Today is the final day to get a “centennial discount” registration for next summer’s Rotary International Convention in Atlanta.
While it isn’t the centennial of the convention, it will be the centennial of the creation of the Rotary Foundation. Thus, convention organizers and Foundation staff are beating the drums early to get Rotarians to sign up for the June 10-14, 2017, event.
The earlybird price is $265. By comparison, registration for the recent convention in Seoul, Korea, ranged from $310 to $440, depending on when the registration was made.
Registration details for 2017 are available, along with lots of other information, on the event website.
On June 6, 1944, more than 160,000 Allied troops landed along a 50-mile stretch of heavily-fortified French coastline, to fight Nazi Germany on the beaches of Normandy, France.
General Dwight D. Eisenhower, the Supreme Commander of Allied Forces, called the operation a crusade in which “we will accept nothing less than full victory.”
More than 5,000 ships and 13,000 aircraft supported the D-Day invasion. By day’s end, the Allies gained had a foothold in continental Europe. The cost in lives was high. More than 9,000 Allied soldiers were killed or wounded, but their sacrifice allowed more than 100,000 soldiers to begin the slow, hard slog across Europe, to defeat Adolf Hitler’s crack troops.
We have had a string of after-dinner programs in this Rotary Year that has taken us to such far away places as Greece, Guatemala, Malawi, Sweden, Sierra Leone, Haiti, and, last week, India.
This week we’ll be hearing from Ethan Brown on his recent volunteer stint in an orphanage in the southeastern African nation of Zimbabwe. Ethan, as many club members know, is a grandson of Peter and Debbie Brown.
The menu for the 6:15 p.m. dinner at Quigley’s is beef tips in mushroom gravy, salad, vegetable, bread, dessert, and beverages. Guests are welcome, but we do need to know in advance who plans to attend so we can have the proper seating and menu portions. If you haven’t already informed dinner coordinator Debbie Brown at mdbrownb@nycap.rr.com, please do so no later than Tuesday evening.
Here’s the current list of people planning to attend:
Amato, A.J.
Annis, Monika
Annis, Ron
Bailey, Pat
Brewer, Terry
Brown, Debbie
Brown, Ethan (speaker)
Brown, Peter
Butterworth, Jim
Dowd, April
Dowd, Bill
Foote, Charlie
Forth, Murray
Frankel, Julius
Hannan, Ray
Leyhane, Jim
Rodriguez, Debbie
Tolentino, Rommel
Taylor, David
A lot of us have been finishing up our spring cleaning chores, both indoors and out. So, some may have good-condition clothes we want to donate but don’t know where to take them.
Well, the Gift of Life has 22 suggestions. That’s how many locations it has throughout District 7190 for clothing donation bins. There are several in the immediate Southern Rensselaer County Rotary Club area, but for those of you who live or work elsewhere, there are plenty of other options as well.
These bins are placed in conjunction with American Clothing Recycling Company, a Glens Falls business, with profits going to Gift of Life.
Here are the current clothing bin locations (note that the list changes from time to time):
In the SRC area:
Community Care Physicians, 81 Miller Road, Castleton
Tractor Supply Store, Schodack Plaza, 1649 Columbia Turnpike, Castleton
Meeting at Quigley’s Restaurant 593 Columbia Turnpike East Greenbush, NY May 26, 2016
Members Attending (21): Terry Brewer, Debbie Rodriguez, Murray Forth, Pat Bailey, Jim Leyhane, Bill Dowd, Peter Brown, Debbie Brown, A. J. Amato, Dick Drumm, Ray Hannan, Carole Spencer, Roberto Martinez, Ron Annis, Monika Annis, Carol Orvis, Rommel Tolentino, Stewart Wagner, Charlie Foote, Phil Kellerman, Julius Frankel.
Guests (3): Maryann Hannan, Ed Hannan, Effie Frankel.
PROGRAM: “India By Train”
Carole Spencer describes a festive scene on the Ganges River near Delhi.
Club member Carole Spencer introduced her traveling companions Maryann and Ed Hannan, who accompanied her on a seven-day journey through India by train.
She explained the zig-zag route they took from Delhi southeast to Module, traveling mostly at night so they had their days to visit various locales en route. (The trip of about 1,472 kilometers — or 915 miles — would take about two hours by air or just under 23 hours by car or bus.)
Among the scenes presented were the juxtapositions of lush interiors of the train and several hotels compared to the crowded, hectic street life in cities along the way, and the majestic architecture of the Taj Mahal and other palaces compared to the primitive scenes of bathing in polluted water and open-air markets looking the same as they did centuries ago.
What was perhaps most striking were the scenes and descriptions of the daily open-air cremations along the Ganges River — despite the availability of nearby crematoriums that go unused, and the nightly festive celebrations giving thanks to “Mother Ganges,” with boats decorated in bright colors and candles.
Carole also spoke about festive dinners, riding on an elephant, an unpleasant encounter with a camel, visiting a rather shocking place called the Rat Temple — just what it sounds like — which was an enormous contrast to visiting the Taj Mahal, seeing grass-roofed huts on farms, entering shops offering brilliantly-colored garments and fabrics, the bustle of city traffic that included cars, trucks, motorbikes, and elephants side by side.
Map shows travel time via plane or car compared to the 7-day train trip.
ANNOUNCEMENTS/BUSINESS
SRC Board member Jim Leyhane inducted Monika Annis into Rotary membership. Her sponsor, husband Ron, is seen at left.
NEW-MEMBER INDUCTION — Our latest person to officially be welcomed into Rotary was Monika Annis, inducted as is our custom by SRC Board member Jim Leyhane. President Terry Brewer noted that other new members will officially be inducted at our June 23 meeting when District Governor Milan Jackson and DG-Elect (for 2017-18) Fred Daniels will attend. Monika was inducted in advance because she and Ron will be headed back for Sweden before that session.
DRIVER TRAINING — Jim Leyhane, who is coordinating an insurance premium-reducing driver training course, said the event will begin at 11 a.m. this Sunday atRead More »
The latest new page on our club website, which went live today, should go a long way toward making our after-dinner speakers’ presentation setups go smoothly.
When you schedule a speaker, all you have to do is provide them with this Internet address — tinyurl.com/hym5yba — and they can go directly there for all the setup and other technical data they need.
A special thanks to Roberto Martinez for shepherding this cooperative guide to fruition.
Go here to take a look at it. The link also is part of our website’s “Inside Information” lineup.
We have several cookouts, a wine-tasting dinner, a baseball game and picnic, plus …
Well, that’s up to you. We still have three dates remaining open for anyone who wishes to host an event or arrange a family-friendly outing for the club.
Those dates:
• Thursday, July 28
• Thursday, August 4
• Thursday, August 25
We then will have a break, from August 26 through Wednesday, September 7, before resuming our regular dinner meetings at Quigley’s on Thursday, September 8.
If you’re interested in helping fill one of those three available dates, please contact Debbie Rodriguez ASAP. For details on the activities already planned, just click on “Calendar” under the “Inside Information” listing here on the website.
SEOUL, KOREA — A report released at this year’s World Water Summit, held here to coincide with the annual Rotary International Convention, highlighted the progress being made:
Over the past 25 years, more than 2.5 billion people gained access to improved drinking water, and 2 billion who did not have adequate sanitation now do.
Child deaths from water-related diseases dropped from 1.5 million to just over 600,000.
The United Nations Millennium Development Goals’ target for clean drinking water was met five years ahead of schedule.
But, for the 1.8 billion people whose drinking water remains contaminated and the 2.4 billion without access to proper sanitation, progress still is too slow, said Vanessa Tobin, director of water and sanitation for Catholic Relief Services and one of the event’s main speakers.
The water summit, the eighth convened by the Water and Sanitation Rotarian Action Group, seeks to match industry expertise with Rotary service projects.
“We need a movement,” Tobin declared, saying it should follow Rotary’s polio eradication model. “Polio was universal and everyone had one aim: eliminate every case in the world. We need to set a goal that by 2030 every child has safe water and sanitation for life. Water and sanitation must be at the top of each country’s development agenda.”
Gary White, chief executive and co-founder of Water.org, agreed and told attendees thatRead More »
We are in the midst of updating our member-contact information. However, we are missing some phone numbers, addresses, work info, email, etc. The cooperation of everyone on the roster in filling in the blanks ASAP is requested.
Once fully updated, the information will be put into a password-protected page on the website for the perusal of all members. You will note it already has a use-prohibition note at the top.
Please take a moment to check the list to be sure your information is current and complete. Just go to “INSIDE INFORMATION” here on the website and click on “MEMBER CONTACT DATA.” Any additions or changes can be sent to the club email account at SRCrotary@gmail.com — the sooner the better.
UN secretary-general addresses RI convention in Seoul.
• From the UN News Centre
SEOUL, KOREA — United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon praised the “invaluable partnership” between Rotary International and the UN, telling delegates gathered here for RI’s annual international conference that Rotarians had been instrumental in working with the UN to defeat polio.
“Our common activities are saving lives. And they are based on a spirit of trust,” he said. “My main message is simple. Just four words: ‘Thank you very much.’ You help the United Nations reach our goals. And, you help the world understand the United Nations.”
Noting that Rotarians had even helped with the founding of the UN, participating in the San Francisco Conference from which it emerged, Ban said that throughout the history of both organizations, Rotarians have been “using their time, funds and energy to help our world,” and he specifically noted their “monumental contributions” to eradicating polio.
“The United Nations is proud to be your partner in ending this debilitating disease. When Rotary International launched its campaign in 1985, more than 350,000 children were paralyzed by polio every year,” Ban said, underscoring that individual Rotarians have generously contributed an astounding $1.2 billion to the campaign. Moreover, they have engaged donor governments to secure an additional $6 billion in funds.
“And, Rotarians are on the frontlines of this fight. They travel to communities. They speak to parents. They spread hope. And, they contribute to a safer world for everyone. I congratulate Rotary International for helping reduce polio by 99%” said the UN chief, emphasizing that from hundreds of thousands of cases each year, now there are fewer than two dozen.
Africa is polio free, he continued, and noted that while Afghanistan and Pakistan still are affected, the organizations are working hard to help them stamp out polio.
“Rotary’s PolioPlus program has helped to avert massive suffering. Some 16 million people who would have been paralyzed by polio can walk. Around a million and a half children are alive today thanks to PolioPlus,” he explained, hailing the program’s “immeasurable” results, in both human and financial terms.
“We are all anxiously waiting for ‘Case Zero,’ [but] until that day comes, we have to redouble our efforts. Our partnership is stronger than polio, but we must keep up the fight. Please continue to raise your voices, hold your governments accountable and campaign hard until we end this disease.”
Ban stressed that the campaign is difficult and even, in some instances, dangerous, as any frontline workers risk their lives to vaccinate children. Others have been killed in the effort, he said, paying tribute to “these anti-polio champions” by leaving a polio-free world to future generations
A lot of us have been finishing up our spring cleaning chores, both indoors and out. So, some may have good-condition clothes we want to donate but don’t know where to take them.
Meeting at Quigley’s Restaurant
We have several cookouts, a wine-tasting dinner, a baseball game and picnic, plus …
Dear SRC Members:
Southern Rensselaer County Rotary Club 