https://us02web.zoom.us/j/3748672091
Doubletree, 1011 W Holmes
Mesa, AZ 85210 United States of America
Our hybrid meetings are held weekly on the 1st thru 4th Thursdays of each month. The meetings are broadcast via Zoom to include all, whether attending virtually or in person.
Since John was last seen by some of his fellow-members of Mesa West Rotary, he has visited the Taj Mahal in Agra, India, He travelled from India to Paris, France, where he enjoyed champagne at the top of the Eiffel Tower. He is now in Scotland visiting long-time friends Gina and Stuart. He is shown with Gina as they were getting ready to board the Hogwart train in Fort William, Scotland. While in Scotland, he ran across a Celtic Rhino, and visited Glencoe where he has his Scottish estate. He sends his greetings and looks forward to seeing everyone at our July 13 meeting, when he will be back home in Mesa.
FIRST: The development of acquaintance as an opportunity for service;
SECOND: High ethical standards in business and professions; the recognition of the worthiness of all useful occupations; and the dignifying of each Rotarian's occupation as an opportunity to serve society;
THIRD: The application of the ideal of service in each Rotarian's personal, business, and community life;
FOURTH: The advancement of International understanding, goodwill, and peace through a world fellowship of business and professional persons united in the ideal of service.
The Four-Way Test: The Four-Way Test is a nonpartisan and nonsectarian ethical guide for Rotarians to use for their personal and professional relationships. The test has been translated into more than 100 languates, and Rotarians recite it at club meetings: Of the things we think, say or do
1. Is it the TRUTH?
2. Is it FAIR to all concerned?
3. Will it build GOODWILL and BETTER FRIENDSHIPS?
4. Will it be BENEFICIAL to all concerned?
President Pam thanked Jeanie Morgan and Chuck Flint for working at the greeter table checking everyone in and selling raffle tickets. She thanked Ron, Colleen, and Polly for their help with setting the tone for the meeting. She also thanked John Benedict, Jack Rosenberg, and Steve Ross for being the greeting team making everyone feel welcome as they arrived for the meeting.
Introduction of Guests
President Pam introduced Allora McChesney who would be speaking later in the meeting.
Colleen Coons introduced Jane and Estella from the McKinney Vento Program with Mesa Public Schools.
President Pam welcomed member Bryan Goetzenberger who is rarely able to attend our in-person meetings.
Chuck Flint introduced his friends, Ildika and Conrad Hilde. Conrad is a member of Rotary in Dubai. He is a "Bus Driver," which is what other pilots call those who pilot the Airbus 380 - the largest aircraft in the world.
Harry Grossman from the Rotary Club of Sedona Village introduced himself, saying he plans to visit Mesa West often and in the name of efficiency declared it is no longer necessary to waste time introducing him.
Amanda Rosenberg introduced her daughter, Sam Rosenberg who will be an outbound Youth Exchange student to Denmark next year, and Fanny Leinard, our inbound Youth Exchange student from France who will soon be leaving on the cross-country train trip with other inbound Youth Exchange Students.
Harry Short, a visiting Rotarian from Seattle, was enjoying visiting our vibrant club in Mesa.
Mike Schroeder introduced their son, Luke Schroeder, saying he is an ASU graduate who has joined him in his practice, which means Mike doesn't have to do as much anymore.
Lu General volunteered to be fined for President Pam's failure to introduce Assistant Governor Dan Coons.
Special Presentation of Gift from Don LaBarge to Fanny Leinard
Don told of a special pin that was created the year the Rotary International Convention was held in San Antonio Texas. It appeared to be an exact replica of a Texas Rangers Badge. They made a lot of money - over $300,000 which was donated to Polio Plus, but they ended up getting in some trouble over it from the Attorney General in Texas because of that similarity. After that convention, Rotarians would try to come up with the favorite pin to be sold at the next convention. In 2007 the convention was held in Salt Lake City, Utah, a pin was designed by an Indian Reservation Artist. Don was asked to spend some time in the booth selling the pins. About an hour into his shift, Don got word that the booth had to shut down immediately. The pin had not been produced by a licensed Rotary vendor and the individual communicating with Don said he was instructed to confiscate and destroy the pins. "Somehow," Don ended up with a box of the pins. Don then presented Fanny with a 2007 Rocky Mountain pin. It was a commemorative arrowhead, featuring the Rotary Wheel, a peace pipe and a tomahawk over a dream catcher.
Don told Fanny she was probably now the only Youth Exchange student to own one of the pins. He told her that there are some Rotarians who collect and exchange unusual Rotary pins, and when he last checked four or five years ago, the pin was going for $200.
Ace of Clubs Raffle - Chuck Flint
Chuck explained that the raffle tickets are sold for $5 each with a third of the proceeds going into the club operating budget, a third going into the small weekly pot, and a third going into the large, accumulating pot, which was up to $600. Chuck asked his friend, Conrad to draw the winning ticket which was held by Jeanie Morgan, making her the winner of $30 and the opportunity to try to draw the Ace of Clubs from the cards remaining in the deck.
After briefly shuffling the cards, the card Jeanie drew was the Five of Diamonds, which she destroyed.
Happy Bucks - Ron Thompson
Before collecting Happy Bucks, Ron thanked Lu General for filling in for him June 8. He knew she could be pretty persuasive. She was the one who brought Ron into the club.
Allan Cady was happy. The total contributed to the Sponsor Campaign is now very close to $45,000. Time is getting short to get donations made this fiscal year, which ends June 30. He was also happy to tell about a visit he and Polly made at the La Jolla Rotary Club when they were in California recently. At that meeting they awarded 24 students with scholarships of $10,000 each. Each student introduced themselves, told a little about their high school, about a significant person in their life and their planned college major. Some time in the past a very wealthy Rotarian left an endowment. The scholarships were given using the earnings from that endowment.
Polly Cady contributed. She was happy to get to see Fanny at the meeting.
Colleen Coons was happy to announce that our visitor, Harry Short, has allowed his Pinetop house to be used for a Rotaract Leadership Retreat. She was glad to have Estella and Jane at our meeting. She was looking forward to hosting a gathering July 12 to give the many friends Fanny has accumulated a chance to hug her and way goodbye before she heads home to France. She was sad that she and Dan would have to leave the meeting early to head for Junior RYLA near Prescott where she and Dan would be teaching Yoga.
Steve Ross was happy to announce their son, who is a product of the Gilbert School System, ASU graduate, and since studied at Yale, in Africa and most recently at George Washington University, is now Dr. Scott Andrew Ross, PhD. He was pledging $100 for that, plus another $100 for his new car - a Highlander hybrid.
Dick Myren contributed his usual $2 for he and Rod being associated with the Ace of Clubs.
Ed Koeneman contributed - everyone at his house is recovering. Susie had had her gall bladder removed over the weekend. Debbie experienced round two of COVID - first the Australian version, followed by the current US variant. Everyone is recovering. They had their first Zoom call with the Youth Exchange student - Carlotta from Spain - who will be staying with them in the fall. Her mother also participated in the call. Happy to see Fanny and for her great year and another happy buck for Sam who would be enjoying an awesome year in Denmark next year.
Dan Coons was happy to find out there would be a party at his house on July 12. It's okay with him. He'll be in Kenya with the Crutches for Africa team while Colleen enjoys the party. Dan was also happy to announce the Queen Creek Club is officially chartered as of Tuesday, June 13. They chartered with 34 members and most are new Rotarians. Pam added that their charter celebration would be Thursday, June 22.
Jay Stuckey contributed because he was happy he and Melissa get to come visit with everyone at our weekly meetings. He also contributed saying he and his son have not gotten along very well for many years. Now his son and his daughter - on Melissa's side - are having a ball talking and chatting with each other. They are going to the Caribbean later this year as a family and their son and daughter have challenged each other to see which can drink the other "under the table." It will be a wonderful, wonderful parent experience.
Lu General was happy Ron was doing the Sgt at Arms duties. She predicted there would be an earthquake or tornado later in the day since she and Wayne were both at a regular meeting in person on the same day. Her third dollar was because she was so happy to be a member of Mesa West
Harry Grossman learned the night before there would be a window that neither he or his friend have medical appointments down here in the Phoenix area and his son and daughter-in-law - both of whom are former youth exchange students in California have nothing going on and Harry is going to go out and see them next week.
Pam Cohen was happy that a special Rabbi friend who officiated in her daughter's baby naming celebrated his 50th anniversary in that position. She was happy that little Wilder survived his river rafting trip with his parents, and Pam was happy for all the guests at our meeting.
Jeanie Morgan was happy. She had used her phone to make some calls and increased the number planning to attend our 50th anniversary celebration on the 29th by three. She reminded members that they all knew people who had not been at our meetings in a while and encouraged them to make some calls, saying "You have twenty-four hours to do so. I need to have their names and what they want to eat."
Don LaBarge said he has known Harry Short for about forty years. When he saw Harry at our meeting, Harry said "Hi Don. How're you doing and how's Chris." Don admitted his response was "Who are you?"
Announcements
Ed Koeneman said he was following Jeanie's last call for head count with his own last call for photos for the anniversary dinner slide show. He needs photos of each member taken in 1973, and photos from special Rotary moments - when serving as Club President, District Governor, working on a service project, etc. Send them to Ed. If you get a bounce message, try again.
Program - Save the Family - Allora McChesney
Dick Myren introduced Allora McChesney, saying she had been with Save the Family since January of this year. He noted the irony that one of our Mesa West members - John Benedict - was one of their original board members. Dick said that when she joined Save the Family, she brought six years of fundraising experience in the Arizona non-profit community. She is a Phoenix native. She received her undergraduate from Arizona State University and has worked or volunteered at numerous local nonprofit organizations such as the Phoenix Art Museum, Desert Botanical Garden and Arizona Sustainable Alliance. She has a passion for helping in her community and supporting local nonprofits in reaching their fundraising goals.
Allora began by saying since we already had some background about Save the Family, she would share some facts. Shee said they have always had three core values. Needs and available responses have changed over the years. She shared a brief video. Click here to see the video.CLICK HERE to see the slides she used during her presentation.
Some of their housing programs:
Rapid rehousing. They helped 220 families last year. Many are single moms who have left domestic violence situations.
Step Up to Independence - temporary housing owned by Save the Family. They hope to grow to 20 units over the next year.
Eviction Prevention - up to three months of support.
Permanent Supportive Housing - 118 units of long term housing for individuals and families.
Affordable Rental Movement (ARM) - 150 affordable units scattered throughout Maricopa County. ARM is the landlord.
First week
Meet Case Manager
Meet with Career Development
Meet with Youth Outreach Team
Set up a Case Plan
Start search for affordable housing
Receive basic necessities
Case Plan
Integrated Service Plan of necessary steps to independence
Set long and short term goals
Create actionable steps to reach goals
Connect with appropriate resources.
Resources and Assistance
Case management
Financial Literacy/Budgeting
Career Services
Mental Health/Substance Abuse Counseling
Youth Services
Transportation
Housing
Missy's Mall - things that are needed to make a house a home
Connecting with community partners
Back 2 school bash
Holiday sposorships
Padmission (look for affordable housing online) /Pipeline AZ (reliable job posting site)
Community Help
Volunteers
Thanksgiving Meals
Adopt-a-family
Shared stats about numbers served in prior year. Teaching life skills needed to break cycle of poverty is one of their most important objectives.
Fifty-nine percent of their families are headed by single moms.
As Rotarians, we are regularly exposed to opportunities to support various causes with our time, talent and treasure. Sometimes it is hard to sift through all the information and decide where we are going to use our available financial resources.
It would be wonderful if every Arizona Rotarian would make the following BIG FOUR their Rotary charities of choice and support every one of them every year, we could make a bigger difference than we are making today.
The Rotary Foundation (TRF) Annual Fund - The Rotary Foundation transforms your gifts into service projects that change lives both close to home and around the world." Giving a small amount each month adds up. CLICK HERE to download a form you can use to sign up for Rotary Direct, electing "Annual Fund - Share" for your recurring donation.
The Rotary Foundation (TRF) Polio Plus - Rotary's commitment to eradicate polio is so well known and respected that the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation matches donations $2 for $1. To take advantage of this opportunity to multiply the effect of your giving, CLICK HERE and download a second Rotary Direct form, this time electing electing "Polio Eradication" for your recurring donations. Those who donate $100 or more annually to Polio Plus qualify in District 5495 as Polio Plus Society Members. If you would like to make that commitment, CLICK HERE to download the commitment form.
The Rotary Vocational Fund of Arizona (TRVFA) provides vocational education grants to Arizona Residents who meet specific low-income guidelines. The grants enable the recipients to lift themselves out of poverty, benefitting themselves, their families and the economy of our state. TRVFA is a 501(c)(3) charity. They also are a Qualifying Charitable Organization for Arizona Tax Credit Donations. Their QCO Code is 20698. Many Arizona Rotarians say giving to TRVFA is a "no brainer." If you can help someone lift themselves out of poverty and it won't end up costing you anything why would you not do it? Mesa West Rotary has the highest number of members who have signed up for automated monthly recurring donations by electing that option on the "Donate Now" button on the TRVFA website. Click the image to learn more or CLICK HERE to DONATE NOW.
Mesa West Rotary Foundation, Inc. is the funding and fundraising arm of our own Mesa West Rotary Club. It is a 501(c)(3) charity. We have had successful sponsorship campaigns the last few years enabling us to spend our energy on service rather than on holding fundraising events. Charitable grants that we get involved with are funded through our charitable foundation, Our signature Gift of Hearing Project in Guaymas Mexico is funded through this foundation. Scholarships are awarded annually to Westwood High School Students (the high school where Mesa West Rotary sponsors an Interact Club). Funds are used to support a variety of activities in four of the Rotary Avenues of Service:
Community Service
International Service
Vocational Service
Youth Service
The process isn't quite automated at this point in time, but we hope it soon will be. For now, you can email our executive secretary who can help you work out a recurring donation plan should you wish to make that arrangement to support our own club's charitable activity.
Special Presentation of Gift from Don LaBarge to Fanny Leinard
Ace of Clubs Raffle - Chuck Flint
Mesa West Rotary Foundation, Inc. is the funding and fundraising arm of our own Mesa West Rotary Club. It is a 501(c)(3) charity. We have had successful sponsorship campaigns the last few years enabling us to spend our energy on service rather than on holding fundraising events. Charitable grants that we get involved with are funded through our charitable foundation, Our signature Gift of Hearing Project in Guaymas Mexico is funded through this foundation. Scholarships are awarded annually to Westwood High School Students (the high school where Mesa West Rotary sponsors an Interact Club). Funds are used to support a variety of activities in four of the Rotary Avenues of Service:.png)
