The Highlighter
October 2011
Vol 85 No 4
Table of Contents
Governor's Message
Doug Fowler
When
Paul Harris and three of his business friends in Chicago met over
100 years ago to discuss bringing back business ethics at a time
when corruption was running wild, I am sure they never dreamed
Rotary would achieve the success this multi-faceted service
organization has throughout the world.
When they
introduced Vocational Service as the second Avenue of Rotary Service
they probably thought they might make a difference in their own
community, but membership spread throughout the country because of the
ideals they established. Rotary Clubs came about due to the desire to
maintain high ethical business standards by using the Four-Way Test.
Vocational service responsibilities lie with both the Rotary
Clubs and the Rotary Club Members. The Manual of Procedure
outlines that Rotary Clubs should implement projects that have members
contribute their vocational talents, and to conduct themselves and their
profession by promoting high ethical standards.
During the month of October, as we all are "Riding the Rotary
Trail" in our own communities, Rotarians are encouraged to focus on this
important avenue of service. We can begin as simply as getting some of
your members to discuss their profession in a mini presentation format
by telling what is happening in their profession. We can also present an
award or even a Paul Harris to someone in the community who has
exemplified outstanding professional achievement while maintaining very
high ethical standards. Promote the presentation and consider making it
an annual October event. Invite experts to give a presentation on
vocational needs in the community.
C. Ray
Carlson, the District Vocational Services Chair, has been focusing on
youth entrepreneurial programs for several years. He has led a
contingent of business professionals to Africa to teach kids how to
write business plans, and has been promoting Job Creation &
Entrepreneurship. He is even rolling out a District Business Plan
Competition and can be contacted at
ray@rotapreneur.com for more information. This topic would also be a
good discussion in your clubs as to what professions are represented in
the community but missing from your club. Invite them to a meeting. They
may just have an idea that could very well bring another excellent
program to the club.
October 22
October 29
November 13
Win 1,000 Extra Recognition Points by Registering on
Member Access
From 14
September to 14 October, Rotary club members are eligible to win 1,000 extra
Rotary Foundation recognition points simply by
registering on Member Access. Registrants will be entered into a
drawing, and the winner will be announced after mid-October.
Start the registration process by using a valid e-mail address to create
an account. You may be asked to provide additional information to help us
determine your relationship with Rotary International and match you with
your record in our database. Within 24 hours, you will receive a
verification e-mail with a hyperlink that will connect you to a Member
Access screen to complete your registration. If you do not see the e-mail in
your inbox, check your spam/bulk/junk folder.
If you have questions, e-mail the Contact Center at contact.center@rotary.org or phone 866-9-ROTARY (866-976-8279) toll-free (within North America). The Contact Center provides services in English and Spanish and operates Monday-Friday, 08:00-17:00. Rotarians outside North America should contact their international office.
District
5300 Governor Candidates Now Wanted!
The District Governor Nominating Committee is announcing the request for
qualified Rotarians to apply for the 2014-2015 District Governor position.
This unique leadership opportunity is both rewarding and gratifying.
Information regarding the application process and deadlines is located on
the District Website at:
PDG Gene Hernandez is this
year's Nominating Committee Chair and can be reached at:
cpdchief@pacbell.net
Cowboy Logic
- The easiest way
to eat crow is when it's still warm. The colder it
gets the harder it is to swallow.
- Don't interfere
with somethin' that ain't botherin' you none.
- Timing has a lot
to do with the outcome of a rain dance.
- If you find
yourself in a hole, the first thing to do is stop
digging.
- If it don't seem
like it's worth the effort, it probably ain't.
- It don't take a
genius to spot a goat in a flock of sheep.
- Never ask a
barber if you need a haircut.
- If you get to
thinkin' you're a person of some considerable
influence, try ordering someone else's dog around.
- Don't worry about bitin' off more than you can chew, your mouth is
likely a whole lot bigger than you think.
- The quickest way
to double your money is to fold it over and put it
back in your pocket.
Next month's theme
Rotary Foundation
Click here for publishing guidelines.
[Editor's Note] We would like to have participation and contributions from members of your Interact Clubs. Please encourage them to contribute to The Highlighter. Interactors can receive The Highlighter by sending their names, club names, and email addresses to highlighter@district5300.org.
SOAR: Southern Nevada Heroes Recognized
A
homeless woman, trapped inside a concrete drainage tunnel by a fast
moving brush fire set by an arsonist, is rescued, literally by her
fingertips, by North Las Vegas Police Officer Paul Manteufel and Las
Vegas City Marshall M. Triplett.
An SUV spins out of control,
hitting the median and flipping over and over. Nellis AFB's Airman Leroy
Hudson, trained as a first responder, rushes to assist, saving the life
of the driver.
These
are just three of this year's thirteen recipients of Safety Officer
Award Recognition (SOAR). All branches of Law Enforcement, Fire
and Fire Rescue, and the Military in the Southern Nevada nominate an
outstanding individual or small unit demonstrating:
Exceptional acts of heroism in
saving lives and/or property
Exceptional work with youth groups
or service to the community
Exeptional training activities
Representatives of the Southern
Nevada Rotary Clubs recognized the heroic and community-minded actions
of our local heroes, presenting each with a custom designed pin, plaque,
and trophy. The very well attended event was held in the Chambers of
the Clark County Commissioners.
The 10th Annual Safety Officer
Award Recognition event is sponsored by the Rotary Clubs of Southern
Nevada, and coordinated by the Rotary Club of Las Vegas Summerlin. It
was a moving event honoring our selfless local heroes, a perfect event
honor Vocational Service by safety officers in our community.
JOB Creation through Entrepreneurship Education
for the New Generation
'Through
vocational service, Rotarians are expected to adhere to and promote high
ethical standards in all their business dealings, recognize the
worthiness of all useful occupations, and
contribute their professional expertise and skills to addressing
societal problems and needs. Each club should develop projects that
allow members to use their business and professional skills.'
[Rotary website]
Societal problems
and needs?
What could be more important than helping
to create JOBS? Our economy is in a grim state and worsens day by day.
'U.S. poverty totals hit a 50-year high - 46.2 million,' according to
the L.A. Times of September 14, 2011, '6 million in California.'
New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg warned Congress Friday, (9/16)
saying members should expect riots if the nation's rate of unemployment
remains above 9 percent.
"We have a lot of kids
graduating college, can't find jobs," Mr. Bloomberg said on his weekly
radio show. "That's what happened in Cairo. That's what happened in
Madrid. You don't want those kinds of riots here."
We
Rotarians have a great responsibility to apply our business savvy and
leadership skills to help New Generations acquire jobs or make their own
through entrepreneurship. And we can do it by teaching youth basic
business principles and how to write business plans – in middle school,
high school, community college, and the full age range of New
Generations up to 30. Junior Achievement has been doing this since 1919.
Other organizations have been formed in the past decade to do the same.
Curricula are available that any Rotarian can master and teach for an
hour or two each week.
Does it work?
You betcha. Surveys in Sweden showed that ten years after having
completed the classic J.A. Company program in high school, 24% had
started their own business. Best of all, they had employed on average
four others. Thus five jobs are being created for every five trained.
This result so impressed the Swedish economic development agencies that
they are contributing one-half the cost of training, and the private
sector the other half. Other European countries are promoting youth
entrepreneurship, too. And so is the World Bank and U.S. Agency for
International Development [USAID].
Now just imagine if
the Rotary world of 32,000 clubs and 1.2 million members would take on
the challenge of training their local New Generations? Or District 5300
with 62 clubs and 2,500 members? Your club in your local schools?
Altadena Rotary has been doing it since 1995, locally and abroad in
Armenia, Uganda, Zambia, Nazareth, Nigeria, Mexico, and among Native
America Indian youth. They have a lot of experience to share.
Last month R.I. included Job Creation and
Entrepreneurship as a new area of focus under Economic
Development. Our district is likely in the forefront already. You can
get started by contacting
ray@rotapreneur.com or 1-800-448-3456
Rotarian and Retired Pasadena Pilot
Spearheads 9-11 Memorial
Rotary
& Other Dedicated Volunteers Took Concept to Fruition in 2 1/2 Weeks
Just weeks before September 11, Rotarian Capt. John Mc Dannel, a
retired United Airlines pilot, reflected that New York Drive in
Pasadena, CA, would be perfect to hold an event remembering those lost a
decade ago, the first responders and military, who protect us here and
abroad, putting themselves in harm's way daily.
"This would never have happened if Sierra Madre, Altadena and both
Pasadena Rotary Clubs didn't put their shoulders into it," reflected Mc
Dannel. In just 2 ½ weeks, the clubs, Rotary District 5300, nearly other
20 service, education and private groups, elected officials and others
choreographed this landmark event.
Airline crew and
passengers' work lives and travel changed forever that fateful day, with
the addition of security, threats, in-flight marshals, secured cockpits
and more. Acknowledgement of the continuing role of and impact upon
commercial flights post 9-11 drew many flight crew members.
Mc
Dannel already made strides to memorialize those lost, planting and hand
watering 140 oaks along a rather bereft section of New York Drive since
2002. He also gained ground recently at county and city levels on his
vision of a permanent 9-11 Memorial park, including a lake in Eaton
Canyon Basin.
Unprecedented cooperation between public,
private, military and civilian groups channeled Mc Dannel's vision into
a well-oiled remembrance attended by nearly a thousand.
Rotarian Marilyn Diaz, Sierra Madre Police Chief, commented, "Only
one word on the flawless execution… precision," including jet flyovers
from Miramar, speakers touched by that day, presentation of colors, 21
gun salute, music, readings, clergy invocations and a riderless horse,
symbolizing lost comrades.
A most personal insight came
from USC's Dr. Denise Campbell, attending a World Trade Center
conference that day. Shaken from bed by the first plane's impact,
Campbell rushed to the street in pajamas, to unfolding horror. Her
reflections from 2002 recalled sighting the tower's first jumper,
necktie flying vertically as he fell. Those attending clearly relived
the day beside her, appreciating her healing perspective.
For
Mc Dannel and his volunteers, big steps toward the permanent memorial
include the highway-type sign proclaiming New York Drive as a 9-11
Memorial. Additionally, the Tamkin Foundation donated $25,000 to build
stone signage. The group hopes to gather additional donations for a
memorial wall surrounding World Trade Center I-beams, and to purchase
land for the proposed park.
Rotarian Dan Alle
reflected, "With vision and courage, Capt. Mc Dannel took something
negative and turned it into something positive for our community." Mc
Dannel commented, "My goal was to…have people walk away with a sense of
patriotism… I especially wanted to help young people gain a perspective…
to understand the gravity of this terrorist attack on America."
Visit
www.Pasadena911Memorial.org, to donate to this restricted 501C3.
First
Annual High Desert Kick-It for Kids
More than 12,000 children are diagnosed
with cancer each year in the United States. Without extensive, on-going
research, many of those children will lose their battle against this
most unfair of diseases. On September 15th, Nicole Blakeley spoke at
Victor Valley Sunrise Rotary Club, presenting the first annual High
Desert Kick-It for Kids event, in memory of Layla Blakeley and Austin
Ricci. Layla and Austin lost their battle with cancer about two years
ago at ages six and four.
The Kick-It-For-Kids event
was held Friday, September 23, at 1:45PM, at all three campuses of The
Academy For Academic Excellence in Apple Valley. Nicole, Layla's mom,
with lots of help from the AAE staff, organized the event. Nicole says,
"If each student at AAE raises $10, we will raise $13,000 to fight
childhood cancer."
Layla's cancer, Neuroblastoma, was
diagnosed when she was three years old. Partly as a result of the
wonderful care Layla received during her three-year battle with cancer,
Nicole has been inspired to begin her education for a career in nursing.
Layla would have been eight years old this year.
Kick-It is a national fundraising program that raises money for
children's cancer research. It started with a 10-year-old cancer patient
with a dream to cure cancer by playing kickball. The concept has spread
across the country, and thousands of people have been inspired to raise
money for childhood cancer research.
Funds raised
benefit CureSearch for Children's Cancer, a national nonprofit
organization that funds the Children's Oncology Group. The Children's
Oncology Group is the world's largest cooperative children's cancer
research entity. Money raised supports bench-to-bedside research, which
includes developing studies, enrolling and treating patients, and
interpreting the results of the clinical trials.
Arcadia Rotary Hosts Multi-Club Arrowhead
Picnic
Under
a canopy of tall pines, the Arcadia Rotary Club hosted its first
multi-club picnic at Lake Arrowhead's Burnt Mill Beach Club.
Spearheaded by president-elect Eric Barter, the intent was for
several Rotary clubs to get together and enjoy true Rotarian spirit,
much as Eric experienced as a boy.
"My father was
Rotary president the year I was born," said Barter. "I remember when
several clubs on the Monterey Peninsula would gather in Carmel Valley's
water plant property and have a great time with great food, fun and
games."
With RSVP's from over 50 members, friends and
family representing the Arcadia and Lake Arrowhead clubs, "the Arcadia
Rotary BBQ Crew" made up of Barter, Bob Harbicht, Rosie Maries, Mary
Salcedo, Jim Rider and Mike Ojeda, sprang into action.
In the days preceding the event, fresh sweet corn was shucked, seasoned
and foil wrapped, the tri tip got its special seasoning, the garlic
bread got its special spread, the salads were prepared, and coolers
lined the walls of the club house with a variety of beverages.
On the day of the event, several Rotarians were attending the
District 5300 training seminar at Etiwanda Gardens in Rancho Cucamonga.
Following adjournment, it was just a short drive to Lake Arrowhead.
"We were very pleased that our district governor, Doug Fowler,
and his lovely wife, Deborah, were able to join us," said Barter.
Others in attendance included Arcadia Rotarians Tom Crosby and
his wife Virginia, John and Sandy Davis and their son, Bob and Patsy
Harbicht, Steve Peliter, Jim and Sandy Rider, Mike and Ana Ojeda and
their daughter Kennedy, new member Jon Richards and his wife, Marla,
Gerard and Christa Tamperong and family, Barter and wife, Janice, Mary
Salcedo, Rosie Mares, Past President Matt Weaver and Denise Weaver plus
Lake Arrowhead noontime club members Keith and Yolanda Douglas, Harry
and Gretchen Sherman, Bob and Diane Gladwell along with Lake Arrowhead
sunrise club member Karyn Westervelt.
"Like all Rotary
events, conversation and meeting new people is what it's all about,"
said Rider. "This event was that and more."
"A nice
relaxing event at a perfect location. For those who couldn't make it,
you really missed out," said Salcedo. "Eric should win an Oscar for that
tri-tip! Looking forward to next year's BBQ."
"When
word gets out how great a time those in attendance had, we are sure this
event will grow and grow each year," said Barter.
The Worldwide Diabetes Epidemic and Team
Rotary's Dodger Stadium Walk for a Cure
Even as
the polio (infantile paralysis) epidemic is being rapidly conquered
(with the help of Rotary International), another epidemic which also
affects children and is life-threatening is growing around the world.
That epidemic is the epidemic of juvenile diabetes.
There
are two main types of diabetes: type 1, which starts in childhood and is
unrelated to obesity, and type 2, generally associated with obesity,
occurring mainly in adults, but also increasingly in children. Whereas
in type 1, the immune system attacks and kills off the insulin-producing
cells in the pancreas, type 2 is a metabolic disorder where a person
still produces insulin but can't use it effectively.
Studies
have shown that the incidence of type 1 diabetes is increasing at a rate
of 3–5% per year Over 70,000 children develop type 1 diabetes each year.
IDF figures indicate that 440,000 children worldwide under the age of 14
now live with type 1 diabetes. For many children from the developing
world, the outlook is bleak.
"We are
seeing an alarming increase of both type 1 and type 2 diabetes in
children..."said Dr Francine Kaufman, Chair of the IDF Consultative
Section on Childhood and Adolescent Diabetes. Diabetes in
childhood increases the risk of life-threatening diabetes complications
at an early age. When diabetes is diagnosed in the young, life
expectancy is shortened by an average 10 to 20 years
The
situation is particularly disturbing in low and middle-income countries,
where many children with diabetes die because they are diagnosed late or
misdiagnosed. Many die because insulin is unavailable or in short
supply. In Mozambique, for example, a person with type 1 diabetes will
die within one year of diagnosis.
In
recognition of this fact, Rotary International joined with the
International Diabetes Federation (IDF), the Juvenile Diabetes Research
Foundation (JDRF), and other organizations in persuading the United
Nations to declare November 14 "World Diabetes Day." Rotary
International also established an Action Group for Diabetes (RAGD) under
the leadership of C. Wayne Edwards (Tallahassee. Florida), Dr. Massimo
Benedetti (Perugia, Italy), Dr. Martin Silink (Lane Cove, Australia),
and Dr. Larry C. Deeb (Tallahassee, Florida).
As
observed by Syed Azmatullah, a Phoenix Rotarian:
"It is shocking to learn from Martin Silink, president of IDF [and Secretary of Rotary's Action Group] that half of the 440,000 children with diabetes worldwide lack access to the insulin they need to live. It is necessary that every Rotary District observes World Diabetes Day to spread awareness of and help detect and treat the silent killer."
One of
the organizations instrumental (along with Rotary International) in the
creation of World Diabetes Day is the Juvenile Diabetes Research
Foundation (JDRF). JDRF was founded in 1970 by parents of children with
type 1 diabetes. JDRF is the leading charitable funder and advocate of
type 1 diabetes research in the world. Although its focus is on type 1
diabetes, its research into glucose control will also provide benefits
for those living with type 2.
This year's JDRF Walk to
Cure Diabetes happens Sunday, Nov. 6 at Dodger Stadium. Registration
starts at 8 a.m. and this year they're moving back the start of the walk
one hour, to 11 a.m.
Last
year saw the formation of a Team Rotary under the leadership of Michael
Ojeda of Arcadia's noon Rotary Club. Team Rotary is looking for both
walkers who will raise money to be credited to Team Rotary and donors
who will contribute in the name of a particular walker. Of course, this
being a friendly competition between teams, the main goal is to raise
money for research into a cure, regardless of the team or walker
credited.
If you are able to walk with us this year
(and we hope you can!), or to start a team of your own or for your local
Rotary Club, please register with the Juvenile Diabetes Research
Foundation, Greater Los Angeles Chapter.
http://www2.jdrf.org/site/TR/Walk-CA/Chapter-LosAngeles4041?fr_id=1395&pg=entry
The
following website is used to log-in or donate to a walker:
http://www2.jdrf.org/site/PageServer?pagename=walk_homepage
For more information, please go to the website for the Juvenile
Diabetes Research Foundation, Greater Los Angeles Chapter
If you
wish to be a member of Team Rotary or would like assistance in starting
your own Rotary Team with its own Captain, please contact Michael Ojeda
(cell phone : 626-475-6485).
To obtain a JDRF speaker for your local Rotary Club on the subject of juvenile diabetes, you can contact
JDRF LA
800 W. 6th Street, Suite 450
Los Angeles, CA 90017
213-233-9901 (office)
855-4-JDRFLA (toll free)
213-622-6276 (fax)
losangeles@jdrf.org
