MEETING OF APRIL 29, 2004
Rotator Writer: Cindy Luedtke
Editor: Dick Blanding
JOHN MCALISTER just spent some time in Sedona, AZ. This is where he came upon a wise Native American Indian prayer where the same universal rules apply; Love Thy neighbor, love thyself, and love thy earth.
PRESIDENT AL - There is still time to send nominations in writing to the Board or nominate from the floor if there is an interested individual wanting to run for the Los Altos Rotary Endowment Fund Board. The election will be held in the second week in May.
President Al expressed his sincere appreciation for the hard work of the Art Show committee. The team of 20 or so well-organized people on the committee are on time and on task. At least it looks that way and that’s important.
WE KNOW YOU ARE WONDERING…
Yes, you can still make it to Assembly. First, there is a dinner on Thursday evening at 5:00 PM followed by a series of sessions on various Avenues of Rotary Service. On Saturday morning, there will be special sessions on membership and the Foundation. Go to the District 5170 Website or call Cindy by Tuesday evening if you would like to attend.
Less than 15 minutes of Fame…but we’ll take it
Last Wednesday night, some of our members were able to get to their e-mails in time to tune into public television and see a cameo appearance of STEVE ANDERSON, our LAREF President presenting a check to Angela Mc Connell of the Community School of Music and Art. This was the segment that was filmed at our December 16th meeting.
Lend a Hand and say “Hi” to a friend.
Long-time Rotarian and friend of the community, ROY DUNNETT is staying at Los Altos Sub Acute located at 809 Fremont Avenue in Los Altos. Roy would appreciate receiving guests or cards and letters.
There is a District 5170 Awards Barbeque to be held the evening of May 13th
from 6:30 PM to 8:00 PM. The lion’s share of District Awards will be handed out that evening. Those interested in attending should contact President Al.
Be proud to be a Los Altos Rotarian
JOE CORRAL made just a short report after returning from his trip to Guatemala. He was able to see first-hand, the grammar school classrooms that were made possible with our matching funds. We should all be proud of the outstanding work done by the group in World Community Service.
Vocationally Speaking…
DAVID DYE handed out a questionnaire re: vocational speakers. Since we are all members of Rotary because of our ability to run a business or department, we should be able to provide a resource to our schools rich with experience and expertise to be shared. Please express your willingness to participate on the Vocational Service Committee which will meet quarterly. If you did not receive the questionnaire, please contact David Dye. If you received it and haven’t filled it out yet, please do so and get it back to David.
Really Guys….No, Relay…
MARY PROCHNOW pointed out that, so far, there is no male participation in the Relay for Life. Not only is the team in need of people who will take a turn and walk around a quarter mile track (How hard is that?), the Rotary Team needs EVERY ROTARIAN’S support in raising funds for cancer research and support programs for cancer survivors. The good news is that joining supporting the team is easy. Go to the Relay Website at www.acsevents.org/relay/ca/losaltos. You can also just give Mary Prochnow (948-8910) or Cindy Luedtke (917-6415) a call and let them know how you would like to support the LARC Team.
President Al presented the clubs “Service Above Self Award” to MARY MARLEY. Mary has, for many years now, been a big contributor to our club. Recently she has spent much of her time in the areas of youth; Interact and Partners for New Generations. In addition, she has put her great organization skills to work as the Chair of LAREF’s Contributions Committee. Not only does she spend much time and effort with our club, she assists her Sunnyvale Rotarian Husband, Arley in his role as District Chair of Project Share a Life. Congratulations, Mary. You are certainly deserving of this special recognition.
Self-induced Fines. Now that’s efficiency!
Why isn’t it always this easy to get money out of these folks? Our fine master, JOHN MCALISTER was quite overwhelmed by the generosity of his audience today. Before he could even summon anyone up, STEVE ANDERSON stood up in anticipation and offered a token fine since he is rarely overlooked by John. So, in the same vein, LARRY CHU was asked for his routine fine as well. SETH MANNING, on the other hand, pointed out there were missed opportunities to fine him for his birthday and anniversary. Since he had the duck bucket and all, he “fessed” up and paid up. SAM PESNER was so impressed he received a free scoop of ice cream from John’s store, he paid $25.00 for the privilege. MARTY SPANGLER was proud to report that his grandson is graduating from the University of Portland and will soon be a 2nd Lieutenant in the Army and stationed in Germany. IRENE PRESTON’S son is getting married on Saturday. She should have gotten paid for being in attendance today!
Things were moving so fast in the fining arena, I’m not even sure if JOANNE KAVALARIS was ever assessed a fine for her new car. Fine master John was too focused on those ripe for the picking; namely, George Estill. It was too much of an event to not notice that GEORGE (aka Waldo as in “Finding Waldo”) ESTILL was among us. We’ve missed you George, and hope you will be seeing us more often.
SHOSHANA ZIMMERMAN paid $30.00 for being named as one of the top 200 woman doctors according to Health Magazine. Congratulations, Shoshanna.
On behalf of the Woodside Rotary Club, JACK HIGGINS paid a fine so he could invite us all to the Woodside Pancake Breakfast on May 1st at Woodside Village Church. Call Ken Broome at 529-1810
STEVE SHEPHERD will be hosting the next wine party. Pinot Noir is the key word for the evening. Music will be provided by the Jazz Connection featuring none other than our own lovable JOHN SYLVESTER. He paid only $2.00 for taking up all that fining time. Bankers can be so stingy.
Yet, another reason to be proud to be a Los Altos Rotarian
HINDA WEBER announced that Partners for New Generations was recognized by the California Continuation Education Association. Of the 533 continuation schools in California, Alta Vista was chosen to be given the Exemplary Program Award for its Mentoring Program. The supporting organization, Partners for New Generations, was given recognition for the collaborative effort between community members, local community foundations, and the school system to provide a valuable service to its students.
It’s in the Cards…
Supervising deputy District Attorney for the Santa Clara County District Attorney’s Office, Jay Boyarsky was a very entertaining speaker of the day. At first, you would never suspect that this Deputy District Attorney would find himself in a high-profile gambling game like the World Series of Poker.
As Jay explained it, things started out rather innocently. He was just a regular player with friends who got together occasionally to play a friendly game. He entered a small competition with his friends at a cost of $200 and out of that won a $10,000 seat at the World Series of Poker.
Jay spoke of his experiences at the competition. He was amazed to find himself almost rubbing elbows with the World-renowned Poker expert, Chip Reese. Out of the 839 contenders, Jay held his own for eight hours and placed 565th. That was nowhere near being “in the money.” Money winnings began at 45th place with a purse of $30,000.
The winner of the $2,000,000 first prize was a 29 year old CPA from Tennessee who entered the World Series on the internet at a cost of $40.00 to win his $10,000 seat. His name was Chris Moneymaker and was backed by his good friend, John Gamble. Was this karma? Chris just took 2nd in another large qualifying tournament. Maybe not. It turns out poker is a game of skill and luck.
Jay had some advice for all of us World Series of Poker “Wanna Be’s”. Fold more often. And when you decide to stay in the game, be sure to raise. Most people are too conservative in the area of raising.
After hearing this advice, I am curious to see how the Poker will be played on Friday night after the golf and barbeque. And don’t forget to bring your sunglasses!
Programs and Events
May
May 6th: Maureen Norton, from Nordstroms at Stanford Shopping Center on "Current Fashions for men and Women"
May 6: LAREF board meeting, 5:15 p.m., Masonic Hall
May 7: Golf Tournament
May 12: Board of Directors, 7:30 a.m., Bank of Los Altos, 369 San Antonio Road
May 13th- Coeta Chambers of Intel Corporation on "The History of Discrimination Law"
May 15 and 16: Rotary Fine Art Show
May 20: Steve Poizner, who spent a year as a Whitehouse Fellow, where he was assigned to the Counter Terrorism Department in the office of the National Security Advisor.
May 27th - Rotary Scholarships
June
June 3rd - Partners for New Generations Recognition Luncheon
June 3: LAREF board meeting, 5:15 p.m., Masonic Hall
June 9: Board of Directors, 7:30 a.m., Bank of Los Altos, 369 San Antonio Road
June 10th - LAREF Annual Meeting/ Art Show Recognition
June 17th - Rotary Aids Project- Update
June 24th - End of Rotary Year Celebration
June 25: Kickout Dinner
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 2004 The Los Altos Rotary Club