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The Meeting Opening   This meeting was at the Patrick Ranch.  Since there were thunder showers, we met inside the Museum Gift Shop.      President Eric was supposed to open the meeting, but he had stepped out.   Everyone was hungry, so Steve Heithecker asked Jim Patterson to give the invocation, which he did.   Steve then asked Ravi Saip to lead the pledge, which he did.   Eric wandered back in about then and saw that he meeting was underway, so went along with it.   Steve Plume had brought a taco dinner from Pueblito in Durham.

FUTURE MEETINGS: Meetings will be at the location noted, at 6:00 pm.

June 13th:  Demotion Ceremony at BCCC.   June 20th:  Jim Patterson will present a program at the BCCC.   June 27th.  This meeting cancelled (see June 13th)   July 11th: Larry Bradley with the Camp Royal students? At BCCC.   July 25th:  Peggi Koehler with the Camp Venture students? At BCCC.   August 8th:  Ravi Saip at BCCC

 

 

Announcements

 

President Eric reported that the Board meeting, which had occurred prior to this meeting, spent most of their time discussing the cost of dinners at the BCCC.  Members are paying $25 per dinner, but the cost to the club between $40 and $50 because of the cost of food.  He noted that this is a problem many Rotary clubs are having.  We need a solution.  It is draining our funds.

 

Larry Bradley reported problems with the bus transporting students to Camp Royal.  It broke down and didn’t not arrive at the pickup place and time.  Finally, a replacement appeared and he believes the students finally got to Camp Royal.

 

Peggi Koehler reported problems with delivery of students to Camp Venture but finally 26 students did arrive (they had room for 30 students).

 

It was also reported that Sue Jessen has received more chemotherapy and Larry Bradley had a pacemaker install.

 

Larry also reported that he had purchase, for the Club, a hog at the Silver Dollar Fair.

 

Next Meeting

The next meeting will be on June 20^th.   It will be at the BCCC.  Larry Bradley will attempt to get the Camp Royal students there to talk about their experiences at Camp Royal.

Membership

Bring guests who you think you can interest in becoming a member.  Think of business owners or managers to bring.  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 in the Durham Park or a Pizza place (Monday Night Football).

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.

Tonight’s Meeting Program

 

Steve Heithecker (former member of the Patrick Ranch ‘Board, as am I) introduced Karen Lobach, the Patrick Ranch Museum Director, who talked about the Ranch and its volunteers.

 

 

She talked about the new Vintage Iron Museum which was constructed entirely by volunteers and with volunteer contributions from Vintage Iron.  Vintage Iron was formed in 1997 by a handful of farmers, local businessmen, antique farm tractor and equipment collectors. In 2001 Vintage Iron joined the national organization “Early Day Gas Engine and Tractor Association”.

 

She talked about Glenwood House Museum and a grant from the Discovery Shoppe to replace the original shutters, to protect the historic content from sun damage.

 

She talked about the UC Master Gardner program and its demonstration garden.

 

She talked about the Bee Museum which is planned.

 

She talked about the current sunflower planting in the property and the pumpkins planted in the fall, which are moneymakers.

 

She talked about the fact that the place exists because of the many volunteers and donations, including donations from clubs such as ours.

 

Karen passed out free tickets to the members present to the Country Faire and Tractor show this weekend.  You should have been present.  Only 12 members were.

 

At the conclusion, President Eric presented to Karen Durham Rotary’s contribution of $1,000.  For the donation we get a banner on one of the poles alongside the driveway into the Patrick Ranch.

 

 

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.

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.

______________________________________________________________________

From the District Governor

 

From Rotary International

Rotary International Convention concludes with a message of hope

By Etelka Lehoczky Photos by Monika Lozinska

After imagining the future of Rotary in Melbourne, Australia, members and speakers at the 2023 Rotary International Convention looked ahead to next year's gathering in Singapore and being able to share hope with the world by focusing on mental health and well-being.

"Singapore is a city that embodies the spirit of service and giving back to the community," said Jennifer Scott, chair of the 2024 International Convention Committee. "This city-state is a hub of culture, cuisine, and innovation, and is renowned for its architecture, natural beauty, and bustling nightlife. There is something for everyone in Singapore."

Audience members enjoy the entertainment at the closing session of the Rotary International Convention in Melbourne, Australia.

Jennifer Scott, chair of the 2024 International Convention Committee, talks about next year’s event in Singapore during the closing session of the Rotary International Convention in Melbourne, Australia.

During the convention's closing session, 2023-24 Rotary International President R. Gordon R. McInally explained why he's asking members to make mental health a priority. When his only brother took his own life, McInally said, he became determined to fight the stigma around mental health issues and expand access to care.

"I might venture to suggest that one of the main reasons that my brother and so, so many others like him reach the point they do is that mental health remains such a taboo subject, and that mental health services remain in such short supply," he said. "I know that Rotary can do something about that. I am confident we can illuminate mental health needs near and far."

"We can help one another feel more supported as fellow Rotary members and as neighbors," McInally continued. "We can advocate for mental health services. And we can build bridges with experts in the mental health space to help expand access to treatment."

McInally urged Rotary members to Create Hope in the World by getting involved and taking action at a critical moment in history.

"To create hope, we must continue doing our important work, and do it better than ever before," he said. "We must refocus our efforts to build peace across the globe. And we must help each other find peace within — and share that ethic of care to the people we serve."

Earlier in the day, Kunle Adeyanju, president of the Rotary Club of Ikoyi Metro A.M., Nigeria, reflected on how to fulfill the promise of a polio-free world. In 2022, Adeyanju rode a motorcycle from London, England, to Lagos, Nigeria, to raise money and draw attention to the cause.

"We're in the last mile of the push toward polio eradication. That's quite encouraging," Adeyanju said. "But when you're so close to the tipping point, the whole gain you've achieved in the last 30 years could go away in one day."

He compared the commitment to end polio to his marathon ride.

"There were several instances where I was in the Sahara and I kept asking myself, 'Why am I doing this? Why did I get myself here?' But the resilient spirit in us says, 'Yes, it's difficult, but it's doable.' That's the same mindset we need to put into eradicating polio around the world."

During another session that focused on the difficult but doable, past Rotary Peace Fellow Ryan Rowe introduced Haitian Rotarians who have been working to bring clean water to 770,000 people in seven counties throughout the country as part of HANWASH, or the Haiti National Clean Water, Sanitation, and Hygiene Initiative.

Over the last three years, the organization has raised US$1.8 million to dig wells, build latrines, and modernize water systems around the country. Organizers also plan to invest US$400,000 in a mentoring and training program for local engineers.

This "is an incredible story of Rotary impact that the entire world needs to hear," Rowe said.

In her closing remarks, Rotary International President Jennifer Jones, who made history as the organization's first female president, made the connection between imagining Rotary — the idea of her presidential theme — and hope, an element of McInally's.

"We don't imagine yesterday — and we also don't look for hope in past actions," Jones said. "'Hope' and 'imagine' are words for tomorrow — words that propel us forward. They build upon each other and offer a path forward. A path of continuity."