PHOTOS BY BILL DOWD
The Browns took family attendance honors at this meeting, with Debbie and Peter flanking grandsons Cameron (second from left) and Ethan as their guests. The younger Brown family will be heading for Spain next week to visit the family that hosted their father when he was a Rotary Exchange Student.
Attendance (16): Terry Brewer, Murray Forth, Pat Bailey, Peter Brown, Debbie Brown, Bill Kneissl, Russ Edberg, Geoff Brewer, Bill Dowd, Jim Leyhane, Doris Calamaras, Dean Calamaras, Charlie Foote, Len Leonidas, Debbie Rodriguez, Steve Phelps.
Guests (5): Anne M. Cargile, District Rotary Foundation Chair; Harry Cargile; Tina Wang, a onetime group exchange student; Ethan Brown, Cameron Brown.
Announcements:
• Jim Leyhane and Bill Dowd will represent the club at the Wednesday, June 29, District 7190 Changeover Dinner at which the new District Governor will be inducted.
• The club’s own Changeover Dinner will be held on Thursday, June 23, at Murray Forth’s residence, when Jim succeeds Terry Brewer for the 2011-2012 Rotary Year.
• We will meet at the Holiday Inn on June 30 for the last time this summer. Terry is looking for members to sign up to host the informal summer meetings (see his letter below). Other possible summer activities mentioned are a distillery tour, a Hudson River boat trip and a ValleyCats baseball game.
• Bill Dowd reported making deliveries of food and other items to the Peaceable Kingdom Animal Rescue in Columbia County. April Dowd, who coordinated the effort, will continue to supply and support this effort. She welcomes assistance from other members. Some photos are on the website (scroll down).
Program: Anne M. Cargile on the Rotary Foundation
Anne (right) spoke about the Foundation’s organization and efforts, using three large buckets to illustrate the divisions: the Annual Fund, the PoloPlus fund and the Permanent Fund. She spoke about how to donate and explained that soon forms for grants and some fund sharing will be available online. Even grant requests can be applied for online.
Anne encouraged everyone to continue annual giving that supports many and various projects. Rotary international is making changes to the online program.
Anne was part of a Rotary volunteer group that traveled to Nigeria to help give oral polio vaccine to 2,000 children under age 5. Each immunized child got a “purple pinkie” to show they had been treated. She discussed how some local schools now hold “Purple Pinkie Days,” in which students contribute $1 for their own purple pinkie.
Bill Gates has increased his donation to $300 million for PolioPlus, but only if Rotary can raise the agreed amount. All funds will go to supply the polio vaccine in areas of the world still not free of the disease. She showed a brief video of children who are benefiting from the polio vaccine.
The club presented Anne with two checks, one for $1,000 for our PolioPlus contribution, the other of $1,500 for the annual fund.
A Visitor Returns:
Tina Wang (left), a resident of Taiwan who spent time in the Capital Region two years ago as part of a Rotary Group Study Exchange, spoke briefly to the club. She returned to the area to visit the host families and other friends she met while here, and extended an invitation from her and her husband to host any visiting 7190 Rotarians who may visit Taiwan.
Next meeting: 6:15 p.m. Thursday, June 16. Program: The Doctors on “The Patient-Centered Medical Home.”
[Go here for the Events Calendar.]
Southern Rensselaer County Rotary Club 