October 6th - Jim Bell

ROTARY MEETING     10/6/2010

PRESIDENT CAROL RANG US INTO ORDER RIGHT ON TIME FOLLOWED QUICKLY BY  LARRY MUELLER'S  PRAYER, JEANNE TUNNICLIFFE LEADING US IN THE PLEDGE AND ROBIN PAGGI LEADING THE SONG.   NEXT WE HAD TWO VISITING ROTARIANS INTRODUCED:   SUSAN EATON FROM BAKERSFIELD BREAKFAST AND BRAD HENDERSON , 1/3 FROM WEST AND 2/3s FROM TWILIGHT ~ WELL, AT LEAST THAT'S WHERE HIS HEART IS!    WE HAD  MANY VISITORS TONIGHT:   HAROLD AND LANA HANSON, AND LILIA PRADO,  GUESTS OF JOHN TAIT  (HAROLD IS CURRENTLY A BAKERSFIELD CITY COUNCILMAN WHO SPENDS HIS TIME FIELDING QUESTIONS LIKE THIS: "WHEN WILL MY POT HOLES BE REPAIRED"?)   ALSO IN ATTENDANCE WERE CRAIG WEBER, HUSBAND OF THE LOVELY RED BADGER, LOUISE WEBER ;   MEEYANG AND ARIANNA FISHKIN, THE BETTER 2/3 OF THE FISHKIN CLAN;  AND A CONTINGENT OF MIRA MONTE HIGH SCHOOL INTERACTORS, LEAD BY NONE OTHER THAN THEIR.....LEADER!....... PATRICK SCUBA.   INTERACTORS IN ATTENDANCE WERE YOSHI POMPA, PRESIDENT; RUBY BARRERA, VICE-PRESIDENT, AND LESLIE PINEDA, SECRETARY.  GREAT TO SEE THEM ALL!

THE FIRST ORDER OF BUSINESS CONDUCTED  (THAT IS AFTER CAROL REMINDED US TO BE AT THE ELEPHANT BAR FOR DINNER FRIDAY NIGHT AT 6:30PM SO WE "CAN GET TO KNOW EACH OTHER BETTER")  WAS THE INDUCTION OF BRAND-SPANKIN' NEW ROTARIAN AND RED BADGER:   ANDREA HILL  (SPONSORED BY ROBIN PAGGI).  THIS MUST HAVE BEEN A SPECIAL TREAT FOR ANDREA TO HAVE BEEN INDUCTED BY PRESIDENT CAROL AND OUR DISTRICT GOVERNOR DEEPA.  ANDREA IS A CPA AND HAS VOWED TO "BREAK THE LOCK-HOLD" OF ATTORNIES ON THE CLUB!!

NEXT WE HAD CECIL MARTIN, IN HIS DISTRICT LEVEL POSITION OF GROUP 2 REP AND ASSISTANT TO THE GOVERNOR,  INTRODUCE OUR DISTRICT 5240 GOVERNOR, DEEPA WILLINGHAM.  

EDUCATED PARTIALLY IN HER YOUTH BY SISTER TERESA IN HER NATIVE INDIA,  DEEPA ARRIVED IN THE UNITED STATES ON FEBRUARY 4TH, 1964, AT IDYWYLD AIRPORT IN NEW YORK CITY WITH $8. IN HER POCKET.  FROM THERE, SHE TRAVELED TO MY FAVORITE STATE, OHIO, TO CONTINUE HER EDUCATION.   CULTURE SHOCK FOR HER WAS AN IMMENSE UNDERSTATEMENT HAVING ARRIVED IN THE WINTER WITH NO WARM CLOTHES, COULD NOT EAT THE DORM FOOD ( BUT WHO CAN)  WHICH LED TO A LOSS OF 15LBS IN 2 WEEKS, ACTUALLY GOING FROM 95 LBS TO 80 LBS.  (WRITER'S NOTE:  I HAVE TWO DOGS, EACH OF WHICH WEIGH MORE THAN 80 LBS, AND THEY DON'T EAT DORM FOOD EITHER!).    SHE PROMPTLY WAS ENCOURAGED TO "BEEF UP" , ER,  I MEAN, INCREASE HER WEIGHT BY INGESTING LARGE QUANTITITES OF COCA COLA AND POTATO CHIPS,  WHICH IS SOMETHING ELSE THAT SHE AND I HAVE IN COMMON!  FOLLOWING HER UNDERGRADUATE WORK AT MIAMI OF OHIO, ONTO WISCONSIN FOR HER MASTERS' DEGREE AND THEN MOVED TO SANTA BARBARA.  IT'S HERE IN CALIFORNIA OVER THE NEXT 50 YEARS THAT SHE MADE HER "MARK" ON THE ROTARY WORLD, HAVING HELD  MULTITUDINOUS CLUB POSITIONS, AND INCLUDES SPEAKING AT ROTARY INTERNATIONAL IN ENGLAND,  LEADING HER TO THIS YEAR AS DISTRICT GOVERNOR AND THE AFFECTIONATE TITLE OF "OCIW",  LOOSELY TRANSLATED AS:   "ONE CRAZY INDIAN WOMAN"!

DEEPA'S  FOCUS WITH US THIS EVENING WAS THE CURRENT CONDITION OF THE WORLD WE LIVE IN.  SHE SHARED THE FOLLOWING BULLET POINTS:

·         1/6 OF WORLD'S POPULATION IS ILLITERATE, A STAGGERING 855 MILLION PEOPLE,  2/3rds OF WHICH ARE WOMEN.

·         THE U.S. IS HURTING IN EVERY CITY WITH 691,000 PEOPLE WHO WENT HUNGRY LAST YEAR ~ A 50% INCREASE ! 

·         195,000 VETS WERE HOMELESS LAST YEAR.

OF COURSE HERE AND ABROAD, THESE NUMBERS IN DISTESS LEADS TO THE FEELING BY THEM OF NO HOPE AND NO CONTROL OF THEIR DESTINY, A VERY DISTRUBING AND BAD SITUATION.

DEEPA ASKED US TO CONSIDER ROTARY AS "HUMANITY'S PROBLEM SOLVERS" AND IN THIS 106TH YEAR OR ROTARY, TO FOCUS ON OUR CLUB GOALS ONE AT A TIME WHICH, IF ACCOMPLISHED CLUB BY CLUB AROUND THE WORLD, WOULD GO A LONG WAY TO BEING THE WORLD'S PROBLEM SOLVERS.   THIS IS THE VERY REASON THE BILL AND MELINDA GATES FOUNDATION HAS PARTNERED WITH ROTARY INTERNATIONAL TO ERADICATE POLIO AROUND THE WORLD.  ONCE IN 125 COUNTRIES, POLIO IS NOW FOUND IN ONLY 4 COUNTRIES ( PAKISTAN, AFGANISTAN, INDIA, AND NIGERIA)  GREATLY DUE TO THE FOCUS, ENERGY AND COMMITMENT OF ROTARIANS AROUND THE WORLD.

DEEPA REMINDED US OF ROTARY INTERNATIONAL'S  VISION THIS YEAR TO:

·         SUPPORT AND STRENGTHEN CLUBS

·         FOCUS AND SUPPORT HUMANITARIAN PROBLEMS

·         ENHANCE ROTARY'S  PUBLIC IMAGE

DEEPA ALSO POSED SOME VERY INTERESTING ROTARY QUIZ QUESTIONS:

1.         WHAT PERCENTAGE OF ROTARY IS UNDER THE AGE OF 40?  (11%)

2.         WHAT PERCENTAGE OF ROTARIANS LEAVE ROTARY WITHING THE FIRST FOUR YEARS?  (80%)  YES, THAT'S EIGHTY PER CENT!!

DEEPA'S  CONTENTION IS PRETTY STRAIGT FORWARD:   WE ARE NOT GETTING ENOUGH YOUNG PEOPLE TO JOIN ROTARY EACH YEAR.  WE ARE ALSO NOT INVOLVING THOSE NEW ROTARIANS IN ENOUGH COMMUNITY SERVICE PROJECTS THAT "TOUCH THEIR HEATR" AND GIVE THEM THAT "MOMENT" WE ALL TALK ABOUT, THAT MOMENT IN TIME WHEN YOU REALLY BECOME A ROTARIAN FOR LIFE.

DISTRICT GOVERNOR DEEPA ALSO ASKED US TO HELP PRESIDENT CAROL ATTAIN HER CLUB GOALS THIS YEAR WHICH ARE:

·         INCREASE MEMBERSHIP BY 10

·         BECOME A 100% PAUL HARRIS CLUB

·         PURCHASE (1) SHELTER BOX  (which is done!)

SHE ALSO ASKED ALL OF US TO "THINK OUTSIDE THE BOX"  WHEN IT COMES TO MEETING TIMES, VENUES, PROJECTS, AND CLUB PRESENTATIONS, OR SPEAKERS.  SHE IS LEADING THE WAY IN THINKING OUTSIDE THE BOX BY HER FIRST-EVER ATTEMPTED "TRAVELLING DISTRICT CONFERENCE"  THIS MONTH, WHICH BEGINS FRIDAY NIGHT WITH A COCKTAIL PARTY IN SAN LUIS OBISPO, PICKS UP AGAIN IN BAKERSFIELD ON SATURDAY MORNING THE 23RD FOR BREAKFAST AT THE DOUBLE TREE ( $30. REGISTRATION AND YOU NEED TO BE THERE), AND CONCLUDING IN BUELLTON FOR COCKTAILS AND BANQUET.  INCREDIBLY INNOVATIVE, DEEPA!  SHE IS LITERALLY BRINGING DISTRICT CONFERENCE TO US!  THE WEEKEND FOCUS, BY THE WAY, IS THE ERADICATION OF POLIO AND SHOULD GARNER IMMENSE PUBLICITY ALONG OUR HIGHWAYS.  ( DID YOU KNOW OUR DISTRICT 5240 RANKS #5 IN THE WORLD IN POLIO GIVING?)

OUR MEETING CONCLUDED WITH PRESIDENT CAROL PRESENTING DEEPA WITH OUR APPLE DUMPLING BOOK, A REMINDER OF OUR DINNER AT THE ELEPHANT BAR THIS FRIDAY NIGHT AT 6:30PM, AND SANDY FOSTER WINNING THE 50/50 DRAWING.