April 22, 2008
We met at The Singapore Restaurant this evening and enjoyed a delicious Chinese meal.
Prayer: The prayer was read by Carol Schwarzer.
Song:In honor of the Red Sox doing so well (hope we haven't jinxed them) Bill Oksanen chose "Take Me Out to the Ball Game."
Happy Fines: Bob Campbell is happy to be on school vacation this week, as is Rich Duncan; Rich is also happy to have had three ladies from Turkey in his car at the weekend; Carol Schwarzer is happy that Perry is able to see better with his new glasses; Ed Tarquinio happy to report that Mike Hewitt is engaged - Congrats to Mike; Len Vilandry celebrated a wonderful wedding anniversary with his wife at a very nice Italian restaurant in Clinton; President Mark and PP Seema had a great time with the GSE Team and both thanked Gwen O'Neil for doing such a terrific job - Well Done Gwen! Gwen was happy for all the help she received in making the GSE Team visit such a success.
Sad Fines: Mary Pepin for having to leave the meeting early and for doing something stupid; Carol Schwarzer for Perry's eyesight not as good as it should be; Len Vilandry for his wife who has had awful weather on her vacation in North Carolina compared to our beautiful days here; Gwen for some bad news her daughter received.
Announcements:
- Mary Pepin was distressed to report that she had mislaid the envelope containing donations received from our club for the Relay for Life. She would like all who sponsored her to let her know. Len Vilandry very gallantly made a motion that Fitchburg East donate $200.00 to the Relay for Life - which will be discussed further by the Board.
- The District Conference will take place on Friday May 2, Saturday May 3, and Sunday May 4, at the Holiday Inn Boxborough Woods. DG Greg will host a hospitality suite on Friday and Saturday and would like our club to participate on Friday evening. Finger foods, beverages, paper goods, etc. will be needed. As this is a multi-cultural event, all foods will be welcomed.
- We will meet on Sunday, May 4 at 8:00 AM on the bridge downtown to start prep work on the flower boxes. Please make every effort to attend and help out - many hands make light work!
- Please note the date change...The First Annual Teachers Celebration & Recognition Dinner will now take place on May 13 at the Best Western Royal Plaza, 150 Royal Plaza Drive, Fitchburg. $35.00 per ticket/$350.00 table of 10. Bob Campbell reiterated that everyone in the club needs to lend a hand to make the evening a success. Members are asked to donate a basket for the raffle, which Mary Pepin will collect from those who are not attending the event. (Please note that Mary will not be at the meeting on May 6 so please make arrangements with her to drop off baskets to her at Bonville and Howard.)
History of Rotary: Carol Schwarzer spoke this evening on District Conferences and Conclaves. Our district, Central Massachusetts, contains 54 clubs with 1800 Rotarians. Each year an area within each district is chosen to host the District Conference. This year our District Conference will take place on Friday May 2 thru Sunday May 4, at the Holiday Inn Boxborough. Conclaves used to be a popular way of taking a trip, i.e. a week-long cruise, until a lack of interest brought these to an end.
Program: No program this evening, but President Mark did have some comments to make about how much our club actually does, and he cited:- The Habitat for Humanity Project: $60,000 has been raised in cash and in-kind donations.
- The Flower Box Project continues to beautify the city. Thanks to Terry O'Callaghan for all his hard work.
- The GSE Team Visit - Gwen did a fantastic job.
- Our Club reached out to Youth through the Interact Club and RYLA.
- With proceeds from the Spaghetti Supper we were able to make a donation of over $2,000.00 to PAL.
- Rich Duncan is involved with students at Monty Tech through the Vocational Project.
- Membership has been increased by three members this year.
- Bill Walsh has done a wonderful job on restructuring the bookkeeping system.
- During the holidays members rang bells for the Salvation Army, assisted MOC with donations, and helped local families through the Families in Need program.
- Our Super Bowl Brunch was a great success and we have added a new project - the Teacher's Appreciation Gala - to provide more scholarships for local high school students.
Attendance:
17 Fitchburg East Rotarians
2 Visiting Rotarians: Jim and Karen Fusco
1 Guest: Perry Schwarzer
Raffle: There was some confusion as to who had the winning ticket last week. Originally it was thought that Mary Pepin was the winner, but she didn't purchase a ticket,and so, it was not her. It seems Ed Woodcome was the winner, but he was out of the room when the number was called. So, next week, he gets to pick from the deck of cards first, and if he does not find the Joker, Bud Fortin (this week's winner) will have his chance.
Desk Schedule:
April 29 - Terry O'Callaghan/Bill Walsh
May 6 - Bill Oksanen/Gwen O'Neil
May 13* - Hosts: Bob Campbell/Mark & Seema Williams
Teacher Appreciation Dinner at the Best Western Royal Plaza
(*Note change of date)
May 20 - Pat Glover/Bob Gallo
May 27 - Ed Tarquinio/Carol Schwarzer
June 3 - Mary Pepin/Len Vilandry
June 10 - Brian Donovan/Maria Gallant
June 17 - Rich Duncan/Aisha Jones
June 24 - Seema Williams/Mike Hewitt - Installation of New President
(Oak Hill Country Club)
Program Schedule:
April - 29 To be announced
May 6 - Joyce Campbell
May 13* - TEACHER APPRECIATION DINNER
(*Note change of date)
May 20 - Ed Tarquinio
May 27 - ANNUAL PRESENTATION OF SCHOLARSHIPS
June 3 - Ed Howard
June 10 - NO PROGRAM - MONTHLY BOARD MEETING
June 17 - Mark Williams/President's Forum
June 24 - INSTALLATION OF NEW PRESIDENT
(Oak Hill Country Club)
PLEASE NOTE THAT ALL GUEST SPEAKERS MUST BE APPROVED IN ADVANCE
If you are unable to find a speaker for your scheduled night please ask another member for help or switch nights. It is nearly impossible to find someone at the last minute and meetings are much more enjoyable when we have a short program. Thank you.