the invocation. Following that Peggi asked Larry Bradley to lead us in a song.  He led us in singing God Bless America.

Announcements

Peggi reminded us of the Durham Community Foundation fund raiser on February 27^th at the Durham Memorial Hall.  They are hoping to get 100 guests, each donating $100.  If interested you can contact them at durhamcommunityfoundationca@gmail.com or 530 864 1381.

The Paradise Rotary Club is sponsoring this:

Introduction of Visitors

We again had a lot of visitors and I hope I have them right below;

Melisa Crick, President of the Paradise Club who was here with Scott Steele, also a member of the Paradise Club and of Butte County Search and Rescue.  There were here promoting the Search and Rescue Gala on April 5^th (see above).

Aaron Souza was here from the Chico Sunrise Club promoting their fundraising for their Caper Acres project.

Katie Hoiland was here, for reasons that will become apparent below.

Steve Plume introduce his wife, Cynthia

Our Next Meeting

Our next meeting, on March 18^th will be at the BCCC.  Daryl Polk will present a program about Butte County Search and Rescue.

Recognitions

President Peggy first auctioned the Grinder.  The first bids were for only a few dollars.  Then Jen Liu bid $100.  He got it and reported that he was traveling to Shanghai and Taiwan.

She then recognized Steve Plume for not having the correct name badge on.  He contributed $5.

Glenn Pulliam admitted to three weeks in Hawaii.  He contributed $60.

She the recognized Tom Knowles for not having a badge on.  He then admitted to having bought an airplane.  He contributed $20.

Rotarian of the Month

President Peggi talked a lot about his travels and finally disclosed that the Rotarian of the Month for March was Eric Hoiland.

Tonight’s Meeting Program

I presented Walt Schafer, a retired CSUC Professor and President of the Honey Run Covered Bridge Association.  The Bridge was originally constructed over Butte Creek in 1887.  The bridge was how we went to Paradise, before the Skyway was built.

The Bridge was destroyed by the Camp Fire in November 2018. 

The Association determined to rebuild the Bridge, mostly with donations, since the County, which then owned the Bridge didn’t have the money to do so.  Because the County could not rebuild the Bridge, it transferred ownership to the Association on condition that they rebuild it.  They have now essentially done so.

Walt talked about the various phases of construction and showed photos of those stages.  He noted that the original pilings (two of which show in the photo above) were only 18 inches into the ground and anchored in gravel.  The new pilings are 21 feet into the ground andmuch better anchored.

The Honey Run Covered Bridge is seen Friday, Jan. 31, 2025 near Centerville, California.(Michael Weber/Enterprise-Record)

If you wonder what my interest is in the Bridge and Centerville generally.  Below is the plaque on the Centerville School. Note the names of the teachers listed on the plaque.  Ada subsequently married C. H. Hintz, who built the school and Cora was married to his brother, Gus.  Theywere my great aunts.

Membership

Bring guests who you think you can interest in becoming a member.  Your dinner and your guest’s dinner will be paid for by the Club.  Also, bring a guest to one of our occasional social gatherings.

District 5160 Governor, Dan Geraldi is asking each club member to bring at least one guest to a meeting this year.

Go to the following Rotary International web site for information on membership development:  https://my.rotary.org/en/learning-reference/learn-topic/membership .  From this website there is access to membership development and other related information.

The Rotary Foundation Donations

You can make a difference in this world by helping people in need. Your gift can do some great things, from supplying filters that clean people’s drinking water to empowering local entrepreneurs to grow through business development training.

The Rotary Foundation will use your gift to fund the life-changing work of Rotary members who provide sustainable solutions to their communities’ most pressing needs. But we need help from people like you who will take action and give the gift of Rotary to make these projects possible.

When every Rotarian gives every year, no challenge is too great for us to make a difference. The minimum gift to The Rotary Foundation is $25.00.   An annual $100.00 gift is a sustaining member.  Once your donations accumulate to $1,000 you become a Paul Harris Fellow.

If you have any questions, ask Steve Heithecker.

It is possible to learn more about The Rotary Foundation on the Rotary web site. 

Your gift can be made online or by sending Jessica Thorpe a check made out to The Rotary Foundation to Durham Rotary, P.O. Box 383, Durham, California 95958.

Must Be Present to Win Drawing:

Dear Fellow Rotarians,

How would you like to spend a fascinating day rubbing elbows with dynamic Rotary leaders? Your opportunity has arrived!
Rotary District 5160 has gathered some of the brightest minds, most generous hearts and highly entertaining individuals in the world to bring you an exhilarating Rotary event: Building Bridges to Change Lives!

You are invited to gather with fellow Rotarians on Saturday, March 22^nd at Rodriguez High School in Fairfield or Saturday, April 5^th at the Shasta College Downtown Redding Campus with like-minded, inspiringindividuals that collaborate to make a difference in communities and the world. Whether you’ve been in Rotary less than a year or for over 60 years, this event is designed to introduce ways your Rotary District and Rotary International can provide support to help you achieve your goals.

Breakout Sessions include topics such as: International Projects, Youth Services, The Rotary Foundation, MembershipDevelopment Resources, Programs-The Gateway Drug to Rotary, Polio Plus Updates, Treasurer Elect Tools, Action Planning for Club Leaders, Growing Membershipwith New Clubs, Board Elect Training, District and Rotary International Support Services, Getting Involved through Community Service, Grow your Club's Future through Leadership Development, Goal Setting-What's New, DACdb Training, Telling Your Rotary Story and More! 

Check-in for both sessions will begin at 8:30 and the assemblies will conclude by 2:00. Coffee, pastries and lunch are included; please bring a refillable water bottle. To help offset facility and food costs, a nominal $20 registration fee is required. 

 Register NOW for D5160 Spring Assembly & BETS (Board Elect Training) SOUTH

 Register NOW for D5160 Spring Assembly & BETS (Board Elect Training) NORTH

I hope you'll join us...I look forward to seeing you!

Joy Alaidarous
District Governor 2025-26
Rotary Club of Rossmoor Walnut Creek
Cell:  925-300-7484

_______________________________________________________________ri

From Rotary International’s News and Features Website

{Note that the following may not be the complete article.  See the complete articleon Rotary International’s web page.

Rotary to host peacebuilders in Istanbul

Peace experts and Rotary members from 88 countries will explore challenges and solutions for sustainable peace.

EVANSTON, Ill., USA (19 Feb. 2025) — Renowned peace experts and Rotary members from across the globe will gather in Istanbul, Türkiye 20-22 February for Rotary’s 2025 Presidential Peace Conference ‘Healing in a Divided World’, where they will exchange ideas and inspire action for creating lasting peace in the world.

Led by Rotary International President Stephanie Urchick, the three-day event will feature discussions around reducing polarization, the role of technology and media, how peace and environmental issues intersect, and practical guidance for fostering inclusive community-led peace building efforts to ensure sustainability.

“Rotary is an organization founded on the principle of advancing world understanding,goodwill, and peace,” said Rotary International President Stephanie Urchick. “This conference will showcase Rotary’s ongoing efforts to build peace and provide a platform for collaboration and dialogue. Peace is not only the absence of war, but it is the quality of life—a vision this conference seeks to explore and advance.”

Prominent voices who bring diverse expertise and perspectives on peace building will include Elizabeth Spehar, United Nations Assistant Secretary-General for Peace building Support; Nada El Agizy, Director of the Sustainable Developmentand International Cooperation Department at the League of Arab States; Kumi Naidoo, South African Human Rights and Environmental Justice Activist, and Dr.Ayça Demet Atay, Associate Professor at Near East University in North Cyprus, Rotary Peace Fellow alumna, and founder of the Rotary Club of Peace inIstanbul.