Members in Attendance (15):  Jim Leyhane, Roberto Martinez, Pat Bailey, Dick Drumm, Murray Forth, Ray Hannan, Peter Brown, Debbie Brown, Andy Leyhane, Kevin Leyhane, Charlie Foote, Ron Annis, Phil Kellerman, Terry Brewer and Debbie Rodriguez.

By Zoom (1): Ruth Russell

Guests (3): Freek Lapré and Frank van Dillen, from the Netherlands and Dr. Michael Sabir, Speaker.

President Roberto Martinez called the meeting to order.

Theme for the year: Grow membership, do good in the world, leverage social capital, & have fun!

Meeting Notes:

Summer Outings and Fundraisers: Per Roberto Martinez, we raised over $1900. Thanks to everyone.

Website Updates: The website needs some updating. Kevin fixed the entry page.

Grant Update: The Global Grant was submitted on time under the previous district. Peter Brown received questions from Rotary International. The answers are to be provided by Jennifer Grymm of the Rotary Club in Kenya. He hopes to have the questions answered over the next two weeks and then receive final approval.

District Grants: Roberto Martinez reported that the 24-25 grant was approved for $1000.

East Greenbush and Social Capital: The Club is proposing a cornhole tournament to raise funds for a school project. Peter Brown reached out to Jeff Simon, Superintendent for the East Greenbush School District regarding some potential projects. Terry Brewer, Jim Leyhene, Roberto Martinez and Ron Annis will mee Monday, September 23rd to discuss the project.

Tax Status: Per Terry Brewer, he looked back at the Club’s financial status over the last five years. He will fill out the IRS Forms. An accountant will review prior to resubmitting to the IRS. There will be a $600 fee.

Member Dues: According to Murray Forth, there are 2 outstanding.

Viking Gym: The Grand Opening is Saturday 9/14/24 at 1 pm at the Schodack Town Park. Members will be providing hot dogs and beverages. Rotary will submit a check to the Town. Rotary, Kiwanis and Top Form will look a purchasing a piece of equipment next year.

Rotary Leadership Institute ( rlinea.org ): The next training is in Verona, NY. Per Roberto Martinez, the Club will pay the $75 fee for any member who wants to attend.

CNY Event: Took place this evening at Huck Finns. The Rotary Area 22 Event included Albany, Cohoes, Colonie-Guilderland, Southern Rensselaer and the Delmar Club.

Gift of Life Golf Tournament: The Club will follow-up with Dean and Doris Calamaras.

Membership: Membership is ongoing. The Club had a successful drive in April ending up with five new members. Terry Brewer suggesting thinking about other membership activities and holding them twice a year.

Speakers: Needed for this year.

World Polio Day: It is on October 24th. The Club will check with John Justino about doing something this year.

Benefit Concert: Phil Kellerman has a local and a band from Florida. He has contacted a venue for availability.

Cafe Capriccio: Andy Leyhane and Jim Leyhane are contacting the Cafe regarding a fundraiser.

Next Meeting: Thursday, September 19 at 6:00 pm at Moscatiello’s Italian Family Restaurant, Route 4, North Greenbush. Also, you can join by Zoom using the link on the websites calendar page. There will be a Club Assembly.

Entry Choices will be Antipasta Salad, Veal Parmigiana and Penne Alfredo.

Dr. Michael Sabir is a teacher, human rights defender and social worker. He has a PhD in Sociology from Karatchi University in Pakistan and a master’s degree in social work. He was the first blind person to receive ah PhD in Pakistan. He also worked at the University and at the National Catholic Institute of Theology also located in Karatchi, Pakistan. Dr. Sabor was a lobbyist and advocate for the religious minority. He met both Pope John Paul and Pope Francis and has visited all seven continents as a lecturer.

Religious minorities are second class citizens in Pakistan. They hold menial jobs. No minority can hold a position in high offices. The Pakistani government nationalized all minority health and education institutions. Extremism is high in Pakistan. Dr. Sabir He resigned his position last month due to threats of mob lynching after attacks on himself and his family and has applied for political asylum. Per Dr. Sabir, the jihadis were recruited by the US to fight the Russians. They were given money and weapons. The jihadis persecuted Christians after 911 for their religious similarities to the US.

Dr. Sabir faces many challenges as a legal asylum seeker. There is no support for a legal asylum seeker until they get a social security number and a work permit, and their case is approved. There is a 150 day waiting period after applying. It takes years to get a green card. Illegal immigrants get all sorts of support.

Freek Lapré and Frank van Dillen, from the Netherlands, are partners at DVA Dementia Village Associates (https://www.dementiavillage.com/) and work on a consultancy assignment for Eddy Memorial Geriatric Center, ‘The Eddy’. They work on converting a classical nursing home into small households making up a village.

Mr. Lapré is a member of the Rotary Club Altena-NL (www.rotary.nl/altena). He is a nurse by training and has a Doctorate in Business Administration. He consults in the Netherlands and teaches in China. The Altena Rotary Club projects include a wishing tree in nursing homes where Rotary fulfills the wishes. They also provide scholarships for technical skills. The Club has 30 members, and he is the incoming president.

Mr. van Dillen is a member of the Rotary Club Hertogenbosch -NL (www.rotary.nl/shertogenbosch). Mr. van Dillen is an architect. His Club has 60 members. They have projects around ALS. Their swim against cancer project raised 35,000 euros.

They presented Roberto Martinez with their Rotary Club banners.