President Susy called the meeting to order at 9:00 a.m.
Pinch hitting for Barry, Gary Young provided another exemplary invocation.
Fellowship with Nancy Gentes: Birthdays: Bonnie Johnson and Terri Congdon. No anniversaries. Rotarian Guests (Bob Farwell) Alexander Almeida and Maity Almeida, representing LEAD and our speaker, Maria Matos, LEAD, Executive Director of Expansion and Operations.. also attended as a guest Nancy regaled the club with a number of amusing billboard posts and puns, which added a note of jollity to the meeting!
Announcements: President Susy reported that the Celebrate Diversity committee would be meeting on Monday at the Sikh Art Gallery. Kathryn Tracey shared a volunteer sheet for the event and encouraged members to participate. The number of vendors is growing and an eclectic group of performers are scheduled to appear. These include a Sikh martial arts group, belly dancers, and Judy the Hoop Lady. Susy updated the club on the clock project. Given the proposed location a four-sided clock might be best. There are more details to address paramount among these is the cost of installation. Gary Young reminded the club that more golfers were needed!
Happy Dollars: With Jen Granger! Jen applauded Gary for providing tools to UCFS patrons. Bill Champagne was happy to be playing tennis with his son and grandsons. On a less sanguine note he was stunned by the stabbing of Salman Rushdie at Chautauqua. Mike Matera announced that there are two forthcoming Amber Alerts, one on September 17 at the healthy Living Expo and a second on September 19, at Celebrate Diversity. Mike also revealed that he bought a Speedo bathing suit! Molly reported that her boyfriend was interviewed on television about the impact of the drought in East Lyme. Terri was happy about her birthday and welcomed our guests. Rodney provided another trenchant report on the price of eggs and speculated that tomatoes would be the next item to experience price increases. He also wondered why the country could not underwrite a massive public works project to divert flood waters to areas crippled by droughts. Roz was happy for Terri and Bonnie’s birthdays and Joel explained the significance of 18 in Hebrew. In Hebrew, each letter has a numerical value. The number 10 is the letter Yud. The number 8 is the letter Het. Het-Yud spells the word Chai (חי), usually pronounced like the English word “hi” or “high,” which is a word and symbol that means “life.” President Susy was happy her basil plant was still alive and described a session at a recent leadership conference devoted to Protecting the Brand, i.e. a process by which organizations can protect their intellectual property and associated brands against people who are counterfeiters, and those who infringe on trade secrets. Roz suggested that the members of the Monuments Committee who thought a clock at the Rose Garden would detract from the surroundings should familiarize themselves with the work done by Rotary at the garden. Gary welcomed our guests and reported that his house had been in his family for 160 years! He also reminded club members to contribute items for the golf tournament.
Auction: Reflecting her superb sense of style, Susy claimed Gary’s baskets at $20.00!
Lottery: Despite an almost palpable optimism, Jen, Rodney, and Susy failed to pick the winning card.
Program: Maria Matos, Executive Director of Expansion and Operations at Latinos for Educational Advocacy and Diversity (LEAD) describe the group’s mission. Latinos for Educational Advocacy and Diversity is committed to providing quality educational options, programs, and services for children and families throughout Connecticut.LEAD strives to ensure that students and parents across Connecticut have access to a system of effective schools and programs that are diverse, equitable and put students on a path to succeed in the college and career of their choice. LEAD will also provide educational opportunities, programs and resources to support a vibrant and well represented community throughout the state of Connecticut. They now have an office at Foundry 66,