Please be advised that tomorrow's Rotary luncheon meeting and Board meeting will only be held on Zoom. There will not be an in-person meeting at this time.
All remaining meetings in the month of January will also be held on Zoom only.
We will re-evaluate the situation again at the beginning of February and hope to meet in person again soon. When we resume with in-person meetings, we will go back to hybrid meetings, with the option of attending in person or on Zoom.
Co-chair Greg Nelson called the meeting to order at 12:15 pm. There were 21 members present at this Zoom meeting. Brooke Peppey gave the “thought of the day” that even ringing bells with a crack are inspirational because the crack lets in the light. Greg lead the group in the Pledge of Allegiance. There were no birthdays but there were two anniversaries of long time members Jean Wright and Markie Gekas.
ANNOUNCEMENTS: The visitation for John Thomas will be from 4:00 to 7:00 pm this coming Saturday (Jan. 8th) and the memorial service will be this coming Sunday at 2:00 pm, both at the Scotts Funeral Home in Wilmette.
HAPPY BUCKS: Wes Baumann said he would donate $1 if his computer could show Fred’s full face rather than just half of it; Eric Birkenstein said he would donate an additional $2 if neither half of Fred’s face was shown; and Keith Reed said he would donate $5 in honor of David Birkenstein’s old snow blower which David gave to Keith about 15 years ago and it is still running!
DIG N GRIN: Being inspired by our recent snowfall, Keith presented several Q and A: where do snowmen like to dance--at snowballs; why do snowmen never stay in the middle of large lakes-- snowman’s an island; what the cops yell when they see a snowman stealing--freeze; where do snowmen put their money--snowbanks; and what two words scare snowmen--global warming.
SPEAKER SAFIYYAH HASSAN: Safiyyah is the new Executive Director of the Winnetka Youth Organization. She grew up in a small town in North Carolina at the foot of the Appalachian mountains; she received her Bachelor’s degree from U. of North Carolina in Chapel Hill and her MBA in Healthcare Management at Davenport University; and she has worked in the Illinois Department of Human Services, The Night Ministry and YWCA prior to coming to the WYO. In those positions she worked with and assisted Chicago residents in need of housing, food supplies, medical care, child care, wound care, drug treatment, etc. Her activities at the WYO have included cooperating with other organizations (such as the Warming House in Wilmette, the local police departments, the New Trier Township, and the Volunteer Center) in meeting the “life experience” needs of people on the North Shore—these activities include people of all ages but especially the young people in the area who need help in the areas of mental health, life skills, computer training, etc. She is broadening the WYO work beyond just the neighboring communities so that the WYO can be eligible for possible funds from the State. She is hoping to add a couple of people to her staff which has been reduced over the last several months due to Covid. She is also hoping to find volunteers who can perform some of the fundraising and administrative duties that were performed by our former Rotarian John Thomas who was a long time member of the WYO Board of Directors. Everyone has been impressed with Safiyyahy’s knowledge and experience in all the areas mentioned above and look forward to supporting and working with her to perform all these necessary services.
After Greg lead everyone in the Rotary’s 4 way test, he adjourned the meeting around 1:00 pm.
Our sister Club in Wilmette invites us to participate in their book drive on Saturday, January 29 by dropping off donated books at their collection site.
One of the nice features of meeting virtually is that our meetings can be recorded. This of course depends on your meeting host (me) remembering to start the recording (sometimes I'm a bit late in starting it).
.png)
