President Linda Gerber presided and Marv Edelstein gave the Thought for the Day: A father said to his daughter, “You have graduated with honors. Here is a car I bought many years ago. It is pretty old now. But before I give it to you, take it to the used car lot downtown and tell them I want to sell it and see how much they offer you for it.”

The daughter went to the used car lot, returned to her father and said, “They offered me $1,000 because they said it looks pretty worn out.”

 

The father said, now “Take it to the pawn shop.” The daughter went to the pawn shop, returned to her father and said, “The pawn shop offered only $100 because it is an old car.”

 

The father asked his daughter to go to a car club now and show them the car. The daughter then took the car to the club, returned and told her father,” Some people in the club offered $100,000 for it because “it's an iconic car and sought by many collectors.”

 

Now the father said this to his daughter: “The right place values you the right way. If you are not valued, do not be angry, it means you are in the wrong place. Those who know your value are those who appreciate you. Never stay in a place where no one sees your value."

 

 

Harold Bauer announced that donations for the club’s endowment have reached $15,000, with approximately 34 donors. If you wish to donate, please deliver your check to Kristin Brown. Also, many thanks to Rebeca Mendoza for the design of the ELRC endowment logo!

Ann Weatherhead – Two people are needed to prepare 40 sack lunch meals for guests at the Interfaith Action Warming Center. The activity will take place in the First United Methodist Church kitchen on Saturday, April 23 and 30, 3-4 p.m. Donations of home baked cookies, fresh fruit (bananas, tangerines) and bottled water are welcome.  amweatherhead@gmail.com

Ann also reported on advocacy efforts by the Housing Committee in support of affordable housing. Our club is a member of Joining Forces for Affordable Housing, which is the advocacy arm of Connections for the Homeless. Ann represents our club at the monthly meetings and serves on the working committee. One of the major topics currently is the proposal by Connections for acquiring the Margarita Inn to make it a permanent homeless shelter. The committee is in the process of developing an advocacy statement, which she will share with the club when it is finalized. For more information and questions contact Ann.

 

Brien Johnson announced that the Wilmette Rotary Club is sponsoring a Hope Walk for the Homeless to raise funds to support local organizations that provide food, shelter, clothing, and living essentials for homeless people in the Chicago area and is seeking participation from members of area clubs (Wilmette, Wilmette Harbor, Winnetka/Northfield, Evanston, Evanston Lighthouse, and Skokie Valley.) There will be two events: a private self-paced walk for participants to walk when and where they want from May 5-14, collecting pledges from others to sponsor their walk. There will also be a 5K fun run on May 14 for family, friends, members, and dogs in Gillson Park, starting from and returning to the Wallace Bowl and running from 10 a.m. until noon. For more information or to donate, please click here:  https://secure.givelively.org/donate/wilmette-rotary-club-foundation/rotary-hope-walk-for-the-homeless.

 

Ian Hutchinson from Unity Toastmasters invited our members to come to their in-person  meeting this Saturday, April 23, from 9:15 a.m. to 11:15 a.m. at the Edge Theater Off Broadway (https://www.unitytm.org/directions.html). There will be food, fellowship, and the opportunity to work on communication and leadership skills.

 

The Rotary District 6440 Conference is taking place May 20-22 in Lake Geneva. Full information is available at  https://rotary6440conference.weebly.com.

 

Rotary District 6440 Spring Training for new and experienced board members is taking place on Zoom, Saturday, May 5,^, from 9-12 a.m. There will be an opening general session featuring training in Youth Protection, Crisis Management, and the Learning Center, followed by role based informational breakout sessions.

 

Dan Coyne reminded us that The Taste of Evanston will take place Sept. 18, 2022. The committee is seeking “TOEheads” (Taste of Evanston volunteers) to work on various committees. Please contact him about how and when you are available.

 

Helen Oloroso and Kelly Fidei are seeking items for the silent auction, including gift baskets, experiences, travel adventures, educational opportunities, recreational opportunities, etc. Please contact them if you can contribute. They have sent a separate email concerning this.

 

Ann Searles announced that Jason Kaiser has had to resign due to an increase in work related responsibilities. He hopes to return when he has a bit more time.

 

Steve Goranson announced that 29 people have signed up for the Lighthouse Beach Clean-up on Saturday from 9:30 a.m. Steve still needs some help at the registration table.

 

Louis Allred and Albert Menard invited volunteers for the Golf Road clean-up on Saturday, May 14. Good weather and one hour of exercise are anticipated. Convene at 8:30 a.m. in the T.J. Maxx parking lot. 

 

Don Gwinn announced that Rebuilding Together is going to have work days on Friday and Saturday, April 29-30 at 743 Brown Ave.  Please let him know by email what time you are available.

 

 

 

 

To commemorate Earth Day, our speaker was Lucy London, a student at Northwestern University, who spoke on "Generations of Environmental Justice." Every year on April 22, Earth Day marks the anniversary of the birth of the modern environmental movement in 1970.

 

Lucy is a junior at Northwestern, majoring in performance studies with a minor in environmental policy and culture.   She is co-coordinator of Fossil Free Northwestern, a student organization to encourage the divestment from fossil fuels. These efforts include students, staff, faculty, alumni, and community members.

 

 On Earth Day (Friday, April 22) students at Northwestern are planning an all night event: in observance of Earth Day. Members of the community are invited to participate. This event was inspired by Project Survival, an event at NWU in 1970, the year of the first Earth Day and attended by one of our current members.

 

Lucy said it is challenging to organize students at Northwestern. Students are career-oriented and the quarter system leaves little time for many of them to get involved in advocacy.

 

Other organizations flighting climate change include the 350 Org https://350.org,The Carbon Underground https://thecarbonunderground.org , and Citizens Greener Evanston

 

 

 

 

John Werthymer – Wilmette Harbor

 

 

 

 

Randy Usen – April 22

 

Kathy Tate-Bradish -  April 24

 

 

Evan Girard – 1 year – April 21, 2021