MEETING OF MAY 29, 2003 By Matt Cabot
Editor: Dick Blanding
We had three visiting Rotarians, and 51 guests. This was Scholarship Awards Day at Los Altos Rotary, the day when we gave away over $15,000 of OUR money. And you know what? It felt good. It felt wonderful. If only we could see as tangible evidence that we do make a difference in this world as we did today. If we could, I am sure that we would do even more.Marge Gratiot led us in the Pledge, Baritone Al Lambert led us in song, and Seth Manning�s thought for the day, reminded us that God really loves you.
If your picture for the Club Handbook is out of date, and many of them go back 10 - 15 years, please have Clyde Noel retake you picture. New members use it to learn who you are, so it is important to show how nicely you have aged.
Of course if you don�t have a picture in the Handbook, that should be a clue to also see Clyde! Our new (soon to be President) Al Traficanti says that one goal he has is to get the new Handbook out ASAP, so be warned, Larry Chu Jr!
Red Badger Al Ligtenberg has more makeup slips than the whole club combined. He just got back from several months in Nepal, where he knows all of the members in the several local clubs, but few of the members here. He is looking forward to knowing us as well as he knows them. Perhaps one of these days he will give us an update on his Solar Cooking projects in Nepal.
FIVE MINUTES OF FAME - Red Badger Tracie Murray, who had her five minute �Getting to Know Me� talk postponed several times, finely got the spotlight, much to her chagrin. She was born in 1962 in San Antonio TX, has 3 brothers, and went to Miramonte High School. At graduation, she got an award for being a crackerjack auto mechanic. She spent two years at Diablo College, and eventually graduated from USC in gerontology. She was a member of the Chi Omega Sorority.
Upon graduation, she joined the US Army, then the National Guard, where she ended up in Intelligence. After military service, she spent several years with NAPA Auto Parts as an outside sales rep, and rebuilt an auto, perhaps because of all that access to free auto parts. She originally joined Lafayette Rotary in 1992.
Tracie and her husband have one daughter and one son. She is also the proud owner of a Green Belt in Tai-Quan Do and a recent homeowner in Los Altos. Tracie is currently the CEO of Los Altos Sub-Acute and Rehab. Center in Los Altos, and quite frequently, the driver for Billy Russell. Please get to know Tracie; she is a great addition to our club.
AND NOW, THE MAIN ATTRACTION: Marlene Cowan and Mona Armistead and their committee of 18 members, struggled through 33 completed applications, and interviewed 18 individuals to come up with 10 scholarship recipients.
I say �struggled� but not in the pejorative sense. Struggled, in the sense of difficult. The ten people whom we met today were the cream of the crop. But many others who were not selected were nearly as deserving. There is just so much money, and when it is distributed, there is no more. If anything this meeting should remind us of two things. 1. Our donations do make a difference, and 2, there are committees like Marlene�s that assure that our contributions are distributed wisely. Committees like Dude Angius�s RAP, and Bob Adam�s World Community Service who spend countless hours screening projects, actually opportunities, that do make a difference in the world.
Believe me, it is ironic that I am writing about these fine young men and women that we honored today. During the presentation, I kept thinking of my miss-spent youth; where I stood on the scholastic ladder (I was at the bottom, holding it for others - hey, somebody had to do it); how close I came to National Merit Scholar (didn�t know it even existed until my kids were in high school) how high my SATs were (low three digits, I think). But on to the scholarships:
EGAN INTERMEDIATE SCHOOL
Laura Partain
Kellen McCool
BLACH INTERMEDIATE SCHOOL
Claudia Lam
Max Vujovic
MOUNTAIN VIEW HIGH SCHOOL
Aviva Altmann $1,200 UCLA
Gladys Gudino $2,500 UCLA
Ting Ting Wei $500 UCLA
LOS ALTOS HIGH SCHOOL
Lizette Berrospe $2.500 St Mary�s
EASTSIDE COLLEGE PREP HIGH SCHOOL
Amber Bundy $2,500 UC Berkeley
Angelique Burton $2,500 Smith
ALTA VISTA HIGH SCHOOL
Christina Escobar $800 Foothill
MOUNTAIN VIEW ACADEMY
Janiel Bates $2,500 Oakwood College
ST FRANCIS HIGH SCHOOL
Daniel Nguyen $500 Stanford
Charles CowanScience & Tech. Foundation Award
FOOTHILL COLLEGE
Name withheld $500 UC Berkeley
With each presentation, the Principal or Advisor spoke about the accomplishments of each of these fine young people. Seeing a name just doesn�t do justice to the dedication to Service Above Self, in the true sense of Rotary that was exhibited by these individuals. Just another example of a meeting you had to be there to appreciate.
Programs and Events
June
June 5: To be announced
June 12: LAREF annual meeting
June 19: To be announced
June 26: Kickout Luncheon
June 27: Kickout DinnerJuly
July 12 and 13: Rotary booth at the Los Altos Village Art and Wine Festival
OTHER ROTARY CLUB MEETING PLACES
On-line Meeting: www.rotaryeclubone.org
MONDAY
Palo Alto: Rickey's Hyatt House, 12:15 p.m.
TUESDAY
Los Altos Sunset: The Echo Restaurant, Los Altos, 7:15 p.m.
Sunnyvale: Ramada Inn, 12:15 p.m.
Mountain View: Adobe House, Moffett & Central, Mountain View, 12:15 p.m.
WEDNESDAY
Menlo Park: Menlo Park Recreation Center, Menlo Park, noon.
Woodside/Portola: Woodside Village Church, Woodside, 7:30 a.m.
Sunnyvale Sunrise: Wild Woodys Grill, Sunken Gardens Golf Course, 7 a.m.
Cupertino: Quinlan Community Center, 12:15 p.m.
East Palo Alto Bayshore: Boys & Girls Club of the Peninsula, 2031 Pulgas Avenue, East Palo Alto, 12:15 p.m.
FRIDAY
Palo Alto University: Sheraton, El Camino, Palo Alto, 7:30 a.m.
"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 2003 The Los Altos Rotary Club
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