Under a cloudy sky I walked into the meeting a few minutes earlier. The room looked sparsely attended but filled in quickly to our normal attendance level. President Rob rang the bell at 12:00 noon. The Pledge of Allegiance was followed by the reading of the Rotary 4-way Test. Guy LaBella, who was scheduled to do the invocation today, was outside the room calling the restaurant wondering where lunch was. President Rob moved on to the next item on the agenda. We had 12 members present, two more joining via zoom and five guests. Representing the EHPD were Marc Caruso, David Flores and Jon Young. Two representatives from East Hartford Youth Football, were Daisy Rodriguez and Charles Williams.
Today’s fun part of the meeting started with the following two Rotary Trivia questions posed by President Rob:
- What is the greatest distance from Chicago that a Rotary Club banner has been displayed? Sue provided the correct answer: “the moon”.
- In what year was the 4 Way Test officially adopted by Rotary as its standard of ethics. Charles had the right answer: “1942”.
Both winners were rewarded with decorative replicas of a wasp, or a hornet, maybe a butterfly.
ANNOUNCEMENTS/REPORTS
- Marc will update the club database which currently has 216 names of current and former members.
- President Rob has contacted Spectrum about “Welcome to East Hartford” road signs with our club name and Rotary logo. He will speak to Mayor Martin’s office to find out about the guidelines for placing such signs.
- President Rob has left a message for Rachel Buck at Interact.
- Board Meetings from now on will be held on the 2nd Wed every month at 10:45am, here (Goodwin University, 3 Pent Rd, East Hartford) and on Zoom.
- President Rob encouraged fellowship and community spirit by participating in our August Rotary Contest. The member who invites the most guests to lunch throughout the month will be crowned the winner and receive an exciting prize!
- Neil provided a brief history of our participation in the Hartford Marathon Water Station since its inception in 1999. This year the event will take place on October 19. He will provide more info as we get closer to the date.
Marc Caruso and his associates provided details of National Night Out which will take place at the Alumni Park in East Hartford from 5-8 PM on August 6. This event provides an opportunity for interaction between the residents and the police department in a relaxed fun filled setting consisting of entertainment, food and various demonstrations. EHRC has donated money towards the event and will have a booth. Marc Glass, who will be attending a similar event in Maryland, was asked to bring back any new ideas for EHPD to consider for the next year’s event.
Daisy Rodriguez and Charles Williams provided information about the East Hartford Hornets Youth Football & Cheer Organization. This organization has been around since 1996 and serves approximately 300 youths every year. The program is funded mainly by donations and fees for participating in the program. The management team consists of all volunteers. EHRC makes a yearly donation to this organization.
Finally Guy got his opportunity to deliver the invocation based on the theme of inclusion, love and fellowship among all.
Our five guests then led us to the lunch table where the belated delivery just arrived. We enjoyed salads, pizzas and several kinds of grinders. Ceil reminded us that there is also ice cream and cookies.
There were no raffle winners this week. The fund will keep growing each week.
CARING MOMENTS
- Past District Governor and one of Marc’s closest friends Jeff Tager passed away recently:
- Marc’s son, who works for NBC Sports, just arrived in Paris to cover his fourth Olympics.
Your Scribe, Anwar Hossain
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