MEMBERS ATTENDING (17): Dick Drumm, Bill Dowd, Tony Morris, Murray Forth, Ray Hannan, Peter Brown, Debbie Brown, Roberto Martinez, Kevin Leyhane, Debbie Rodriguez, John Justino, Dean Calamaras, Doris Calamaras, Charlie Foote, Phil Kellerman, Andy Leyhane, Pat Bailey.

GUESTS: None.

MEETING NOTES:

President Dick Drumm welcomed members. …

• Danes Rotaract faculty adviser John Justino reported on a meeting with Rich Welty of the Albany club and UAlbany student Erica Strand, a former Interact member, who want to form a Rotaract club on the school’s Uptown Campus, primarily for undergraduates. John noted that the Danes Rotaract club on the East Campus that we sponsor is composed of graduate students and alums, and that a cooperative effort of two such clubs might extend Rotary’s reach into the college demographic. …

• Dick appointed a Nominating Committee consisting of himself, Bill Dowd, and Roberto Martinez. They will meet, establish a slate of Board candidates for the 2021-22 Rotary Year, disseminate the list via e-mail to members over the weekend, then hold a vote next Thursday, March 4. That will firm up our incoming Board in time for the Presidents-elect PETS training scheduled for March 6 and the Treasurer and Secretary training session scheduled for March 13. …

• The Foundation Subcommittee is scheduled to meet with an RI representative on Monday to complete research on our decisions on financial futures. The group will report to the members at the March 4 virtual meeting . …

• Last week, Bill Dowd suggested we work on setting a date for a Recycling-and-Shredding Day since we have not had a major fundraising effort in more than a year. Murray Forth reported that since then he has checked with the recyclers we have used before and that both are available. We now will work on setting a date for the event, bearing in mind how COVID vaccinations and infection rates are going locally.

PROGRAM: Tony Morris, our newest member, presented the details of his Your CBD Store franchise, as well as the emerging field of CBD health products.

Tony explained that cannabidiol, popularly called CBD, sold as part of his company’s product line is obtained from industrial hemp, a cousin of the marijuana plant that does not contain halucinogenics. It has been a legal substance nationwide since passage of the federal 2018 Farm Bill. He said it works through the cannabinoids signaling system present in mammalian bodies, with CBD products supplementing natural cannabinoids. Products are formulated for both humans and pets.

He said that this is a “virtually unregulated industry, so there’s a lot of crap out there.” He described the process his 600-store parent company, SunFlora, goes through rigorous process to source and create a line of capsules, oil-based tinctures, and topically-applied supplements. Prices range from as little as $35 to as much as several hundred dollars depending on CBD concentration (20% discount for Rotarians). Uses can be for localized pain relief, skin care, sleep aids, anxiety, inflammation, and more.

Tony’s store is located in the Hannaford Plaza in East Greenbush. Phone: 518-650-7117.