Volume XI, Issue 3: July 22, 2011

ANNOUNCEMENTS

On Wednesday, July 15th, Lori Breyer and her family hosted a farewell party for Marianna Sanchez, our Exchange Student who was soon to return home to Mexico. Unfortunately, her voyage home was not as happy nor as well-executed as the party. All went according to schedule on Marianna's end - she arrived at the airport in San Francisco well in advance of her midnight flight on Aeromexico. However, despite what her itinerary said, the airline insisted that there was no such flight. On Friday, Lori told us that she was re-booked on a flight scheduled for late that morning. Thanks to Lori for the update and for the party.

Howard Stauffer provided an update from the World Community Service Committee. The group has new members and ongoing projects. Among the latter are the fluoridation dental treatment project in Mexico, support for a long-term project in Siberia that is spearheaded by the Eureka Rotary Club, and additional scholarships for primary students attending Mongkolbory School in Cambodia. Howard is planning a return trip to Cambodia in October (he was there in 2006 and again two years later). The itinerary includes a visit to the school, and Howard would appreciate your company. Jessica McKnight was part of the entourage in 2008, and she says, "Travels with Howard are always an adventure!" Please let him know if you're interested.

Scholarship recipient Garrett Wallace returned to thank us for the award. He said that he is using the funds to pay for his classes and his books. "I appreciate your faith in me and your support," he said. Garrett is attending Cal Poly San Luis Obispo, and he said that even though he is about 20 percent done, his life has changed already.

The fundraiser to support the Arcata Playhouse makeover project is rapidly approaching. Barbara Browning said that the "Country Cabarette" (I spelled it wrong last week) has a lot of support. But the most important supporter is you - please plan to be at the event. It promises to be a lot of fun, with a lot of chili and country music. The Cabarette begins at 7 pm at the Arcata Playhouse at 1251 9th Street in Arcata.Tickets are available at Wildwood Music and the Works.

RECOGNITIONS

Bob Johnson encouraged Matt Babich to let us know how his recent rafting trip on the Trinity turned out. Then he showed a photo of Matt holding an ice pack to his eye. Matt said that an oar caught him in the face as he was shifting in the raft. He looked back up at the picture and said, "I hate Facebook." 

Bob then told of his own weekend adventure - touring San Francisco by bicycle. He set up his phone's GPS to track his course, but the battery died partway through. That's not the only thing that died. Bob said that "...the legs and the lungs are one thing, but ... the butt ..." Well, that was the end of that story.

At our previous meeting, Barbara Browning said that she and husband Ron Sharp have an anniversary tradition - taking turns telling what they love about each other. That led Bob to lead in the anniversary recognitions with the song, "That's What I Like About You". 

George and Diana Cavinta had a low-key celebration for their 20th anniversary. They had out-of-town guests and no babysitters, so it was off to Murphy's for dinner fixin's. Someone wanted camel, but our neighborhood superstore must have just run out. 

After anniversaries come birthdays, and we heard that Lori Breyer started hers with a workout at HealthSport, followed by time spent at the Quilt Show at Redwood Acres, topped by dinner at the Plaza Grill.

We should hear about Cindy Sutcliffe's birthday at our next meeting, but she did say that she is "definitely going out to dinner". 

GUEST SPEAKER: DR. KEITH SNOW-FLAMER

Dr. Keith Snow-Flamer

On Tuesday, August 2nd, the College of the Redwoods will be breaking ground for its new Academic Complex, and Dr. Keith Snow-Flamer has invited us. Dr. Snow-Flamer has been the Vice-President of Student Services at the college since 2006. He told us last Friday that, when it is completed in 2015, it will house several academic functions. The college is further shoring up its aging facilities with a Student Services/Administration Building that is already under construction. 

Dr. Snow-Flamer asked those who plan to attend Tuesday's groundbreaking to RSVP to Michelle Anderson in the CR President's office. More information is available at http://www.redwoods.edu/_artman2/publish/CR_News_1/Groundbreaking_Ceremony_for_the_New_Academic_Complex_printer.asp

Volume XI, Issue 2: July 15, 2011

President Scott's second meeting kept Your Reporter ascribblin'!

First came the announcement of the Farewell Party for Exchange Student Mariana Sanchez, to be held at Lori Breyer's home in Eureka. The bittersweet festivities will begin at 6 pm, Wednesday, July 20th.

Barbara Browning reminded us that the Arcata Playhouse fundraiser - the Country Cabaret and Chili Cookoff - will take place on Saturday, August 6th. (Cabaret and chili ... two words rarely seen together in one sentence.) Facebook Friends may have also noted that Barbara has put out the call for Chili Chefs to step up to the plate ... er, bowl. Following the fundraiser, you are encouraged to be part of the Sunrise SWOT Team (Serving With Our Talents), as we help the Playhouse on August 10 (office organizing), August 13-27 (kitchen remodel), and August 28 (pageant and reveal). Another Arcata Sunrise Makeover in progress!


RECOGNITHIONS! [sic]

Brother Bob Johnson has information on all of us. If you don't believe me, just ask Bryan Reeser. Bob told us that Bryan went to Seattle recently to cheer on his wife Susan as she competed in the Rock 'n' Roll Marathon. I don't know whether there's any truth to the rumor that Bryan was tracking Susan's progress online as he sipped a Treinta Latte at Starbucks. (Is there even a Starbucks in Seattle? Probably not.)

Bob Johnson

Another Traveling Sunriser was Rebecca Crow, who recently visited Maine with her family. Apparently, the impressive sight Down East was a generator that plays the William Tell Overture. Ahh ... engineers are indeed a different breed. Rebecca said she saw a "Moose Warning" sign, but no moose. (Maybe the sign was to warn moose, and it works.) Daughter Mary had the whole journey in perspective, though. When Bob asked what her favorite part of the trip was, she said that it was "the pool at the hotel".

What's a California sheephead? That was the question posed to Brandi Easter. I saw the picture on the PowerPoint presentation, so I know. It's a big round silver fish. And on June 23rd, Brandi bagged the biggest one on record. This one, taken off Santa Cruz Island, weighed 11.20 pounds. Guess whose record she broke? Her own. Congratulations!

Barbara Browning attended the recent Kate Wolf Music Festival last month. There were a lot of good bands there, but Barbara's pick was Red Molly. (See for yourself at http://www.redmolly.com/)

Stan Elcock

Bob asked several Sunrisers about their recent anniversaries: Bob and Roxanne Moore celebrated their 21st (after work) with dinner at the Sea Grill. Barbara Browning said that she and Ron Sharp "had a blast" for their 12th anniversary. Their tradition is to tell each other "everything we love about each other". Bryan and Susan Reeser went out to dinner, but Stan Elcock (pictured at left) and Julie Vaissade-Elcock went to a Planning Commission meeting? Romi Hitchcock and Glenn Tinseth have their 23rd anniversary coming up, which we will hear about soon, I'll warrant. Finally, Kyle and Natalie Visser's 2nd anniversary took place last month, and it involved razor clamming and sushi.

Members of our club generally don't celebrate a single day for their birthdays - they commandeer the entire month for the festivities. A pioneer in that field is Janice Newman. Janice said that her month (June) was very good. It involved a drive up the Oregon Coast, whale watching, and a stay at a B and B on a paddlewheel boat! By way of contrast, Orrin Plocher's birthday was spent close to home. He went to one of the casinos the night before, and then attended the Mad River Festival, which he described as being a lot like a Rotary fundraiser, "but no one was puking".

WELCOME JULIE AND GARRETT!!

We welcomed two new Sunrisers into the Club last week - Julie Schaefer and Garrett Perks.

Julie owns and operates New Image Hair Studio and Spa, located in Sunnybrae Center. Julie and her husband Jim have four children, the youngest of whom graduated from Arcata High in June. Her classification is Hair Stylist. Her sponsor is Barbara Browning.

Garrett is the Principal and Creative Director of EvenVision, an online and print media design firm. He graduated from Humboldt State with a BA in Economics. His sponsor is Scott Heller, and his classification is Marketing Consultant.

Barbara, Julie, Garrett, and Scott

RABIA AND THE ROSHNI CENTRE FOR WOMEN

Our guest speaker was Barbara Rabia O'Loren, known in Pakistan as simply Rabia. She is an Arcata resident who traveled to Pakistan in 2004 "out of curiosity". Rabia said that her visit took place in the summer, while her children were out of school. Unfortunately, she was ill-prepared for the Pakistani heat, which reached 125 degrees.

Her original intent was to learn about several countries, but what she observed in Pakistan moved her deeply. She moved to the Swat Valley for a year, where she met Nadia. "I dream," Nadia told her, "of a place where women can come together." This was the genesis of the Roshni Centre for Women.

The Centre opened its doors on May 10, 2006, and today about 30 young women come in on a daily basis, learning the art and economics of sewing and Swatian embroidery. The women learn to sew by making items for their families, and then making items to be sold.

The traditional embroidery style, La Doré, was revived in the Swat Valley by Princess Mussarat Ahmedzeb, a member of the valley's former royal family. The Princess was widowed when her husband was shot in 1986, and she has been quoted by NPR saying, "I can understand a widow's pain, her suffering." Rabia echoed that on Friday, saying, "She understands widows as she is one herself."

Rabia showed us slides that illustrated the difficult lives led by the women who come to the Centre. However, the spirit of these women was also evident.

In honor of its fifth anniversary, and to fund additional efforts to help the women of the Swat Valley, the Centre is holding bake sales in Trinidad (July 17) and at the Arcata Co-op (August 2 and 27). You can also purchase raffle tickets. For more information, visit online at www.roshnicentre.org or call Rabia at 707-826-7123. To learn more about Princess Mussarat and the art of La Doré, visit www.ladore-swat.com.

President Scott with Rabia

Volume XI, Issue 1: President Scott is all about ... CHANGE!

New President Scott Heller told us at his first meeting last Friday to prepare for CHANGE! The Plaza View Room has a new audio-visual system, President Scott was sporting a wearable microphone, and other changes were also evident. The members of our Sergeant-At-Arms committee will be wearing red armbands so they can be quickly identified if something should go awry.
Another change is that the banners that we have exchanged with other Rotary Clubs will once again be prominently displayed. As an unplanned underscore, President Scott exchanged banners with Visiting Rotarians Chris and Lisa Hamphill, from the Rotary Club of Dougherty Valley / San Ramon.
President Scott also encouraged us to show Rotary every day, as he provided us with window stickers, decals, and a lapel pin showing the symbol of Rotary International President Kalyan Banerjee: "Reach Within to Embrace Humanity". Scott hopes that we will wear our Rotary pins every day, and he gave us a challenge - if we see him in public and he is not wearing something that identifies him as a Rotarian, he will contribute $100 to our Paul Harris Fellowship accounts.
Another goal for Scott is to increase our membership from the current 55 to 65 in his year. (If you are a non-Rotarian reading this, and you're interested in "giving back", please contact a Sunrise Rotarian to see if Rotary is right for you.)

GUEST SPEAKER: D.A. PAUL GALLEGOS

Our Guest Speaker was District Attorney Paul Gallegos. He noted that the DA is the top law enforcement official in the county. As such, he is directly accountable to the Governor, the Attorney General, and to the people. His office is part of the Executive Branch of state and local government.
He said that law enforcement has two checks - the judiciary and the people of California who serve as jurors. His office has about 50 staff members, including administrative personnel, investigators, and attorneys. The staff also includes the only computer forensics expert on the North Coast and two handwriting experts.
"Almost every year since I've been in office," said Mr. Gallegos, "we've had budget cuts." He explained that initially, the staff was able to cope by increasing efficiency. However, there is a point where additional cuts cannot simply be absorbed. At that point, core functions begin to be reduced. Grants have become more competitive, and they are more difficult to maintain. Mr. Gallegos said that public safety should be funded by the county's General Fund.

President Scott with D.A. Paul Gallegos

He then discussed the recent Supreme Court ruling that overcrowding in California prisons constitutes cruel and unusual punishment. Mr. Gallegos pointed out officials were given two years to decrease the size of the prison population. Any prisoners released outright would be "non-non-non" offenders, in prison for crimes that are considered non-serious, non-violent, and that do not constitute sex offenses.
Mr. Gallegos stated that we need to get past our own prejudices regarding former prisoners. He said that felons go to prison, they are punished, and they are released. Then the punishment needs to stop. We need to re-integrate them into society.

PARTING SHOT:

It may look like President Scott is taking a swing at Bob Goodman, but instead he is carefully buffing Bob's brand-new Past-President pin.