MEETING OF SEPTEMBER 2, 2004
By Wyatt Allen
Editor: Dick Blanding
BEGINNINGS:
BRUCE CANN serenaded the gathering Rotarians with his mellow and very enjoyable piano playing. And who said our club was culturally challenged?
ROY LAVE led the assembled group in the Pledge of Allegiance followed by JOHN SYLVESTER leading in good voice in a “peppy” version of “You Are My Sunshine.”
The thought(s) of the day came from past president AL TRAFICANTI. He quoted WINSTON CHURCHILL, “One ought never to turn one’s back on a threatened danger and try to run away from it. If you do that, you will double the danger. But if you meet it promptly and without flinching, you will reduce the danger by half.” He then quoted BENJAMIN FRANKLIN on a lighter note, “Beer is proof that God loves us and wants us to be happy.” He altered it for Rotarians to read, “Wine is proof that God loves us and wants us to be happy.” That comes from one or our own vintners.
Pres.-Elect MARLENE COWAN led the introduction of visitors, which seemed like a family affair. Guests included BAIRDA MURPHY’S husband, MARLIS McALLISTER’S mother and VICTORIA EMMON’S daughter.
ANNOUNCEMENTS:
MARLENE COWAN reminded us that Los Altos Police Chief DON JOHNSON will be our speaker on Sept. 9th in remembrance of September 11th.
CINDY LUETKE reminded us of a Board Meeting on Sept. 8th, 7:30 a.m. at the Heritage Bank Community Room (that other bank name is still hard to write for me).
She also encouraged as many as possible to sign up (and pay) to attend the 17th Annual Philanthropy Day Awards Celebration to be held Nov. 19th in San Jose. Our Rotary Club will be one of the organizations honored at the event. $70/person buys you a seat to share the recognition of our club’s accomplishments in philanthropy.
MARGE BRUNO announced the beginning of the next Los Altos Leadership Course which runs from September through May and provides a tremendous wealth of knowledge to participants of the various governments, school and non for profit groups and organizations that make Los Altos such a wonderful place to live and/or work. Contact MARGE if you, or someone you know, might have an interest in participating. I personally found it to be of great value. It is certainly time well invested.
JACK KELLY made a plea on behalf of Partners For A New Generation for knit pickers. No, sorry, that was for knitters. Students at Alta Vista High School would like to learn the art and skill of knitting.
LUCY RASMUSSEN announced a tour of the Cantor Center for Visual Arts to be held at Stanford University on Sept. 30th starting at 6:00 p.m. A docent will lead the tour which is expected to last approx. an hour. There is an dinner in which you can participate if interested.
TRACIE MURRAY reminded us of the event by A Sante sponsored by five Rotary Clubs to raise funds for Rotacare. The wine and cheese event will be Oct. 6th, 5:30 to 8:00 p.m. There will be both a silent and live auction and items are still needed for both. If you can’t make the event, donations are readily accepted. Thanks to TRACIE MURRAY, JOAN ROSSELLE and ELLEN FLANIGAN for their efforts.
MEMBER NEWS AND NOTES:
Pres. CINDY recognized SETH MANNING and VICTORIA EMMONS as recipients of Celebrate Rotary centennial pin for service to Rotary and others. She presented Wisconsin cow pies to JOAN ROSSELLE and LEM SUMMEY for their “participation” in the District Governor’s visit last week.
LARRY CHU had the enviable job of announcing a new member and an advancement of another. VICTORIA BRACHA, retailer on Main Street in Los Altos was inducted into the club with a standing ovation and HEINZ BLENNEMANN had his Red Badge sticker removed after completing the Blue Badge requirements in about as short a time as I can remember.
WYATT ALLEN provided our “Rotary Moment” today and talked a little about the 1990-91 Rotary year. Directors included FRANZ ANDERSON, MARGE BRUNO, DICK HASENPFLUG, MARY PROCHNOW, WALTER SINGER, and DENNIS YOUNG. WYATT then concentrated on the work of FRANZ ANDERSON who was Director of Club Operations that year and was awarded the “Rotarian of the Year” award for his commitment to the club. Since then, FRANZ had epitomized what we are trying to accomplish through Partners for a New Generation by volunteering in the elementary school classroom as a reader and tutor. He first did it to support his grandchild, but soon began to love the opportunity to help young students grow in knowledge and confidence. He liked the activity so well, and the kids took to him as their segregate “grandfather” that the school district offered him a paid position. He has worked the past few years at approximately twenty hours per week helping the kids and teachers enhance the students’ learning environment. FRANZ battled cancer this past year and was hospitalized due to infections and complications. But the love for what he does with the kids has provided him the strength to return to the classroom as school is back in session.
More power to you, FRANZ, and may you be an inspiration to more of us to enter the classrooms of our local school to share our spirit, knowledge and care for our school children.
SAM HARDING provided the recognition opportunities for members today. After a confusion between wedding anniversaries and birthdays, SAM extracted dollars from
each member present with a September birthday in amounts equal to their achieved years. This, of course, prompted LEN McBIRNEY to claim age discrimination. Others who parted with cash included MARGE GRATIOT for her 40th anniversary; SHOSHANA ZIMMERMAN for an interview with Glamour Magazine: JERRY TOMANEK for the scholastic achievements of his kids; DWIGHT MATTHEWS for no reason other to join the President’s Club and avoid future “recognitions;” MARY PROCHNOW for her new car to “wow” em in real estate, and CRES McFALL for the success of daughter LAUREN earning a bronze medal in the Olympics synchronized swimming event.
During the fining session a cell phone was heard to ring and Pres. CINDY suggested a $5 fine (much less than SAM HARDING was ready to levy), then confessed it was her phone that interrupted SAM’S extraction of monies. Did CINDY really only pay $5.00?
When it came time for CLYDE NOEL to give his 5-minute talk, there wasn’t time. Instead, he auctioned off the gift brought to our club from Cupertino Rotary by our District Governor last week. CRES McFALL was the high bidder and the funds go toward the Rotary Foundation.
VAL CARPENTER introduced our speaker, RICHARD WALKER, Vice President of the Emerging Countries Division or Hewlett-Packard. RICHARD shared information gathered by H-P and other sources regarding companies doing business in China. He first provided some popular beliefs about business in China that included:
China is about to be the next economic super-power (we learned later that China, currently #4 in GDP, wouldn’t reach the level of the USA at the present rate of expansion until 2040)
Business is state run(might have been the case once, but only 25% of GDP is controlled by the state in 2002)
Foreign companies cannot make money (trend is beginning to shift dramatically)
Companies cannot operate effectively without joint ventures with indigenous companies (many now operate independently)
China is basically a source for cheap labor (actually there are many resources available in great supply in China, including “intellectual capital”)
China has recently taken jobs away from the USA (companies have been placing jobs in China for over twenty years (started by Volkswagen)
RICHARD related that there are three regions in China (western, central, and east/coastal) and there is a great disparity in population and GDP. The eastern area, for example has 36% of the population and accounts for 58% of GDP while the western area has 6% of the population (mostly rural) and 4% of GDP. Markets for goods and services are most pronounced in the east, gradually waning as one ventures toward the west.
The concerns for companies doing business in China include mass use of credit, worries about deflation, and restriction on lending that limit development. There is also a great deal of corruption, especially in obtaining leases and manufacturing contracts which, if uncontrolled, would make doing business in China undesirable. He mentioned that this isn’t as bad as it is in Russia, and probably a little worse than in India where similar conditions exist for foreign countries to begin or expand business operations.
When asked if he would recommend to parents and grandparents that the youngsters of our population learn Chinese, RICHARD felt it would open up additional opportunities for future business people and professionals in the USA.
Thanks, RICHARD, for such an informative look at China, an emerging country that will likely grow into an economic power.
From Ellen Flanagan:
There are still seats open for our Poker Night, September 17th. Your $50 donation will go to our LAREF fund! This promises to be a fun-filled event. There will be a beginner's table, sla all members are encouraged to attend. To sign up, please email Tom Liston, liston@sbcglobal.net
From John Cardoza:
The membership and sponsor application forms for new members have been completed to make them interactive. They are now active on our website.
Members and sponsors can fill them out on their computer and the information will automatically be sent to the Secretary, who will then forward it to the Membership Director.
Members no longer have to print out the forms, fill them in, and then have the Secretary or someone re-input the information on a computer.
Programs and Events
Note: Meetings of the board of directors are held at the Bank of Los Altos Community Room, 369 S. San Antonio Road.
Meetings of the LAREF board are held at the Masonic Lodge, 146 Main Street.
September
Sept. 8 - Board of Directors, 7:30 a.m.
Sept. 9 - Don Johnson - Hometown Security Update and patriotic songs by the Peninsulaires Quartet
Sept. 14 - PNG Mentor Rally, MVLA Board Room, Noon
Sept. 16 - Mary Alice Rathbun, RotaPlast
Sept. 17 - Poker Night
Sept. 22 - PNG Mentor Training, MVLA Board Room, Noon
Sept. 23 - Larry Rinsky, Operation Rainbow
Sept. 30 - Cantor Museum Tour
Sept. 30 - David Sloss, West Bay Opera in our Community
October
Oct. 6 - A Sante (Benefit for Mountain View Rotacare)
Oct. 6 - PNG meeting, Heritage Bank Community Room, 8:15 a.m.
Oct. 7 - LAREF board, 5:15 p.m.
Oct. 7 - Lauren McFall - My Olympic Experience
Oct. 13 - Board of Directors, 7:30 a.m.Oct. 14 - Candidate Forum
Oct. 21 - Nick Phillips, Foundation Drive: Partners in Service from South Africa
Oct. 28 - Propositions review by Gloria Hom
Oct. 29 - Friday Night Fellowship
November
Nov. 3 - PNG meeting, Heritage Bank Community Room, 8:15 a.m.
Nov. 4 - LAREF board, 5:15 p.m.
Nov. 10 - Board of Directors, 7:30 a.m.
Nov. 11 - Salute to World War II veterans
Nov. 18 - Lynne Satterwhite, new LAHS Principal and Rich Fischer, Superintendent of the MVLA High School District
Nov. 19 - National Philanthropy Day Awards Luncheon, 11:30 am, San Jose Fairmont, $70 per person. Los Altos Rotary to be honored.
Nov. 26 - Thanksgiving holiday
Nov. 28 - Festival of Lights Parade and Party
December
Dec. 1 - PNG meeting, Heritage Bank Community Room, 8:15 a.m.
Dec. 2 - LAREF board, 5:15 p.m.
Dec. 2 - Dude Angius and Mary Prochnow - World AIDS Day
Dec. 8 - Board of Directors, 7:30 a.m.
Dec. 15 - Holiday Party
Dec. 16 - Main Street Singers Holiday Program
January
Jan. 5 - PNG meeting, Heritage Bank Community Room, 8:15 a.m.
Jan. 6 - LAREF board, 5:15 p.m.
Jan. 12 - Board of Directors, 7:30 a.m.
Jan. 12 - PNG Mentor Training, MVLA Board Room, Noon
Jan. 14 - Friday Night Fellowship
February
Feb. 2 - PNG meeting, Heritage Bank Community Room, 8:15 a.m.
Feb. 3 - LAREF board, 5:15 p.m.
Feb. 9 - Board of Directors, 7:30 a.m.
Feb. 17 - Four Way Test Presentation (speech contest meeting)
Feb. 23 - Centennial anniversary of the founding of Rotary
March
Mar. 2 - PNG meeting, Heritage Bank Community Room, 8:15 a.m.
Mar. 3 - LAREF board, 5:15 p.m.
Mar. 4 - Cioppino Feed
Mar. 9 - Board of Directors, 7:30 a.m.
Mar. 18 - Friday Night Fellowship
Mar. 23 - PNG Mentor Training, MVLA Board Room, Noon
April
Apr. 6 - PNG meeting, Heritage Bank Community Room, 8:15 a.m.
Apr. 7 - LAREF board, 5:15 p.m.
Apr. 13 - Board of Directors, 7:30 a.m.
Apr. 13 - Dinner at Chef Chu's
Apr. 29 - Golf Tourney
May
May 4 - PNG meeting, Heritage Bank Community Room, 8:15 a.m.
May 5 - LAREF board, 5:15 p.m.
May 11 - Board of Directors, 7:30 a.m.
May 14 and 15: Rotary Fine Art Show, Lincoln Park
May 19 - District Golf Tourney
May 20-22 - District Conference
June
June 2 - LAREF board, 5:15 p.m.
June 2 - PNG Volunteer Luncheon, Garden House, Noon
June 8 - Board of Directors, 7:30 a.m.
June 8 - PNG meeting, Heritage Bank Community Room, 8:15 a.m.
June 18 - 22 - Rotary International Convention in Chicago
July
July 1 - Kick-Out 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: China Shuttle, 22382 Homestead Road, Cupertino, 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