The meeting in the Winnetka Community House was opened at 12:17 by ex-President Tom Nash. The Thought for the Day came from David Grant after he led the pledge of allegiance. There were visitors, There were 24 members present. Lunch was served at 12:22 and the meeting then started at 12:40. 

 

ANNOUNCEMENTS: ex-President Joe noted Robert Mardirossian’s recent birthday and the usual discordant Happy Birthday was sung.

 

We were reminded another Scribe was still sought along with Patti Van Cleave who just volunteered to join the ranks of Scribblers.

 

The Rotary Pavilion at the 9/29 at the Park District’s post Bike Winnetka hoopla on 9/29 needs .volunteers to help pass the word of the wonderfulness of Rotary to passers-by. 

 

DIG AND GRIN- Lee Padgett provided a series of amusing one-liners and was rewarded with solid applause although the audience was a bit slow to react. 

 

SPEAKER – Introduced by the elder Mr. Birkenstein, the speaker was Professor John McGinnis a graduate of Harvard College and Harvard Law School. He also has an MA degree from Balliol College, Oxford, in philosophy and theology. Prof. McGinnis talked about federal judicial confirmations and the reasons for increased partisanship and the prospects for the future. 

He told how judicial confirmations shape the nature of constitutional law. He took us back to the 1600’s and the Civil War in England when a key issue was sovereign power. As part of their debates, the life-term was adopted so the King could not remove a judge whose rulings he didn’t like.

Suggesting sovereign power is very still a fundamental, but unspoken, issue today, he said the two political parties have very divergent views. As the current Washington atmosphere seems to totally lack compromise, he feels the Supreme Court has become, and will be for some time to come, politicized.

.Professor Mcginnis finished his talk about 1:15 and the Q&A lasted to 1:35! A variety of subjects were raised. The first was if limiting the term of a justice would help. He said getting Congress to approve any form of term limits was akin to Turkeys voting in favor of Thanksgiving.

 

The meeting closed at 1:35 p.m. with a recitation of the Rotary 4-Way Pledge. 

 

 

 

Areas of Focus

¨ Economic & Community Development

¨ Maternal & Child Health

¨ Bonus: Positive Environmental Impact

 

Project Objectives

¨ Restore and expand breadfruit production in Jeremie region of Haiti that was devastated by Hurricane Matthew

¨ Create a local, solar-powered breadfruit processing facility

¨ Provide vocational training to farmers, facility workers

¨ Develop the domestic and export market for breadfruit products

 

Planned Activities

¨ Propagate and grow 5,000 breadfruit saplings

¨ Provide ready-to-produce tress to small holder farmers and coop orchards

¨ Fund processing equipment for new facility (building funded by cooperating NGO)

¨ Provide packaged breadfruit breakfast meals to local schools

¨ Provide vocational training to farmers and workers

 

Expected Outcomes

¨ Produce 2.5 - 5 million lbs. of breadfruit annually

¨ Economic impact on region- $470,000 - $900,000 annually

¨ Good jobs and businesses for local population in poorest region of Haiti

¨ Provide nutritious meals to school children

¨ Develop an export industry for Haiti

 

Contribute to this project with the button below. Donations will be matched 2.5 to 1 by The Rotary Foundation.