MEETING OF DECEMBER 13, 2001
By Dick Blanding
Editor - Dick Blanding
Webmaster - Steve Gruber
Our meeting today was kicked off with an acknowledgement of the fact that our Los Altos School District has been ranked #1 in California for the past three years. To honor that achievement, four very young students from Santa Rita School, accompanied by their friends (sixth grade teacher Ellen Moreno and Principal Steve Peck), read the Four Way Test from the stage. A more stirring rendition has yet to grace our meeting hall, as was reflected by the spontaneous burst of enthusiastic applause from the assembled multitude.Rick Glaze provided considerable food for thought with a quotation from ancient Chinese philosophy of the Tao. While most folks were left dumbfounded and scratching their heads, Dan O'Donnell was seen to be enjoying a hearty laugh.
Much to the delight of the Santa Rita kids, Seth led us in a rousing chorus of Rudolph the Red Nosed Reindeer. This was soon followed by the auctioning of a prize bottle of wine donated by Brian Ward, who had won it while in attendance at the Rotary Club of London recently.
If you forgot to bring your $ to tip our luncheon helpers today, it's okay. You can still bring it in next week, when we'll be presenting our gift.One of our visitors today was B.J. Stiles, friend of Dude Angius and chief executive officer of the National AIDS Fund.
Bob Adams thanked us for our gifts for the Alta Vista kids to give out to needy families at Christmas. He is also interested in hearing from you if you have access to potential corporate donors, or if you would like to volunteer as a mentor.
Mona Armistead thanked all of us for our donations to the Rotary Foundation, and presented double sustainer pins to Cindy Luedtke, Sam Pesner, Lem Summey. and to Matt Cabot, whose generous gift elevated him to Paul Harris status as well.
Larry Chu Jr. gave his five minute talk, starting off with the Student Body Presidency at Pinewood, while serving as captain of several sports teams there. At UCLA he was active in charitable activities like organizing sorority car washes; his talents were recognized by his peers, who elected him Eminent Commander of Sigma Nu. Despite this, he graduated from UCLA with his degree in Economics. A brief, post-graduation vacation in Hong Kong turned out to be so enjoyable that he stayed on for three and a half years, finding work with ING Sports Marketing Co., and traveling to lots of exotic places from Thailand to Tokyo, in the Orient. He's now back, working half days (defined as 10 am to 10 pm by his dad) at the famous Chef Chu's. Larry also introduced his fiancee', Suzanne Kwan, who has studied Hotel Management in Switzerland. She's very lovely, and when she paid Larry's rather substantial fine later on, several single members were heard asking whether she might possibly have a sister.
Finemaster John McAlister also nicked Cindy for her good-looking picture in the paper, reporting her recent award as Outstanding Los Altos Volunteer; Rich Fischer, for having given a talk to the Kiwanis Club; Francis La Poll, in recognition of starting his second term as Mayor of our fair hamlet; and Rick Glaze, who I believe was cited at Vocalist of the Year by a national magazine. Ask Rick for details. All of these honorees took the final step and became full-fledged Diplomats.
Don't forget to mark your calendars for the club's annual Christmas party, next Wednesday Dec. 19th , at 6 pm at the Jesuit Retreat House. (Be sure to car pool!) We'll continue to boost the holiday spirit the next day as well, when the Main Street Singers come to perform at our regular meeting.
Victoria Emmons introduced our speaker, Mary Hiland, who is President and CEO of ALLIANCE for Community Care. Her resume is more than a full page long, but includes Masters degrees in Social work and Public Administration, Board member of several Silicon Valley nonprofit organizations, Soroptimist Woman of the Year, YMCA Tribute to Women in Industry Award, first recipient of the Excellence in Nonprofit Leadership Award, and KTEH-TV's recognition of her as Community Champion for Mental Health, which was the subject of her talk today.
She began with the mention of Abe Lincoln, Robin Williams, and Winston Churchill all having had something in common, that being a major mental illness. That led to the revelation that at any given time, perhaps one in five Americans may have a serious mental ailment involving impaired functioning. Though there are many forms of mental illness, most cases fall into one of five major categories: (1)schizophrenia, which is affects mainly young people, impacts thinking more than mood, and creates an inability to relate to others. It is not the "split personality", that used to be depicted in books and movies;
(2) Bi-polar, formerly known as manic-depressive, with its mood swings from hyperactivity and a lack of need for sleep, to severe depression;
(3) major depression; (4) obsessive-compulsive disorder, and (5) panic attacks.
Our speaker cited studies which indicated, with one exception, that people with mental illness are no more violent than the rest of us, unless they are experiencing psychosis or are under the influence of drugs. She went on to say that a recovery, or return to normal functioning, is currently being achieved in eighty per cent of cases of mental illness. She pointed out that mental incompetence is a different problem from mental illness, and that the illness arises from a variety of causes, heredity being just one factor. Stigma is the biggest problem affecting treatment of the mentally ill today, in that it makes people reluctant to admit their symptoms, or to reveal to others that they are suffering from a major mental illness. She also cautions that most health plans don't cover treatment for mental illness, so we may wish to try to use our influence to bring about a change in that policy in the future.We are in for a great treat at the next meeting! Please plan to arrive early, as we may have to start the meeting at 12:20 PM. First, the Main Street Singers will be performing. Following their performance, there will be a presentation by PDG Denny Weisgerber. Thanks to Penny Lave's invitation, Goody Steinberg, a well-known architect will be speaking about Israel, the country we are celebrating this time.
Thank you for your generosity during the last meeting. Many checks were put in the box for the folks who have been serving our meals during the whole year. Ramon, Jane and Janet will be receiving your gratuities at the next meeting. And when they do, chances are you will see the elevated spirits in their eyes. If you could not attend the meeting last Thursday, and you still wish to make your voluntary contribution, please remember to bring it to the next meeting.
The Holiday Season is a wonderful time of the year. This is one great tradition during which all of us verbalize our good wishes for one another. I, too, want to wish you and your families Happy Holidays and a prosperous new year. May the year 2002 bring with it peace and understanding throughout the world.
-Firooz
Programs
December
December 19 - Rotary Holiday Party at the Jesuit Retreat House
December 20 - Main Street Singers
December 27 - No Meeting
"Information in this newsletter is intended for the exclusive use of the members of the Rotary Club of Los Altos to facilitate the work of the club and to promote club fellowship. It is not to be used for any commercial or outside, unrelated, non-profit purposes. No publication of material in this newsletter should occur without the express permission of the club President or the Editor of the Rotator."
Copyright 2001 The Los Altos Rotary Club
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