Operation Otôtêmimâw (Friend): Student to Student Engagement
Meeting for the week of December 09 - December 15, 2019
This Meeting at a Glance:
Program: Operation Otôtêmimâw (Friend): Student to Student Engagement
Speaker: John Currie
Is this your first time to visit us? If so, welcome to our weekly online meeting! To complete our meeting, please continue reading from here to the bottom of this page.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 60 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. Please also make sure to complete the attendance form at the bottom and leave a comment. Enjoy!
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Everyone is also encouraged to leave a comment in the Disqus section at the bottom of the page.
Table of Contents
Welcome to the Rotary eClub of Silicon Valley!
Here’s a message from President Tzviatko:
Greetings Rotarians and Guests,We had a great Board Meeting last Friday (last one for 2019), and I'm thankful for everyone's leadership over the past 6 months.This week's speaker - Rotarian John Currie - will tell us about his efforts around using technology as a platform for building respect, understanding and lasting friendships between Indigenous and non-Indigenous students in Canada.
Sincerely,
Tzviatko
President, Rotary eClub of Silicon Valley
Guests, we are happy to have you join us this week!
As we see it, our flexibility as an online, asynchronous club allows a special type of service to Rotarians around the world: we make it easier for anyone to strive for and maintain 100% attendance. That keeps you engaged with Rotary's events and ideas, and provides a moment of inspiration for devoting your creativity, talents, and resources to good causes.You are certainly not required to pay anything in order to attend our meetings. However, if you would like to make a small contribution to our service efforts, you are welcome to do so in our secure Happy Dollars section down the page. This could be what you normally pay at your own club's meetings for lunch, for example. Any amount is welcome, but first and foremost, we're happy you've joined us, and hope you will share with others who we are and what we do to help inspire Service Above Self.And don't forget to fill out our attendance form so you get an email you can pass on to your club's secretary!
The Four Way Test
The Four-Way Test is a nonpartisan and nonsectarian ethical guide for Rotarians to use for their personal and professional relationships.Of the things we think, say or do
Is it the TRUTH?
Is it FAIR to all concerned?
Will it build GOODWILL and BETTER FRIENDSHIPS?
Will it be BENEFICIAL to all concerned?
Rushton from San Jose, CA, USA
Weekly Funny with the Lady of Laughter (LOL)
We believe laughter is an important part of life, and we should all make time to laugh a little. This segment of our meeting is meant to tickle you just enough. These funnies are curated by member Yvonne Kwan, our “Lady of Laughter!”
It's been raining heavily in the Bay Area recenty, so this weather has me all washed up. Here are some jokes to water your week!
What did one water bottle ask another water bottle?Water you doing today?
Did you ever hear the joke about the three holes in the ground?Well, well, well.
Why does water never laugh at jokes?It doesn't appreciate dry humor.
Weekly Inspiration
Every week we start our meetings with a short video highlighting innovation, inspiration, entrepreneurship, or social change.
If there is one thing people everywhere love, it just might be coffee—more than 2 billion cups are consumed on this planet every single day. In this installment of “Around the World,” we travel to five different countries to sample five different kinds of coffee because, frankly, someone had to do it. From café de olla in Mexico to egg coffee in Vietnam, we still haven’t met a cup we didn’t like.
World of
Creating a family-friendly vibe with your Rotary club
Learn more at https://blog.rotary.org/2019/10/17/creating-a-family-friendly-vibe-with-your-rotary-club/
Through a Rotarian's Lens
Sometimes a photo can capture an amazing moment. In this section Member Keith Marsh shares his incredible photography!If you'd like to submit a photo for this section please contact Keith.
The compositional elements of this photo are color and texture. It was taken in the Abajo Mts of southeast Utah. Some of the best fall colors I have ever seen, but few people know about this area.
Learn Something New
This section is curated by members Shags Shagrin and Rushton Hurley and aims to teach our members and guests something new, fun and useful! If you have any ideas on a fun trick or skill you'd like to share please contact Rushton or Shags.
48 Names for Things You May Not Know Had Names
Everything has a name or is called something, but what is that proper term? This video will enlighten and inform!!
Coffee With a Rotarian
A natural part of Rotary is the networking and the fellowship you get out of meeting other Rotarians. Coffee With a Rotarian is a monthly program of our club where we match participating club members for one-on-one virtual (or in some cases in person) coffee meetings, so they can learn more about each other. This program is organized by member Tzviatko Chiderov.
This week we have Nan from Penngrove, CA, USA reporting on a chat with Brett from Sydney, AustraliaMy CWR with Brett was just delightful. I told Brett that since I'd already ""had coffee"" with his wife, and had attended at least part of his wedding , that I felt like I already knew him!We bypassed small talk and got right into learning about each others challenges.We talked about balancing family, work and leisure while attending to one's mental health needs. We talked (for a while) about the importance of cats, and how much our own cats benefit from having a co-cat to spend the days with!We talked about potential dream jobs and how we both love to cook. Also, we talked about when, how and why to decide whether to have kids, and how it really is an individual question.We talked about our common passion for traveling and service.It is amazing to me how so many of our members are fascinating, captivating conversationalists!
We encourage all club members to participate in Coffee With a Rotarian.
You can sign up here!
New Member Introduction
Please welcome our new member, Carl!
Here is a little bit about himself:
I am (mostly) retired as a real estate broker. In my prior careers I was a Corporate Financial Officer, a staffing industry consultant and a B-2-B business owner. BBA – Univ. of WI., MBA-St. Mary’s of CA.
I live in CA during the winter, where my daughter and her family live. In the summer, I am in WI where I have a place on the lake where my siblings live. In my retirement I like to work with my hands building furniture and remodeling family properties.
Previously, I was a member of Rotary Club of North Napa for 8 years.
Welcome to the club, Carl!!
Service Report
Tell us about service you’ve done recently in your community.Click here to fill out The Rotary eClub of Silicon Valley Service Survey
On the first meeting of every month, we feature service reports from club members for the previous month. Thanks for your service everyone!
Club Announcements
Haven't joined the conversation on Facebook yet? Consider joining the conversation by signing into our club members-only Facebook Group at https://www.facebook.com/groups/rotarysiliconvalley/
Our Events & Projects
We hold our meetings online, but we do regular service projects and social events in the Silicon Valley! This section is updated every week with our upcoming events. We welcome guests to all of the events and service projects listed here.
Past Events:
Upcoming Events:
All times are Pacific Time! (San Francisco time)
District 5170 Events
All times are Pacific Time! (San Francisco time)More events coming soon! All events are open to guests, unless otherwise mentioned. Feel free to join us! If you ever have questions, please email inquiries@siliconvalleyrotary.com
Happy Dollars: Do Good by Sharing Something Good
Each week we ask our members to share stories with the club and toss in a few dollars to support our efforts. The primary goal of this section is to provide a fun way of getting to know each fellow members and guests, while giving back to a good cause.
Happy dollars is an opportunity to share something positive that has happened in your life whether it is personal or business. Think of it as your opportunity to brag a little, but also put a little bit into a karma jar. The money donated through happy dollars is put to charitable use, and the message that you leave for happy dollars will be posted in our online meeting the following week for the entire week for folks to see! (Pending that it’s appropriate!)
Here are the happy dollars contributions from last week!This section is usually updated on the early hours of Saturday, so contributions made over the weekend may not be listed here.
Tzviatko Chiderov made a $25 donation.Please donate to Polio Plus.Thanks Peter for reminding us of the 2:1 match by the Gates Foundation!
Rory Olsen made a $20 donation.Nice sunny day! Please apply my gift to Polio Plus.
Selected Comments
Every week at the bottom of our meetings, there is a comments section for members and guests to tell us what they enjoyed about the meeting or to ask questions to the speaker. We select a few comments every week from last week’s meeting to be featured during this week’s meeting.
Here are the comments selected from last week’s meeting.
Nan Herron said:
Peter, thank you for shedding light on the Foundation. It makes much more sense to have an understanding of its history! And, I love looking at the Himalayas while learning about cheese! And the present-wrapping hacks are just in time! Nice program all around!
May Yam said:
Thank you Peter, being a relatively new Rotarian it is much appreciated. I’m a film maker and I would like to create an impactful VR video on Alzheimer’s that will evoke awe and empathy to drive viewers to donate. My last public image VR video I created for Rotary was a huge success and I would like to keep the momentum going. I’d like to know how to apply for a grant that you mentioned in the q and a.
Monique le Conge Ziesenhenne said:
Great program! It's always wonderful to see what Rotary does through the Foundation and is one of the the things that I'm proudest of when I tell people about Rotary. Thanks for sharing.
Be sure to leave a comment at the end of this week’s meeting after you watch the program below, and perhaps you’ll see your comment featured next week!
Program: Operation Otôtêmimâw (Friend): Student to Student Engagement
Speaker: John Currie
Every week we bring to you a new program on innovation, entrepreneurship, and education, and how those contribute to service to others. Special thanks to member Roger Plested for leading our club's Programs Committee in finding us amazing speakers each week.
If you have an idea for a cool speaker, please feel free to reach out to them directlyor submit THIS FORM so our Program Committee can contact them!
This week's speaker is John Currie, who will share the story a pilot program that utilizes technology to build friendships and connect Indigenous students from isolated rural communities with students in large urban settings.The program is designed to establish and maintain a mutually respectful relationship between Indigenous and non-Indigenous students and inspire them to transition Canada into a society where we can live together in dignity, peace, and prosperity on these lands we now share.John Currie received his bachelor's degree with Faculty of Liberal Arts & Professional Studies from York University, is a member of the Rotary Club of Pickering, and currently the Executive Director for a nation-wide charity known as HIP (Honouring Indigenous Peoples).John spent 25 years in the technology world as Senior IT Manager for Symantec, CIO for the Ontario Safety Association for Community & Healthcare, and Managing Director for the IT Agency. John is also currently serving as Cultural Advisor for the City of Pickering, Interim Chair for the Pickering Music Festival and Education Services Director for the Rotary Club of Pickering.John has received numerous accolades including being recognized as a Global Goodwill Ambassador, certificate of appreciation from MPP Tracey MacCharles, recipient of multiple Management & Financial Excellence awards and Rotary's Service Above Self award.Members and guests, please welcome Rotarian John Currie!
Share your thoughts or ask our speaker a question in the comments at the bottom of this meeting page!
Upcoming Program Recording Schedule
All of our guest speakers and programs are recorded live online over Zoom video conference. We welcome members and guests to join us in one of these upcoming recordings. Recordings are approximately 30 minutes long and are subject to change without notice.
Our online video conference room link for these recordings is always https://zoom.us/j/5104080000. You are welcome to join us! Please note the timezone listed for all recordings is US Pacific Time (San Francisco, California, USA).If you can’t join the live recording, please send your questions for an upcoming speaker to programs@siliconvalleyrotary.com.
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