On The Calendar
March 14 - Please join us in a journey "Down The Rabbit Hole" - it's our Spring Fundraiser ... in Wonderland!!
March 21 - District Training Assembly in Ukiah
April 24-26 - District 5130 Conference at Yosemite!
Editor's Note:
On Wednesday, February 18th, Your Editor was kicking back, enjoying the Charter Night festivities. He felt secure in the knowledge that the week's Friday morning meeting would not take place. A dark Friday generally means a break from the Sunrise Spirit (for me and more importantly, for you). But it was not to be - Lori Breyer noticed the glazed look on my face, and began taking notes on her cellphone. (Her husband Dave thought she was texting.)
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| Gotta remember to lose that "Selfie Scowl"! |
And ... the only photos I took were a couple of selfies, to be submitted to Ceva and President Barbara. Romi Hitchcock-Tinseth came to the rescue there, earning photo credits for the other pics that appear below. Thank you, Lori and Romi!
Charter Night 2015
President Barbara opened our celebration of 22 years of Sunriser Service by reminding us that we are the Club that knows how to "Have Fun and Get Things Done".
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| Charter Night 2015 ... With Hanging |
Barbara admitted that, as she was writing her presentation, she started crying. It was just so moving, thinking about everything we have accomplished this year:
- Fellowship activities have included Pints for Nonprofits, Christmas caroling in Old Town Eureka, and the tailgate party at HSU Homecoming. All of these (and many more) were dubbed "RISE" events - RISE standing for "Rotary Involvement Strengthens Everyone".
- Our Membership Committee has worked to increase our numbers to 62 members, while the Mentorship Committee has helped the new members find meaning and become engaged in our Club and in Rotary.
- Our Programs Committee has provided great programs all year, including field trips to the Humboldt Coastal
Nature Center and Lost Coast Brewery.
Delectable Charter Night Desserts - Our Sergeant-at-Arms Committee has provided super service, ensuring that our meetings run smoothly, with no mishaps.
- The Recognitions Committee has been presenting in-depth portraits of our fellow Sunrisers this year, helping us get to know one another better. They also encouraged us to take "Rotary Selfies".
- The Community Service Committee has also been in high gear this year. They have organized some "Mini-SWOT" projects to helping individuals in need, including a local disabled man who needed help moving following an accident, and tending the garden of a community leader (and former Sunriser) who is struggling with cancer. They also helped Arcata House Partnership, provided dictionaries to local third graders, and much more!
- Our Financial Assistance Committee has reviewed many requests for funding, and helped provide a special hospital bed for the aforementioned disabled gentleman. They also supported HSU's new anti-hunger initiative, the local extreme weather shelter, and helped a young student participate in a chess tournament.
- The World Community Service brought some great international projects to our Club this year, including our emerging partnership with the Arcata Noon Club, to provide opportunities for a remote village in Costa Rica. We are also supporting a water project in Pakistan, the Faces of Hope cleft palate project in Central America, and the STEPS program which helps children in several African countries who were born with clubfoot.
- We saw a revitalization of the Vocational Service Committee this year, which will be presenting the Vocational Service Award this Friday to a deserving individual - the first such award in many years. They also work with Humboldt Live! to open vocational possibilities to local youth.
- Our New Generations/Youth Committee is working to determine how to help (and what to call) the local foster youth population as they "age out" of the system. They also organize our efforts hosting the Arcata Invitational Basketball Tournament and working with the North Bay Rotaract, as they recharter their Club.
- The Youth Exchange Committee works with our Exchange Students, both Outbound (Sylvie Leppig, who is currently in Belgium, and Trula Rael, who will soon be off to Italy) and Inbound (Mozara Abdalla, from Brazil).
It's been a great year so far,
and we're looking forward to
getting more done,
and having even more fun!!!
Happy Birthday,
Rotary Club of Arcata Sunrise!
