TODAY
Town & Gown is a non-profit organization whose purpose is to support the University of Redlands through scholarships for students, service grants for faculty, and enhancing the Town & Gown relationship. JAMES BENANTI, Assistant Principal at Redlands High School, also is the current President of the U of R’s Town & Gown. He’ll bring us up to date for this year’s T&G activities and perhaps discuss the future initiatives of the organization.
LAST WEEK
Smiley Library Youth Services Librarian PAMELA MARTINEZ shared the Library’s work with children with the Club. Starting with the earliest days of the children’s library, which included time in the basement (where kids would not only not be heard but also not seen!), to the gift of the Children’s Wing (Daniel Smiley Wing) by the Smiley family in 1920, and the many children’s librarians who have served over the years, she presented a broad perspective. The annual Summer Reading program involved hundreds of our area’s youths this summer, with kids reading more than a hundred thousand more pages than adults who participated in the adult reading program! Clearly, we have reason to be confident in the youth of our community!
NEXT WEEK
ANDREW CHRISTOPHERSON is the Head of School for the Grove School, where he has worked since 2006. From the germ of an idea in 1999, the Grove School has grown to be a respected model for the Montessori method of education and instruction and a valuable example of another way to successfully “do” secondary education. ANDREW will explain how Grove got here, where it is today, and where it is going tomorrow.
THERE IS NO “U” IN ROTARY
Fortunately, there is “you”! The late and esteemed Redlands Rotarian LEROY HANSBERGER famously responded to anyone who proposed a project or program, or complained about any situation “Well, what are YOU going to do about it?” We ask the same question of all Redlands Rotarians. There is a place for each of us to contribute to at least one area of service, and we need every member of the Club to step up if we are to continue as the best and most impactful service club in the region. What are YOU going to do about it?
TICK TICK TICK TICK TICK ……….
The online store where you can buy merchandise branded with the RCOR logo AND donate to the Redlands Rotary Foundation (if you choose) is in full effect, but only for TWO MORE WEEKS! The store is only taking orders until September 9th so the shirts, hats, and bags can be delivered at the October 6th meeting.
The website is www.redlandsrotary.itemorder.com. If you want something you don’t see on the site, talk to JIM NOLIN and we’ll see if we can put it on the site. You’d better hurry, though!
NOTE TO PREZ
The distance between the USA and Australia is roughly 9,437 air miles. At a penny per mile, that amounts to $94.37. Sounds like a good baseline for recognition of one of our favorite Rotarians.
CALENDAR
October 8 – District 5330 Foundation Gala will take place in Rancho Mirage from 5:30 to 9:00 PM. The keynote speaker is Rotary International’s first woman President, JENNIFER JONES. Sign up at www.district5330.org/calendar-and-events.
October 21 – Human Trafficking Awareness seminar in Palm Desert from 2:00 to 5:00 PM followed by a hosted mixer. Sign up atwww.district5330.org/calendar-and-events for this, too.
TODAY IN AWFUL HISTORY
In 1945, JOHN BIRCH, an American missionary to China before World War II and a captain in the Army during the war, is killed by Chinese communists days after the surrender of Japan, for no apparent reason. After America had entered the war, BIRCH, a Baptist missionary already in China, was made a liaison between American and Chinese forces fighting the Japanese. But on August 25, BIRCH, commanding an American Special Services team, was ordered to halt by Chinese communist troops. A scuffle ensued, and BIRCH was shot dead.
PRESIDENT’S COLUMN
Please make room in your calendar for our September 8th meeting to learn about LYNETTE SPANGENBERG’S personal experience with Polio. I look forward to seeing you all there.
Following the program, we will take advantage of the Gates Foundation’s offer to match us 2-to-1 for TRF funds. Stick around at the end of the program to participate in the fundraiser.
September 23rd is our first big event, but you need a ticket to enter! Let’s see a heated auction on the 8th!
Coming soon… we are working toward organizing several fabulous events for the year. We will need help for coordinating the events, so please join a subcommittee if you feel so inclined. This club works because we do.
Editor – Jim Nolin – Edition No. 8, August 25, 2022