Opening/Chair: Steve Barteaux was chair for the day and he asked Alana to lead the group in the singing of O Canada. Most were heard singing the new version. This was followed by the moment of personal reflection.
Visitors/Guests: Our only guest today was Kathryn Nickerson who was our speaker.
Speaker: Kathryn Nickerson was introduced by Ken MacDonald. Kathryn is a grade 12 student at CEC who was selected by the club to be part of the Rotary Adventure in Citizenship (AIC) program. Hosted by the Rotary Club of Ottawa, our club has sent a student to the AIC program pretty much every year since it started in 1951.
Kathryn reported that she was one of 16 students from Nova Scotia who made up the 200 who were in Ottawa for the 4 day Adventure. She described the program for each day, the host family she stayed with and the people she met. She had never been to Ottawa so she described the city through first time visitor eyes. Unfortunately, the main Parliament buildings are under renovation so they could not get in there, however she was impressed with the Supreme Court building and was in the West Block where parliament meets.
The group heard some excellent speakers and got a chance to interact with each other a great deal. She made many many new friends and has been in touch with many since coming home.
When asked what she liked most about the adventure, Kathryn said not only had she had the opportunity to meet so many new people but she came away with a even greater sense of how wonderful a country Canada is. We can't take the freedoms we have or the services we enjoy for granted.
Kathryn was thanked by Ken MacDonald.
Member Health: No report.
Announcements and Reports: Matt Redmond reported on the Yearbook. To date we have:
Agreed: 91
Declined: 50
Pending 30
Not Contacted: 433
This week’s “prize" goes to Matt Hunter who connected with almost of his list last week!
Committee members will be reaching out to Rotarians for status updates this week.
President's Report: See story below.
Happy Mug: There were a number of Happy Rotarians:
Jim Goit reported that he was happy to have been in touch with Youwei and is pleased to report that Youwei has passed the requirements for Canadian Citizenship and is expecting to return to Canada for the oath and swearing in ceremony. Youwei is expanding his english language teaching program to the high school level and is using Rotary programs as a model for teaching students about Canada. We hope to see him later this summer.
Kevin is happy to be heading to their summer home in NL this week. He is also happy to have completed his Yearbook sales.
Brian attended a wonderful memorial service for a friend who had recently died. He will remember his friend as someone who made a difference, one person at a time.
Joanna was happy to have had at least one good day of weather for her weekend camping trip to Laurie Park.
Jim Gould was happy to have had a great time in Germany and Scotland and claims that Brian Matthews is a wonderful travelling companion. He is also glad to report that Gloria is progressing nicely after her recent surgery.
Lydia was very happy to report on the visit she and Alan had had to Winnipeg where they visited with people from the Canada Food Grains Bank. They also had some grand kid time in Ontario on the way home.
Lindsay was happy to have had some great family visits recently.
50/50: Les Mosher had the winning ticket however the joker evaded him so the $54 pot will continue to grow.
Closing: 1:06 pm The semi-annual meeting followed.
Jim Gould presented Incoming President Lech with a banner he pickup in at the International Convention.
President's remarks at June 24, 2019 Semi- Annual Meeting
I wanted to thank the all the members past and present for giving me this opportunity. I have found that the president’s role is the most rewarding role a Rotarian can have. As president you get to be a part of every project. It is truly satisfying to have worked with so many talented people on a variety of tasks. I will really miss being a part of all the action, but I’m looking forward to focusing my energy on one or two projects.
This was a busy year and I want to thank:
All the members who rose to the occasion when called upon to make our communities a better place.
District Governor Rob Christie for inspiring clubs to support each other and work together to solve bigger problems.
My wife Ashley and my two children Max and Gabrielle who supported me throughout the year.
This year’s board for all the extra they did to ensure our club had another successful year. I especially wanted to thank Rod Jones, Wayne Gillis and Les Mosher who are leaving the board.
At this moment I wanted to take the time to recognize one individual in particular who has given more than his fair share. Les has served on the board as treasurer for longer than I can remember and has probably served as a Rotarian for longer than I’ve been alive. Just think of all the hours Les has spent serving the club and good luck to you if you think you’ll ever catch him. I say “Aspire to be the Rotarian Les is and the rest should be easy!” Please give him a hand.
This was a solid year:
We raised money in our annual swim for Polio.
We enjoyed a night of dance and great food at Bollywood
We added new members and enjoyed healthy attendance at lunch meetings. Our speakers were always interesting and informative. Ted talks has nothing on us!
We enjoyed a day of golf and raised funds for the Rotary house one of our most valued partnerships.
We had our second annual Rotary week and another well-organized charter night with many well deserving award recipients.
RYLA was a hit with the students and there were more than a dozen Rotarians who gave their time to make it special.
We gave out bursaries and sent campers to Camp Tidnish.
We cleaned up the side of our highway and made a community a more beautiful place to live.
We built a more robust organizational chart and began the incorporation of the Children’s first foundation into our Rotary foundation.
We built stoves in Guatemala saved lives in Africa and improved education for children abroad.
We made vocational visits to various companies and institutions around Town.
We made countless donations to charities, organizations and people within our community.
We sent deserving recipients to Ottawa and on a Short term exchange program.
We posted and shared information about Rotary and our club more often on Facebook.
Through all of this and more we have enriched the fabric of our community through the generosity we have found in others.
Before I officially hand this meeting off to Lech I wanted to take the time to remember Ernie Bradley and Al Hollis, both long time valued Rotarians. They will be greatly missed by their families and our club.
Lech, “I wish you success in your new role as president and in everything you do. I consider you a friend and look forward to being a part of your team.
Join us as we show our Pride in the parade on Saturday, July 13. We will once again be joining the Dal AC crew on their float (i.e. hay trailer and tractor!) as we party through the streets of Truro. The parade starts at 2:00 pm and runs for about an hour, starting at the Colchester Legion Stadium parking lot, and ending at Civic Square.
If you plan to participate on the float or walking beside it, please register now so we know numbers. You will have to choose to walk or ride, it is too dangerous to get on and off while the parade is in motion. Those people walking may hand out candy; it is not to be thrown from the float.
Our two Matts, Matt Redmond and Matt Hunter made the most of a rainy morning on Friday by visiting almost 20 local business and had a great time doing it! Between the two of them, they found they had connections with almost all of the organizations and even discovered some new connections!
Matt reports that we have 94 Agreed, 35 Declined and 48 Pending as of Friday. However there are 440 not yet contacted! Please make your calls and sign up on ads. It's the main fundraiser for the club and we need to get it done before summer really sets in.
(If you have any comments or questions, please contact the editor)
Please add mailservice@clubrunner.com to your safe sender list or address book.
To unsubscribe from future e-mails, click here.
To forward this email to your friends, click here.
To view our privacy policy, click here.
ClubRunner
905.829.5299
102-2060 Winston Park Drive, Oakville, ON, L6H 5R7