We could not have asked for better weather. The fast moving front yesterday blew away the heat and humidity and ushered in a bright sunny sky, dry temperature in the high seventies for our meeting this afternoon. My enjoyment of the weather, however, was cut short by a new surprise. As I approached the building from the side entrance, the absence of the caterer’s truck caught my attention. Inside, our new treasurer, Dan Firestone,  gladly took my check for the dues but returned the other one for the lunch. Now I really got it. No lunch today. Jack Sayer later informed us that for some strange reason, our caterer dropped the ball. We did not have the safety net of Panera Bread either.

President Kevin got the ball rolling with the light touch on the bell so as not to render Dan Larson, sitting almost next to the bell, totally deaf.  The Rotary song and the Pledge-of-Allegiance went smoothly followed by Marc’s new style of invocation which started with a few James Bond jokes and about his friends on Facebook followed by his “invocation” on the theme of winners and losers. By now just about all of us, who usually maintain a solemn demeanor during invocations, were roasting Marc. Sorry, Marc. That was all I was able to get from where I was sitting.

This is about the time we line up for lunch. However, no lunch allowed President Kevin to get down to business right away. He wanted to assure us that cutting out lunch is clearly not one of the reforms he has in mind for our club. Laughter and comments followed. Soon after, the crowd started to simmer down, and President Kevin turned his attention to talk about more serious issues. The following is a summary of discussion items and announcements:

1.        President Kevin thanked everyone for their support. He acknowledged that we had a bumpy ride last week, but we are clearly leaving that behind us and moving forward with an open mind and heart.

2.       So far, out of 47 members President Kevin has received 16 responses to his email about committee assignments.  His idea is to seek input from members as to which committee they feel most suited to serve. Those who did not get his email were asked to provide him their correct email addresses. For others, he encouraged them to respond in a timely fashion. He would like to discuss Committee Assignments with the Board on Monday.

3.       District Golf Tournament is set for August 6, 2018. Our club needs to contribute one raffle prize for this event.

4.       George Agnelli received a letter from our old friend Bill Flynn in Florida thanking him for selling him the losing Raffle ticket.

5.       Caring Moments: Nick Cecere had a hernia operation and is doing well. Cards and phone calls are welcome. Bev Leone broke her ankle in Rome. Doug Willett, if he was awake during the procedure today watching the screen, might be inclined to share his journey. Knowing from my own experience, it is best to leave the memories of such journeys at the hospital’s door step when coming home. Homer Scoville, a Rotarian from the Glastonbury Club, passed away.

6.       George Schoen reported the progress on the Golf Committee meeting. Gifts have been decided. Mary will assist in sending letters to sponsors. Raffle prizes are welcome. Marc will store them in his office.

7.       Neil Cunningham announced that our club will once again participate in the Hartford Marathon Water Station project as it has done since the inception of the race.

8.       Our Board Meeting will be held at 5:00 at Elks Club in Glastonbury followed by the yearly gastronomical event starting at 6:30 with choices of Rib Eye Steak or Sword Fish as the main entrée. Cost per person will be $20. Spouses and guests are welcome. A show of hands gave President Kevin a sense of how many will be attending from our club. Others who were not at the meeting today, please let President Kevin know if you want to attend.

9.       Marc continued the role of collecting Happy Dollars by making rounds, and by the time he was done the little envelope had $84 dollars.

10.   We had only one guest today. Dan Firestone’s grandson Jacob is visiting from Florida. We did our usual rendition of the Welcome Song.

11.   President Kevin rang the bell to end the meeting. Whoops. Raffle!! Happy Jack was not deterred by minor infractions like this and performed his usual duty making Dan Larson the winner.

My apologies if I missed something. Your scribe, Anwar Hossain, substituting for Doug Willett this week.