Members in Attendance (13): Carole Heaney, Jim Leyhane, Roberto Martinez, Pat Bailey, Debbie Rodriguez, Phil Kellerman, Kevin Leyhane, Debbie Brown, Peter Brown, Charlie Foote, Dick Drum, Ray Hannan and Andy Leyhane.

By Zoom (0): 

Guests (1): Toni Warren

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:

Storage: If you have things from storage, for historical record keeping, please fill out the form or send Pat Bailey a picture or list of the item(s) you have.

Board Meeting: The meeting was held on January 20th at 6:30 pm via Zoom. The Board discussed adding a new officer of Assistant Treasurer. Phil Kellerman was appointed to the position. The Budget is now to be on Quicken for monitoring expenses and incomes and to delineate line items including club operating expenses, donations, dues, checking accounts, meals for guests etc, Carol Heaney was appointed as an at-large board member. She accepted the position. Waiting for feedback on the Tax Status. The DAF is growing slowly. $500 approved to go to District meeting to support Exchange Students in April. $400 to go to Gift of Life.

Midyear Summary: Per Roberto Martinez, we lost two members but gained two new members. The Global Grant was approved. The money made from the summer meetings is going to fund the scholarships. Money received from the combining of the districts was allocated to the water project.

Global Grant: Peter Brown received pictures of the hydrological study being done at the well site. Preliminary results indicate that there is plenty of water available. We are waiting for the final report.

Defensive Driving: The AAA course will be held on May 17th at the Nassau Library from 9 am until 3:30 pm. We need a minimum of 25 people to sign up. If you are a member of AAA, the cost is $22. If you are a non-member, the cost is $27.Membership: Will schedule a Club Assembly to discuss.

Bowl-A-Thon: Per Phil Kellerman, the Bowl-A-Thon is scheduled for April 6th. It will cost $16 for 1 1/2 hours or $20 for 2 hours. The special is $90 per lane of 5 people ($17 per person) which includes 2 hours of bowling, shoes, and food (pizza and soda). Phil will contact Debbie Oligue at Maple Hill about the status of the Iron Giraffe project. Sponsorship is $50.

Benefit Concert: Phil Kellerman is checking out a venue. The concert will be held in the spring.

CNY News: Information on all of this and more is posted to the website, cnyrotary.org.

California Disaster Relief opportunities: Shelter Box and Local Clubs.

CNY Member Orientation, 4^th Tues of each month, Jan 28^th, 7 pm.

Savvy Social Media Webinar, Jan 29^th, 7 pm.

Pre-PEL 1: Club Admin, Feb 2^nd , 7 pm.

Pre-PEL 2: Finance/ Risk Management, Feb 11^th, 7 pm.

Pre-PEL 3: Public Image/ Branding, Feb 19^th 7 pm.

Pre-PEL 4: Membership and Leadership, Feb 27^th, 7 pm.

RLI March 1, Johnson City, NY. LI is $25, L2-G is $40. The Club will cover tuition. Sign up at http: //www.rlinea.org. Phil Kellerman my be attending.

Rotary Presidential Peace Conference: To be held February 20-22, 2025, at the Hilton Istanbul Bomonti Hotel and Conference Center in Istanbul, Turkey. Register at rotery.org/istanbul25.

RI Conventions: Calgary, June 21-25, 2025. Carole Heaney will be attending.

Next Meeting: Thursday, January 30 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. The guest speaker is to be determined.

Entry Choices will be Chicken Ceasar Salid, Portabella Mushroom Ravioli and Sausage and Peppers.

Toni Warren is the Executive Director of the Joan Nicole Prince Home for the Dying. She has a background in nursing. When Joan Nicole Prince died, her husband provided a large donation so that the home could be opened. There are two beds. Clients are referred by families and must be in community hospice with a terminal illness and a prognosis of three months or less. Clients accepted have the most need with the fewest options. They do not have complicated care needs such as IV therapy or feeding tubes. Trained staff (RNs, LPNs, Social Worker, Massage Therapist) and volunteers provide bedside care, emotional support, laundry service and meals. Many of the volunteers are students going into health care or retirees. There are around 30 volunteers who work four-hour shifts. Three staff the overnight shift.

The Joan Nicole Price Home has served 270 residents since they opened in 2006. They can accommodate 15 to 20 clients a year. Service is free. Funding comes from donations, community support, fundraisers and grants. They hold a walk/run event in May, a garage sale the first weekend in June and a Gala which will be held on November 8th at the Armory in Schenectady. Donations of items such as postage stamps and Clorox wipes are also needed. For a list of items currently needed and/or to make monetary donations, contact Toni at director1jnp@gmail.com or phone (518) 346-5471. For further information go to http://www.joannicoleprincehome.org.

Members in Attendance (12): Carole Heaney, Jim Leyhane, Roberto Martinez, Pat Bailey, Murray Forth, Debbie Rodriguez, Phil Kellerman, Kevin Leyhane, Debbie Brown, Peter Brown, Chris Bystroff, and Andy Leyhane

By Zoom (1): Charlie Foote

Guests (0): None

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:

Storage: If you have things from storage, for historical record keeping, please send Pat Bailey a picture or list of the item(s) you have.

Speakers: Needed for this year. Contact Phil Kellerman with any speakers. 

Board Meeting: January 20th at 6:30 pm via Zoom.

Global Grant: Per Roberto Martinez, the Club’s 5K portion has been submitted to the Rotary Foundation. The first $1000 has been transferred to Kenya. The next step is to see if the well is going to work or not.

Regional Grant: Roberto completed and submitted the interim report. We will be discussing next year’s grant submission.

Defensive Driving: The AAA course will be held on May 17th at the Nassau Library from 9 am until 3:30 pm. We need a minimum of 25 people to sign up. If you are a member of AAA, the cost is $22. If you are a non-member, the cost is $27.

Zoom: There are issues with using Zoom in the back room. It is also difficult to hear when someone is having a side conversation near the mics. Roberto is looking for feedback from the Zoom users. Let Roberto know that you will attend by Zoom. He will email you the agenda.

Clynk: Clynk stickers are available from Kevin.

Membership: Will schedule a Club Assembly to discuss.

Bowl-A-Thon: Per Phil Kellerman, the Bowl-A-Thon is scheduled for April 6th. It will cost $16 for 1 1/2 hours or $20 for 2 hours. The special is $90 per lane of 5 people ($17 per person) which includes 2 hours of bowling, shoes, and food (pizza and soda). Phil will contact Debbie Oligue at Maple Hill about the status of the Iron Giraffe project. Sponsorship is $50.

Soap: Is available from Roberto Martinez and Jim Leyhane. “Clean up your act!”

Benefit Concert: Phil Kellerman is looking for a venue. It will be held in the spring.

CNY News: Information on all of this and more is posted to the website, cnyrotary.org.

California Disaster Relief opportunities: Shelter Box and Local Clubs.

CNY Member Orientation, 4^th Tues of each month, Jan 28^th, 7 pm.

Savvy Social Media Webinar, Jan 29^th, 7 pm.

Pre-PEL 1: Club Admin, Feb 2^nd , 7 pm.

Pre-PEL 2: Finance/ Risk Management, Feb 11^th, 7 pm.

Pre-PEL 3: Public Image/ Branding, Feb 19^th 7 pm.

Pre-PEL 4: Membership and Leadership, Feb 27^th, 7 pm.

RLI March 1, Johnson City, NY. LI is $25, L2-G is $40. The Club will cover tuition. Sign up at http: //www.rlinea.org.

Rotary Presidential Peace Conference: To be held February 20-22, 2025, at the Hilton Istanbul Bomonti Hotel and Conference Center in Istanbul, Turkey. Register at rotery.org/istanbul25.

RI Conventions: Calgary, June 21-25, 2025. Carole Heaney will be attending. Minneapolis 2028.  Chicago 2030.

Next Meeting: Thursday, January 16 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. The guest speaker is Toni Warren from the Joan Nicole Prince Home for the Dying sponsored by Carole Heaney.

Entry Choices will be Rustica Salid, Chicken Lemone and Eggplant Pharm

The Club discussed the proposed community center project. Peter Brown put together and presented an initial working draft outlining what needs to be considered in planning the project. Club members discussed reviewing community needs assessments. The Club needs to define the project scope, resource availability, develop parameters for sustainability and to measure success. Based on available information, the Club has decided to move forward.

Members in Attendance (8):  Jim Leyhane, Roberto Martinez, Pat Bailey, Murray Forth, Debbie Rodriguez, Phil Kellerman, Kevin Leyhane and Andy Leyhane.

By Zoom (5): Dean Calamaras, Doris Calamaras, Charlie Foote, Chris Bystroff and Carol Heaney.

Guests (1): Dr. Anshu Chandra

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:

Storage: If you have things from storage, for historical record keeping, please send Pat Bailey a picture or list of the item(s) you have.

Speakers: Needed for this year. Contact Phil Kellerman with any speakers. 

Global Grant: Per Roberto Martinez, the Club’s 5K portion has been submitted to the Rotary Foundation. The next step is to see if the well is going to work or not.

Defensive Driving: The AAA course will be held on May 17th at the Nassau Library. We need a minimum of 25 people to sign up. If you are a member of AAA, the cost is $22. If you are a non-member, the cost is $27.

Circles of Mercy, Cate’s Kids Adopt-A-Family Program: Thank you to Carol and Tom Heaney for delivering the gifts to Circles of Mercy on December 16th. Thank you to all who donated.

CNY News: Information on all of this and more is posted to the website, cnyrotary.org.

ClubRunner Webinar Using the CR App, Jan 15^th at 7pmSalesium Webinar for Pros, Jan 22^nd at 7 pm.

CNY Member Orientation, 4^th Tues of each month, Jan 28^th, 7 pm.

Savvy Social Media Webinar, Jan 29^th, 7 pm.

Pre-PEL 1: Club Admin, Feb 2^nd , 7 pm.

Pre-PEL 2: Finance/ Risk Management, Feb 11^th, 7 pm.

Pre-PEL 3: Public Image/ Branding, Feb 19^th 7 pm.

Pre-PEL 4: Membership and Leadership, Feb 27^th, 7 pm.

Rotary Presidential Peace Conference: To be held February 20-22, 2025, at the Hilton Istanbul Bomonti Hotel and Conference Center in Istanbul, Turkey. Register at rotery.org/istanbul25.

RI Conventions: Calgary, June 21-25, 2025.  Minneapolis 2028.  Chicago 2030.

Next Meeting: Thursday, January 16 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.

Entry Choices will be Antipasto Salad, Penne Alfredo and Spaghetti and Meatballs.

Dr. Chandra was born in India and grew up in the United States and India. She received her Batchelors in Biology at SUNY Albany and her Doctors of Optometry at SUNY College of Optometry in 2008. Dr. Chandra completed her Residency in Ocular Disease at SUNY College of Optometry and Woodhull Medical Center. Following her mother’s example, she looked for opportunities to give back. She ended up going to Fond-des-Blancs,Haiti where eye care is scarce and spent a month working there. She worked part-time jobs so she could continue missions to Haiti. She opened Bay Eye Charitable Foundation Clinic at a hospital in Haiti in 2015 and lived there for 4 years.

At the clinic, they do 12,000 to 15,000 eye exams per year. Staff at the clinic are volunteers and were trained by Dr. Chandra to perform comprehensive eye exams. She established a retinopathy of prematurity screening program in 2019 and pediatric vision screening for children 0-19 years of age. People come from all over Haiti for care making it the busiest clinic in the country.

They are now looking for a new site since the current location can no longer house the clinic. They are also trying to raise money to buy land and build. They are a 501(c )(3) nonprofit organization and all donations will go to building the clinic. To donate or obtain more information, email Anshu.Chandra@gmail.com. A short video is available at: https://youtu.be/zl_tGGOpJ28 and the website is www.globaleyeproject.org.

Happy New Year

Members in Attendance (15):  Jim Leyhane, Roberto Martinez, Pat Bailey, Murray Forth, Ray Hannan, Mary Alice Caldes, Charlie Foote, Debbie Rodriguez, Ron Annis, Monica Annis, Dick Drum, Phil Kellerman, Kevin Leyhane, Carol Heaney and Andy Leyhane.

By Zoom (1): Becky Raymond

Guests (1): Richard French

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:

Storage: Per Murray Forth, bought the boxes and items from storage. After the meeting, members went through the boxes and took home items to save.

Membership: Chris Bystroff will submit the membership fee.

Meetings: The holiday party will be held on December 12th at the Browns. If you did not sign up at the meeting tonight, please let Debbie Brown know if you are attending. The December 19th meeting will be held at the Spinney. The meeting will be catered. The price is $30 per person. Bring a drink. Afterwards, there will be cake and ice cream to celebrate Lois’s 75th birthday.

Circles of Mercy, Cate’s Kids Adopt-A-Family Program: Gifts to be delivered to Circles of Mercy December 16^th. Richard from Circles of Mercy was notified that we would adopt a family. He will have the list by Thanksgiving. Carol Heaney will coordinate.

CNY News: Member Orientation: Nov 26, Tues at 7pm, and December 17, Tues at 7pm. Town Hall, December 5^th at 7pm. Every club is encouraged to send at least one member to obtain information to bring back to them.  Information on all of this and more is posted to the website, cnyrotary.org.

Rotary Gift Giving: To be held on Tuesday, Dec 3rd. This Global Day of Generosity is an opportunity for all members to make a big impact with a gift of any size. A donation to the Annual Fund-SHARE supports projects you’re passionate about, both in your community and around the world. A gift to PolioPlus helps transport vaccines and immunize children to keep them safe.

RI Conventions: Calgary, June 21-25, 2025.  Minneapolis 2028.  Chicago 2030.

Rotary Presidential Peace Conference: To be held February 20-22, 2025, at the Hilton Istanbul Bomonti Hotel and Conference Center in Istanbul, Turkey. Register at rotery.org/istanbul25.

Next Meeting: Thursday, December 5th 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. Gretchen will speak about the Wiskers Cat Rescue.

Entry Choices will be Rustica Salid, Lasagna and Baked Ziti.

Richard French volunteered at the DeFreetville Fire Company in East Greenbush. He served twice as Chief. He remains an active firefighter. He joined the NYS Office of Emergency Management in 1998. He served as the State Liaison Officer at the Incident Command Post and Emergency Operations Center following 911. After hurricanes Francis and Ivan in Florida, he served as the Operations Section Chief. He also served as Operations Branch Director after hurricane Dennis and as Safety Officer in Jackson County, Mississippi after hurricane Katrina. In NYS he responded to hurricanes Irene, Lee and Sandy and to the Lake Ontario flooding.

Disasters include natural hazards such as fires, floods, winter storms, earthquakes, landslides and tornados. Disasters also include technology failures such as power failures and health hazards such as pandemics. Disaster response for families starts with planning ahead. Families can build a disaster kit, be financially prepared by making copies of bank and credit card information, passports and birth certificates. They should have a plan for any pets, for shelter and for evacuation. They can also obtain safety skills such as basic first aid and cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR). Businesses and governments should also plan ahead. They should have impact analysis, risk assessments, mitigation, and all-hazard comprehensive plana and they should train their employees. Others, such as FEMA, Volunteer Organization Aiding in Disaster (VOAD) and faith-based organizations can help. Per Mr. French, “all disasters start and end locally.”

Happy Thanksgiving

Members in Attendance (15):  Jim Leyhane, Roberto Martinez, Pat Bailey, Murray Forth, Ray Hannan, Peter Brown, Debbie Brown, Debbie Rodriguez, Dick Drum, Terry Brewer, Phil Kellerman, Becky Raymond, Kevin Leyhane, Carol Heaney and Andy Leyhane.

By Zoom (0): 

Guests (4): Lisa Jackson, Schenectady Rotary; Don Kellish, Schenectady Rotary; Jen Milligan, East Greenbush School District Director of Business and Finance; and Emily Steinbach, President of the East Greenbush School District Board of Education.

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:

Membership: Roberto Martinez made the motion to vote Chris Bystroff in as a new member. Peter Brown seconded the motion. The motion was unanimously approved. Welcome Chris.

Storage: Per Murray Forth, he will bring the boxes and items from storage next week.

Meetings: The holiday party will be held on December 12th at the Browns. If you did not sign up at the meeting tonight, please let Debbie Brown know if you are attending. The December 19th meeting will be held at the Spinney.

Circles of Mercy, Cate’s Kids Adopt-A-Family Program: Gifts to be delivered to Circles of Mercy December 16^th. Richard from Circles of Mercy notified we would adopt a family and he thanked us and will have the list by Thanksgiving.  Need a lead from our Club.

CNY News:  Information on all of this and more is posted to  website, cnyrotary.org. Member Orientation: Nov 26, Tues at 7pm, and December 17, Tues at 7pm. Town Hall, December 5^th at 7pm.Every club is encouraged to send at least one member to get information to bring back to them. 

RI Conventions: Calgary, June 21-25, 2025.  Minneapolis 2028.  Chicago 2030.

Rotary Presidential Peace Conference: To be held February 20-22, 2025 at the Hilton Istanbul Bomonti Hotel and Conference Center in Istanbul, Turkey. Register at rotery.org/istanbul25.

Next Meeting: Thursday, November 21st 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. Richard French will speak on Disaster Response.

Entry Choices will be Antipasto Salid, Eggplant Parmesan and Spaghetti and Meatballs.

Lisa Jackson and Don Kellish of the Schenectady County Rotary spoke about looking for a project after Covid. The Club asked the Schenectady School District who determined that there was a need for a community room at Cain Elementary. The Club determined they had the resources for the project. They put in a kitchen and three clothes washers and three dryers along with tables to fold laundry and laundry baskets. The laundry is used almost daily, and the kitchen is used for cooking classes and parent coffees.

The project was funded by holding a cornhole tournament. Lisa and Don discussed the steps that they went through to plan and hold the tournament. Communication, clear check points, due dates and assigned responsibility are important but a good project is what sells the fundraiser. Their project resulted in community building, continued ties to the school and additional projects.

By Zoom (13): Becky Raymond, Roberto Martinez, Jim Leyhane, Pat Bailey, Peter Brown, Doris Calamaras, Dean Calamaras, Debbie Brown, Debbie Rodriguez, Kevin Leyhane, Murray Forth and Andy Leyhane.

Guests (0): 

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:

Website Updates: Kevin Leyhane deleted the two members who resigned. Pat Bailey updated the information for Rotary International.

Miscellaneous Notes: All members are encouraged to attend the meeting on November 14th. Phil will be missing the next meeting. Last week he flew to Wichita, KS to support Delphine Sosu from Ghana and see her soccer team play at Newman University.  Delphine is receiving financial aid from the Foundation for Language Education and Development (LEAD) of which Phil helped establish and is a current board member. Carol Heany will be out until late October. Debbie Rodriguez will be missing the October 24th, 31st and November 7th meetings. Debbie Brown will take the notes on October 24th and November 7th and Phil Kellerman will take the notes on October 31st. Becky Raymond will be speaking at the Ballston Spa Rotary in the near future.

Grant Update: Per Peter Brown, Phil Kellerman took the meeting minutes on Mondays phone call. Jennifer Grymm of the Rotary Club in Kenya is ready this week to submit the answers to Rotary Internationals questions and a bank account will be created. They were missing two of Edith Kanara’s documents, but Jennifer now has them. In another couple of weeks, they should be getting the initial approval from Rotary International start the hydro geographical survey.

East Greenbush and Social Capital: Per Peter Brown, Lisa Jackson and another member of the Schnectady Rotary Club will speak on November14th about how they developed their cornhole tournament as a fundraiser. Emily Steinback, East Greenbush School District Board Member and Jennifer from the East Greenbush School Districts Central Office will attend the meeting. The Club is proposing a cornhole tournament to raise funds for a Community Center to be established for the School District.

Gift of Life: Dean and Doris Calamaras attended the Golf Tournament in early September. The tournament raised $12,000. They are working to raise awareness of the Gift of Life in Clubs in the new CNY District.

Tax Status: Per Terry Brewer, he should have the paperwork completed by this week and ready for submission.

Membership: Membership is ongoing. There are several potential new members.

Rotary Leadership Institute ( rlinea.org ): Training will be held on Saturday, November 2nd from 7:30 am until 3:30 pm at the Universalist Unitarian Society of Albany, 405 Washington Avenue, Albany. Per Roberto Martinez, the Club will pay the $75 fee for any member who wants to attend. Roberto will be attending. Let Roberto know if you wish to attend. Register NOW for RLI NEA Seminar – Dist 7180 – Albany, NY. There is also another opportunity on October 19th in Rochester.

Speakers: Needed for this year. Contact Phil Kellerman with any speakers. Robert Conner, Journalist from Malta Rotary Club will speake on November 7th. The title of his talk will be “Post-Election Nonpartisan Special, Regardless of Results: Juneteenth as Hopeful Symbol of National Unity”, hosted by Phil.

Holiday Party: Will be hosted by Peter and Debbie Brown on December 12th at their home.

CNY Rotary Member Orientation: It will be held on zoom on the fourth Tuesday of each month, starting next Tuesday, October 22nd at 7 pm. Member Orientation will be a high-level look at the basics of Rotary, including our history, guiding principles, Areas of Focus, and more. We hope to give members the lay of the land so they can return to your club with context and an understanding of how to get involved. Sign up: https://zoom.us/meeting/register/tJwlde2przkpG9ySIl2WXUQJX7AJwtmoALwH

RI Conventions: Calgary, June 21-25, 2025.  Minneapolis 2028.  Chicago 2030.

Rotary Presidential Peace Conference: To be held February 20-22, 2025 at the Hilton Istanbul Bomonti Hotel and Conference Center in Istanbul, Turkey. Register at rotery.org/istanbul25.

Next Meeting: Thursday, October 24th 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. World Polio Day is on October 24th. The interview video with Martha Lepow will be shown.

Entry Choices will be Antipasto Salid, Chicken Limone and Portabella Mushroom Ravioli.

Years ago, Dean Calamaras was house cleaning in his parent’s basement and found a box of papers. The papers belonged to his father’s uncle Nicholas Calamaras. Dean held onto the box for many years. When he finally examined the box, he found that it contained over two hundred letters, pamphlets, legal documents and pictures about his Uncle and the Greek American League. The League advocated for the Greek community in New York City in the early 1900s. Letters includes requests for help with immigration, deportation, employment and export permits. There were also thank you letters and letters asking for political endorsements.

Dean wrote a biography of his Uncle Nicholas using these documents and stories from relatives that knew him. His uncle owned a candy shop in lower Manhattan. The documents in the box included Nicholas’ personal effects including his Deceleration of Intent to become a citizen and a picture of the ancestral home in Greece near Sparta. He also wrote about the Greek American League. These primary documents provided insight into immigrant’s adaption to a new life.

The final edits of the book went to the publisher this morning. Archives, libraries and universities have expressed interest in the book and the supporting documents. Dean indexed all of the documents and Greek names. He also scanned all the documents to make them available to others. They are planning to print over a hundred copies for the initial printing.

Members in Attendance (9):  Jim Leyhane, Pat Bailey, Murray Forth, Ray Hannan, Peter Brown, Debbie Brown, Debbie Rodriguez, Dick Drumm and Terry Brewer.

By Zoom (2): Becky Raymond and Roberto Martinez

Guests (1): Jonathan Newell

Vice-President Jim Leyhane called the meeting to order.

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

Meeting Notes:

Website Updates: Membership changes need to be made on the website.

Meeting Notes: Thanks to Phil Kellerman for the meeting notes last week. Phil will be missing the next three meetings. He spoke at the Malta Rotary Club on October 10th. Carol Heany will be out until late October. Debbie Rodriguez will be missing the October 24th, 31st and November 7th meetings.

Services: Terry Brewer, Betty Brewer, Murray Forth and Jim Leyhane attended the services for former member John Sawckuck

Grant Update: There is a meeting on Monday. The bank account in Kenya will be established and all outstanding questions will be addressed.

East Greenbush and Social Capital: The Club is proposing a cornhole tournament to raise funds for a school project. Mr. Simon proposed funding a community center for integration in the School District. Lisa Jackson will come to speak to the Club about holding a tournament.

Tax Status: Per Terry Brewer, he should have the paperwork completed by next week and ready for submission.

Member Dues: Of the two outstanding dues, one member paid and the other withdrew from Rotary.

Benefit Concert: The concert can’t be held on November 2nd. The concert will be scheduled for some time next spring.

Viking Gym: Per Murray Forth, the sign and Peace Pole were delivered to the Town.

Rotary Leadership Institute ( rlinea.org ): The next training will be held on Saturday, November 2nd from 7:30 am until 3:30 pm at the Universalist Unitarian Society of Albany, 405 Washington Avenue, Albany. Per Roberto Martinez, the Club will pay the $75 fee for any member who wants to attend. Roberto will be attending. Register NOW for RLI NEA Seminar – Dist 7180 – Albany, NY.

Membership: Membership is ongoing. One member has resigned. A membership and visibility discussion will be held after the first of the year.

Speakers: Needed for this year. Contact Phil Kellerman with any speakers.

World Polio Day: It is on October 24th. The interview video with Martha Lepow will be shown.

Holiday Party: December 12th is not available at Moscatiellos. Peter and Debbie Brown have offered to host the party on that date. The other option is to change the date.

Rotary Presidential Peace Conference: To be held February 20-22, 2025 at the Hilton Istanbul Bomonti Hotel and Conference Center in Istanbul, Turkey. Register at rotery.org/istanbul25.

Next Meeting: Thursday, October 17th 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.

Entry Choices will be Antipasto Salid, Chicken Limone and Portabella Mushroom Ravioli.

Dr. Jonathan Newell is a Professor of Biomedical Engineering a Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute and also teaches physics at Bethlehem High School. He is developing, in collaboration with others, Electrical Impedance Tomography (EIT) systems. EIT is an imaging of the body based on how the body conducts electricity. The first paper in this field was published in 1986.

Thirty-two electrodes are placed around the body. A current is applied to the electrodes and the voltage is measured to produce a three-dimensional image in real time. This method is simpler, cheaper, more portable and non-hazardous (no radiation). This system shows both ventilation and blood flow. The other four systems in the world only show ventilation. Except for Cystic Fibrosis, this is not diagnostic. It is useful for constant monitoring. It can be used for monitoring collapsed lungs, pulmonary emboli, gas exchange, Cystic Fibrosis and mechanical ventilation. Commercially, he predicts EIT will become an add-on to mechanical ventilation.

Dr. Newell’s research is funded by the National Institute of Biomedical Imagery and Bioengineering, the National Science Foundation, the National Institute of General Medical Sciences and the New York State Department of Health.