Those cartoon bears extolling the virtues of their brand of toilet paper in TV ads have nothing on our own Stewart Wagner.
The always-entertaining Stewart will be making a presentation at this Thursday’s SRC dinner meeting on the topic of “Toilet Paper and Its Connection to Albany.” We doubt anyone could not be interested in hearing what he has to say.
To that end, please be sure dinner coordinator Debbie Brown (mdbrown@nycap.rr.com) knows if you plan to attend. As always, her deadline is this Tuesday evening.
The dinner menu will feature barbecued pork, veggies, salad, bread, dessert and beverages. The following members already have RSVP’d:
Pat Bailey
Debbie Brown
Peter Brown
Bill Dowd
Dick Drumm
Murray Forth
Ray Hannan
Phil Kellerman
Jim Leyhane
Roberto Martinez
Debbie Rodriguez
Stewart Wagner
We’ve lined up a very busy final few weeks for the 2016-17 Rotary Year, and a variety of “Summer Casual” events for July and August. The image below gives you a taste — and we’ll be adding others.
To stay up to date so you don’t miss out on any opportunities, simply make it a habit to visit the club’s Facebook page (click here to do so and then bookmark it) and under the “More” link click on “Events.”)
The multi-club work day on Saturday at the Shaker Heritage Site in Colonie got a lot accomplished. And, obviously, it was appreciated. Take a look at this social media post.
Despite rumors that their “surf and turf” menu for a “Rotary Home Cooking Series” dinner might include anything from burgers-by-the-pool to possum-and-tuna, Murray and Maggie Forth pulled off another fine event with salmon and kebabs on Saturday night.
Here are some scenes from the event:
Hosts Murray & Maggie somehow smiled through the whole effort.A scenic setting on a lovely spring evening.A real surf-and-turf plate.Left to Right: Geoff Brewer, Jim Leyhane, Julius & Efrosini Frankel, Dick Drumm, Betty Brewer, and Roberto Martinez,Jeremy Forth and Geoff Brewer enjoying the evening.Dick & Mary Drumm commandeered the comfy seat.Julius and a young member of the Forth family.Is this called a “froth” of Brewers?Do Debbie & Peter Brown ever look unhappy? Bless ’em.
Rotarians from the District’s Area 8 clubs — Southern Rensselaer County, Cohoes, Colonie-Guilderland, and Lansingburgh — descended on the Shaker Heritage Site in Colonie today to do some spring cleaning — and digging, and planting, and painting, and generally sprucing up the grounds.
Below are photos, courtesy of SRC’s Terry Brewer and Colonie-Guilderland’s Denise DiNoto, showing some of the work.
(All photos available in album form on the club’s Facebook page. That makes it easy for you to share them with friends if you have a Facebook account. Click here to visit it.)
Definitely a sign of the times.SRC folks with Denise DiNoto of the Colonie-Guilderland club.A treasure hunt, of sorts.“Don’t fence me in … ” Oh, OK, go ahead.Amelie Ribesse, Colonie-Guilderland’s exchange student from Belgium, rolls on the paint.
Rafaella (Ella) Leal Câncio, our Rotary Youth Exchange student from Brazil, has been experiencing a wide variety of activities during her year at Maple Hill High School. Everything from studying and playing sports to a guided your of the bustle of New York City to participating in Rotary conferences and celebrations, and on and on.
Now, that has been topped off with a social highlight of any student’s year — going to the school prom. That’s Ella second from the right in the photo above. On the far right is Allison Felts, one of our RYLA students this year and daughter of new SRC member Jennifer Felts.
SRMeeting at Quigley’s Restaurant 593 Columbia Turnpike East Greenbush, NY
May 18, 2017
Members Attending (16): Debbie Rodriguez, Roberto Martinez, Murray Forth, Pat Bailey, Jim Leyhane, Bill Dowd, Ron Annis, Jim Butterworth, Dick Drumm, Julius Frankel, Peter Brown, Debbie Brown, Mike Bennett, Becky Raymond, Phil Kellerman, Carole Spencer
Guests (4): Visiting Rotarian Rachel Marlene Stark of the Capital Region Club; RYLA graduates Meg Albanese, Kassidy Berger and Matt Riordan.
PROGRAM: “RYLA – 2016-17”
Meg AlbaneseMatt RiordanKassidy Berger
Club member Mike Bennett, an assistant superintendent of the Schodack Central School District, introduced three members of the Maple Hill High Scbool junior class who recently completed the 2016-17 Rotary Youth Leadership Awards (RYLA) program.
Mike said RYLA participation has become an important part of the Maple Hill experience and each year draws numerous applicants. He thanked SRC for its continued financial support that pays for the students’ tuition fees.
The students — Meg Albanese, Kassidy Berger and Matt Riordan — each spoke briefly about their experience, and the skills it helped them develop in leadership, physical activities, communications, and consenus building. As far as applying their RYLA training to their everyday school life, they noted that their ability to communicate and work in group activities has been much improved.
RYLA was devised to work with high school juniors identified by their schools as having leadership potential that could be realized through training geared to their ages and backgrounds. The program runs from September through March each school year, with students from throughout Rotary District 7190 gathering each Saturday at Skidmore College and elsewhere for classroom work, zipline confidence course, group projects, and other team-building activities. They finish the course with a gala dinner they plan themselves.
SRC also sponsored Maple Hill students Allison Felts and Shirah Strock, who did not attend the meeting. SRC pays $375 per student for tuition.
BUSINESS & ANNOUNCEMENTS
NEW OFFICER SLATE — Because John Sawchuk will be unable to serve as president-elect for 2017-18 due to retiring earlier than projected and leaving the area, new officers were proposed by President Debbie Rodriguez. All changes were approved without dissent. Ron Annis and Jim Butterworth have been designated as co-presidents-elect during Roberto Martinez’s term as president, and Ray Hannan will be designated as vice president in line for the presidency in the 2018-19 Rotary Year.
MULTI-CLUB WORK PROJECT — Debbie Rodriguez said more volunteers are needed to participate in this Saturday’s Area 8 multi-club work session at the Shaker Heritage Site in Colonie. Painting, landscaping and other work will be done under the direction of Assistant District Governor Jack Faddegon, with a picnic to end the day. If you are interested but have not yet signed up, please contact Debbie ASAP.
SUMMER ACTIVITIES — A signup sheet for summer club activities is being circulated. We have the following on the list:
• July 20, cookout at the Forth residence, and the pool will be open;
• July 27, pavilion picnic and ValleyCats baseball game at Bruno Stadium;
• August 3, cookout at Roberto Martinez’s residence;
• August 10, Jim and Andy Leyhane will host a cookout at Jim’s residence, and the pool will be open;
• August 17, a performance of “Spamalot” at the Mac Haydn Theatre in Chatham.
Dates still open (although you can select other days besides Thursday in the weeks in which these dates fall): July 13, August 24, August 31.
RONALD McDONALD HOUSE DINNER — Roberto Martinez reported that Bill and April Dowd will not be able to head up the team cooking dinner there on Wednesday, May 31, because of Bill’s upcoming surgery. However, Bill will create the menu and several additional volunteers have stepped up to round out the team. Currently signed up: Roberto, Debbie Rodriguez, Debbie Brown, Peter Brown, Carole Spencer, Phil Kellerman.
ROTARY HOME COOKING SERIES — Murray Forth said he and Maggie can squeeze in one or two more guests for this Saturday’s surf-and-turf dinner they are hosting. If interested, please contact Murray ASAP. As always, reservations for this series are accepted on a first-come, first-served basis.
VIKING GYM PROJECT — Ron Annis gave an update on the club-supported Viking Gym construction under way at Schodack Town Park. He said it is on schedule for completion in time for the project deadline for Lorenzo Gonzalez’s Eagle Scout credit. Ron will be making a presentation on the effort at the June 13 meeting of our sister club in Sweden that is assisting the project.
NEXT MEETING: 6:15 p.m. Thursday, May 25. Stewart Wagner will be speaking on — brace yourself — “Toilet Paper and Its Connection to Albany.
Breakfast Meeting at Greenbush YMCA 20 Community Way East Greenbush, NY
May 18, 2017
Members Attending (14): Debbie Rodriguez, Pat Bailey, Debbie Brown, Peter Brown, Jim Butterworth, Mike Dewey, Murray Forth, Andy Leyhane, Jim Leyhane, Shannon Romanowski, Matt Smith, John Sawchuk, Roberto Martinez, Ron Annis.
Business & Announcements
RECYCLING / EXPANSION — Murray Forth gave an update on our second recycling event, a very profitable fundraiser. He is looking into the possibility of us accepting batteries for disposal at the next such event, which already covers electronics recycling and document shredding.
Award recipient Matt Smith
PRESIDENT’S AWARDS — President Debbie Rodriguez presented “Innovative Fundraising Awards” to Matt Smith, Mike Dewey and Josh Wainman, the latter not in attendance, for their efforts with the club’s recycling events. (Murray Forth also was honored for those efforts at an earlier dinner-meeting presentation.) John Sawchuck also received an award for his efforts with the Community Recognition Dinner.
SHAKER PROJECT — A signup sheet was circulated for the multiclub work day at the Shaker Heritage Site this Saturday. Volunteers are needed.
SUMMER ACTIVITIES — A signup sheet was circulated for potential summer club activities. Debbie Brown will look into possible dates for our annual outing to the Mac Haydn Theatre summer playhouse. Terry Brewer already has reserved a block of 45 tickets (at $26 each) for our annual picnic and ValleyCats baseball game vs. the Staten Island Yankees at Bruno Stadium on Thursday, July 27. Anyone wishing to reserve tickets is asked to contact Terry directly. Tickets will be reserved on a first-come, first-served basis.
PROGRAM: Polio History Video
Breakfast meeting attendees view the new polio history video.
Roberto Martinez and Jim Leyhane provided the background and process of the polio history video, and thanked all involved for their contributions to the project. It was a cooperative effort among SRC, CASDA, UAlbany School of Public Health, and District 7190, and a version of it debuted at the recent District Annual Conference in Lake George.
The video was created to provide Rotarians with a historical perspective of the disease for purposes of education and fundraising. It features Dr. Martha Lepow, an early polio research pioneer and local pediatrician who specializes in pediatric infectious diseases. It covers the early days of polio; thoughts, treatments and impact of the disease on patients and on society as a whole.
It provides viewers with a greater understanding of the following:
• The history of polio
• The disease’s impact on the population before vaccines
• Control of polio through vaccines in this country and throughout the world
• Rotary International’s long and persistent quest to eliminate the disease worldwide and the progress made to date
Roberto and Jim showed the 20-minute version (there are versions in several different lengths) and took questions from attendees.
NEXT BREAKFAST MEETING: 7 to 8 a.m. Thursday, June 15, at the Greenbush YMCA.
Dr .Jim Leyhane interviewing Dr. Martha Lepow on polio history.
This month’s Southern Rensselaer County Rotary Club “Third Thursday” breakfast meeting is set for 7 to 8 a.m. at the Greenbush YMCA, 20 Community Way in East Greenbush.
We will be presenting a version of the locally-produced polio history video that debuted at the recent District 7190 Conference in Lake George.
Jim Leyhane and Roberto Martinez, who worked on behalf of SRC in the joint effort with CASDA, UAlbany School of Public Health, and the District, will be sharing information on the year-long project that includes an interview with Dr. Martha Lepow, a local physician who worked on developing a polio vaccine.
This is a really special program, so please try to attend. But, please be sure to email Terry Brewer at tlbrewer12piseco@gmail.com by Wednesday so he can give host Shannon Romanowski an accurate headcount. A $5 donation from attendees will go toward our club’s YMCA summer scholarship fund.
“Project Legos,” meant to refresh the spirit of Xavier Schmitt, Debbie and Chuck Rodriguez’s grandson, as he goes through a long and arduous treatment for leukemia, continues to do its work.
The latest batch of building pieces arrived in time to break the monotony of Xavier’s latest hospital stay in the Hartford, CT, area. He is expected to go home over the weekend,
The periodic delivery of Lego seats was devised and funded by Jim Leyhane, with several other SRC members providing some financial support. If you would like to be one of them, please contact Jim.
Those cartoon bears extolling the virtues of their brand of toilet paper in TV ads have nothing on our own Stewart Wagner.
Despite rumors that their “surf and turf” menu for a “Rotary Home Cooking Series” dinner might include anything from burgers-by-the-pool to possum-and-tuna, Murray and Maggie Forth pulled off another fine event with salmon and kebabs on Saturday night.
Meeting at Quigley’s Restaurant
SUMMER ACTIVITIES — A signup sheet for summer club activities is being circulated. We have the following on the list:
ROTARY HOME COOKING SERIES — Murray Forth said he and Maggie can squeeze in one or two more guests for this Saturday’s surf-and-turf dinner they are hosting. If interested, please contact Murray ASAP. As always, reservations for this series are accepted on a first-come, first-served basis.
Breakfast Meeting at Greenbush YMCA
Southern Rensselaer County Rotary Club 