THE GALLIPOLIS ROTARY CLUB

Club President, Shirley Doss, introduced PDG Mel Simon who spoke to the club about Rotary’s Guatemala Literacy Project, (GLP).  PDG Mel mentioned that his advice to Chuck Clark’s enthusiastic return from his recent Guatemala trip, “Welcome to the club!”  He explained that Chuck ‘gets it’ and understands the joy of delivering hands-on service in another culture. 

Mel gave a brief overview of Guatemala and the challenges it faces as a developing country with a growing population and a diverse culture.  Two thirds of the country is mountains with 33 volcanoes, earthquakes, 33 different languages, and a literacy rate lowest in the Americas.  In some rural areas, nearly 3/4’s of the adult population cannot read or write.  Rotary’s response to help this country break the cycle of poverty is the Guatemala Literacy Project.

Rotarians viewed a 10 minute video which provided a first hand look into the project and how Rotarians from 400 clubs in the US, Canada and Guatemala have worked together in this self-sustaining program.  (Rotarians: please click on the above link and view this excellent video.)  Since 1988, the GLP has provided needed textbooks, library materials, and computer labs to help over 29,000 students.

There are annual trips for interested Rotarians to participate first hand the implementation of the grant, travel to schools, and assist in distributing textbooks and computer equipment.  Not only can our club provide needed assistance, but Gallipolis Rotarians can take part and experience the joys of ‘Service Before Self.’  Thanks, Mel and Chuck for the interesting program!

Fellowship—Gordon Amsbary ran our club fellowship for the meeting relating that 90 must now be the new 40!  There was more about the Crimean War as Gordo had done his homework!  Paul Koch was a bit late to the meeting today and was the only fine.  It was good to see Lee Saltzgaber back sporting a new beard.  Today is National Penguin Day!  There was a load of celebrity birthdays, but Gordo did not have any words of wisdom for us.

PR Grant—VP/President-Elect Jodie McCalla sent word our club has received the District PR Grant for this Rotary Year.  This grant will cover the costs involved in spreading the word of Rotary via the new Cinema in Spring Valley.  We plan to have Rotary PSA’s promoting the work of Rotary and our club shown before the features at the theater.

Split-The-Pot—Jim Morrison ran our STP for the meeting announcing the small pot was $7.00 and the large pot which has now grown to $142.00.  Jim asked ADG Matt Willis to draw the lucky winner which was Clyde Evans!  Clyde donated back the small pot to the club’s local foundation.  Clyde drew very carefully for the large pot and came up with the QUEEN OF HEARTS, winning the large pot of $142.00!  Clyde also designated this to be donated to the club’s foundation.  Thanks very much, Clyde!  He did assess the Foundation Fine against anyone who did not possess a full head of grey hair!  Some of us were close, but still chipped in a buck.

Here are the upcoming program assignments for the next several weeks:

Jan 24          Lou Ellen Werry
Jan 31          Zac Fosler
Feb 7            Kevin Petrie
Feb 14          Valentine Dinner

Have a great week!

Program Chair, Shana Booher, arranged an interesting program for this week’s Rotary meeting about Holzer Clinic’s musculoskeletal services.  Our guest speaker, JT. Holland, Manager of this service, who is a Rotarian in Pt. Pleasant, provided an excellent overview of this important area in medicine.  Located at the Holzer Medical Center facility in Jackson, the Center provides comprehensive medical and surgical  expertise for the treatment of trauma injury as well as joint replacement, sport injury, and therapy.  Members enjoyed the opportunity to ask a few questions in the Q & A.  Thanks, JT and Shana for the interesting program!

Past President, Bonnie McFarland, presided over our meeting today as President Shirley was traveling.  We had excellent attendance today and it was good to see everyone back.  Jodie McCalla was with us via SKYPE from her temporary office in Baltimore.  We need to tweak it a bit for next week, but we could see Jodie and she could see us!

Treasurer’s Moment—Shawn Siders spoke briefly about the new club bill format via email.  Because all electronic communications from OVB is encrypted, you may have received Shawn’s email about your bill requiring you to log in first.  If you have any difficulty with the procedure, just give Shawn a call and he’ll explain it.  Most members had no difficulty in retrieving their bill.

Resignation—The club has received a letter of resignation from Rotarian Denise Shockley.  Denise’s professional obligations have prevented her from taking part in club meetings and projects this past year and we want to wish Denise all the best.  We will miss you!

Fellowship—Gordon Amsbary ran club fellowship for our meeting and dazzled members with some Crimean War trivia.  Gordon caught up on December birthdays with Resty Alonzo, Emily Dailey, and Heather Crum, each contributed a small donation and the club sang “Happy Birthday.”  I think we need some practice!  Gordon spun a bit more historical trivia and then closed with a few words of wisdom.

Split-The-Pot—Shana Booher also ran our STP for the meeting today and raised our small pot to $7.00.  Our lucky winner was Bonnie McFarland!  Bonnie’s draw for the ‘big one’ of $134.00 came up a little short with the Three of Diamonds.  She assessed the Foundation Fine against anyone ‘without a cold today’ thanks to a quick hint from Lee Bauman.  Bonnie did donate the small pot back to the club for projects!  Thanks, Bonnie!

Here are the Program responsibilities for the next few weeks:

Jan 17          Mel Simon
Jan 24          Lou Ellen Werry
Jan 31          Zac Fosler
Feb 7            Kevin Petrie

Have a great rest of the week!

Well, not quite Broadway, but a fun time at the first club meeting of the year!  Margaret Evans’ birthday was missed last month, so a special quartet +1 helped sing Happy Birthday at the meeting today.  Our ‘volunteers’ included PDG Mel Simon, Dave Nadler, Matt Willis, newest Rotarian, Amber Johnson, and Fellowship Chairperson, Gordon Amsbary.  Thank you all!

President Shirley Doss rang the bell to call the meeting to order promptly at 7:15 am on a very snowy morning.  Our attendance was a bit weak, but Rotarians slipped in as the meeting continued.

Monthly Board Meeting—President Shirley recommended we NOT have the regular monthly board meeting today and move all the business to the next month’s meeting which will be February 7th right after the morning meeting.

Coin Box—Emily Dailey turned in a Rotary coin box for her contribution to the Rotary Foundation.  This is a great way to make your loose change do some great Rotary work!

Fellowship—Gordon Amsbary led off our first club fellowship for the new year talking about large divorce settlements and some resolutions.  Jodie McCalla popped in a bit late as did Bonnie McFarland and Zac Fosler.  No fines were incurred due to the inclement weather.  The club enjoyed the special quartet +1 who sang to Margaret Evans for her birthday.

Rotary Reading on Wednesday—Project Chairman, Emily Dailey, brought books for Rotary Readers for this month.  We have two Scholastic Publishers picks—“Please Write Back” and “Noodles—I Love Snow.”  We don’t seem to have enough readers for this month, so some schools will slip to next Wednesday.  Please contact Emily if you would like to help out in this great project!

Program—We didn’t have a regular program today, but Chuck Clark volunteered to speak briefly about his experiences last month in Antigua, Guatemala.  Chuck presented a club banner from the Rotary Club of Antigua and spoke about the projects presently being undertaken by the local club there.

It was apparent from his talk that Chuck had a great experience in this Central American country, and he went on to add that there is an opportunity for Gallipolis Rotarians to get involved in Rotary’s work there.  RI operates a self-sustaining program called the Guatemala Literacy Project (GLP)  where our club can participate with a Guatemala Rotary Club to help school literacy in Guatemala.  There are ‘hands-on’ opportunities every February for Rotarians to help in this project! Chuck has a video from RI and we will be learning more about it in the near future.

Stay warm and safe this week and see everyone back at next Tuesday’s meeting!

Here is a listing for Program responsibilities for the next few weeks:

Jan 10          Shana Booher
Jan 17          Bob Hood
Jan 24          Lou Ellen Werry
Jan 31          Zac Fosler

Gallia County Sheriff Joe Browning and Rotary President Shirley Doss.

Program Chair, Melissa Kimmel, invited Gallia County Sheriff Joe Browning to speak to our Rotary club today.  Sheriff Joe spoke to members about the changing operations of running the county jail, especially one that was built in the ‘50’s.  Joe explained it is challenging to cope with the average daily number of 46 inmates.  Local jails house more misdemeanor offenders than felons and there are specific rules regarding housing of prisoners.  Inmate medical cost is the largest single expense for the department. 

Our sheriff spoke briefly about the new Work Release Center. The Gallia County Work Release Center is an alternative to jail for individuals who have been convicted of minor criminal offenses.

All residents ‘pay-to-stay’ and are responsible for their own transportation to and from their employment, as well as, to any court dates and medical appointments. Residents are also responsible for their own medical expenses. Drug and Alcohol testing is completed for each resident. Sheriff’s Correctional Staff, as well as, Court probation officers will monitor the residents assigned to serve a sentence at this facility.

Thank you, Sheriff Joe and Melissa, for the interesting program today!

We had an excellent attendance today and President Shirley Doss welcomed everyone to the meeting.  It was great to see Marlin Rose today! 

Christmas Dinner—President Shirley reminded everyone that next week, Dec. 12^th, we will NOT HAVE A MORNING MEETING!!!  Members and guests will enjoy its annual Christmas Dinner and Ornament Exchange at the Quality Inn (former Holiday Inn) at 6 pm.  It will be a relaxed evening of fellowship and we will be ordering from the menu and members will be responsible for their charges.

Fellowship—Gordon Amsbary led fellowship for the meeting starting with a bit of Wal-Mart trivia, sports trivia, and historical trivia.  There were no birthdays today.

Happy Buck$—We did have a number of Happy Bucks today.  Melissa Kimmel stressed the needs that exist for our local cat and dog shelters.  She distributed a list of items that members can donate.  Jodie McCalla bought a buck on her new opportunity with BTS Software Solutions (unleashbts.com), which will be opening a facility in Gallipolis in January.  Jim Morrison bought a buck for spending Thanksgiving with his daughter and grandchildren in the Bahamas.  Finally, Kurt Dailey, bought a buck in honor of Emily, who is recovering from some recent surgery.  Get well soon, Emily!

‘Split-Da-Pot’—Shana Booher ran our STP this morning and sold a bunch of tickets to run our small pot up to $9.00 this morning!  Good job!  Shana asked Sheriff Joe to draw our winner today which was  . . . Kevin Dennis!  Kevin said this makes two in a row, as he won last week as well!  Kevin drew ultra-carefully for the Queen for the large pot of $127.00, only to pull the Four of Spades.  Our Foundation Fine was assessed against anyone who has not yet donated to the Gallia Animal Shelter.  Kevin also donated back the small pot to the club!  Thanks, Kevin!

Final Balloting—Jim Morrison distributed the final ballots to members today to vote for the slate of officers and our new VP/President-Elect for 2012-2013.  Members had to choose five of the remaining eligible members to serve.  Jim and Deb Rhodes tabulated the numbers.  Congratulations to Paul Koch, Debbie Saunders, Shana Booher, Kevin Dennis, and Lee Saltzgaber who will serve our club next Rotary year.

Here’s our schedule through the end of the year:

Dec 13  Christmas Dinner, 6 pm, Quality Inn
Dec 20  No meeting—Merry Christmas!
Dec 27  No meeting—Happy New Year!