The Rotary World Peace Conference 2016
This Meeting's HighlightsProgram: The Rotary World Peace Conference 2016
Speaker: Rudy WesterveltMeeting for the week of December 7th to December 13th, 2015* * *
Is this your first time to visit us? If so, welcome to our meeting!Each Monday our week's meeting is posted early in the morning, U.S. Pacific Time. These meetings are designed so that you can read and watch what we post anytime during the week. The entire meeting takes about 45 minutes to complete, with the video conference recording of the program being the bulk of the time.Note that you can easily read this meeting with your favorite device, so feel free to take our meeting on the go with you; read it while on public transit, waiting in line for coffee, or even at the park! Please also make sure to complete the attendance form at the bottom and leave a comment. Enjoy!
Greetings
Message from the President
Welcome! We think it’s great that you’d give a little of your time to hang out with us, the members and guests of the Rotary eClub of Silicon Valley.
And then, all of a sudden, it was December. For some, 2015 has flown by. For others, it can't end quickly enough. Wherever you are on that spectrum, we're glad you chose to spend some of your month with us, the Rotary eClub of Silicon Valley!With the seemingly endless news of acts of violence happening near and far, we hope that a little time with Rotarians - people intensely interested in ways of spreading peace and goodwill - might provide some balance for you.This week's program will help you understand just how detailed the efforts of Rotarians can be for fostering peace, and as always, you are encouraged to share anything you find here that is inspiring with others.Rotarian guests, we ask that you consider contributing something - whatever for you is the regular cost of a Rotary meal, perhaps - to the efforts of our club. Please choose one of the options below:
Send via our secure Happy Dollars form.
Send via Google Wallet to: ecsv.rotary@gmail.com
Send via PayPal to: ecsv.rotary@gmail.com
Send a check via snail mail (see below for instructions)
To pay via Google Wallet or PayPal, you'll need to log in to your account with those companies.Those of you who prefer a more traditional approach can mail a check made out to the Rotary eClub of Silicon Valley to our treasurer: ℅ Allen Thompson, 13500 Cascade Ct., Bakersfield CA 93314.Non-Rotarian guests, you are certainly welcome to help us out, too! Even a small amount can help us make something good happen for someone in need.
Yours in service,
Rushton Hurley,
President
Rotary eClub of Silicon Valley
The Power of Images
We believe that there is power in imagery, and that a great photo can inspire in its own unique way.
Photo from our "Camera Czar" Keith Marsh:"I took this photo last night (Dec 1st). A friend made this solar-powered Christmas tree and floated it on the bay off San Pedro Road near Glenwood. The lighting for the photo was critical. I got there just after sunset and waited for the lights on the tree to come on. There was about a fifteen-minute window until it became too dark. The San Rafael Bridge is in the background. We used it to make our Christmas card on Shutterfly."Beautiful work, Keith!
The Power of Ideas
Every week we bring you a few words from thinkers past and present which we think may inspire you. This week is a quote from Isocrates.
It is more important to know where you are going than to get there quickly. Do not mistake activity for achievement.- Isocrates
The Game of Kindness
No small piece of knowing where you are going is knowing that you have something to give. In this case, it's a beautiful story from Texas of a coach seeing an opportunity to make a game much, much more than a game.
Reminders for Members
Club Survey
President Rushton will be reaching out to members in the coming days who haven't yet done the survey to help the club fine-tune our efforts for the coming months. If you've been meaning to get to it and just needed this reminder, then no worries - click here to give us some ideas and a few minutes of your time.
Last Week for Board of Director Nominations!
Every year we hold elections for Board of Director positions that are opened. Our terms are known as the “Rotary Year” and start on July 1 and run until June 30 of the following year. All of our Board of Director positions, other than Director, are one-year terms. As decided earlier in the year, our club president for the 2016-17 Rotary Year starting on July 1, 2016 will be Mitty Chang. We are now seeking open positions for his Board of Directors, as well as for president for the 2017-18 Rotary Year.
Nominations for positions on the Board of Directors (aka club officers) are still open! This is the last week to make a nomination!
The following positions are open for nomination (unless otherwise noted, these are all for July 1, 2016 to June 30, 2017 terms):
One (1) president-elect (this would be Mitty’s successor, for July 1, 2017 to June 30, 2018)
One (1) treasurer
One (1) secretary
One (1) director (this is a three year term)
Members can nominate themselves or any other member of this club.
Please email nominations to
The email nominations will be received by the President-elect (Mitty), the President (Rushton), and the Secretary (Stephen).
Nominations will close at 12:01 AM Pacific Time on Monday, December 14, 2015.
All nominations will be posted for the meeting (at siliconvalleyrotary.com) of December 21-27 for members to view.
Elections will take place during the meeting of December 28 – January 3.
Every member will be able to cast his or her vote for one person per open position.
The Giving Challenge
This month we'll be getting to know other members of the club by learning about the causes they support (other than Rotary).
This is a chance to convey what we are passionate about and why, so if you haven't filled out the Giving Challenge info yet, you can do so here.
Member: Tzviatko Chiderovcause: Cuso Internationalwhy: A few years ago, I volunteered with Cuso in Zimbabwe for about nine months. I was placed at the National AIDS Council of Zimbabwe, and that was my first time doing direct development work. This experience changed the direction of my professional career.
Member: Gene Tognetticause: Second Harvest Food Bankwhy: It's a great local effort that helps people in need of food get food that otherwise goes to waste.member: Shags Shagrincause: The Storytelling Association of California and the Association for Financial Counseling and Planning Educationwhy: Storytelling as an art is something to share with the community, and the Storytelling Association does it well. We always need support! And as for AFCPE, I'm the one who developed their investment tracking spreadsheet and all its related complicated calculations, and they need me, as nobody else has been trained in its maintenance. Several hours this month for each. Just this week I put in about ten hours for SAC in getting crowdfunding projects set up for us at Razoo, CauseVox, and RocketHub, as well as putting a PayPal Donate button on our website.
Member: Keith Marshcause: Marin Ventureswhy: I had a brother who was developmentally disabled and was a client of Marin Ventures until he passed. I now serve on the Board of Directors and also support them financially.
Member: Catherine Liucause: RAFT (Resource Area for Teaching)why: RAFT has provided many good lessons plans that any teachers can use.member: Chris Cochranecause: Children of Chernobylwhy: It's the only local situation to help victims of the nuclear plant meltdown.
Member: Richard Knaggscause: Inkwenkwezi Secondary Schoolwhy: It's about social upliftment and giving to those who are less fortunate to better their educational environment.
Member: Heather Shawcause: Greenpeacewhy: I support their efforts to keep the environment toxin-free, and making people aware of potential hazards in their food. I see people in my office regularly whose health is affected dramatically by these impurities and toxins, and wanted to contribute to changing this at the source.
Member: Rushton Hurleycause: Fresh Lifelines for Youth (FLY)why: There is nothing I find more moving than hope, and this organization, through a combination of mentors, legal education, and leadership training, has helped thousands of teens learn that they are more than their past mistakes.
Member: Andrew Tawcause: Oakland Public Education Fundwhy: In lieu of our giving challenge, I'd like to offer an opportunity. I think the story on the donation page really says it all.
Events & Projects
This section of our meeting is where you learn about both recent and upcoming events and projects our club has going on. We welcome guests to all of our events and service projects listed here.
Upcoming Events:
Did you miss our past events? Come join us for any of our upcoming events! Guests, you are welcome too!Drinks & White Elephant in Oakland on Sunday, December 13 starting at 2 PM
We will be having our December social in Oakland on Sunday, December 13th, starting at 2:00 PM. The gathering is at The Impact Hub, which is at 2323 Broadway, Oakland, CA (map).Come join us for drinks, food, and a "white elephant" gift exchange! To participate in the exchange, bring a wrapped gift to put into a communal pot. The gift should be valued as close to $20 as possible, and should be something that you think most people would want. Participants will be opening random wrapped gifts to find out what their holiday gift is going to be! You might get exactly what you were wishing for this holiday season, and if not, there will still be cool people and drinks for those who are thirsty for them!
More Socials!You can sure expect more socials to be coming up in 2016! Members, if you are interested in helping plan socials, please reach out to President-Elect Mitty or leave a comment on this meeting. We would love to get you more involved with the social planning!
Update from Sister Cities
Our meeting of the week of May 4th of this year featured a program by Godfrey Dembe Kasozi of Kasese, Uganda, and Peggy Pollard of the Santa Cruz Sunrise Rotary Club. They spoke of the projects accelerated by members of the Sister Cities organizations in both cities, as well as people at the University of California, Santa Cruz. Peggy sent the following last week, and I'm happy to share it here:
"Thanks again SOOOO much for your hosting Godfrey Kasozi and I to speak on your Rotary eClub, and also for coming down to Santa Cruz to tutor him on the computer about making movies for his culture in Kasese!!"
On our first Sister City deletion trip to Kasese August 23-Sept 6, we brought 7 laptops and a bunch of old cell phones for that purpose. I gave Godfrey the cell phones and a nice iPad for his CETRUD. (I should encourage him to produce something so we can see results!)"
The other laptops we donated to Kasese Rotary club to distribute to worthy nonprofits in Kasese. They were our prize donation to them."
I also visited our beneficiary model village of Lhuhwahwa with the Kasese Rotary President, Rhonda Itugo, to see the water faucets that we did fundraising for. And now I've been authorized by our club to start writing a Global Grant Proposal this year for a bigger project."
I'm also now still gathering Santa Cruz supporters in our campaign to become a Sister City with Kasese, I hope to submit our main proposal report to Sister Cities January 11 and they would vote March 14 whether to approve or not, and if so, it would go to City Council for a vote after that."
Nice work, Peggy!
The World of Rotary
We are part of the Rotary International family with over 1.2 million members in over 180 countries around the world. Rotary’s reach is global. Here we share Rotary initiatives and events we want our members to know about.
This is a story about El Tour de Tucson in Arizona, which is an annual event to raise funds for ending polio. Rotarians involved in this year's El Tour raised over four million dollars for the effort, and that number was matched 2-to-1 by the Gates Foundation! For the full story, click here:
James H Wood Photography
Service Survey
One piece of being a Rotarian is finding ways – both big and small – to help others. Our members report the good deeds they do and the good efforts in which they participate, not in order to brag, but to remind us of the many possibilities there are for using what we have for those in need.
It's time to celebrate the volunteer work of members of our club over the last month. Members, watch for ideas that you can take and make part of something happening in your community in December!
Paul Mosso attended a Rotaract District meeting and a Rotaract conference call; his activities with this organization are helping to mentor Rotaractors so that they can continue to build the district and allow for more opportunities for young professionals' engagement in the community and with Rotary.
Martin Fox put in many hours of pro-bono coaching and mentoring, as well as spending time as part of a nonprofit board of directors meeting.
Hardeep Singh planned and attended a park outing to Crab Cove in Alameda for the families of Children Hospital Oakland's primary care clinic as part of the SHINE program (Stay Healthy In Nature Everyday).
Shags Shagrin spent time helping with the work of the Storytelling Association of California and the Association for Financial Counseling and Planning Education.
Tzviatko Chiderov mentored a homeless high school student through a program called School on Wheels. His name is David and Tzviatko reports that David is super smart!
Nate Gildart organized a suicide prevention fund / awareness raising music event for a Japan-based NPO called TELL.
John Lozano led a group of twenty kids from the CISV (Children's International Summer Village) program on a scavenger hunt in the Hillsdale Mall (San Mateo) looking for ways to serve others in the community. They made teddy bears, gathered unwanted fabric (to make pillows and blankets), and got toy ideas to help families during the upcoming holiday season. He also traveled to Guatemala (Panajachel, Lake Atitlan) to do some volunteer work with the non-profit Mayan Families, working with the staff and locals during the Thanksgiving week. He connected with the organization's president (a fellow Rotarian) to discuss opportunities to work with this group in the future.
Heather Shaw assisted a small business owner with the development of an employee handbook.
Richard Knaggs visited Inkwenkwezi (a public school in a nearby township) and had a look at their Smartboard configuration so they can begin general smartboard training to the school's staff in January.
Rushton Hurley connected with a group of graduate education students in New York to encourage them on uses of technology.
Linda Tangren helped the Downtown Honolulu and West Honolulu Clubs with a beautification project at Central Middle School in Honolulu. It was a painting and landscape project. The work group was made up of Rotarians, teachers, students and community volunteers.
Manju Ramachandran helped with the Thanksgiving meal service at the India Community Center.
François Tessier put in many hours preparing for his trip to Sri Lanka (which we have reported on the last two weeks). In addition to his time with the Ayubowan clinic, I volunteered one day in a rehabilitation center in Katana, north of Colombo. His preparations included a fundraising conference in Montreal with a Medical Qigong therapist. The subject was "Why Energy Medicine and Acupuncture Center is a Relevant Approach in a Humanitarian Context."
Whew! How cool is all that? Those of you not listed above, we know you're doing good stuff - please share it via the survey below! After all, if reporting it means someone else gets helped, why would you hold back? :)Everyone, feel free to start the month with a little report on something you've done recently. Like what's above, it may inspire someone else to make something great happen!
The Rotary eClub of Silicon Valley Service Survey
Happy Dollars
Every week we offer the opportunity for guests and members to express their gratitude for something good that has happened to them this past week. Think of this as a digital karma jar.
Without going into detail, I'll simply say that last week was a bit of a rough one. However, I also had the chance last Friday morning to attend something special, and because of it, we have a Happy Dollars moment to share!member Rushton Hurley ($5)Getting to see the smiles and confidence of the young men and women who have been turned around through the FLY Program was a wonderful dose of coolness for the week!Have good news you want to share? Submit your thoughts below
Birthdays
None this week, though we'll be celebrating the birthdays of Lisa and Mahmood in another couple of weeks!
The Tidbit
Every week, we feature a new tech tid bit or life hack to make something easier, more convenient, or more fun!
Here's a tip for searching a particular site for something that you're just sure is on one of those pages somewhere…
A Little Humor
We believe laughter is like medicine. Here’s a little humor for your week!
Over the next few weeks, we're tapping the collection at the website of Boys' Life Magazine.Teacher: Johnny, define "claustrophobia." Johnny: Fear of Santa Claus?Hopefully for you, that doesn't generate a fear of similar jokes on their way over the coming weeks. Ha ha ha.
Selected Comments from Last Week
It's one thing to hear about the interesting work of innovative people around the world. It's another to get to know the members of the club via their ideas about what they read and watch. Please take part in our community, and leave your thoughts before you finish today!
Last week's meeting, with its program on the work of educators Kevin Sherman and William Koopman in South Africa, generated plenty of cool thoughts, and we share some of them, here:
From member Heather Shaw (California, USA):"Giving students the option of technology will give them inspiration and hopefully outweigh some of the poor conditions that surround them. What a wonderful opportunity for them to view the world and offer hope. Luv luv luv the time for sharing video!"
From member Chris Cochrane (Ontario, Canada):"François ... most excellent journey. I hope you'll do a future program, perhaps involving some of the people from Sri Lanka! And the Time for Sharing Video: excellent. It's based on true story."
From member Shags Shagrin (California, USA):"So much to enjoy at this week's meeting! I've heard Cliff Dochterman speak about a half-dozen times, and he always has a great presentation. Apart from what Rushton shared, Cliff has spoken to more Rotarians than any other person. I first met him at PETS in Ohio in 1989, and he remembered our Club Secretary. After coming west to CA and finding Cliff in my residential District, he not only remembered our meeting in Ohio 20 years prior, but asked how Fred, the Club Secretary was doing! Amazing memory, that man. If you couldn't get there, visit this video to hear a great program in Petaluma in 2013."
From member Tzviatko Chiderove (Illinois, USA):"It's so cool to see technology be a powerful enabler for students to learn. Thank you William and Kevin for your work. Nice tidbit Rushton - very useful!"[Kevin's response: Thank you, Tzviatko. It was an honor to be invited to share, and I was so happy that William's hard work was rewarded with some recognition.]
From member Andrew Taw (California, USA):"Thanks William and Kevin for your presentation! The bit in the beginning about saving face and maintaining the air of control was really insightful for me as my heritage, as Nate pointed out, is rife with struggles about the individual's role within one's community. It's something I don't think about as much in education in the States so I really appreciate your comments on it! For anyone interested in the story behind the Sainsbury commercial, there's a decent movie about it called Joyeux Noel (I'm glad that, on an online format, I don't have to be forced to attempt a French pronunciation)."[Kevin's response: And I'll second your movie pick. It's such a pity that in our current world, we still struggle to find ways to cross minefields of difference.]
From member Rushton Hurley (California, USA):"William and Kevin, this is a wonderful window on possibilities for kids in South Africa - thank you so much for sharing the story! I hope the Sainsbury's people make an equally powerful commercial for this Christmas, though putting together something better than the one we showed this week will be a challenge. Everyone, please consider the opportunities to serve the club through being part of the board!"
The Program
This week our program covers an upcoming gathering in southern California: The Rotary World Peace Conference 2016.
This is the first in the Presidential Conference Series jointly hosted by RI President K.R. Ravindran and Rotary Foundation Trustee Chair Ray Klinginsmith, and will focus on peace and conflict prevention and resolution. Imagine more than 3000 community and business leaders, Rotarians and non-Rotarians, sharing solutions to major problems such as homelessness, human trafficking, domestic violence, child abuse, poverty, the refugee crisis, and other current pressing needs. Imagine taking a blueprint solution with you and receiving support to create real lasting change.The conference, the only one of the series being hosted in the Americas, will take place January 15th and 16th. The two-day event will be packed with six plenary sessions, 104 breakout sessions with more than 100 experts facilitating the training classes, an interactive House of Friendship, dinners with special invited speakers, and a concert featuring world class violinists from Russia. A concurrent Interact Conference will provide training in conflict resolution skills to nearly 500 high school students.The conference will bring together experts with solutions to major issues which are occurring in each of our communities around the world. These solutions are divided into thirteen tracks including personal lives, home, school, business, international, international trade, film and media, major religions, Rotarians creating peace worldwide, civil rights and aboriginal needs, Peace Fellows, diplomacy, and sustainability.Our speaker, Rudy Westervelt, is the District Governor for D5330 Inland Empire, Southern California. Rudy is the Convener for the Rotary World Peace Conference 2016.Rudy grew up in a small, rural community in the Finger Lakes area of Upstate New York. He received a B.S. degree from Cornell University and a M.S. degree from the University of Connecticut. In 1977, he joined the Kroger Co., and for nearly 30 years led distribution and manufacturing teams in St. Louis, Atlanta and Riverside.Rudy and his wife, Karyn, launched their own business, Power in Learning, in 2006 to help individuals and companies achieve greater levels of success. Rudy is a motivational speaker on "Achieving Your Potential" and "Reaching Your Goals". He is called upon to speak at a variety of industry events around the United States.Rudy and Karyn joined the Rotary Club of Lake Arrowhead Mountain Sunrise at the same time. Karyn was club president in 2009-10 and Rudy in 2011-12. They have immersed themselves in Rotary and have a passion for youth and vocational service programs including co-chairing a PRYDE camp for 7th graders and starting a career development class at a continuation high school. Rudy has been the District Trainer, a PETS and RLI facilitator, a member of the District Visioning Team and an Assistant Rotary Coordinator in Zone 26 (Southern California).Members and guests, enjoy this message of peace and possibility!
Loved what you saw? Want to go to the Rotary Peace Conference?To learn more and register, visit the conference website at: www.peaceconference2016.org
Upcoming Programs
Now that you have completed watching this week’s program and meeting, here are some programs that you can expect in the coming weeks.
• Week of Dec 14th: The Teen Whisperer – Helping Adults Understand Teens & Teens Understand Themselves
• Week of Dec 21st: Building a Responsible Lifestyle Brand For Women On The RiseDo you think you have or know of a topic, organization, or business that might be of interest to our eClub members? We are particularly interested in finding those that address our focuses of innovation, education, and entrepreneurship, and all the more so when they relate to service to others. Please email our president (president@siliconvalleyrotary.com) to suggest that as a program! We love hearing suggestions from both members and guests.
You’re Almost Done! One last thing: The Attendance Survey..
Thanks for reading and watching this week’s meeting. You have two last things to do before you’re done. First, we have a very short attendance survey below for you to fill out to record your attendance.
Visiting Rotarians, this is how you can get an email receipt to pass along to your club’s secretary as proof that you’ve attended our meeting if you need it for makeups.
Non-Rotarian Guests, we would love to see who is dropping by our meetings! This part is optional for you though.
More importantly, for all members and guests — we strongly recommend and ask that you leave a comment below in our comments area below. Tell us how you enjoyed the program. Ask this week’s speaker any questions you might have. Or just stop by and say hello and tell us where you’re from!
