 | The Rotary Club of |
High Gear
Volume 78 | Issue 14 / Oct 19, 2022
The club met in person this week at Goodwin University. President Alex unboxed a new bell and rang the meeting to order a little after noon, and we recited the Pledge of Allegiance.
The Four-Way Test
Of the things we think, say or do
1. Is it the TRUTH?
2. Is it FAIR to all concerned?
3. Will it build GOOD WILL and BETTER FRIENDSHIPS?
4. Will it be BENEFICIAL to all concerned?
After the Invocation, our guests were introduced. It was great to see former club member Hope Firestone join us. We also welcomed Erva Willett, and Alexis Safo-Agyeman. Alexis will be joining the club as a representative of East Hartford Public Schools where she is the Family and Community Partnership Coordinator. Our guests lead the line for lunch, which consisted of pizza, salad and grinders.
After we ate, Sarah Kline Morgan, the director of East Hartford Public Library since 2017 gave a presentation on the current and future status of the town library. We learned that the Wickam branch renovation is almost complete. We also learned that the Rotary Eternal Light for Peace, which has stood on the main library grounds since 1965 is in a state of disrepair.
The gas line that feeds the flame has gone bad and needs to be replaced. There was a lot of discussion about how to address this. Sarah presented us with 3 options. 1 : Leave it as is and just make the repairs. 2. Reimagine the monument to bring into modern times / design. Or 3. Start from scratch. The start from scratch option was briefly discussed. Someone mentioned replacing it with peace poles. Nobody seemed to be in favor of that option. Where it was left was that Sarah would coordinate with the Club to redesign the existing monument. One of the ideas that garnered some support was replacing the gas flame with a solar powered LED.
Koats 4 Kids - Another Great Year
This years Koats 4 Kids event was another great success.
Back Row : Jack Sayre, Dan Firestone, Bob Buettner (organizer), Anwar Hossain, Ruth Sheehan, Dan Larson and Sandie Buettner. Front Row : The late Dick McCarthy was surely overseeing the event. He is pictured in the front row between his wife Jeanne and his son Rich.
Out of a possible 133 children who registered, 98 showed up to get their winter coats. This is in line with previous years, approx 75% of kids that register actually attend. This year was a little different in that the maximum amount they could spend on a coat was set at $60. If they did not reach that amount, then the kids could add gloves or a hat as well. Total cost of the coats came to $5,096. Burlington Coat Factory, the annual K4K sponsor, gave the club a discount of $764, so the actual cost to the club turned out to be $4,332. Donations to the club's K4K fund in the memory of Dick McCarthy totaled $12,795, which leaves $8,463 for future years.
Announcements
Club
- President Alex is looking for volunteers to help with the leaf raking project
- Trunk or Treat will be taking place at Rentschler Field on Oct 30. Our club will be handing out bags of candy at the event. Volunteers are needed to help assemble the bags. Please come to the Oct 26 meeting, in person at the East Hartford Y, to help, and let Guy Labella know you plan to attend so he can arrange lunch.
- The Veteran's Lunch will take place on Nov 9th. Jonny Mo is managing this along with Dan Larson.
- The annual Guatamala Water project continues this year. In the past our club has always supported this effort. They are looking for increased donations this year, and the board is looking into the feasibility of this.
- We have provided Liberty Bank with the 5 food shelters we would like them to send our contributions to. The others that we have supported in the past will continue to be funded out of our Charitable account.
- Foodshare participation : 3rd Monday of every month from 12:30 - 2:30
- Jack Sayre is trying to secure the assistance of EHPS students for the annual Salvation Army bell ringing effort
- Jim Watts, although absent from the meeting due to Covid, is accepting nominations for our next Paul Harris awardees. Please email your recommendations to JimW@jwatts.com with your proposed recipient and why you think they deserve the honor.
- Foundation Breakfast on Nov 6th - Delmar Hotel in West Hartford - We currently have 10 people going. Our club will be receiving a citation for Foundation Giving.
- The Holiday Party is scheduled for Dec 14th at the Wethersfield Country Club
Reminder : The Oct 26 meeting will be held at The East Hartford YMCA located at 770 Main St. where the club will assemble the bags of candy to be distributed at Trunk or Treat.
Until next week, Your Scribe Wes Willett