It was another informative meeting on this brisk but bright day. There were twenty-one participants in today’s meeting. After a few minutes of social conversation, President Sue Klock rang the bell at 12 noon sharp. She held up the flag and led us in the Pledge of Allegiance. Marc Glass then gave this week’s invocation. In the invocation, he said that all religions are welcome in Rotary and that we should be thankful for our virtual meal and strive for a polio-free world. Afterwards, all the members (led by Sue) recited the 4-Way Test, a test used by Rotarians world-wide as a moral code for personal and business relationships.
“Is it the truth?
Is it fair to all concerned?
Will it bring goodwill and better friendships?
Will it be beneficial to all concerned?”
GUEST SPEAKER
Anwar Hossain introduced our guest speaker, E.J. Neafsey. Dr. Neafsey is currently the President of the Rotary Club of Stafford, CT and has 20 years of experience in water quality monitoring, analytics, and consulting. He is the Chief Water Scientist for LG Sonic US. He completed his PhD at Cornell University, focusing in part on accessing infrared spectroscopy and chemometrics’ usefulness to subaqueous soil survey. In his presentation, Dr. Neafsey described how Rotary International’s new environment focus aligns with its longstanding work on public health and water projects, including potential opportunities for here in District 7890. Dr. Neafsey mentioned the seven focus areas of Rotary, one of which being the environment. He said that a thriving environment is beneficial for the six other focus areas. Dr. Neafsey added that working on environmental projects can, among other things, benefit and unify communities, aid in economic development, and help Rotary clubs grow in membership and attract multigenerational members. He gave an example of the Roadkill Project, which he worked on while he was in Florida, that regularly cleaned up the section of a road.If you have any questions for Dr. Neafsey, you can contact him at 860-287-3141 or at ejneafsey@gmail.com You can also contact him at work at 860-849-8560 or at ejneajsey@lgsonic.com
If you want to view Dr. Neafsey’s presentation, along with the rest of today’s meeting, you can go to https://us02web.zoom.us/rec/share/MXFj-nIpkcQlDTVTso4hHCcwaAmqgE3z2wkNHtQPx6bf9iH5w33jw-i39JHZfqhG.A1W84WZrTCa7M2nP (Passcode: 5J*haiB.)
CARING MOMENTS
- Jack Sayre was in a wheelchair until yesterday. He is now walking and getting better. We wish Jack a full recovery.
- Dick McCarthy is not recovering as fast as we would like and is confined to his house. We wish Dick a speedy recovery.
ANNOUNCEMENTS
- The next board meeting is on Tuesday, February 1 at p.m., via Zoom. One of the topics to be discussed is what our service project will be. Login information is available on the homepage of our club’s website, https://easthartfordrotary.org All members are welcome to attend.
- We got a letter from the Dictionary Project, thanking us for our help. 7,123 students have received copies of a dictionary from the East Hartford Rotary Club. Special thanks to Ceil Collins and Vince Crawford for all their help on the project as well as Anwar Hossain and Connor Martin, who helped put our club’s four-way test bookmarks inside the dictionaries. Also, thanks to Sonya Stemmer for her initial encouragement to restart the project.
- We were happy to have Tom Reynolds join us today. Tom is a Rotarian in the Ledyard club and works at Manchester Community College. Tom thanked us for distributing money to MCC in 2020. The two recipients of the funds wrote our club, thanking us and expressing how much they appreciate us.
- Bob Buettner mentioned the Paul Harris dinner, which will be held on March 30 at p.m. The cost of the event is $55, which will include cocktails (cash bar), cheese, hors d’oeuvres, dinner, dessert, and coffee.
- Connor mentioned the scholarship committee. If anyone wants to be on the committee, please email him.
DISTRICT CONFERENCE
The Rotary District Conference will be held from April 29 to May 1 at the Southbridge Hotel and Convention Center in Southbridge, Massachusetts. This will be just for our district, and we will be celebrating our District’s 100th Anniversary. You can register by going to district’s website https://www.rotarydistrict7890.org On the right side of the homepage, look for upcoming events and click on District Conference. The registration fee is $175 per person until February 1. On February 2, the price will increase to $200 per person. Registration closes entirely on March 29. Hotel rooms must also be purchased by March 29 to obtain the special rate of $119/night. Hotel rooms at Southbridge Hotel must be purchased separately. Call 508-765-8000 and ask for Rotary District 7890 Room Block. There will be entertainment and meals served. If the conference is cancelled, you will get your money back.
District Governor’s Foundation Thought This Week:
DO LARGE GRANTS EVER TAKE PLACE IN NORTH AMERICA?
Yes! Rotary global grants can have large projects, scholarships, vocational teams all here in the United States or in Canada…or in any Rotary country/region. One of the most amazing aspects of our great foundation is that there are opportunities for large projects wherever there is need. Criteria must be met, but there have been and continue to be large-scale projects in “developed” countries.
The Rotary Club of West Hartford, CT partnered with the Rotary Club of St. Thomas, VI on a project that built a Visual Media Studio for the American School of the Deaf. The resulting Visual Media program significantly strengthened ASD’s goal of providing all its students with opportunities to improve their literacy skills and receive vocational training in a highly sought-after field. Even prior to switching from Matching Grants to Global Grants, there was a Matching Grant in 2011-12 for $450,000 to help two districts in Vermont and New Hampshire to recover from a devastating hurricane.
Sue rang the bell at 12:47pm to end the meeting.
It was an honor to write High Gear this month. I wish everyone stays warm and safe during this upcoming snowstorm.
Jason Primus