Vol. 66 No. 18 Notes from the Podium

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President's Time

President Debbie thanked everyone who helped to make the first Gables Bike Day a roaring success.  In addition to the loyal contingent of Rotarians who helped, she had 80 volunteers, mostly from Coral Gables High and Gulliver.  Terry Long won a Raffle Prize for a lunch. Aaron Glasser - who stayed to work all day - was awarded a gift certificate as Volunteer of the Day ... so did the two Andreas ... but they said they were just there tasting vodka!

If you haven't signed up for the IKF Halloween Party on Monday, do so now.  We throw a party for the children who are stuck at Jackson for major surgery and treatment - their stay is taken care of by the International Kids Fund.  Wear a costume and come an play with the kids for a couple of hours on Monday.  You'll be glad you did.

We will be serving Thanksgiving Dinner at the Community Partnership for the Homeless beginning at 10 a.m. on Thanksgiving morning.  Be sure to sign up early as this is one of our favorite and traditional Thanksgiving service projects.

8TH ANNUAL ROTARY GOLF CLASSIC - CALL FOR GOLFERS

Chris Morrison reminded everyone that next Thursday is our Golf Tournament at The Biltmore beginning at 8 a.m.  We have lots of sponsors, but we need more golfers.  Why not sign up for a foursome?  Or invite some folks from work to come out and play.  It's a terrific day with lots to do.  The food (breakfast and lunch) and the drinks are all included in the $150 registration fee.  And the proceeds go to our own Club Foundation to help fund so many of our worthy projects. 

Determined and forceful, jealous and obstinate pretty much describes Scorpio natives like Dick Bullman  who celebrates his birthday today, and Bob Schreiber who parties tomorrow.  Happy Birthday Boys!

 Lots of Rotary Anniversaries this week.  Terry Long celebrates 16 years;  Don Slesnick, 21 years; Ron Shuffield, 27 years and Dar Airan, 34 years.  Congratulations and thanks for all your years of service!

Introductions of Visitors and Guests

Sally B.

Actually Yolanda Woodbridge had the most amount of visitors and guests of anyone today.  International visiting Rotarian, Patricia Pellicioli  from France returned again. This time she brought her son and daughter-in-law too.  Always good to see her!  Yoli also brought Ralph Cabrera and Vanessa Estrada again as well.  Carlos Bolado brought his lovely wife Terry.  Walter Alvarez had a guest.  President Debbie picked up her guest, Rafael Castellanos, at Bike Day!  Mead McCabe also brought a guest today.  Thanks for coming and please come back again!

Happy $$$

Diva worked hard collecting today because she is probably the happiest of them all.  She became engaged on Monday!  Sally B was happy to announce that there will be a 25th Birthday Party for the Caroling Competition on November 28th, hosted by the 550 Building and YW Associates.  Tickets are $25 and proceeds are split between Caroling and Where Every Child Is A Star Foundation.  Carlos Bolado was ecstatic to announce that he and Terry have just become grandparents.  His name is Santiago - he's three days old and lives with his parents in Clearwater.  Miki Speijers is happy to be celebrating her 25th Wedding Anniversary on Halloween.  Mead McCabe is happy that his friend Sanford has proposed to Diva and now has such a great fiancee.  Chris Morrison attended his 40th college reunion at Stanford last week.  He was a little perturbed that they wouldn't let him in the locker room to recruit Andrew Luck for the Miami Dolphins.  Bill Quesenberry volunteered for a golf tournament at the Micosukee golf course and they gave him a ticket for a free round of golf.  He auctioned it off to cover his happy dollar and his $5 fine for the cell phone ringing.  Luis Boue's phone rang too but he didn't have any more money with him.  He was just happy that he will be leaving for Africa on a photo safari at 4:30 tomorrow with Dr. Randy and Terry Long.  Carol Brock was happy that Dr. Roberto Perez, already a Nobel Peace Prize winner for his Alfalit contributions has just received the Presidential Citizens Medal.  He asked her to thank Rotary for all they've done for him and Alfalit for these many years.  Dan Scipione was enjoying himself in Disneyworld when his wife called to tell him that 10 feet of closed collapsed in their bedroom.  Seems the rod was not screwed into a stud ... just into the drywall.  Chris Tyson was happy to have seen snow in Switzerland last week.  Happiness pays so keep on smiling!

International Service Minute

International Service Chair, Bill Quesenberry gave us a great example of the magic of Rotary.  You'll recall several weeks ago our speaker was a marine who is walking through Asia to raise money for Smile Trek.  Our members generously donated $430 at the meeting that day.  Those funds were matched by our Foundation and we ended up with $2,100 in total.  Now we've applied for a District Simplified Grant which will result in a total of $4,200 being sent to Smile Trek to repair the smiles of 18 children.  Rotary is certainly an amazing organization.  It makes money go far!

Working Rotarians - October 27. 2011

Greeters - Steven Spann & Rolf Frankfurter

Registration - Aaron Glasser

Collections -  Pat Morris & John Porro

Head Table - Rodney Langer

Open the Meeting - Jack Witty

Invocation - Steve Magenheimer

Pledge - Miki Spiejers

Singers - Bill Quesenberry & Dan Scipione

DeWitt Law Silver Dollars - Bonnie Blaire

Given to - Greg Martini & John Wallace

Pin Drawing Gift - Rodney Lanager

Pin Drawing Winner - Felix Pardo

50/50 Raffle - Gloria Burns & Donald Trombly

50/50 Winner - Jon Arthur

4 Way Test - Jon Arthur

Today's Program

Homestead Miami Speedway NASCAR Championship Weekend presented by Matthew Becherer, President of Homestead Speedway.

Homestead Speedway, originally built by Ralph Sanchez after Hurricane Andrew in 1992, is owned by Homestead but operated by International Speedway Corp.  ISC OWNS and operates 12 major tracks around the country, but only operate Homestead.  A publicly traded company, they have their own television station.  ISC has corporate revenues in excess of $200,000,000 annually.  They pay the city of Homestead $2 million a year in rent.  Many people think that the only thing held at the Speedway is the Miami Grand Prix but there are a total of 280 days of racing year round. 

NASCAR is the number two spectator sport in the world  They have 17 of the 20 largest events.  They broadcast the races to 175 countries in 24 languages.  NASCAR has been hosted in Homestead for the past 10 years and it's number 11 coming up in 2012.  ISC has a radio station, Motor Racing Network and serve 21,000 media outlets.  There are 350 corporate partners and most of those are local small businesses.  But NASCAR also has more Fortune 500 Partners than any other sport.  They have an economic impact of $250 million for Miami Dade County.  Compare that to the last Superbowl held here which had an impact of $331 million - and that's only one year and maybe never again.  NASCAR is EVERY YEAR.  

ISC has a master plan for the Speedway.  The average life of a speedway is 53 years.  Homestead is 15 years old.  It requires vision to stay on top in this game.  The market expects you to change and provide the latest novelties for the crowds.  The Speedway cost $60 million to construct.  They have spent another $70 million since they took it over.  And there's lots of new changes on the way.  They're enlarging the entertainment area to provide for festivals, concerts and full days of entertainment to enhance the race experience. The Speedway operates like a small town including a police force, fire department, etc., for a week every year so expanding their reach isn't a problem at all.

He brought two tickets for the Ford Championship Weekend  Dan Scipione auctioned them off.  The winner was Fred Baddour.  The proceeds went to our Club's Foundation.

NEXT WEEK'S PROGRAM:  8TH ANNUAL ROTARY GOLF CLASSIC AT THE BILTMORE HOTEL.  BE SURE TO COME TO THE BILTMORE AND NOT TO THE COUNTRY CLUB NEXT WEEK.  AT 1:30 YOU GET TO WATCH THE GOLF BALL DROP .

Thought for the Week

by Abe Horowitz

"Better to remain silent and be thought a fool, 

than to speak out and remove all doubt."

Mark Twain

Scene Scenes

See you next week at The Biltmore Hotel

Different place,
but the same great bunch of Rotarians.

See you there!

Winners Choice - 2012 Rotary Raffle

Vocational Service

Egyptian club discovers
the power of microlending

If your Rotary club is stuck in a rut when it comes to vocational service, it's not alone.

Sometimes dubbed the "forgotten Avenue of Service," vocational service can be difficult for clubs to understand and implement.

Nijad K. Al Atassi, past governor of District 2450 (parts of Africa, the Mediterranean, the Middle East, and Georgia) felt strongly enough about vocational service to make it a districtwide priority.

"Vocational service is important because it enhances values and faith in ethics," says Al Atassi, a member of the Rotary Club of Adliya, Bahrain.

The Rotary Club of Alexandria Sporting, Egypt, rose to the challenge by focusing on microcredit loans, literacy classes, and a sewing workshop to meet the needs of low-income community members, helping women in particular to start businesses and learn useful work skills.

Microcredit loans

"We gave loans to deprived women supporting large families," says past club president Heba Kabel. Club members made loans of about US$85 to 20 entrepreneurs to launch small food or cleaning businesses. The loans were paid back in installments over the course of a year, and the money was then loaned out again -- turning the club's initial investment of about $1,700 into a sustainable microcredit program.

The club also financed literacy classes, helping 75 women learn to read and write, and a sewing lab, which drew 45 women to sewing lessons every month.

Kabel notes that the club put a priority on efforts that would help community members increase their chances of finding a job.

"We made a big bazaar at the end of the year and sold their products," Kabel says, explaining that the proceeds went to the women.

Kabel, a Barclays Bank employee, also tapped into her own vocational skills by offering free lessons in financial literacy to several women whom club members had met through the vocational service initiatives. The financial advice helped the women make informed decisions about their new incomes, teaching them to allocate some for savings and giving them a better chance of sustaining their small businesses.

Model projects

Each October, Rotarians are encouraged to focus on the Avenue of Vocational Service. For this year’s celebration, Rotary International collected model vocational service project submissions from 2010-11 district governors. In addition to the Rotary Club of Alexandria Sporting's microcredit program, other model projects include:

• The Rotary Club of Mt. Vernon, Missouri, USA, conducted a job skills workshop for unemployed residents, giving participants tools for interviews and job searches. Each participant left with a résumé and a list of employment opportunities.
• Members of the Rotary Club of Jalalabad, Bangladesh, India, provided artificial limbs to 20 people with disabilities through a local rehabilitation center and worked with community businesses to help the recipients find work.
• The Rotary Club of Cheltenham Sunrise, Gloucestershire, England, invited more than 280 secondary school students and teachers to attend a two-day educational forum on environmentally conscious careers. Leaders of government, nongovernmental organizations, and industries shared tips on how they've implemented green innovations to improve business.

WE ARE THIS CLOSE .... World Polio Day

Rotarians Gearing Up
for World Polio Day

Rotarians around the globe are planning events to raise polio eradication awareness and funding TODAY for World Polio Day, October 24, 2011.

Australian club members are working with the Global Poverty Project on a petition drive aimed at persuading world leaders to fully fund the critical work of the Global Polio Eradication Initiative. Supporters can sign the petition online.

The Global Poverty Project has scheduled an End of Polio Concert on 28 October to coincide with the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting in Perth, Australia. Rotarians have joined with the group to lobby leaders to put polio eradication on the meeting agenda. Hugh Evans, cofounder and CEO of the Global Poverty Project, is a scheduled speaker at the 2012 RI Convention in Bangkok, Thailand, in May.

"Global collaboration has ensured that eradication is within reach," says Michael Sheldrick, the group's polio campaign manager and a member of the Rotary Club of Crawley, Western Australia. "Our generation has a chance to realize a historic opportunity and ensure that no one else ever has to fear this disease. That’s why it’s vital we commit to finish the job."

Among other events planned around World Polio Day are these:

• Rotarians in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, are organizing a Walk to End Polio Now, aimed at drawing 4,000 participants and raising money for Rotary's US$200 Million Challenge to match $355 million in grants from the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation in support of polio eradication.
• The Rotary Club of Venezia-Riviera del Brenta, Italy, has organized a Run to End Polio fundraiser as part of the 23 October Venice Marathon.
• Rotary, Rotaract, and Interact clubs in Canada and the United States are coordinating a Wake Up Across the Continent polio awareness initiative during the week of 24-28 October. Each club is encouraged to participate and to publicize its activities, share ideas, and post images on Facebook.
• Rotarians in Finland will conduct a "This Close" campaign with ads in print, on television, and online 24-28 October, and they plan a fundraiser on World Polio Day.
• Rotarians in Canada have arranged for the "This Close" TV public service announcement and other polio-related programming to air on CBC nationally throughout October.
• Rotarians in Africa have started a "This Close" page on Facebook for World Polio Day, encouraging fellow Rotarians to replace their Facebook profile photo that day with their "This Close" photo from www.thisclose.net.
• The Rotary Club of Linlithgow Grange, Lothian, Scotland, is sponsoring a Scotch Hop dance fundraiser on 29 October to benefit Rotary's challenge.
• Rotary clubs in Boston will present A Festival of Voices: Singing Out to End Polio Now on 23 October, with all proceeds to benefit the challenge.
• The Nepal PolioPlus Committee will host a one-day seminar on polio in conjunction with the local UNICEF office.
  

Vol. 66 No. 17 Notes from the Podium

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President's Time

The Agenda was packed today and so was the room!  It's nice to see so many of our members returning to the Club after the snows hit North Carolina.  Welcome back this week to Keith Phillips and Jon Arthur.  Bob Schreiber came today and Kirk Landon made his second meeting this month!  Returning to the Country Club has been good for everyone!

Sunday is Gables Bike Day and thanks in large part to our two Interact Club, we have managed to put together almost 100 volunteers for the day.  Don't miss the FUN!  Come on out and spend the day, bring your bike, your friends and your kids.  Gables Bike Day is an all day family friendly event.  There are activities, tours, races, and food to please everyone of any age.  See you there!

Our Golf Tournament is in just two weeks, November 4th  We still need golfers so sign up to play or buy a foursome.  A big "thank you" to the latest sponsors, Fernando Ortiz & Associates and Brandt's Billiards.  Thanks also to Ralph Cabrera for his donation to the cause.

Have you bought your balls yet?  Yoli's back so both she and Rolf are selling golf balls for this year's Helicopter Golf Ball Drop.  They're $25 each.  The prizes are terrific.  The donation counts towards your next Paul Harris Fellowship.  Buy some today.  The Drop will take place at 1:30 on the day of the Golf Classic.

SPEAKING OF RAFFLES

Don Trombly is selling Raffle Tickets for the 2012 Rotary Raffle.  "What is that?"  You might ask ... it's a cool $20,000 cash prize OR a new Fiat 500 C OR a Mako Flats Boat.  Winner has their choice of the prize.

Tickets are $150 each.  Only 300 tickets will be sold.  So there's a one in 300 chance you can win.  Great odds!  And all of the proceeds go to Coral Gables Rotary Foundation.  Such a deal.

The winning ticket will be drawn on March 9, 2012 at our annual fund raising event, "A Night at the Oscars."

World Polio Day - October 24, 2011

Noelle Galperin spent just a few minutes bringing us up to date on Rotary's Polio Plus Initiative.  Did you know that there has been only ONE NEW CASE OF POLIO in India this year?  Incredible!  To date in 2011 there have been only 444 cases of polio detected worldwide, compared to 717 by this same date last year.  Experts confirm that we will NOT reach 2010's global total of 1,349 new cases.  But in case you think the work is nearly done - think again - of the 1,349 new cases of polio reported last year, 83% were in non-polio-endemic countries!  

Chinese health authorities have vaccinated more than nine million people in the far western region of China amid a new outbreak of the disease that has paralyzed 17 people and killed one.  China has been free of polio for 11 years and now this particularly virulent strain of the virus has crossed over from Pakistan.  The battle isn't over.  It hasn't been won.  We're 99% of the way there.  Make a contribution to Polio Plus on October 24, 2011.  Let's END POLIO NOW.  

 City Employee of the Month 

October, 2011

Chief Robert Lowman introduced us to Leonard Veight, Fire Inspector in the Fire Prevention Bureau, and the October Employee of the Month for the City of Coral Gables.  

Chief Lowman said that Veight is friendly, accessible and approachable and he gets phone calls all the time complimenting Leonard's performance.    For his part, Leonard said he loves his job and was never so proud as the day that Chief Cook and Chief Reed promoted him to this position.  Congratulations Leonard and keep up the great work!

Here come those cusp babies again!  Only this time, on the cusp of Libra and Scorpio they are not only diplomatic and idealistic but determined, exciting and compulsive people like Bruce Kerestes on October 22, Harlan Chiron on October 24 and Jim Brown on the 25th.  Happy Birthday to all.

William Isaias (formerly a District Governor in Ecuador) celebrates his 9th anniversary in our Club this week.  Diane Thurston has been a member for 10 years.  Thanks to you both for all your years of service.

Introduction of Guests &Visitors

Claiming he's not as entertaining as Dick Bullman, President Elect Walter Alvarez introduced our visitors today.  Visiting from Rotary Club of Miami was Mac West.  Tom Dixon re-introduced us to Rick Belz.  Yoli  Woodbridge brought Ralph Cabrera and Vaness Estrada as her guests. John Hopkins (with our speaker) brought Herbert Hiller, one of the original architects of the Greenway as a guest as well.  Thanks for coming.  Come back again soon, and often!

Happy $$$

The good Dr. Randy returned today in hope that he can Groh our scholarship fund more than of late.  He thanked Noelle Galperin for the purple ribbon on his pinkie. He was relieved to understand that it was NOT for eradicating children, just polio!  Bonnie Blair was happy to report that she has returned from the two week Chamber of Commerce Mission to China.  She says it was more like boot camp!  She is VERY grateful to be home and after visiting a communist country, very glad to be an American!  Rosendo Castillo brought his wife France to the meeting today.  She had knee replacement surgery on August 25 and has been working really hard to rehab it.  Coming here today and having so many people wishing her well and concerned for her welfare was the best thing he could have done.  Dan Scipione is happy to report that it is the end of the school quarter and Disney World awaits.  On another matter, his wife has become a big fan of the HBO series "Pacific" and he's happy she did because our own Jack Witty went to California for the premier with a lot of the surviving members of that Greatest Generation.  Gene Witherspoon is happy that his oldest daughter turns 25 today.  She was in town last week to celebrate the youngest daughter's fifth birthday.  Aaron Glasser paid Randy $5 because he wanted to see the picture Randy had of Judy Pantoja "working" on the beach in Barbados last week!  He said it was worth $20.  Don Slesnick was happy to see the Fire Department honored with the Employee of the Month today.  He commented that here, on the eve of Gables Bike Day, he is reminded of Ralph Cabrera nagging in his ear for 10 years about just such an event.  And even before Ralph was bending his ear, Herb Hiller fought those very same battles.  Bruce Kerestes says for this year he is really happy to be celebrating his birthday.  If he sounds a little choked up it's because he had surgery to remove a mass from his vocal chords.  Everything is fine!  Happiness Pays and Dr. Randy knows how to find the most ecstatic people!  Keep on smiling - even without Dick Golden!

Working Rotarians - October 20, 2011

Greeter - Rolf Frankfurter

Registration - Aaron Glasser

Collections - Dan Scipione

Head Table - Rodney Langer

Open the Meeting - Jack Witty

Invocation - Steve Magenheimer

Pledge - Rob Hatfield

Singers - Bill Quesenberry & Dan Scipione

DeWitt Law Silver Dollars - Sally B.

Given to - Keith Phillips & Herb Hiller

Pin Drawing Gift - Rodney Langer

Pin Drawing Winner - John Wallace (given to the Prez)

50/50 Raffle - Rolf Frankfurther &a Don Trombly

50/50 Winner - Jim Roen

4 Way Test - Noelle Galperin 

Today's Program

"The East Coast Greenway" presented by Dennis Markatos-Soriano, Executive Director, East Coast Greenway Alliance.

The East Coast Greenway is a project that has been in the works for the past 20 years.  The concept is a 2,900 mile route from Calias, Maine to Key West, a kind of Urban Appalachian Trail that is bike and pedestrian friendly.  It is now, finally becoming a reality.  The key element is to provide a transportation system that is safe and accessible.  It is 26% perfect.  The other 74% is still being worked on.  But they have a dedicated staff of people, like Herb Hiller, their Florida/Georgia staff person, who devote their efforts to the completion of this worthy goal. There has been a lack of safe corridors for a very long time. 

Today, with the cost of automobiles, rising fuel costs and national health crisis due to people's inactivity, bicycle transportation is the way to go.  Currently only 12% of the population relies on bicycles for transportation.  In Western Europe that number is 36% of the total population.  We still have a way to go, and the Greenway is going to make that all the more possible to accomplish.  Bicycles transform communities.  They reduce pollution, save people time going to the gym.  Inactivity costs this country $100 billion a year.  Bicycles are good for tourism.  People will come to a community that provides safe accessible bicycle trails just so they can spend their time cycling. 

The Greenway is a $2 billion project.  But it's a good investment that provides a quick and tangible return.  The construction of the Greenway will create tens of thousands of jobs.  Remember, the Appalachian Trail was built during the great depression and helped to end unemployment then.  

Miami is one of the communities in the forefront of this movement.  Gables Bike Day is just one example of a community that is getting behind the idea of pollution-free transportation.  With the completion of the South Dade Trail there will soon be 30 miles of Greenway in Miami Dade County.  We are establishing a transportation network that works.  

NEXT WEEK'S PROGRAM:  Matthew  Becherer, President of the Homestead Speedway to tell us about the NASCAR Championship Weekend.

Thought of the Week

by Abe Horowitz

"Alone we can do so little.

Together we can do so much."

Helen Keller

Scene Scenes

 

See you next week,

Same time, same place,

Same great bunch of Rotarians!

Get Paul Harris Credits ....

Golf Ball Drop Tickets
Get Rotary Foundation Credits!

The deadline for purchasing a golf ball for the RI District 6990 Helicopter Golf Ball Drop fast approaches. All raffle ticket stubs and moneys must be turned in by Monday, October 31.

Remember, you receive Paul Harris credit for you tax deductible contribution and our club also receives credit towards our goal to raise money for The Rotary Foundation Annual Programs Fund for 2011-2012.

AND, you will be eligible to win one of the following prizes:

Closest to the Pin – A choice between:

A) Four nights, Five days deluxe accommodations at the Hawk’s Cay Resort, Florida Keys, with a Sunset Cruise for Two; or,

B) Four nights, Five days deluxe accommodations at the Hyatt Regency Coconut Point Resort & Spa, Bonita Springs, Florida with a Dinner for Two at the Tarpons Restaurant.

Second Closest to the Pin - whichever prize "Closest to the Pin" does not choose!

Third Closest to the Pin - Sunday Brunch for Four at The Biltmore Hotel, Coral Gables, Florida .

So, if you want your Halloween to be a treat and not a trick, see Rolf at this week's meeting to purchase your 2011 Helicopter Golf Ball Drop raffle tickets.

Thank you for your support!

Chris Morrison
RI District 6990
Annual Giving Chair

Rotary Golf Classic Returns November 3rd.

 

Tee Sponsorships are still available

or sign up to play

TODAY!

Contact Chris Morrison for more information.

morrisonclan@att.net

Helicopter Golf Ball Drop - Buy Your Balls TODAY!

Volunteers Needed for Gables Bike Day

Vol. 66 No. 16 Notes from the Podium

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President's Time
We were in the big room with a small crowd today.  Debbie urged members to move up to the empty tables  to better engage in the meeting!

Under the heading of "just a few announcements", she updated us on the status of Golf Tournament Sponsors.  Add to the list Luis Boue and his firm, Withers Transportation Services, LPL Financial, David Mitchell and Martini & Sacher, P.A.  Thanks for your support.  We still have plenty of tees left that need sponsors.  AND please sign up to play at the tournament on November 3rd too.  Golfers are what makes a great tournament.

If you haven't already purchased your tickets for the Golf Ball Drop, get them from Rolf now.  The money that you contribute to this District Fundraiser for the Annual Programs Fund gets credited to your Rotary Giving Account and counts towards your next Paul Harris Fellowship.  The Ball Drop will be held on the afternoon of the Golf Tournament at The Biltmore Hotel.

REMEMBER, Sunday, October 23 is Gables Bike Day.  We need more volunteers so if you haven't already signed up to help out do so NOW.  

It's good to see that our members are returning from their summer homes (now that it's snowed in the Carolina's).  Welcome back to Hank Collins.  Also back today is Hank Langston.  Our condolences in the recent passing of his sister.

Introduction of Guests &Visitors

Apparently Mr. Bullman was out of the room so THE Donald Trombly took over for him today.  We had a visiting Rotarian from Amsterdam and Joe Roth from the Weston Club (he's also the District Membership Chair).  Yoli Woodbridge brought Commissioner Ralph Cabrera (a former member of our Club - if there is such a thing as a "former" Rotarian) and Frank Sexton brought Rosie Diaz once again.  Welcome!  Come back again.

Easygoing, sociable and self-indulgent are just a few of the traits of Libra natives.  Say Happy Birthday this week to some very "well balanced" Rotarians ... Joe Witz today, John Wallace on October 15 and Guillermo Villar on October 16.  

Only one Rotary Anniversary this week - and what an anniversary it is!  Ron Robison celebrates 41 years in Rotary this week.  Thank you for so many fine years of Service Ron!

New Members Installation

Say "hello" to our new member,  Reza Ray Dehbozorgi.  Ray comes to Miami by way of Chicago but originally from Iran.  Formerly a Rotarian in Chicago, he missed the organization so much he's rejoined.  Ray is a graduate of the University of Michigan with a degree in engineering.  He then got an MBA in hospitality, worked in the food and beverage industry and owned a restaurant.  He left Chi Town and moved to Miami 20 years ago and never looked back.  Now he owns Minuteman Press in Doral.  He has a wife and two daughters of whom he is very proud, one is a lawyer and the other a dentist.  In his spare time he teaches Tai Chi and is active in several sports.  He's anxious to get involved in Community Service and all things Rotary once again.  Ray will be a great addition to our Club.

Lorraine Sheldon is the first ASSOCIATE MEMBER to be inducted in our Club.  RCCG is part of the RI Pilot Membership Program.  We are testing out the Associate Member Program wherein someone can join Rotary on a trial basis for a set period of time to determine if they want to remain in the Club.

Lorraine originally hails from the Pacific Northwest.  She fell in love with Coral Gables while completing her last year at University of Oregon's School of Architecture and moved here as soon as she could in 1993.  She worked as an interior designer for several large firms in Coral Gables and launched her own firm 10 years ago.  She loves the outdoors, plays soccer and likes to garden.  She is also a member of The Villagers and supports restoration of historical properties throughout South Florida.  She's also Deena Bell's best friend!

Welcome to both of our new members!   

MEMBERSHIP MINUTE

Greg Martini, Membership Chair, and President Debbie took a few minutes to recognize the people who have brought in new members since the Rotary year began.  The Rogues Gallery above is who we have to thank for their efforts;  Gloria Burns sponsored Ray Dehbozorgi, Tom Dixon sponsored Joe Witz, Yoli Woodbridge sponsored Andrea Fusero, Andrea Fusero sponsored Andrea Covre and of course Deena Bell-Llewellyn sponsored Lorraine Sheldon. 

Happy $$$

Susan Guttmann

The good Dr. Randy wasn't here today to Groh Scholarships and so the Diva tried her hand at it again.  But apparently either she's out of practice of there was little to no happiness to be found in the room today!  Abe Horowitz was happy that Lorraine Sheldon has joined our Club. He's known her for many years as Lorraine #2 but now that she's in Rotary she's #1 in his book.  Pat Morris was happy to see Commissioner Ralph Cabrera here with Yoli today.  He recalled some years ago when Ralph was active in our Club that he tried (at that time unsuccessfully) to get Pat to join Rotary.  Diva made us promise not to tell Dr. Randy about her poor performance at fundraising today.  But it ain't her fault!!!  Keep on smiling.  Happiness pays!

Working Rotarians - October 13, 2011

Greeters - Rolf Frankfurter & Steven Spann

Registration - Aaron Glasser

Collections - Frank Sexton & John Porro

Head Table - Rodney Langer

Open the Meeting - Jack Witty

Invocation - Steve Magenheimer

Pledge - George Reeves

Singers - Dan Scipione

Pin Drawing Gift - George Reeves

Pin Drawing Winner - Rob Hatfield

50/50 Raffle Sales - Gloria Burns & THE Donald

50/50 Winner - Dan Scipione

4-Way Test - Gene Mariutto

Today's Program

October is Vocational Service Month in Rotary.  What does it mean?  Presented by Past President, Vocational Service Chair Frank Sexton.

 Frank promised a short boring talk but as usual he was long winded,  very entertaining AND informative.  He said that Vocational Service has its roots way back to the beginning of our Country.  Jefferson and Washington were out searching for Rune stones one day and while taking a break had a conversation about how someday they both envisioned Vocational Service happening all across the land (!?!?!).  It was a good way to get our attention ...

Frank explained that he accepted the position of Vocational Service Chair because he was promised that the position carried little or no responsibility.  He wouldn't have to do much.  Now, after researching exactly what Vocational Service IS, he thinks he should be fired!

Vocational Service is one of the five Avenues of Service in which Rotarians are expected to engage.  The other four are Club Service, Community Service, International Service, and new this year, New Generations Service (that's YOUTH!).

When you joined Rotary, you joined with a Classification.  That Classification is based on your profession.  Rotarians are urged to always maintain high ethical standards in their business or profession.  They recognize the usefulness of all occupations. Rotarians contribute their vocational talents to the betterment of the world and Rotary.  That's a pretty tall order. But as usual, Rotary gives fine examples of what we as Rotarians can do to promote Vocational Service within our Club.

First of course is to allow our members to give Classification Talks (Frank really likes engage people in these little interviews at our weekly meetings).  Another thing is to offer tours of our members businesses which is what we do when we are hosted by our members at a 5th Friday (such as Snow's Jewelers last week).  RI suggests that we might want to hold a Career Fair or Workshops.  We might want to mentor young people who are interested in learning more about our vocation.  We should promote ethical behavior in our profession and our workplace.  The 4-Way Test is the cornerstone of that ethical behavior.  Perhaps you would like to volunteer your vocation to fulfill a need in the community, i.e., attorneys who volunteer to handle foreclosures pro-Bono for those who cannot afford to hire an attorney to represent them.  And Clubs can create a vocational awards program, much like our Employee of the Month programs for City Employees who have served the community well.

In his book, "My Road to Rotary", Paul Harris, who founded the organization in 1905, speaks about the importance of doing business with your fellow Rotarians.  Who better to refer for goods and service but someone with high ethical standards?  Don't you really want to do business with people whom you know you can trust because they operate just like you?  That's Vocational Service. 

For more information on Vocational Service and what is its role in Rotary, don't hesitate to visit the Rotary International Website.  It is a treasure trove of information and you'll learn more than you ever thought possible.

NEXT WEEK'S PROGRAM:  The East Coast Greenway: 3,000 miles from Canada to Key West.  Dennis Markatos-Soriano, Executive Director, East Coast Greenway Alliance.

Thought of the Week

by Abe Horowitz

"The Golden Age is before us, not behind us."

William Shakesphere

Scene Scenes

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Same time, same place

Same great bunch of Rotarians.