On the Road Again ...

Hey - we're having another field trip this Friday (October 24th). This time, we're going back to school - the new HSU gym, to be exact. Click on the map below to enlarge the image.

Your Club Secretary says ...

Hello Sunrisers,

Just a quick reminder that we are "On the Road" again Friday October 24th. Our weekly meeting will be at the new HSU gym at 7:00 a.m. Enter through the main stairs to the gym. Parking is available at the bottom of the hill on Union Street.

See you Friday!

Karen

October 17, 2008

We met last Friday at the Arcata Fire Station, with a delicious breakfast provided by the volunteer firefighters.

SPECIAL DAZE
There was only one birthday for President Mark to call our attention to, so all eyes turned to Karen Burgesser. Her natal day was Sunday, October 12th, but she "really didn't do anything special." She was in the garden most of the day, and hubby Steve fixed a nice dinner.

Dan and Kendra Johnson's 16th anniversary was September 26th, but they both were out of town for their kids' soccer events - but in different cities! Dan assured us that they will catch up on the celebration stuff.

ANNOUNCEMENTS
A Taste of the Holidays is about a month away now, so sell those tickets! Scott Heller is ready to receive your ticket moola and give you replacements, if needed.

Scott is also ready to give you a guided tour of the Arcata Sunrise Rotary stretch of California State Highway 255, also known as Samoa Boulevard on November 15th. It's a Saturday this time, so you NFL fans have no excuse!

You are invited to show off your artistic abilities at this month's Final Friday meeting. We will hold our semi-occasional Jack O'Lantern Contest on October 31st. Granted, 7 am is not usually considered the Witching Hour, but bring in your pumpkin - carved, decorated, or otherwise appropriately altered for the holiday.

Next Friday, we will meet at Humboldt State's Athletics Facility. Dan Collen said that we will have no problem parking on the lower level. We'll probably be there before most of the students are up anyway.

JESSICA HAS A FINE TIME
Our esteemed Finemaster, Jessica McKnight, posed a deceptively simple question to "The Donnie" (aka Don Rosebrook) at our last meeting: "How's your daughter?" He replied that he had to have a talk with her (Mae or Grace?). Donnie wants to let her know that proper use of playgound equipment does not include launching oneself from the highest point - at least not without bungee cords, a helmet, and lots of bubble wrap. The good news? The cast is off!

John Wesa said that he needs "material for the novel I'm writing". That's part of the reason he can now be found on occasion at McKinleyville Ace Hardware. "I grew up with a machinist father," he said, "now I'm falling back on a trade." With art sales off in a shaky economy, John says, "I'm a helpful hardware man."

Amy Bohner was truly surprised to hear Jessica call on her to explain a news article about a recent "Neighborhood Solar Tour". Although she (or maybe Alchemy Construction) was (were) described as a superstar player / performer in the field, Amy hadn't heard about it. Jessica plans to revisit the issue soon.

Jessica then asked Dan Johnson about the fire in Samoa last month, which burned a historic building. Dan said that the old Guard Shack took a beating. He said that there were a lot of fire trucks there. One of the firefighters in the room said that four different fire departments responded to the emergency.

It's important to listen carefully to the last syllable when you hear Jessica say, "Bob Good ..." Last Friday, she was calling on "... not the winemaker [Bob Goodman], but the golfer [Bob Goodman]". The golfer explained that he was absent a couple of weeks ago, playing four days of golf at four different courses in the Quincy area. His favorite was a fancy resort above Portola.

PROGRAM: A Discussion of the Firehouse Fundraiser and Building Progress
At our meeting, President Mark said that we have been working with the Arcata Volunteer Fire Department for the past six years on our joint Spring Fundraiser. In that time, we have raised $315,000 for the AVFD and we have also raised quite a bit of money for our Club. Past President Lori Breyer asked us to thank Dan Johnson with a found of applause - he has chaired the event from the beginning and, Lori told us, "He's doing it one more time!" The photo at left shows us presenting the firefighters with their portion of the proceeds from the 2008 event - $34,900. Arcata Fire Chief John McFarland thanked us, saying, "We look forward to one more grand extravaganza."

Chief McFarland talked about the make-up of what is really two entities - the Arcata Fire Protection District (the governmental side, which includes him and a few other paid staff) and the Arcata Volunteer Fire Department (all volunteers). The common mission is "to protect the lives, environment, and property of the communities we serve".

The Chief noted that they are working to achieve several goals:

• Financial stability is their Number One goal
• Two firefighters on duty at two stations
• Establish a replacement cycle for an aging fleet of vehicles
• Have a dedicated dispatch service

The last goal has already been achieved. Now 911 calls are routed through CalFire in Fortuna, which has a staff of dispatchers trained specifically for fire and medical emergencies. Chief McFarland called them "very professional and efficient".

"We've mastered the art of grantwriting," he said. John cited a recent grant that was obtained that allowed the department to purchase equipment for cleaning their turnouts - the protective clothing worn by firefighters. In addition, they have been able to purchase new fire engines that boast technology that improve the efficiency of the fire hoses. All of the new equipment will be paid off in just a couple of years.

Desmond Cowan, the Fire Marshal and Deputy Fire Chief told us about a bad fire that occurred recently. The home was lost, but thanks to improved equipment that was acquired as a result of the recent successful benefit assessment vote, the adjacent homes survived with only some paint blistering and other relatively minor damage.

Tim Citro is the President of the AVFD, which is a non-profit organization. He said that the Arcata Sunrise Rotary is the "largest supporter of the [firehouse construction] project". Tim said that the group is ready to start building at the proposed Sunset Avenue site across from the Arcata Skate Park. But there is still one hurdle - they need the Arcata Planning Commission to approve a lot line adjustment to allow the proposed parking lot to be moved to accommodate the City's plans to extend Baldwin Street. He encouraged all of us to attend the next Planning Commission meeting, which will take place on Tuesday, October 28th, when this issue will be heard.

October 10, 2008

We held a Club Assembly on October 10th, to discuss our Club's activities.

ANNOUNCEMENTS
Romi Hitchcock Tinseth let us know that Arcata High School will have a Job Shadowing program this year, and she sent around sign-up sheets for each of us to list our occupation and whether we would be willing to have a student shadow us. For more information, especially if you missed the sign-ups, contact Romi.

The Foundation Dinner will take place October 18th (this weekend). This Friday may be your last chance to purchase your raffle tickets. 100% of the raffle ticket price is donated to the Rotary Foundation, and it is credited to your Paul Harris Sustaining Fellowship.

Scott Hiller is once again seeking intrepid Sunrisers for an excursion along Samoa Boulevard to collect items that have been cast aside by motorists and others. The next Adopt-A-Highway is set for November 15th (hey - it's a Saturday this time!). Put it on your calendar today!

October 31st falls on a meeting day this year, so Janice Newman wants you to carve your punkin and bring it with you to the meeting. We'll have a Jack-O-Lantern contest, and you could be the big winner!

Humboldt Domestic Violence Services lost its safe house to a fire earlier this year. The community responded (including our Club), and the group is holding an appreciation event at the Humboldt Area Foundation on Friday, October 17th. The event will be held from 5:30 to 7:30 pm, and it will include hors d'oeuvres, door prizes, music, wine, and chocolate. Hard to pass up.

Treasurer Kathy Fraser said that quite a few members have still not paid their dues. Remember, we have already forwarded a portion of your dues to Rotary International on your behalf ...

YOUTH EXCHANGE PRESENTATION
The five objectives of the Rotary Youth Exchange Program, said Lori Breyer and Bruce LeBel last week are as follows:

• To further international goodwill and understanding
• To expand opportunities for educational diversity to the youth of the world
• To broaden the horizons of cultural understanding
• To improve Exchange Students' ambassadorial skills
• To allow Exchange Students to serve as messengers of peace

Exchange Students are exposed to a different culture than their own. In the process, they have to learn a new way of living, and usually a new language. Bruce noted that his daughter Allegra was sponsored by our club as an Exchanger several years ago. He said that the experience transformed her.

Rotary Youth Exchange began in the 1920's, and it has been an important component of Rotary ever since. Each year, more than 8,000 young people from 80+ countries participate in the program. Our Rotary District 5130 has been active in the program for about 20 years, arranging between 24 to 28 exchanges annually.

Rotary Exchange Students to our District attend the Raft Trip Orientation, the San Francisco "Blues Buster" weekend, an orientation/ski trip in the winter, and the District Conference in the spring.

TASTE OF THE HOLIDAYS
Barbara Browning is heading up the Dutch Raffle Committee for this year's Taste of the Holidays. She divided us into teams of two or three Sunrisers, and we're supposed to get together and contribute about $25 each toward our offering. (Thanks, Barbara, for not going all alphabetical on us!)

If you have ticket money, don't be afraid to turn it in to Scott Heller. He is also more than willing to provide you with replacements for the tickets you've sold. One of our perennial top sellers, Brian Stephens, is now on leave, so we all have to take up the slack.

OUR COMMUNITY FOUNDATION
Michael Boreing is our resident expert on putting together a 501(c)(3) nonprofit corporation. At least, he is now. He (in cahoots with our Treasurer Kathy Fraser) put in a lot of time setting up the Rotary Club of Arcata Sunrise Community Foundation.

The Foundation allows us to receive tax-deductible donations for events like A Taste of the Holidays, and our other fundraisers. Michael said that we are the third or fourth club in our District to establish such a foundation. The process began in February of last year.

We are a membership organization, and every Sunriser is also a member of the Community Foundation. The Foundation Officers are the same as our Club Officers, with the addition of the Foundation Vice-President, who is one of the Past Presidents. Most of Club's committees operate under the Foundation's auspices, with the exception of those under the Director of Club Service.