The tables and chairs in the middle of the meeting room were missing and almost everyone walking into the room commented “Are we going to have a dance?”

 

Zeb Cobbs, on ZOOM, had his sister Tina visiting again from Texas.  She was going to leave on Wednesday to go back home. I think he see his sister from Texas more often that some of us keep in touch with our siblings who live much closer. Way to go Zeb.

 

There was lots of discussion about the Dajabon contingent all leaving tonight and what they may be doing today, their last day in the PNW.

 

President Neil Angst was being the renaissance “person” and trying to do it all when he ran into an issue muting the ZOOMERS. He called upon Kari Petrasek to help, and she jumped up and took control of the computer and all was good.

 

President Neil led us in the Pledge of Allegiance, and into our 11^th meeting of the year and the 5,513th meeting of the Rotary Club of Everett. I counted 31 people in attendance with 11 ZOOMERs and 20 in person.

 

President Neil’s Thought of The Day message was missed by This reporter as all I can remember was, we went right from the Pledge of Allegiance to Walt Greenwood’s Music.  Maybe I was opening up one or two of those candy bars that Vice President

Kelli Thode had left on everyone’s table and that distraction was enough for me to not have been in focus.

 

Walt walked up to the lectern, adjusted the microphone for his upcoming song, laid down the roving mike on the lectern so that it would pick up the sound of his acoustic guitar and he broke into a love song, The Bramble And The Rose by Mary McCaslin and

Jim Ringer.  “See how the bramble and the rose Intertwine, Love grows like the bramble and the rose, Round each other we will twine.”

 

There were no visiting Rotarians or guests of Rotarians at today’s meeting.

 

President Neil said that if you would like a lunch for the next meeting, please let Sandy know by 3:00 pm on the Monday prior to that Tuesday meeting.  Lunches are provided by Kindred Kitchen and the cost is $20.00.

 

We will be starting our VOA Food Bank Outreach on Thursday September 21^st.  We will be sorting food from 11:30 am until 1:00 pm.  Rotary volunteers are needed.

 

Brian Hollingshead encourages folks to come to the “Rotary After Hours” get together on September 21^st at the Marriot on Colby between 5:00 pm and 7:00 pm.

 

There will be Board meeting on Friday morning, September 29^th at 7:30 am at President Neil’s office.

 

Also, on September 29^th there will be a Blood Drive, held at Everett Elks, and volunteers are needed to check people in from 10:00 am - 3:00 pm.

 

President Neil mentioned that the Helen Jackson scholarship night fundraiser to be held on Thursday October 5^th at Anna Marie Laurance’ home, is now at capacity.

 

Walt said that his committee sent out a survey asking about various topics that may be of interest to us Rotarians including but not limited to lunches, shirts, hats, costs, etc.  If you have filled in that survey, thank you, if not please do.  Walt has received 48 responses out of our 106 club members,

 

HAPPY DOLLARS AND BIRTHDAY BUCKS: 

Kari Petrasek was happy for another fun filled/thrilled trip to Montana having fly fished, riding horses and coming face to face with a black bear.  She was also happy to have been involved last week helping entertain our guests from Dajabon.

 

Krissy Davis gave $48.00 to celebrate her 53^rd birthday. ($5.00 more to come next week).

 

Kelli Thode was $100.00 happy to have celebrated a birthday and her 32^nd wedding anniversary.

 

Paul Stoot was $100 happy for his 60^th birthday and for the 24^th anniversary of the founding of ARISE Academy (formally Geater Trinity Academy).  At the beginning Ralph Quaas and Past President Bob Bavasi were instrumental in helping the school get

started.

 

Cathy Woods was happy to have celebrated another birthday and for helping raise money to fight MS by participating on a 130 mile bike ride.

 

President Neil gave a bell ringer for the following Rotarians who helped in hosting the Rotarians and their spouses from Dajabon.

 

-  Past President John Olson - Master of Ceremonies

-  Past President Steve Miller - Hosted an event at his home.

-  Jim Staniford - Hosted a group at his restaurant.

-  Kari Petrasek - Funko tour

-  Krissy Davis - Donating a Van for transportation.

-  Past President Greg Tisdel - Van driver.

-  Walt Greenwood - Photographer.

-  Sandy Oettel - For helping on everything.

-  And for all of those that were able to participate in the events.

  

Brian Hollingshead won a bottle of red wine and snacks.

 

Past President Larry O’Donnell won a bottle of white wine and snacks.

 

Past President Steve Miller won a free lunch and snacks.

 

President Neil held up a children’s looking stuff bear that was dressed like a pirate and was about 18” tall.  He wanted to auction this bear off but before he started the bidding, he pulled off the bear’s tricorn pirate hat that reveled a screw cap.  It turns out that the children’s stuffed bear was presumptively a hiding place for alcoholic beverages. There were a high number of bidders and the lucky winner, at $60.00, was Kari Petrasek.

 

President Neil introduced Vice President Kelli Thode who organized and led us in the first of two Club Assemblies for this year.

 

The empty area in the middle of our meeting space was revealed to be for our Team Building exercises and not, as we all thought during the pre-meeting, for dancing.

 

The ZOOMERS watched as those that were in person got out of our chairs and joined each other in the center of the room.

Our first bonding exercise was to organize ourselves from youngest to oldest.  It is humbling how fast the years go by when one remembers when first joining Rotary and being among the youngest and all of a sudden, I’m at the other in of the line. It was interesting as we each rattled off our ages.

 

Our second bonding event was to organize ourselves from when we each joined Rotary.  Most of us at the end of the line joined Rotary before half of those in the group were born.

 

The third thing we did was to get back in our seats and write down one or two of our most memorable meeting programs.  After we did that we all met again in the center of the room and were instructed to make our sheets of paper into “snowballs” and to start throwing them at each other.  After several minutes we were each to pick up the nearest “snowball” to us and then figure out who wrote their memorable program on that sheet of paper. The “snowball” holders then each read the “snowball” message they had picked up.

 

For the final activity Kelli gave each of us an envelope with a name on it from one of the Rotarians that we at today’s meeting.  We were to write what that person’s strengths were and then pass that envelope on to another person to do the same thing. At the end of the program, we each left with an envelope with our name on it that contained our fellow Rotarians comments about our strengths.

 

Thank you, Kelli, for creating a Club Assembly that helped us all get to know each other a little bit better and in a manner that was fun and enjoyable.

 

Side note:  Past President Greg Tisdel was fined $10.00 for his cell phone having rung during the program.  Greg was happy he didn’t answer it.

 

Childstrive (Formally Little Red Schoolhouse) - Why babies can’t wait. Presented by Mary Cline-Stively CEO

 

President Neil adjourned the meeting at 12:58.5 pm.

 

Respectfully Submitted,

 

Photography Submitted by.