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Ushered into the Garden House by greeters JERRY TOMANEK, RICHARD CASEY, and JULIA ROSE, Los Altos Rotarians started their weekly meeting promptly at 12:15 as President SAM PESNER gaveled the group to order. 

A rousing rendition of “Zip a dee doo da” was sung, led by our very own KAREN FOX.  CRES MCFALL provided the quote for the day, reminding us that love can break the cycle of hatred.  This was, of course, was in reference to the horrendous tragedy of the Virginia Tech shootings early this week.  SAM PESNER said he’d sent e-mails of condolence to the Rotary Club presidents in the neighboring towns of the college and received two responses back.

We had one visiting Rotarian from Weaverville, California.  Los Altos Club members with guests included MEG SOLERA (Alexandra Greenfield, president of LAHS Interact Club), JOANNA MEDIN (Greg Blumstein of Ads Plus), VAL CARPENTER (Nancy Dunaway of Los Altos Village Association), BUD OLIVER (his wife, Ann), JOHN HAMBLIN (Dominic Nicoli of Intero Realty), and MONA ARMISTEAD (the new YMCA director, Tim Byrd).

 Announcements
SAM PESNER announced that people could still sign up for the District 5170 Conference in Monterey, “You Otter Be There!” slated for April 20-22.  SAM said there would be a particularly relevant forum on the dynamics of large clubs, and that past-president MARLENE COWAN would be hosting “Dancing with the Stars” a dance demonstration/lesson on Saturday night.

MEG SOLERA’s guest, Alexandra Greenfield, thanked the club for supporting her and her fellow Interact members’ attendance at the annual Camp RYLA leadership training.  The five-day session was “a really amazing experience.”  Interact has been very busy this past year.  Besides working at the Costume Bank and helping us paint the Bus Barn Theater, they have undertaken an ambitious project to combat hunger.  On May 22, they’re hosting a fund-raising dinner at Chevy’s.  A June 3^rd event is also in the works.

STEVE SHEPHERD said that sign-ups are now open for the June 8^th annual LARC golf tournament.  Steve reported that the largest contingent ever – 13 LARC’ers – attended the District 5170 golf conference on Monday, April 16.  (Guess these folks had already mailed their taxes.)  Participants included MONA ARMISTEAD, CINDY LUEDTKE, JEAN NEWTON-FRAGUGLIA, VICTORIA EMMONS, KURT HUEG, ROY LAVE, LARRY MADSEN, PHIL ROSE, JOE RENATI, BILL MOISON, JERRY MOISON, MEL KAHN and STEVE SHEPHERD. 

And wow, did we ever kick posterior!   Our women’s foursome (ARMISTEAD, LUEDTKE, NEWTON-FRAGUGLIA and EMMONS, the first all women foursome ever to play in this tournament) placed 11^th out of 36 teams.  MONA ARMISTEAD, living proof of petite power, won the Ladies’ Longest Drive contest.  Her drive was said to have traveled some 285 yards, as reported STEVE SHEPHERD.  Or was it 185 yards? In any event, it was longer than MEL KAHN’S drive. 

The men also did well.  The threesome of LAVE, MADSEN AND HUEG placed 9th overall in the field.  KURT HUEG also got an Eagle on one of the par-four holes, which means that he holed out his golf ball in two strokes, versus a par score of four strokes.   And – the crowning achievement – the foursome of STEVE SHEPHERD, BILL MOISON, JERRY MOISON and MEL KAHN finished first.  That’s right; they are the genuine champions of the whole district!  A magnificent trophy was shown to prove the veracity of our foursome’s claim to fame.  It will be suitably engraved.  The last time Los Altos won this tournament was in 1988, by the way.  

JULIA ROSE made two short announcements.  First, don’t forget the Business Expo on April 26^th at the Youth Center at the civic center.  Slated for 4 to 7 p.m., the event is the biggest one yet.  Julie provided club members with coupons to get in free.  Second, May 12^th is the date for the home tour that benefits History House.  There’s also a gala planned the night before.

President SAM PESNER reminded folks that our club talent show will take place on May 17.  If you have a talent, or delusions of having one, send Sam an e-mail if you’d like to participate in the show.

STEVE ANDERSON was fine master for the day.  “I don’t volunteer for these things,” he assured us.  “They make me do it.”  He started his session by fining our District 5170 golf champion foursome $100 – the debt to be allocated among them as they saw fit.  Let’s just hope that MEL KAHN got stuck with the bill.  After all, MONA ARMISTEAD whupped him.  With such easy prey somewhat limited, our fine master had to find a theme for the day.  It was, appropriately, taxes.  A bunch of folks got fined for not knowing which Rotarians were born on April 15 – CAREW MCFALL, JOANNE BYRNE, JACK HIGGINS, and BRIAN WARD.  JOHN SYLVESTER avoided a fine by knowing that DAN DUTTON was born on April 15.  Of course, John knew that because his own birthday happens to be that day.  Beyond this trick question, the fining session moved on to a series of obscure questions about the income tax and its history.  Various and sundry people – including WYATT ALLEN and JACK KELLY – got stumped and paid up.

Send SANDIE WHIPPLE your receipts by June 15!  Yes, LARC does have a budget, announced President SAM PESNER, and we do get reimbursed for money we spend on the club’s behalf.  Our fiscal year ends at the end of June, so get things into Sandie well before that.

Art Show Update
Its rubber-hits-the-road time for the art show, folks!  When you receive this issue of The Rotator, the event will be less than a month away.  Right now, our focus is on two things.  First, let’s get those posters and signs up, so everyone knows about the show.  (We’re distributing them more broadly this year.) 
Second, NOW is the time to sign up for a job.  We need at least six hours of effort from everyone.  If you have a time slot or job you’d like, you can either send MICHAEL STADLEN an e-mail at mstadlen@usa.net or look on our website under Art Show and sign up that way. 

As was mentioned in last week's Rotator, there is a web form that you can use to contact Michael.  Go to volunteer spreadsheets  on our website or http://www.losaltosrotary.org/ArtShow2007/volunteer.html  .  There you can sign up for a particular job, or "any job" "any time" 

After filling out the form, click on SUBMIT and your request will be forwarded automatically to Michael.  He will get an email with your request.  He will also confirm your job via return email.  How easier could it be?  Check it out. 

Remember, DO NOT use this form to tell Michael you can't make a particular assignment because of some sudden conflict.  If this happens, get a replacement, and/or contact Michael directly.  His email is in the directory.  You should contact him for ANY staffing-related questions you may have.

  We need people to help set up on Friday, and we need shuttle drivers.  (We’re having lots more this year, because we’re giving customers a lift to the parking lot at Los Altos High.)  We also greatly appreciate folks who say, “I can do anything, anytime.”  We even recommend them for sainthood.  Next week, Michael will begin assigning folks who haven’t yet signed up.

SPECIAL EMAIL This weekend, you received an email called "[Rotary] Art Show Invite - Please pass it on." The idea is that you can forward this email to any number of your friends in your email contact list.  With virtually no effort you can be part of the Art Show Publicity Committee.

Main program – Cathy Imwalle of Family Supportive Housing
BUD OLIVER introduced our guest speaker, Cathy Imwalle, of Family Supportive Housing.  This organization has tackled a huge need – housing for intact families that have become homeless.  There are lots of shelters for homeless men (no women allowed in) or homeless women with children (no men allowed in), but the shelter she’s working with is the only one that serves intact families. 

 Most homeless families, said Cathy, are ones in which both parents have minimum-wage jobs and no health insurance.  Someone gets sick -- or someone loses a job – and the rent doesn’t get paid.  Then they’re out on the street.  Family Supportive Housing was founded to address this need in 1988.  The City of San Jose converted a warehouse into a housing unit that can shelter 35 families, or 143 people.  The shelter provides 162,000 meals a year, reported Cathy, and 70% of the residents are children.  The families may stay at the shelter for up to 90 days.  A varied menu of services is provided to shelter residents, including childcare, evening classes, and case workers who help these families put together and execute a plan to get back on their feet.  After they leave the shelter, the families receive nine months of follow-up.  Only 10 percent ever return to the shelter because they’ve become homeless again. 

All this is done on a budget of just $1.6 million annually, reported Cathy.  Family Supportive Housing receives 27 percent of its funding from businesses, 17 percent from government, six percent as “in-kind” contributions, and 50 percent from individuals and churches.  Some 45 organizations and 1,000 volunteers also help.  Want to find out more?  Go to www.familysupportivehousing.org.

Surprise, surprise – President SAM tells a joke.
To make it easier for your Rotator writer to get it right, he even sent it to me.  Here it is.

After a long illness, a woman died and arrived at the Gates of Heaven. While she was waiting for Saint Peter to greet her, she peeked through the gates. She saw a beautiful banquet table. Sitting all around were her parents and all the other people she had loved and who had died before her. They saw her and began calling greetings to her: “Hello” “How are you! We’ve been waiting for you!” “Good to see you!”

When Saint Peter came by, the woman said to him, “This is such a wonderful place! How do I get in?” “You have to spell a word,” Saint Peter told her. “Which word?” the woman asked. “Love.” The woman correctly spelled “Love” and Saint Peter welcomed her into Heaven.

About a year later, Saint Peter came to the woman and asked her to watch the Gates of Heaven for him that day. While the woman was guarding the Gates of Heaven, her husband arrived.

“I’m surprised to see you,” the woman said. “How have you been?”
“Oh, I’ve been doing pretty well since you died,” her husband told her, “I married the beautiful young nurse who took care of you while you were ill. And then I won the lottery. I sold the little house you and I lived in and bought a big mansion. And my wife and I traveled all around the world in our Lear jet. We were on vacation in the Bahamas and I went water skiing behind my new power boat today. I fell, the ski hit my head, and here I am.
"How do I get in?”
“You have to spell a word,” the woman told him.
“What word?” her husband asked.
“Onomatopoeia.”