The Weekly Meeting Summary of the Rotary Club of Livermore Valley
April 16, 2024
OPENING THE MEETING
Past President Kevin McCallum, filling in for traveling Sherri, called the meeting to order at 8:15 am.
Mark Hudson led us in the Pledge of Allegiance
Not widely known fact about Mark is that he and his wife attended the same middle and high school, were only a year apart, but didn't meet until afterwards, at Tahoe.
Song of the Day - George Wineinger shared the aptly titled song, for the day after April 15, "Taxed to the Max," by Bay Area icon Tower of Power.
Thought of the Day - Marty Roberts reminded us, "It's never too late to be what you might have been."
Joke of the Day - Jill Duerig took us down familiar waterways with 3 jokes: What did one ocean say to the other? They just waved. Why did the ocean break up with the pond? It was too shallow. Why does water never laugh at jokes? It's not a fan of dry humor.
VISITING ROTARIANS & GUESTS
Visiting Rotarians:
Roy Porfido modeled the proper way to introduce a visiting Rotarian, as he introduced - from the Dublin Club, in the Classification of Electrical Contractor, Bob Tucknott!
Dave Goulart introduced, from the Pleasanton Club, in the Classification of Retired Finance, Julio Leung
Guests:
Mony Nop introduced Melanie Henry, CEO and Founder of Driver Cognitive Assessment Center
Beth McCormick introduced Robyne Teslich and Gia Keiper, who will be our presenters
Dave Goulart introduced Granada Principal Clark Conover, GHS Senior Grace Peterson, and her parents, Brian and Apple Peterson
April STUDENT OF THE MONTH
Principal Clark Conover introduced Grace Peterson, whose passion for learning and pursuit of academic rigor have fueled her studies in the International Baccalaureate Diploma Programme at Granada High School. With a GPA of 4.47, she excels as a student.
Grace is also an athlete on the GHS Lacrosse team and she is a competitive fencer. She is co-president of the Granada UNICEF Club and a member of the Humans Against Hate Club. She has led fundraising events for domestic violence awareness and she volunteers with the Library of Congress.
Grace said that she has learned so much about being a good citizen from both Granada and the City of Livermore. She thanked our club for this honor, saying it underscores the importance of giving back to the community.
Grace will be attending NYU in the fall, where she will study International Relations.
ABOVE & BEYOND
Sherri, by proxy, gave a shout out to Kevin for running today's meeting.
ANNOUNCEMENTS
If you missed today's meeting and plan to attend the RFL Grant Awards meeting on April 24 (see below), please let Philomena know by this Friday. Space is limited. (Click on the hyperlinked words to start an email)
We are invited to the Rotary Club of Pleasanton's 9th Annual Texas Hold-Em Fundraising Event on Friday, April 26. Visit pokerevent.pleasantonrotary.org for information.
Sign up to volunteer at our club's Annual Community Shredding Event on Sunday, April 28. Please use this form to sign up: Shredding Event Volunteer Sign Up.
Kevin shared a note from Vickie Drake thanking our club for the $10,000 donation to launch the Kevin Drake Scholarship, and for the floral wreath we sent for the funeral and reception.
Kevin also shared a letter from the Pedrozzi Foundation with a personal note from Executive Director Carolyn Siegfried who wrote that she is proud ot partner with the Rotary Club of Livermore Valley to honor Kevin's contributions to our community.
It's time to start planning the Demotion Party for Sherri. We have a date: Tuesday, June 25. We have a location: Mony's place. We need a committee. Please let Kevin McCallum know if you would like to be part of the planning team. (Click on the hyperlinked words to start an email)
And an announcement from our host, Laura Cornett: Tomato Plant Sale Tomorrow to benefit the LPC Horticulture Program
TODAY'S PROGRAM: Experimental Aircraft Association
We welcomed Robyne Teslich, EAA Chapter 663 President, who shared some of the great things our local EAA chapter is doing. The Experimental Aircraft Association at Livermore Airport has over 160 active members who enjoy flying, building aircraft, and sharing about aviation with others. The Livermore Chapter is part of an international organization founded in 1953, with over 200,000 members.
Robyne shared her particular focus on involving youth in aviation and supporting their journeys to become pilots, or astronauts, or engineers, or wherever they find joy with aviation. Through the volunteers of EAA, young people get to fly, and they learn how to build aircraft.
Gia Keiper, a student in the Las Positas Middle College Program, who will also graduate from Dublin High School, is about a week away from soloing in her pursuit of her pilot's license, thanks to the support of EAA Chapter 663. She also thanked Pete Sandhu, CEO of Five Rivers Aviation, for his support for offering a discount on plane rental. Gia's involvement in this program has motivated her plans to pursue a career in STEM.
To learn more about EAA Chapter 663, please visit their website. They are a 501(c)(3) nonprofit that contributes to our community!
Next week we are excited to welcome Alan Hyman, Board Chair for Foundation for Climate Restoration. We will learn about the organization's work to make climate restoration a goal of climate action.
Sherri, by proxy, gave a shout out to Kevin for running today's meeting.
