Members in Attendance (8):  Peter Brown, Debbie Brown, Pat Bailey, Debbie Rodriguez, Murray Forth, Jim Leyhane, Roberto Martinez and Charlie Foote.

By Zoom (2): Becky Raymond and Ruth Russell.

Guests (1): Ashley Fragomeni, Director of Girls Inc.

President Peter Brown called the meeting to order. 

Theme for the Year: “Building Community”

MEETING NOTES:

Viking Gym: Rotary, Kiwanis and Top Form members assembled the gym equipment on March 21st. The equipment has been installed. The cement has to set for a month before further landscaping can be done. Jim Leyhane is still working on ordering the peace pole.

Iron Giraffe Bowl-a-Thon: The bowl-a-thon will be held on Sunday April 14 from 2 pm until 4 pm. The cost will be $13 per person. Proceeds will go to the Anchor Food Pantry and to the Maple Hill water project. We will also ask participants to bring a food item for donation. Phil Kellerman contacted Christine Fowler. She has 17 students signed up to bowl. Per Phil, he has obtained gift certificates for the raffle and ran an ad again in the Our Town magazine. Bowlers are needed.

Membership: The membership meeting is next Thursday, April 11th. Terry Brewer has developed a presentation. Roberto Martinez obtained a count of people who were invited and and responded that they would attend. We have met the goal of keeping the total count of members and invitees to just below 30.

Water for Kenya: Peter Brown has a signed MOU with the Ms. Kenara and members of the Rotary Club of Enkare Naroch. He has also sent a draft of the specifications to the Enkare Naroch Club for review. The next steps will be to ask for bids based on the specifications and apply for funding for the hydrogeological survey. Peter responded to the email from Edith about the possibility of collaborating on other smaller projects. The Club is interested in future collaborations but will focus on the water project first.

Speakers: We still have open dates for speakers.

Rotary Multi-District Conference: Will be held on Friday April 26th- Sunday April 28th at the DoubleTree in Binghamton. Standard Rooms Rate: $129/night Single or Double Occupancy, $139/night Triple Occupancy or $149/night Quad Occupancy. 

Click ->District Conference Information– for more information on the event and our speakers

Click-> Register to get signed up (does not include hotel reservation)

Click-> Hotel to reserve your room under room code “ROT” 

Next Meeting: Thursday, April 4th at 6:00 pm at Moscatiello’s Italian Family Restaurant, Route 4, North Greenbush. Also, you can join the by Zoom using the link on the websites calendar page.

Entree choices will be Antipasta Salad, Spaghetti with Meatballs and Linguini with Baby Clams.

Ashley Fragomeni is the Executive Director of Girls Inc. of the Captial Region. Girls Inc. was established in 1938 but was known then as the Girls Club of Albany and Schenectady. The name was changed to Girls Inc. in 2001. They are located at 80 Central Avenue in Albany, 962 Albany Street in Schenectady and 265 River Street in Troy. They offer free after school programs in all three locations. They feed the participants and provide homework help and evidence-based curriculum programs on STEM, leadership, and financial, arts and media literacy. The school districts provide transportation. There are around 150 girls in the program: 55-70 girls in Schenectady, 40 to 50 in Albany and the rest in Troy. Girls Inc. also offers summer camp for girls in kindergarten through eighth grade. They are currently turning it from a fee for service into a free program. 81% of the participants are girls of color and 57% are at or below the poverty level.

The free Eureka Program is a five-year program that starts in 7th grade. There is a four-week summer camp at the University of Albany during the first two years. The girls are exposed to STEM programs and personal development. The girls are placed in internships during the third and fourth years of the program. During their fifth year they work on collage and carrier readiness. There are 70 girls enrolled in the Eureka Program.

50% percent of Girls Inc. funding comes from grants, 30% from corporate donors and 20% from private donations. Of the funds raised, 83 cents of each dollar go to the programs. More information can be found on the Girls Inc. website at https://girlsinccapitalregion.org/.

Members in Attendance (13):  Peter Brown, Andy Leyhane, Phil Kellerman, Debbie Brown, Pat Bailey, Debbie Rodriguez, Murray Forth, Kevin Leyhane, Ray Hannan, Jim Leyhane, Roberto Martinez, Dick Drumm and John Justino.

By Zoom (0):

Guests (0): 

President Peter Brown called the meeting to order. 

Theme for the Year: “Building Community”

MEETING NOTES:

Viking Gym: Rotary, Kiwanis and Top Form members assembled the gym equipment on March 21st. The Town of Schodack’s Park Department has decided to hire a contractor to finish the installation of the Viking Gym at the Schodack Town Park. Jim Leyhane is still working on ordering the peace pole.

Easter Baskets for Circles of Mercy: Lois and Ray Hannan obtained a gift certificate to purchase candy. Shannon Romanowski and the YMCA put the 25 baskets together and delivered them to Circles of Mercy. Thank you to Lois Hannan for coordinating the collection effort and to all who donated.

Iron Giraffe Bowl-a-Thon: The bowl-a-thon will be held on Sunday April 14 from 2 pm until 4 pm. The cost will be $13 per person. Proceeds will go to the Anchor Food Pantry and to the Maple Hill water project. We will also ask participants to bring a food item for donation. Phil Kellerman contacted Christine Fowler. She has 17 students signed up to bowl. Per Phil, he has obtained gift certificates for the raffle and ran an ad again in the Our Town magazine. Bowlers are needed.

Membership: Each SRC Rotary member is asked to bring a friend to the Rotary meeting on April 11th. Terry Brewer will put a program together about Rotary, what the Club does and what we can do for individuals to interest them in Rotary. The Club will cover the costs for guests. Please let the Club know next week if you are bringing a guest so we can let the restaurant know the dinner count.

Water for Kenya: Peter Brown has a signed MOU with the Ms. Kenara and members of the Rotary Club of Enkare Naroch. He has also sent a draft of the specifications to the Enkare Naroch Club for review. The next steps will be to ask for bids based on the specifications and apply for funding for the hydrogeological survey. One of the employees who works for Kevin Bailey (Ken) was in Kenya and met with Edith Kanara about the project. Peter also received and email from Edith about the possibility of collaborating on other smaller projects. The Club will focus on the water project first.

Speakers: We still have open dates for speakers.

Rotary District: Roberto Martinez and Jim Leyhane attended the in-person PETS training held March 15th through 17th at the Double Tree in Syracuse. They will do a presentation for the Club about what they learned at the meeting.

Grants Management Training: The next training will be held via Zoom on Monday, April 1st, at 7 pm. Register for grant training at https://cnyrotary.org/.

Rotary Multi-District Conference: Will be held on Friday April 26th- Sunday April 28th at the DoubleTree in Binghamton. Standard Rooms Rate: $129/night Single or Double Occupancy, $139/night Triple Occupancy or $149/night Quad Occupancy. Deadline to book: March 26, 2024  DoubleTree Binghamton, (607) 722-7575.

Click ->District Conference Information– for more information on the event and our speakers

Click-> Register to get signed up (does not include hotel reservation)

Click-> Hotel to reserve your room under room code “ROT” 

Next Meeting: Thursday, April 4th at 6:00 pm at Moscatiello’s Italian Family Restaurant, Route 4, North Greenbush. Also, you can join the by Zoom using the link on the websites calendar page.

Entree choices will be determined.

Members in Attendance (13):  Peter Brown, Phil Kellerman, Debbie Brown, Debbie Rodriguez, Murray Forth, Ray Hannan, Jim Leyhane, Roberto Martinez, Ron Annis, Monica Annis, Charlie Foote, Dick Drumm and Becky Raymond.

By Zoom (0):

Guests (0): 

President Peter Brown called the meeting to order. 

Theme for the Year: “Building Community”

MEETING NOTES:

There will be no meeting at Moscatiello’s next Thursday. Instead, we will meet at 1 pm Thursday, March 21st at the Schodack Town Park to assemble the Viking Gym equipment.

Viking Gym: Per Ron Annis, there is a container of gym equipment at the Schodack Town Park. This Sunday, the holes will be dug. We will meet at 1 pm on Thursday, March 21st to assemble the equipment. If able, please bring a 1/2 inch and 9/16 inch socket wrench. Thanks to Dick Drum, concrete is being donated. Ron will find out early next week what the date and time will be for setting the concrete and equipment. He is trying to schedule it for Saturday, March 23rd. Help will be needed. The grand opening will probably be held sometime in May. Stay tuned. Per Jim Leyhane, the Peace Pole will not arrive in time and will have to be installed at a later date.

Iron Giraffe Bowl-a-Thon: The bowl-a-thon will be held on Sunday April 14 from 2 pm until 4 pm. The cost will be $13 per person. Proceeds will go to the Anchor Food Pantry and to the Maple Hill water project. We will also ask participants to bring a food item for donation. Phil Kellerman has been checking with Christine Fowler regarding the number of students who will attend. Pat Bailey has volunteered to staff the entry table. Bowlers are needed.

Membership: Each SRC Rotary member is asked to bring a friend to the Rotary meeting on April 11th. Terry Brewer will put a program together about Rotary, what the Club does and what we can do for individuals to interest them in Rotary. Members should be prepared to talk about why you joined Rotary. The Club will cover the costs for guests.

Water for Kenya: Peter Brown consulted with Mike Stengle (Becky Raymond’s husband) about anticipated specifications and recommendations on what is needed. Kevin Bailey, previous speaker from High Peaks Solar, is in Nairobi, Kenya now. He has offered to look at the well site. The Club voted to pay up to $300 to purchase a round-trip plane ticket for that purpose. Peter is putting together a consolidated specification list. It is complicated. He would appreciate help. Peter anticipates that the project will cost approximately $50, 000.

Easter Baskets for Circles of Mercy: Today was the last date to drop off items at Moscatiellos. Ray Hannon spoke to management at Price Chopper. He will bring a letter from Peter Brown, along with Lois and Shannon and Price Chopper will issue them a gift card to purchase candy. If you still want to donate, please drop off any items at the East Greenbush YMCA next week.

Speakers: We still have open dates for speakers.

Rotary District: The in-person PETS training will be held March 15th through 17th at the Double Tree in Syracuse. Register early to secure a hotel room. For further information go to  http://www.RotaryEmpireMDPETS.org. The majority of the meeting will be held on Saturday if you are considering attending for one day. Jim Leyhane and Roberto Martinez will attend the District PETS training.

Grants Management Training: The next training will be held via Zoom on Monday, April 1st, at 7 pm. Register for grant training at https://cnyrotary.org/. Roberto Martinez, Jim Leyhane and Debbie Rodriguez completed the training offered on February 7th.

Next Meeting: Thursday, March 28th at 6:00 pm at Moscatiello’s Italian Family Restaurant, Route 4, North Greenbush. Also, you can join the by Zoom using the link on the websites calendar page.

Entree choices will be determined.

Ron and Monica Annis are fellow Rotary members. They own Top Form in Castleton. They provide personal health, fitness, performance training and rehabilitation. Top Form also provides coaching license courses and certifications in CPR, AED and first aid. All schools have AEDs. When playing school sports, students can get hit in the chest and go into ventricular fibrillation, a heart arrythmia. Coaches then need to know how to use the AED.

Ron and Monica provided a cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) refresher to fellow Rotarians. The first thing you do is gently shake the person and ask if he/she is OK. If there is no response, ask someone to call 911 and get the AED (automatic external defibrillator). Next, check to see if the person is breathing, moving or making any noises. If not, start chest compressions. Compressions should be an inch to two inches and compress to the song “Staying Alive” for the rate of compressions.

Turn on the AED. The machine will tell you what to do. You will apply the pads to the upper right and lower left of the chest. The machine will analyze the heart rhythm. Do not touch the patient. The machine will tell you if you need to shock the patient. If so, push the orange button and the shock will be administered. In New York State, sixty people have been saved using AEDs. Two of these people were saved by Top Form.

If you are interested in CPR and AED training, or any other services provided by Top Form, go to https://www.topformeastgreenbush.com/. You can contact them at 518-477-2700.