Gallipolitan for September 1, 2009
Countdown to BEF Festival—I realize it may be a bit dramatic (that’s me!) but the Farm Festival will be upon us before we know it. So, for this week and the next few weeks, here’s a countdown to festival week:
**TIME TO BEF FESTIVAL—6 WEEKS!!! **
Sergeant-of-Arms Kurt Dailey summoned the call for the meeting of the Gallipolis Rotary club to order. President Bonnie McFarland answered that call bringing the meeting to order. ADG Matt Willis gave the invocation. Paul Koch provided the Foundation Minute reminding Rotarians the power of Rotary in providing more scholarships than the Fulbright organization. We had a guest today, Andrea Gannaway, President of the Junior Women’s Club. Welcome, Andrea!
Shawn receives Blue Badge—
President Bonnie asked ADG Matt Willis to present Rotarian Shawn Siders his Rotary Blue Badge. Shawn recently completed all the requirements to move to the permanent badge. President Bonnie called on the remaining Red Badge holders to complete the requirements as soon as possible.
Program Responsibility—Secretary Chuck Clark announced the Program Responsibility listing is on the blog page on the right column. The type is a bit small, but it’s there! This will take you to a link which when clicked will take you to the club’s Google page. It’s in a spreadsheet format and will display from any computer since it is using Google apps. Be sure to check it out and KNOW WHEN IT’S YOUR TURN!
Bonnie announced that Gallipolis Rotarians are involved in our community and there will be a Chamber meeting at the Senior Resource Center. Shirley Doss will be hosting this event which will focus on initiatives in our county.
District 6690 Foundation/Membership Meeting—President Bonnie announced we have five members scheduled to attend the District’s Foundation and Membership Seminar at Cherry Valley Lodge, September 26th. This is a great way to learn more about the workings of Rotary and is especially important for our new members.
Presidents’ Council—Past President Debbie Rhodes announced the Presidents’ Council will meet this Friday, September 4th, at 1:00 PM at WesBanco offices on Third Avenue.
Auctions For Relay For Life—President Bonnie brought in some articles for our new fund raiser auction to support Relay For Life. Rotarian Dan Whiteley reminded everyone these auctions will start next week and members can bring in donated items excluding clothing, which will then be sold the following Thursday. Members can bring these items in to our meetings and Dan will have his truck available to handle the goods. This is a great way to fund our support for Relay For Life.
Storage Space Urgently Needed—Our club is in urgent need for a small amount of storage space to hold our blue barrels and excess books. Because these books will be given to schools, the storage needs to be dry and not exposed to the weather or excess humidity. If you can help Gallipolis Rotary, please give Jim Morrison a call at 446-1956, as soon as possible!
Split-The-Pot—Rotarian Jim Morrison ran STP for the meeting today selling enough tickets to boost the small pot to $7.00 and the large pot to $149.00. Our lucky ticket holder today was Resty Alonzo, and Resty donated the small pot to the Club’s Foundation. After disclosing to the full club the Queen of Hearts was indeed included in the deck, Resty managed to pull the Queen—the Queen of Spades, that is! Oh, so close! Resty named the Foundation Fine against anyone NOT signed up for the District Foundation/Membership Seminar.
Fellowship—Rotarian Emily Dailey ran club fellowship for the morning and lamented there were no fines today for any minor infractions or member birthdays! One notable birthday on this day is Boxcar Willy! On this day in history, the first underground railroad opened in Boston, not New York, like Chuck Clark thought. Emily concluded fellowship with some words of wisdom for the group.
Program—President Bonnie introduced today’s program speaker, new member James Wellington, who gave his required vocational talk. This is the one time that members may brag, solicit, or otherwise sell their product or service without having to buy a Happy Buck. Today we learned about Wellington Chiropractic, one of the newest businesses in Gallipolis.
James was born in Pt. Pleasant, raised in Gallia county, and graduated
from River Valley High School. He explained that he eventually graduated from the University of Rio Grande, after a stint as a cowboy in Colorado and some experience as a farrier. James had a firsthand experience with chiropractic after a 4 wheeler accident on SR 554 which had left him quite stiff and in pain. Adjustments performed by a local Chiropractor completely took away the problems and stimulated a new career interest. He spent the next three and a half years attending Palmer Chiropractic College and commuting to and from his family in Gallia county.
James expressed some of the challenges that come with establishing any new business, and that things are now looking much better. As with all vocational talks, James put in a good plug for his growing business. James lives with his wife and two boys in Vinton. A question and answer session followed his remarks. President Bonnie presented our speaker with a certificate for his efforts and James signed a book label for our club’s Books For Schools project. Thanks for joining Gallipolis Rotary, James, we’re glad you’re a Rotarian!