Meeting Clipboard 5/11/2023

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SRC Rotary Minutes 5/11/2023  Moscatiellos

Members in Attendance: Pat Bailey, Peter Brown, Debbie Brown Dick Drumm, Murray Forth, Ray Hannan, Phil Kellerman, Andy Leyhane, Kevin Leyhane; 

By Zoom:  Charlie Foote, Jim Leyhane, Roberto Martinez

Proxy:  Carol Orvis, Becky Raymond

Guests:  Ed Kellerman and wife, Sarge:  Will Potts

Old Business:

MH check for Iron Giraffe Project:  Phil reports no news, and Murray will check to determine if the check has been cashed.

Scholarship:  Columbia has reported their selection; still waiting to hear from Maple Hill and Rensselaer HS.   Principals from those schools need to sign the grant application to ensure participation in the next round

Slate of Officers 2023-24:  Six specific Board positions are required to apply for Rotary Grants.   Murray Forth moved to accept the following slate, the motion was seconded by Kevin Leyhane, and passed unanimously.

President, Peter Brown; President Elect, Roberto Martinez; Vice President, Jim Leyhane; Secretary, Pat Bailey; Treasurer, Murray Forth; Foundation Chair, Jim Leyhane; Membership, Terry Brewer; Public Relations, Kevin Leyhane

District Grant Updates:  Letters of participation needed from the schools; Slate of Officers posted on Club Runner; and Goals from 2023-24 submitted.  All is in order for the submission deadline.

Gift of Life:  Barrow of Booze drawing is  May 26th and tonight is the deadline for purchasing tickets ($20 or 2 for $30).  The Gift of Life Tournament is scheduled for September 14th.  Details to follow.

Summer Nights in the Park:  Sign up sheets were circulated for both Music in the Park on Tuesdays, and Movie Nights on selected Fridays.  Phil K and Pat B are negotiating with “What’s Popping” to provide popcorn to be sold at all events.  

Summer Calendar Program Update:  With the addition of a visit to the USS Slater, the only date still unfilled is August 31st.    The Slater and Jersey Boys at MacHayden will require advanced sign up.  

Presidential Changeover:  July 6, 2023 at the Browns

Reminder:  Dues are due by June 1st,  $175, or 2 installments

New Business:

Membership update:  Kevin introduced Will Potts, Manager of the soon to be open Chick-fil-A on Rt 4 who will be joining our club.  The new owner of Casey’s Restaurant has expressed interest in becoming  a member as well.

Next Week’s Speaker:  Dr. Kathy Platoni, speaking on PTSD, hosted by Phil Kellerman

Purchase of a new banner for display at events:   The current banner for our club is too big to easily hand on a table or from a canopy.  Pat Bailey moved the club purchase a smaller one and would make those arrangements.  Andy Leyhane seconded the motion, which was approved unanimously.  

Club Assembly:

 Will Potts is from the South, the son of a Baptist Minister.  During college he worked at the local Chick-fil-A and was given the training and experience to “move up the ladder”  One of his mentors was a Rotary member and encouraged Will to consider connecting with Rotary clubs as he moved locations.  Most recently he opened a Buffalo site as interim manager and 5 weeks ago relocated with his wife to this area to open the Chick-fil-A on Route 4 in East Greenbush.  Welcome, Will!!

Phil introduced his older brother Ed and his wife Sarge who live in Gainsville, Florida.  Ed has recently retired as a Professor at the University of Gainsville, and gave an overview of life as a Floridian as well as that of Phil’s older brother

This Week’s Meeting Another General Club Assembly

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With Julie Ritchie unable to attend the meeting this Thursday we are switching to another general club assembly to discuss end of the Rotary year projects as well as the summer schedule. I will work to try and schedule another guest speaker for May 25th which was also scheduled to be a general club assembly.

As always we will do our best to provide a hybrid option for our meetings, with the link posted on the calendar page of the website.

Menu choices this week include: Antipasto Salad, Chicken Lemon, Baked Ziti

Looking forward to seeing everyone again this Thursday.

Meeting Clipboard 5/4/23

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Southern Rensselaer Rotary Club

Minutes 

May 4, 2023

MEMBERS ATTENDING ( 11 ): Dick Drumm, Debbie Brown, Peter Brown, Jim Leyhane, Roberto Martinez, Andy Leyhane, Murray Forth,  Pat Bailey, Ray Hannan, Terry Brewer and Phil Kellerman. 

By Zoom: 

GUESTS (2) Michael Bennett, Joe Corr

President Elect Peter Brown called the meeting to order.

Theme for the Year: “Growing Fellowship and Service Locally and Globally.” 

Hybrid Meeting:  Please let Kevin Leyhane, Jim Leyhane or Roberto Martinez know if you plan to join the weekly meeting via Zoom.

Proxy Votes:  If unable to attend please submit your proxy votes to President Kevin Leyhane or any board member who will be attending the meeting. Proxy votes can also be submitted using the Remind App. Text to the number 81010.

MEETING NOTES

Website updates: We are still updating club information on MYRotary (International), Club Runner (District), SRCRotary.org.  A Zoon meeting with 3 Rotary District officials; Sue Austin, Denise DiNoto and Marissa and club members; Peter Brown, Roberto M., Jim L. and Pat B. went well and several problems were resolved. Jim stated it was a very helpful session.

Albany Water Project Video Presentation: No change

 Exchange Program: No updates but things are progressing

Gift of Life: The District Rotary is once again offering the barrow of booze raffle. See Jim Leyhane for tickets. Tickets are $20 for one and two for $30. The drawing will be held live on Facebook on May 26th. Proceeds will go to the Gift of Life. Jim reported the deadline is next week. 

Gift of Life 25th Annual Golf Tournament: Will be held Thursday, September 14, 2023.  The brochure and link to register can be found on a post on our website.

Student Scholarship Update:  Per Terry Brewer, Columbia High School has selected a student. Maple Hill and Rensselaer will send in their nominations. The student recipients, one parent and a school administrator are invited to attend the Club meeting on June 8th. He repeated that things are moving forward.

Music in the Park:  There are four Movie Nights in the Park scheduled to be held on Fridays. We are approved by the town to do both the Music in the Park and the Movie Nite. We will be selling popcorn and soda and possibly penny candy. Signup sheets are being circulated. We all need to participate. Please check the schedule for spots still open. 

Dues: A reminder from our Treasurer, Murray Forth, that our yearly membership dues of $175.00 should be paid by June 1st or you can opt to make two payments of $87.50 each.

Summer Program: Schedule is now updated and available and will be posted and updated to calendar on our website. Slater visit was discussed as an outing for this summer. Kids would be welcome date is tentative August 10, 2023. 

New Member: Top Form is now a corporate member. 

Presidential Changeover: Will be held on July 6, 2023 at Peter and Debbie Browns house. 

Officers for the coming year: Peter invited all to volunteer.  New jobs include Public Relations as well as President Elect.  Next week we will vote on this next week.. 

Next Meeting: Thursday, May 11, 2023 dinner 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. 

Speaker: Mike Bennett Superintendent 

Terry introduced Mike Bennett and explained about the shooting at Columbia H.S. 19 years ago.  He spoke about the recovery efforts after the event on Feb. 9, 2004.  Also that John Romano, the shooter, has been released from prison. The incident took just 8 minutes, but everything changed!

Mike explained he is now Superintendent at Greenville CSD . Before that he was at several other schools as both teacher and principal. 

How do you recover from such an occurrence? 

It started as a normal day at Columbia High School, but during the 5th period he heard a noise and another one and he and John Sawchuck went out into the hall. John approached the shooter and tried to grab him, the gun discharged and Mike was shot in the leg. John had disarmed the shooter.  Police arrived quickly and two nurses on staff treated Mike’s before he was transported to the hospital. 

After treatment Mike was not able to return home due to media attention. His photo on the stretcher was on all the news stations constantly, life had change forever.. School resumed the next day for staff and students, but he was advised not to return to school right away and especially not until after the Grand Jury met.  Going forward; sounds like doors slamming and other loud noises had an effect on him and he had difficulty retuning to the school. Then 2014 Sandy Hook happened and it also had repercussions. 2018 another school shooting happened. Each event took a toll. Also Mike had become an interim building supervisor and then Principal. With time kids began to become involved asking for changes.  Mike has also written an article about the experience. 

NASSP (National Association of School Principals) invited him to become involved. People involved in school shootings all around the country and 13 originally met outside Washington DC. He was in a room of people that understood the experience, but he was the only one who was shot! 

Mike decided he needed to be part of an advocacy group as well as helping to support to others.  He has had an annual trip to DC to promote and plan and the reception has been good. They have developed a program of Best Practices for school shootings including a Guide to Recovery. He spoke about what is in the guide. Section 1 is about securing support and responding to officers, Section II includes reopening the school, Section III is dealing with the kids and staff and attending student’s ongoing needs, Section IV is Holding Commemorations and annual Remembrances, and Section V is listening to students.  The guide includes testimonials from others who have experienced this or something similar.  He explained how he hopes to continue to address the problem. 

(Nassap.org/prnguide )  Bennett@greenvillecsd.org.

Terry also spoke about his experiences and perspective. 

Mike and Terry responded to questions.   

Menu next week: Antipasto Salad, Chicken Limon (Lemon) and Baked Ziti

Adjourned 7:45

This Week’s Guest Speaker Michael Bennett, “A Guide to Recovery to a School Shooting”

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Please join us this week at Moscatiello’s at 6:00 pm on Thursday May 4, 2023 to hear former East Greenbush Teacher a current Greenville Central School District Superintendent Michael Bennett. Michael will be speaking on “A Guide to Recovery to a School Shooting”

As always if you are unable to join us in person you can still view the meeting remotely using the Zoom link posted on the Calendar page.

Menu choices for this week include: Rustica Salad with Chicken, Chicken Marsala, or Manicotti.

Meeting Clipboard 4/27/23

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MEMBERS ATTENDING (14): Dick Drumm, Debbie Brown, Peter Brown, Kevin Leyhane, Jim Leyhane, Roberto Martinez, Andy Leyhane, Murray Forth, Debbie Rodriguez, Pat Bailey, Charlie Foote, Ray Hannan and Phil Kellerman. By Zoom: Terry Brewer.

GUESTS (2): Denise DiNoto, District Governor and Marissa Multari, Assistant District Governor.

President Kevin Leyhane called the meeting to order.

Theme for the Year: “Growing Fellowship and Service Locally and Globally.” 

Hybrid Meeting:  Please let Kevin Leyhane, Jim Leyhane or Roberto Martinez know if you plan to join the weekly meeting via Zoom.

Proxy Votes:  If unable to attend please submit your proxy votes to President Kevin Leyhane or any board member who will be attending the meeting. Proxy votes can also be submitted using the Remind App. Text to the number 81010.

MEETING NOTES

Website updates: We are still updating club information on MYRotary (International), ClubRunner (District), SRCRotary.org.  Rotary International is concerned about using copyrighted images. Please be on the lookout for any incorrect information. 

Albany Water Project Video Presentation: The video has been updated to a post and is currently saved as a draft.

Exchange Program: No updates

Gift of Life: The District Rotary is once again offering the barrow of booze raffle. See Jim Leyhane for tickets. Tickets are $20 for one and two for $30. The drawing will be held live on Facebook on May 26th. Proceeds will go to the Gift of Life.

Gift Of Life 25th Annual Golf Tournament: Will be held Thursday, September 14, 2023.  The brochure and link to register can be found on a post on our website.

Student Scholarship Update:  Per Terry Brewer, Columbia High School has selected a student. Maple Hill and Rensselaer will send in their nominations. The student recipients, one parent and a school administrator are invited to attend the Club meeting on June 8th.

Summer Nights in the park:  The Schodack Town Board was meeting tonight and will let us know about participation. If approved, we will have to discuss what we would like to do verses what we can staff. Music in the Park is on Tuesdays in May, June and August. There are four Movie in the Park scheduled to be held on Fridays.

Dues: A reminder from our Treasurer, Murray Forth, that our yearly membership dues of $175 should be paid by June 1st or you can opt to make two payments of $87.50 each.

Summer Program: Schedule will be posted and updated to calendar on our website.

New Member: Top Form is now a corporate member.

Presidential Changeover: Will be held on July 6, 2023 at Peter and Debbie Browns house.

Next Meeting: Thursday, May 4th, dinner 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. Mike Bennett will speak about A Guide to Recovery to a School Shooting.

Entree choices will be Chicken Rustica Salid, Chicken Marsala and Manicotti.

Denise DiNoto, District Governor

and

Marissa Multari, Assistant District Governor

Denise DiNoto is the current District 7190 Governor. She is a member of the Colonie Guilderland Rotary Club. She spoke about why she was inspired to become a Rotarian.

Denise grew up in a Rotarian family. Her father was a Rotarian. She was a member of Interact and exchange students stayed with her family. During high school, Denise had accelerated her courses and was eligible to graduate at the end of her junior year. However, she had an accident that caused a concussion. The local vet visited her and suggested she do an exchange study during her senior year instead. She applied, was interviewed and accepted into the Binghampton 7170 exchange program. Her family wanted her to go to an English-speaking country so that her health requirements could be addressed. Seventy students were sent overseas that year. Denise went to Tasmania. Before she left, she was given some very good advice. She was told that she would receive many invitations and opportunities to do things and she should just say yes to all of them.

Denise had four host families in Tasmania. She also toured Tasmania for two weeks with 22 other students. She met many people from around the world. Being oversees allowed her a different perspective on world events. She almost was not able to tour mainland Australia due to concerns over her disability. The other exchange students refused to tour without her and came up with a plan for addressing the concerns. Denise inspired inclusion. She even slept in a pole tent during the tour. She went to Melbourne and toured the zoo. She went by ship to Victoria. Denise also sent a postcard every day to the person who had not wanted her to participate in the tour showing her ability to participate. She said that Rotary believed in her and she began to believe in herself. Imagine Rotary is this year’s theme. What does that inspire you to do? Ask questions, get involved. Denise will be going back to Australia to attend the International Rotary Convention. She will be staying with one of her exchange host families. While at the Convention, Denise will speak at a breakout session about accessibility and inclusion.

Marissa Multari, Assistant District Governor, provided updates.

On May 17th, there will be a youth recognition at the Joseph Zaloga Post on Everett Road.

On May 25th, there will be a training session on how to navigate and use Club Runner and My Rotary from 6:30 pm until 8:30 pm.

June 9th, the Colonie Guilderland Rotary will hold a golf outing at the Mill Road Golf

September 14, the Gift of Life’s 25th Annual Golf Tournament has been moved to The Fairways of Halfmoon.

This Week’s Speaker, Denise DiNoto, Rotary District 7190 Governor

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This Thursday, April 27, 2023 join us at Moscatiello’s at 6:00pm where we will be joined by Rotary District Governor 7190 Denise DiNoto and Assistant District Governor Marissa Multari. Denise and Marissa will be speaking about Rotary District 7190 and the future merger of Rotary districts to create a CNY Rotary District. If you can not join us in person you can join us via Zoom using the link on the calendar page.

Dinner choices will include Chicken Ceasar Salad, Chicken Florentine, or Portobello Ravioli.

Meeting Clipboard 4/20/23

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MEMBERS ATTENDING (14): Becky Raymond, Ron Annis, Dick Drumm, Debbie Brown, Peter Brown, Kevin Leyhane, Jim Leyhane, Roberto Martinez, Andy Leyhane, Murray Forth, Debbie Rodriguez, Pat Bailey, Terry Brewer and Phil Kellerman.

GUESTS (2): Cathleen Peter and Charles Peter, Schodack Town Supervisor.

President Kevin Leyhane called the meeting to order.

Theme for the Year: “Growing Fellowship and Service Locally and Globally.” 

Hybrid Meeting:  Please let Kevin Leyhane, Jim Leyhane or Roberto Martinez know if you plan to join the weekly meeting via Zoom.

Proxy Votes:  If unable to attend please submit your proxy votes to President Kevin Leyhane or any board member who will be attending the meeting. Proxy votes can also be submitted using the Remind App. Text to the number 81010.

MEETING NOTES

Rotary Bowling Event:  On April 18th, Phil Kellerman, Jim Leyhane, Roberto Martinez and Ray Hannan attended the student assembly at Mapil Hill Junior/Senior High School. Phil Kellerman presented a check for $544 to the students of Maple Hill Junior/Senior High School for the Iron Giraffe, Water for South Sudan Project. The funds were raised at the recent Rotary bowling event. Jim promoted the Student Exchange Program. Phil said that the student response was enthusiastic.

Website: We are still updating club information on MYRotary (International), ClubRunner (District), SRCRotary.org.  Our information is posted in numerous places. Kevin Leyhane is also updating information on our social media.

Scholarships: Terry Brewer sent out the letters to the Maple Hill, East Greenbush and Rensselaer School Districts for their nomination for scholarships. Both Maple Hill and East Greenbush have responded and will send in their nominations. Terry will follow up with the Rensselaer School District. Nominations are due by May 31st. The student recipients are invited to attend the Club meeting on June 8th to receive their scholarships.

Albany Water Project Video Presentation: Per Kevin Leyhane, the presentation video was transferred to Len Tantillo. It may be posted on the Slater website. Kevin will also post the video on the SRC Rotary website.

Student Exchange Program: Peter Brown and Jim Leyhane sent a letter to Jeff Simon, Superintendent of the East Greenbush Central School District. They have not yet received a response. A student from Maple Hill is still interested in a summer exchange in Australia.

Gift of Life: The District Rotary is once again offering the barrow of booze raffle. See Jim Leyhane for tickets. Tickets are $20 for one and two for $30. The drawing will be held live on Facebook on May 26th. Proceeds will go to the Gift of Life.

Dues: A reminder from our Treasurer, Murray Forth, that our yearly membership dues of $175 should be paid by June 1st or you can opt to make two payments of $87.50 each. Members will not receive a bill.

Summer Programs: The change over meeting will be held on July 6th at Peter and Debbie Brown’s house.

New Member: Burke Adams was voted in as a new member.

Rotary Sign: The Rotary sign that used to be at Quigleys cannot be located.

Fundraising: Beth Kissinger and Jimmy Thomas from the Glenville Rotary club are hosting an IN PERSON meeting to discuss fundraising ideas after a very successful start to a club project titled the Doggie Paddle over the last six months (or so.) The goal is to share ideas, suggestions and mentorship.  Everyone is welcome to attend and bring a friend. 

Rotarians, community members, service groups and interested parties are invited for a group discussion on topics such as:

  • How to institute a new project
  • Identifying fundraising ideas that are new and innovative
  • Obtaining community involvement for project help
  • Attracting media attention for projects/good works
  • Attracting helpers and volunteers
  • Identification of opportunities for collaboration
  • Managing expectations
  • Identifying mentors/helpers/supporters

Next Meeting: Thursday, April 27, dinner 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. Denise DiNoto, District Govenor will be our speaker.

Entree choices will be Chicken Caesar Salid, Chicken Florentine and Portobello Ravioli.

Town of Schodack Updates

Charles Peter, Supervisor

Charles Peter, Schodack Town Supervisor grew up in Schodack. The family farm was established in 1912. He has also served as a member of the County Legislature and the local school board.

Schodack has approximately 13,000 residents and encompasses 63 square miles. The Town has a Highway and Police Department and contracts for Ambulance services. There are numerous infrastructure projects currently underway in the Town that will ultimately assist in future development. Sewer and water lines will be extended from the Amazon warehouse down Route 9 to the county line. Sewer services will be extended along Maple Hill Road to the Castleton sewer facility. The Town is also working with East Greenbush to fix bottlenecks in the sewer systems.

The Town has also become a place for family events. The annual Easter Egg Hunt had several hundres participants this year. The Town also hosts Music in the Part which had expanded from four to seven nights. New this year is Movies in the Park.

The Town is also developing recreational access in the park. Mr. Peter visited the Town of Wilton. He would like to install a splash pad in the park. He also looked in the National Fitness Campaign which had some grant funding for installing fitness equipment. However, the Viking Gym proposal from Rotary, Top Form and the Kiwanis Club is more cost effective. Space has been set aside in the park for the gym. The Town is ready to move ahead with the project and purchase equipment. There is also land behind the Town Hall that was donated to the Town of Schodack by Dick Drumm. Future development there may include a dog park and splash pad. The Moordener Kill has two waterfalls and can be developed into a nature preserve and park with hiking trails. The majority of the miles of the Albany-Hudson Electric Trail are located in Schodack. The Rensselaer County Land Trust operates the part of the trail that runs through Schodack. The Town Park Supervisor position has been expanded from a part-time to a full-time position.

There is a General Environmental Impact Study (GEIS) being done for business along Route 9. The Amazon Warehouse has had a positive impact on local business such as restaurants and stores. There has been an increase in emergency services calls, but Amazon has paid for those services. The building development on Route 150 and Route 9 currently lists Amazon as the future tenant. The DMV satellite office had moved out of the Town Hall freeing up space in the basement and second floor. Rotary members suggested that the space be used for a food panty or a youth center.

Iron Giraffe Project

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Phil Kellerman
Jim Leyhane

Today, Phil Kellerman presented a check for $544 to the students of Maple Hill Junior/Senior High School for their Iron Giraffe Project to raise money for water for South Sudan. SRC The $544 was raised at the recent Rotary bowling event. This was in addition to the Clubs previous donation of $500 which was mailed and apparently never was received. A replacement check will be submitted to the school. Ray Hannan, Jim Leyhane and Roberto Martinez were also present. Jim promoted the Student Exchange Program.  Per Roberto, it was “exciting to see the students so charged up.”

Jim Leyhane, Phil Kellerman, Ray Hannan and Roberto Martinez with Debra Oligny, International Club Advisor and Christine Fowler, 7th grade teacher.

Gift of Life’s Barrow of Booze Fundraiser is Back!

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Once again Rotary District 7190’s Gift of Life is raffling off a wheelbarrow full of booze. Tickets are one for $20 and two for $30 and are available from Dean Calamaras and Jim Leyhane. The drawing is May 26, 2023 and tickets are limited to only 500 sold this year.

Gift of Life promoters urge all club members to invite non-Rotarians to participate as as well, and say they will accept cash donations from those who do not desire that much booze. It is all for a good cause, to date the Gift of Life has healed over 46,000 children to date.

At this week’s meeting at Moscatiello’s this Thursday at 6:00 pm, Schodack Town Supervisor Charles Peter will be joining us as a guest presenter. Dinner menu choices include Antipasto Salad, Spaghetti with meatballs, and Cheese Ravioli with Marina Sauce. Looking forward to seeing everyone this Thursday.