The Light for October 8, 2019
By Neil Gambow
Photography by John Searles
Meeting called to order by President Helen Oloroso at 7:30 a.m. on the dot, followed by reciting Why We Are Rotarians. Thoughts for the day were given by Holly Halladay, who gave us some comments from David Brooks on public language becoming demoralized and Ogden Nash for married couples:
To keep your marriage brimful
To keep love in the loving cup:
Whenever you are wrong, admit it
Whenever you’re right, shut up.
Kassandra McGovern received her Blue Badge.
Announcements
Neil Gambow – Youth Exchange
With the difficulty in finding host families, we have notified the District that we will not sign up to host an incoming student for 2020-21.
We have received applications from two students interested in being outbounds for 2020-21. Because we are not hosting an inbound, we will use the inbound funds to support a second outbound.
Kristin Brown – The Strategic Planning Committee is restarting with meeting at Kristin’s house on Monday, Oct. 14, at 7:30 p.m. All are invited.
Susan Prout – will host the next Community Service meeting on Tuesday, Oct. 15, from 7:30-8:30 p.m. Her house is at 1743 Wesley Ave. in Evanston.
We are sponsoring a soup kitchen on Thursday, Oct. 31. Please contact Ann Weatherhead for more information.
Bundled blessings – packing diapers –is set for Wednesday, Nov. 6, from 7:00-8:30 p.m. More info to come.
Chris Joyce – The next Club Service Committee meeting is set for Thursday, Oct. 10, at 7:30 a.m. in the RI cafeteria. And please use the forms for announcements and roasts/boasts to make sure the scribe has the right information for The Light.
Mike Merdinger – Youth Leadership Day is set for Friday, Nov. 8. Please see the signup sheets. Chief Demetrius Cook, chief of the Evanston Police Department, is the keynote speaker.
Steve Carlson – There is an open house on Thursday, Oct. 17, from 4:00-5:30 p.m. for the home that the ETHS students built last year. It is done and worth seeing. The address is 2005 Grey Ave.
Linda Gerber – She handed Helen the most recent check from Sandy Chen (Koi) for this year’s Table 23 support. In the last five years, Sandy has raised more than $15,000 for our club.
Sergeant at Arms – with Nick Powers still out, Harold and Albert will take alternate weeks until Nick is back. None of us knew any Puccini opera that involved the United States. And a few questions about Hamilton.
Roasts & Boasts
Ann Searles – Got her bike down and had to call Don Gwinn to get it running, which he did. And Ann received a donation from a person interested in donating to us. No name was mentioned.
Jean Saunders – Boasted Kristin Brown for getting her to ride in the Tucson End Polio ride and do a 29-mile ride, the longest ride of the year for her.
Zbig Skiba – Boasted the Club for planting 239 trees since the program started.
Kristin Brown – Boasted herself for completing the Project Management Professionals certification.
John Searles – Boasted Zbig for leading the tree planting program, not easy!
Linda Gerber – Thanked the Club for being so helpful when she fell last week. She was very touched by all the attention!
Helen Oloroso – Boasted her son for now wearing a bike helmet afte crashing and sustaining a concussion. He is doing better.
Club Anniversary
Jim McGuire, 32 years
Program
Speaker: Britt Shawver
Topic: Housing Opportunities for Women (HOW)
Britt was introduced by Bob Teska. She has been with HOW for 20 years. She is a graduate of Kent College of Law, served on numerous Boards and Committees, including the Chicago Coalition for the Homeless, The Partnership to End Homelessness, and recently on an Evanston Affordable Housing Work Group. Her most recent project in Evanston was the new building on the corner of Pitner and Dempster with 16 units.
Housing stability has a significant impact on life expectancy and mortality. Her organization bundles resources around structural poverty. She gave two vivid examples of how housing insecurity was addressed by two very different individuals. One gained secure housing and, statistically, she increased her life expectancy by 14 years. The other lost her housing and had her life expectancy drop seven years.
The impact on life expectancy resulting from housing insecurity is being labeled a public health emergency by HOW. Life expectancy in Evanston is 80 years, in Garfield Park 69 years, and for the chronic homeless 48 years. This is why putting proper housing in Evanston is preferred.
Linda Gerber thanked Britt for staying the course in light of significant obstacles that needed to be overcome.
Helen Oloroso and Britt Shawver
Next Week’s Speaker
Nina Kavin, creator of Dear Evanston, examining issues of race, equity, and gun violence in Evanston.