Meeting Clipboard 6/13/24

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The Viking Gym at Schodack Town Park

Members in Attendance (10):  Jim Leyhane, Roberto Martinez, Pat Bailey, Dick Drumm, Murray Forth, Ray Hannan, Peter Brown, Debbie Brown, Carole Heaney and Debbie Rodriguez.

By Zoom (1): Charlie Foote

Guests (0): 

President Peter Brown called the meeting to order.

Theme for the year: “Building Community”

Meeting Notes:

Water for Kenya Global Grant: Peter Brown reported that the District number was fixed. He was just informed that the the Rotary Club of Enkare Naroch needed 25 members for a Global Grant. The Club did not meet this criteria so they joined with another Club to continue the Grant. The new Club will have to set up the bank account to pay the contractors. Both Clubs are working on a different project to provide water tanks to schools. Peter received the contact information from the new Club but neither of the contacts were listed as Club members. Peter is in the process of clarifying the information.

Per Roberto Martinez, the final written report for last year’s grant is due at the end of July. The grant for 24-25 was submitted to the new District and is dependent on the tax status.

501C4 Status: No update.

Dues: Murray Forth reminded members that Club dues of $175 are due by July 1st.

Viking Gym: The Viking Gym is open. Carol Heaney drove by and observed people using it. Per Murray Forth, the mock-up of the sign is done, was submitted to the Town of Schodack and Mr. Peters, the Town Supervisor, approved it. Debbie Rodriguez will contact Kevin Konig to clarify who is providing the peace pole and Ron Annis about a hard opening.

Fund Raisers: Some suggestions are hosting a pickle ball tournament, Cafe Capriccio, summer outings, plant swap, game night and a talent show. Murray Forth will talk to someone in Latham about structuring a pickleball tournament. Debbie Brown will contact Capital Rep about attending on August 1st.

Changeover: Will be held June 27th at 6 pm at Peter and Debbie Brown’s home. Please bring a salad or an appetizer.

District Meetings: The District 7190 Celebration will be held on June 19 at 5 pm at Wolf Hollow Brewing in Schenectady. Carol Heaney is willing to drive. Please contact her if you are interested in attending.

Speakers: We will need speakers for the fall.

Summer Schedule: Check the calendar for the latest updates.

Next Meeting: Thursday, June 20th 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 will be a Club Assembly and a brief presentation on arts participation with Emma Leyhane.

Entry Choices will be Antipasta Salad, Spaghetti with Meatballs and Eggplant Parm.

St. Paul’s Center

Tracy Pitcher

Tracy Pitcher is the Executive Director of St. Paul’s Center. She has a master’s degree in social work and building bridges to a brighter future is her goal. She has been at St. Paul’s for fourteen years. Her dedicated staff has been there almost as long.

St. Paul’s Center was opened in October of 2006 as an emergency shelter. It is the only shelter in Rensselaer County dedicated to mothers and children. Over the years, it has helped over 1,373 families facing homelessness. Poverty leads to a culture of poverty resulting in generational poverty and homelessness. 64% of the mothers experienced homelessness as children and 40% did not finish high school.

St. Paul’s Center also provides support, guidance and advocacy. They offer workshops on skills building, finance, nutrition, cooking, parenting and other topics. Community partners offer workshops on various health issues, childcare contraception and empowerment. Childcare and tutoring are available. The Bridge Program, established in 2017, offers case management for six to twelve months after the families leave the shelter. Of the families served, 97% have not returned to homelessness.

Their new program is a 16 one bed unit for homeless seniors on Wolf Road. It is near Colonie Senior Services and the Center for Wellness. There are employment opportunities in the area and shopping and pharmacies are nearby. Their headquarters will move there, freeing up room to house more families in Rensselaer. For more information go to https://stpaulscenter.com/.

This Week’s Presenter, Tracy Pitcher Executive Director St. Paul’s Center

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This Thursday, June 13, 2024 at 6:00 pm the Southern Rensselaer County Rotary Club will have its weekly meeting at Moscatiello’s Italian Family Restaurant on Route 4 in North Greenbush. Joining us as a guest presenter will be Tracy Pitcher, Executive Director of St. Paul’s Center in Rensselaer. St. Paul’s Center provides emergency shelter to mothers and their children without a place to call home. They operate a 19-bed facility year round so families always have a place to go in times of need. Once again if you are unable to join us in person you may still join us remotely using the Zoom Link located on the calendar page of our website. Looking forward to seeing everyone on Thursday.

Meeting Clipboard 6/6/24

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Members in Attendance (13):  Jim Leyhane, Roberto Martinez, Charlie Foote, Pat Bailey, Dick Drumm, Murray Forth, Ray Hannan, Kevin Leyhane, Peter Brown, Debbie Brown, Carole Heaney, Ruth Russell and Debbie Rodriguez.

Guests (0): 

President Peter Brown called the meeting to order.

Theme for the year: “Building Community”

Meeting Notes:

Water for Kenya Global Grant: Peter Brown reported that the grant was submitted last week for $50,000. The District ID was incorrect, but the app is locked. Peter is working on correcting the ID. Sue Austin approved the grant application. Waiting on the remaining approvals. Peter would still like to send two members of the Club to Kenya which would require an additional $7,000. Carol Heaney suggested the individuals fundraise.

501C4 Status: No update.

Dues: Murray Forth reminded members that Club dues of $175 are due by July 1st.

Viking Gym: Carol Heaney will contact Ron Annis. Debbie Rodriguez will contact Kevin Konig, Schodack Parks Supervisor.

Fund Raisers: Some suggestions are hosting a pickle ball tournament, Cafe Capriccio, summer outings, plant swap, game night and a talent show.

Changeover: Will be held June 27th at 6 pm at Peter and Debbie Brown’s home. Please bring a salad or an appetizer.

District Meetings: The District 7190 Celebration will be held on June 19 at 5 pm at Wolf Hollow Brewing in Schenectady. Carol Heaney is willing to drive. Please contact her if you are interested in attending.

Speakers: We will need speakers for the fall.

Summer Schedule: Check the calendar for the latest updates.

Next Meeting: Thursday, June 13th 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. Tracy Pitcher, Executive Director of St. Paul’s, will speak.

Member Inductions

Welcome

Carol Heaney and Ruth Russell

Jim Leyhane gave an overview of Rotary International (RI) and the Southern Rensselaer County Rotary Club and their activities. Rotary began in 1906 in Chicago. There are now over 2 million members. There are 40,000 Rotary Clubs in the world in 160 countries. Districts are comprised of 40 to 100 clubs. Rotary is the largest non-government charity in the world. Over 5 billion dollars has been raised to eradicate Polio. With 2 to 3 cases per year, we are almost there. New projects will focus on water. Everyone has the right to clean water. Rotary is also involved in literacy, maternal health, peace and economic stability. Rotary is a partner to Shelter Box. A Shelter Box is an emergency tub that holds everything 10 people need to survive 10 weeks. Each box costs $1,000. Shelter Box has been nominated for a Nobel Peace Prize the last three years. Our members contribute to Shelter Box and each of our local high schools has sponsored at least one tub.

The East Greenbush Rotary Club, renamed to the Southern Rensselaer County Rotary Club (SRC), was established in March of 1960. Our district has recently regrouped with 100 clubs with over 1,000 members into the Central New York District. We have sponsored Boy Scout Troup 41 since our inception. This Troup has produced over 100 Eagle Scouts. Members contribute to Gift of Life, established in the 80s, to fix the hearts of children with congenital heart disease. Surgeries cost $10,000 and the SRC sponsored one child’s surgery by itself. Now RI provides grants to countries to learn how to do the surgeries themselves. The SRC has sponsored water buffalos for Pakistan. We contribute to the local food pantries. We provide Easter baskets, school supplies and adopt a family for the holidays for the Circle of Mercy. We contribute to the YMCA’s Thanksgiving food drive and are trying to restart our exchange program.

Welcome to Carol Heaney and Ruth Russell.

This Week’s Meeting, New Member Induction

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This Thursday, June 6, 2024 at 6:00 pm the Southern Rensselaer County Rotary Club will be meeting at Moscatiello’s Family Italian Restaurant as a part of its weekly schedule. This week’s program will feature the induction of 6 of our newest members into the club. As usual if you are unable to join us in person you may do so remotely using the Zoom link located on our calendar page. Looking forward to seeing everyone this Thursday.

Meeting Clipboard 5/23/24

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Minutes of Meeting May 23, 2024
Members in Attendance(10): Jim Leyhane, Roberto Martinez, Pat Bailey, Murray Forth, Terry Brewer, Phil Kellerman, Peter Brown, Debbie Brown, Andy Leyhane, Carole Heaney
Guests (9): East Greenbush Scholarship recipient Shea Fajen, Mrs. Fajen, Columbia HS Assistant Principal Beth Farnum;  Maple Hill Scholarship recipient Alyssa Gray, Carrie Earle (Alyssa’s mom), and MHHS Principal Rob Santaracangelo; Rensselaer High School Scholarship recipient Lydia Jyaw, Mrs. Jyaw (aunt), Brandy Cenci, High School Counselor
President Peter Brown called the meeting to order and welcomed our guests from the three High Schools in our community.  Each student introduced herself, her guest, and the representative from her school.
Theme for the year:  “Building Community”
PROGRAM NOTES:
 President Brown turned the meeting over to Terry Brewer, Chair of SRCR Scholarship program who reviewed the criteria and process for this signature project of our club.  
Each student gave a brief presentation about her activities at their respective schools, outlined their plans following graduation and thanked our club for this honor and for the scholarship award.  Below are summaries of each student’s remarks.
Maple Hill senior Alyssa Gray’s motto and guiding principle is “Do Good in the World” and she has demonstrated many times her commitment to this motto.  A Girl Scout and a National Honor Society member, she has initiated and organized several fundraising/awareness campaigns during her HS career.   She hopes to become a high school Math teacher and will attend HVCC in the fall and then continue her education at Siena College (accepted to both schools!).  
Columbia senior Shea Fajen has completed 17 advanced level courses as well as being a varsity level track “star” as a distance runner.  Her community service focuses on supporting underrepresented communities and she has enjoyed learning how to communicate with speakers of languages other than English.  She has particularly enjoyed her work at the West Hill Welcome Center providing support to those relocating to this country.  She has served on the EGCS Superintendent’s Advisory Committee and will attend Middlebury College to study Biology.
Rensselaer senior Lydia Johnson is a member of Key Club and National Honor Society and also an athlete in track, soccer, and dance.  She is a member of the Rensselaer City Citizens’ Advisory Committee, which Mayor Stammell mentioned in his program at our May 2nd meeting.  Much of her community service focuses on food insecurity and homelessness.  She has been a volunteer at Capital Roots.  Lydia will attend Siena College in the fall and is enrolled in the 3/2 program with Albany Law School.
SRC Rotary congratulated all these outstanding young women who have demonstrated commitment to the goals of Rotary and to further education which will  make significant contributions to their communities.  As usual, members were very impressed with these young women and wished them well in their future endeavors.
MEETING NOTES:
Board meeting Monday May 20th was largely spent on clarifying and refining the application for Grant funding for the Kenya Water project.  Major fundraising will be needed to meet our share of the cost of this project.  
Upcoming Programs:   
May 31st: FRIDAY  Social event at S&S Brewery 
June 6th; New Member Induction
June 13th: St Paul’s   Tracy Pitcher
June 20th Club Assembly, Brief presentation on Arts participation with Emma Leyhane and short video
June 27th: Change over/Induction of officers at Brown’s  Details to follow

This Week’s Meeting, Our Annual Scholarship Award Winners

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This Thursday, May 23, 2024 at 6:00pm the Southern Rensselaer County Rotary Club will be holding its weekly meeting at Moscatiello’s Family Italian Restaurant on Route 4 in North Greenbush. Joining us will be 3 local Rotary Scholarship winners from Columbia High School, Rensselaer High School, and Maple Hill High School. Each scholarship award recipient will be joined by family and a representative from their school district. Due to the anticipated high attendance at this meeting it will not be available remotely this week. Looking forward to seeing everyone this Thursday.

Meeting Clipboard 5/16/24

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Minutes of Meeting May 16, 2024

Members in Attendance: (12):  Jim Leyhane, Roberto Martinez, Charlie Foote, Pat Bailey, Dick Drumm, Murray Forth, Phil Kellerman, Ray Hannah, Andy Leyhane, Peter Brown, Debbie Brown, Carole Healey.

Guests (2): Karen Spinelli, Teresa Martell and Karen Rogers

President Peter Brown called the meeting to order.

Theme for the year:  “Building Community”

Meeting Notes:

Guest speakers: Karen Spinelli, RN and Teresa Martell, RN of the ALS Regional Center

Ray, who organized the presentation, introduced Karen and Teresa.

Karen, who is director of the ALS Regional Center, said that ALS (Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis) is a progressive disease with no known cure at this time. The effects are extremity and general weakness; impairment and weakness of swallowing; changes in speech; respiratory insufficiency; drooling; muscle spasticity/cramping/pain; and depression, anxiety and isolation.

The Center provides both a medical and an emotional system of support to help maintain quality of life throughout the course of the disease. All ALS patients eventually succumb to the disease.

Most ALS patients are within the 45-75 age range but the center has treated younger patients. The average life span of a person diagnosed with ALS is 3-5 years.

Eight to ten percent of ALS patients have genetic tendencies but it is relatively unknown how others get it.

The Center operates on an annual budget of around $750,000. It gets a few grants to sustain itself but also relies on fund-raisers.

Club members asked insightful questions which Karen and Teresa responded to. All agreed it was an excellent and interesting presentation. Phil spoke to both after the meeting to indicate he had experience in tube feeding as many of the ALS patients use tube feeding to sustain themselves. He offered his assistance to help in case the center needed tube feeding supplies or other equipment which could be obtained by Mission Central in Mechanicsburg, Pennsylvania.

Scholarship award winners:

Next week, scholarship awards will be given out to three area high school students.

501C4 Status;

Peter reported that Murray and Phil have been communicating with the IRS about our 501C4 status.

Water for Kenya and Global Grant status:

Peter said a Zoom meeting was held with club members involved to review the 18 page proposal by the club for the project. The two hour meeting helped to resolve some issues with the grant and improvements were made to the proposal. One important issue that will need to be resolved is that the club most likely will have to raise above the initial $5,000 – most likely within the $7,000-10,000 range. Peter had spoken to Sue Austin who recommended that the club ask for donations from other clubs to help raise funds.

Roberto complimented Peter on doing a good job on the proposal.

Carole’s Home:

Carole reported that she is conducting monthly internet discussions on “inviting death into the room” and that members were invited to participate. Deb Brown recommended reading the book “Being Mortal.”

Viking Gym and Peace Pole

Jim reported that we are waiting to hear if the town of Schodack wants the peace pole.

Fund raisers including suggestions by Marisa

Peter said that the club needs to schedule fund-raisers for this summer to raise funds for the Kenya water project.  

Board meeting

A board meeting will be held on Monday the 20th at the Browns.

Member inductions

New member indications will be held June 6th. Four new members are expected to be inducted.

Summer meetings:

Pat said she would help to coordinate the schedule of summer events. There will be no meeting on July 4th.

District Meetings:

The District 7190 Celebration will be held on June 19 at 5 pm at Wolf Hollow Brewing.

This Week’s Presentation Features Karen Spinelli, RN and Teressa Martell, RN Speaking on ALS

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This Thursday, May 16, 2024 at 6:00pm The Southern Rensselaer County Rotary Club will be holding its weekly meeting at Moscatiello’s Italian Family Restaurant on Route 4 in North Greenbush. Joining us will be Karen Spinelli, RN and Teressa Martell, RN and they will be presenting on ALS, or otherwise known as Lou Gehrig’s Disease. As usual if you are unable to join us in person you may do so remotely using the Zoom Link on our calendar page of our website. Looking forward to seeing everyone this Thursday.