https://us02web.zoom.us/j/85900479873
Doubletree, 1011 W Holmes
Mesa, AZ 85210 United States of America
Our hybrid meetings are held weekly on the 1st thru 4th Thursdays of each month. The meetings are broadcast via Zoom to include all, whether attending virtually or in person.
Come to the meeting with cash in hand. At our February 15 meeting, Olivia will be selling cookies. The first one is called “Kärleksmums” (Love squares) and the other one is regular sugar cookies with frosting.
Andy Bradford for leading the Pledge of Allegiance
John Pennypacker for offering the invocation
Ray Smith for serving as Greeter
Dick Myren for handling the raffle
Diane Ware for handling check-in
Ron Thompson for serving as Sgt at Arms
Pam Cohen for serving as Chief Technology Officer
Introduction of Guests
Penny May was introduced as a visiting Rotarian from Alaska
John Pennypacker introduced visitors from Oregon: Tim Mobley (a PDG classmate of John's) and his wife , LeeAnn Mobley who is also a Rotarian. With Tim and LeAnn were their friend Eric Hodnett and Tim's brother and sister-in-law, Joel and Sue Mobley.
Eric Silverberg who has been elected as a new member, but not yet formally inducted, was introduced.
Polly Cady introduced Gilbert Rotarian Carla Rowe-Malcolm, and her Youth Exchange daughter from Sweden, Olivia as well as Thilde, inbound Youth Exchange student from Denmark.
Andy Bradford was introduced as a newly elected member who has not yet been formally inducted.
Carla Rowe-Malcolm said she had recently been going through a lot of old stuff which had been accumulated by her late husband. She found a Rotary book dating back to 1981-82 where the spouses of Rotarians were listed as "Rotary Annes."
The speaker was acknowledged, but would be introduced later in the meeting.
Ace of Clubs Raffle - Dick Myren
Happy Bucks - Sgt At Arms Ron Thompson
Ron took time to acknowledge some recently arrived guests - former member Warren Haeussler had arrived with a potential new member, Mike Whang and Sue Patterson.
Don Rauh had also arrived since guests were introduced. Don was a visiting Rotarian from Turkey. Don and Ron were both fluent in German and exchanged a few words, after which Ron took Don up front where he exchanged club trading banners with AG Dan.
Warren Williamson contributed and shared a story about George, who was on his deathbed. George's wife, Sara, was lovingly sitting with him. George said, "Sara, we've been married over 40 years and going together long before we were married. I can't remember a time when you weren't right at my side." Sara said: "You're right. I was there!" George said, "Times haven't always been easy. Remember when I lost my job?" Sara said, "I was there." Then, George asked "Remember when our house burned down and what a time we had fighting with the insurance company and getting it rebuilt?" Sara said, "I was there,." George said, "Now, I'm laying here dying." To which Sara replied, "I'm beginning to think I have bad luck.
Ted Williams said his grandson in Flagstaff was #1 in high school wrestling. His younger sister was also wrestling and is a state champ.
Allan Cady was happy to be at the meeting. He said Jeanie Morgan had commissioned him to go to a 6:45 AM meeting of the Four Peaks Rotary Club in Fountain Hills where he was presented with a $5,000 donation to TRVFA from their club foundation. He said he and Polly had left home before the sun was up, but had enjoyed a good meeting.
Polly Cady also contributed. She said she had been up since 4:30 AM and actually saw the sun come up. She said it was a great club meeting.
Thilde contributed some happy/sad bucks. She was happy to have been able to play soccer for her school. They went all the way to the playoffs, but lost there.
Olivia said she would be selling cookies from Sweden at the February 15 meeting - sugar cookies and Love Squares.
Dick Myren contributed his traditional $2 for he and Rod Daniels being associated with the Ace of Clubs. He contributed some additional bucks for Kaitlin Clark, a University of Iowa basketball player in the NCWA who has been setting records had recently played a game where she scored an amazing 38 points, but missed her final shot.
AG Dan said that he had been in California the prior weekend attending PETS. He said everyone there seemed to "have drank the Kool-Aid". He said there were flight issues following PETS and that he and Jim Schmidt were forced to wait from Noon Sunday until 6:00 AM Monday to fly back to Arizona. He was happy for the quality time he had the opportunity to spend with our DG to be Jim.
Harry Short said his grandson was headed to Pinetop with his Scout Troup. They'd had 3' to 6" snow drifts and they were hoping they could get to their cabins. His grandson will be a third generation Eagle Scout.
John Pennypacker was happy to have so many guests at the meeting.
Tom Yuzer was happy he and his wife left the house at 11:00 AM one day and they were back home the following morning and she had a new hip.
Warren Haussler wanted to talk about a couple of our members. Chuck Flint has now been in the hospital six weeks. Members who have stayed in touch are helping him focus forward. Pam Cohen has been on call 24/7 to help and has been a real blessing. Melodie Jackson's husband, Ramdy, passed away February 7. Warren wants to donate $100 to Melodie's Paul Harris fund in his honor.
Penny May said "TGIAF - Thank Goodness It's Almost Friday." She was glad to be at our meeting.
Harry Grossman had been channel surfing and saw snow-blowers which couldn't keep up with the accumulating snow on the platform at the Flagstaff Amtrack Station.
Carla Malcolm-Rowe said finding that book referencing "Rotary Annes" and knowing the huge difference in how women are viewed in Rotary today made her even more thankful for the "Women in Rotary" pin she received from John Pennypacker at a recent Mesa West Rotary Club meeting.
Pam Cohen said she was going to provide dinner for Melodie and her family that evening, and that Warren had said he would handle food for them on Friday. Pam was hoping others would step up so their needs would be covered for the next six days. She said Melodie said she was thankful for their daughters, their amazing family and 41 years with an incredible man. Pam did report that Chuck is improving and expected to be moved to a Post Acute Care Rehab Center next week.
Announcements
Steve Ross announced that he agreed to chair this year's Sponsor Program. He said he will be mostly a cheerleader with Allan Cady mentoring him and a lot of help from Janie, Colleen, and Polly. The Sponsor Program is our primary funding source for our charitable programs. The campaign starts in late winter and continues for the balance of the Rotary year (June 30). There will be five teams this year, each led by one of the Trustees of the Mesa West Rotary Foundation. The team leaders are: Bob Jensen, Ed Koeneman, John Pennypacker, Ray Smith and Ron Thompson. Steve said he was proud to have brough Pam Cohen into the club. The first three speakers were sports programs, so he was kind of surprised Pam stayed. For a long time, she was the only woman.
Jim Schmidt said he attended the Taiwan International Rotary Convention in 1994. He said there were many Japanese groups there. When asked how they were handling women in Rotary in Japan, they were told they figured out a way. They started a new club that was an all-woman club.
Shelly Romine said help was still needed for our February service project to provide meal service Friday February 16 at Paz de Cristo.
Dan Coons thanked the club for allowing him to be President for two years.
Program - Tim Kelley - Center for the Rights of Abused Children
Tim shared a couple of fun facts
Their family dog has 12,000 Instagram followers
He and his wife, Lisa, hosted two young people from foreign countries. One of them - Julianna from Sao Paulo Brazil stayed with them in 2016. She kept coming back every year. Last August she married their oldest son, Daniel.
Eventually, he and Lisa became licensed Foster Parents and have welcomed a number of children into their home. Many foster children have experienced abuse or neglect. The goal of the state is to reunite them with their parents or find a permanent home for them.
At one point, he and Lisa were almost to adopt two little girls, and a judge sent them home to their parents. He said it was a very difficult moment for he and Lisa. as they really feared for their safety. At that point, they switched from fostering to providing respite for foster parents.
At one time, they provided a two week placement of a little girl named Maggie. They knew here. The respite started immediately from the time they got the call. She was having problems in her adopted placement. She had been in the foster system starting at age 3. She had eight siblings. Because they tried to keep the siblings together, they were mostly housed in shelters and group homes. When she came to them for respite care, she had been bounced from home to home. Her brother had been taken. After they said "yes" the adoptive dad brought her with an enormous box and just drove away. It was weird. They were pretty sure he would not be coming back. Maggie was now homeless. The two weeks became a year. They became her foster placement and wanted to be the last before permanent placement. Permanent placement was found. They are now Maggie's Aunt and Uncle.
As a practicing attorney, Tim was appalled at the lack of rights. He began planning what could be done.
The Center for the Rights of Abused Children provides pro bono (free) service for children in the foster care system. When a child has their own legal representation, they have to focus on the needs of the child. They are able to operate with donor and foundation support. In court, he was told the mom's rights are constitutional but the baby's rights are statutory. Tim says that is not correct. Tim believed children are fundamentally protected by the constitution.
He has worked since then to change that . In Arizona, a bill in the state legislature to protect the rights of children was successful. Since then, the number of children in the Arizona foster care system has dropped from 14,000 to 9,000. Some still fall into the cracks.
They try to influence similar action in other states, but their pro bono clinic just operates in Arizona.
In one situation, they provided representation for a girl who was adopted by her grandparents after her parents denied sexual abuse. The grandmother claimed the abuse did not occur. The girl's story was different. The legal representative became the epitome of hope for the little girl who thanked the attorney for giving her a voice.. The girl wanted to stay with her foster parents. She was eventually adopted by them. She was told she could change her name as part of the adoption process. The girl took the name of her attorney.
Another little girl with physical disabilities was in foster care for four years. Her mom struggled with addiction. Her biological father was visiting, and domestic violence was added to the mix. The little girl was regressing. To help her they needed to cease the supervised visits, terminate parental rights and find permanency for her. Some time later, they saw her at a basketball game with a service dog. The difference in her was apparent. There was a difference in her eyes. The change was impressive.
Right now, they are trying to raise $25,000 by Valentines Day Donations qualify for the Qualifying Foster Care Charitable Organizations Tax Credit.
He spoke of one foster child who was behind in his high school credits. He had been in fifty foster placements. The attorney appointed was gong to try to help him document his credits. He had a plan. when he aged out of foster care, he planned to commit a small crime and plead guilty so he could go to prison where he would get three meals a day and be able to get some college credits. The attorney adopted him and changed that plan.
Mesa West Rotary Club operates two separate legal entities. Our Rotary Club is a 501(c)(4), which is not a tax-deductible charitable organization, but is exempt from income tax. Our club operations income from dues, most happy bucks (unless otherwise designated), raffle income, etc. is used to pay for the cost of operating the club - our meal expense, supplies, education of our officers, etc.
The charitable work and giving that we do is funded through Mesa West Rotary Foundation. It is a 501(c)(3) public charity. It is the fundraising and funding vehicle for our charitable endeavors: Donations to MWRF are tax deductible.
For the past several years, rather than have major public events to raise funds, we have quietly gone to our friends, family, current and past business associates, etc. and simply asked for sponsorship donations. We have averaged about $50,000 each year in revenue from our sponsorship drive. So our members will be better acquainted with those who are involved with the MWRF Board of Trustees, each of the five Trustees will be team leaders this year. CLICK HERE to down load a list showing who is on each Trustee's team. Traditional fundraising events are very time and effort intensive and rarely yield the kind of results this effort has produced. The Sponsor Drive has allowed Mesa West Rotary Club members to focus their Rotary effort on service projects. The other advantage is that our donors can be assured that their donation will go entirely to charity as there are no cost-of-fundraising expenses.
Sometimes donors hesitate to give to a fundraising dinner where names of sponsors are published because they don't want others knocking on their door asking for more money. There are probably many people we know who admire what we do that would like to be a part of it, but cannot afford the time to be involved. More people would admire what we do if we bragged about it outside of Rotary more often. You might be surprised that someone would offer to donate if you bragged about the fact that we don't waste our time and resources putting on lavish events. Some of those donors may have the opportunity to have their gift matched by their employer.
Have fun telling why you are proud to be a Rotarian, and get your "ask" in gear.
As most of you know, Arizona has a very unique state tax credit program. If you pay taxes to the state of Arizona, you can specify where your tax dollars go (state taxes only). These instructions are for your reference only. Please consult a tax prep professional with any specific questions about state tax credits.
There are many different nonprofit organizations that AZ recognizes as authorized recipients of these tax funds. Mesa West sponsors the Interact Club at Westwood High School, and they are a qualified recipient of these tax credit funds in the Extra Curricular Activities (ECA) category. Here's how you can donate up to $200 as an individual or $400 as a couple filing jointly and deduct that amount from your state tax burden.
If you have children currently enrolled in Mesa Public Schools, you can use your existing login information. Otherwise, it's easy to setup a guest account.
Once you are logged in, select 'Items At All Schools'under the 'Shop/Donate' list on the Home page.
On the next page select 'High Schools', then select 'Westwood High'
Select the link for 'ECA Tax Credit', and then 'Programs G-K' on the following page.
Interact - ECA is under code 8646. Enter a dollar amount in the box, and click the Add button. That dollar amount should then appear in your cart (highlighted in green at the top of the page).
You can then proceed to the Checkout process and pay with a credit card. You will receive a receipt that you can print out and save for when you do your taxes.
Thank you for supporting Westwood Interact and all of our youth programs.
As Rotarians, we are regularly exposed to opportunities to support various causes with our time, talent and treasure. Sometimes it is hard to sift through all the information and decide where we are going to use our available financial resources.
It would be wonderful if every Arizona Rotarian would make the following BIG FOUR their Rotary charities of choice and support every one of them every year, we could make a bigger difference than we are making today.
The Rotary Foundation (TRF) Annual Fund - The Rotary Foundation transforms your gifts into service projects that change lives both close to home and around the world." Giving a small amount each month adds up. CLICK HERE to download a form you can use to sign up for Rotary Direct, electing "Annual Fund - Share" for your recurring donation.
The Rotary Foundation (TRF) Polio Plus - Rotary's commitment to eradicate polio is so well known and respected that the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation matches donations $2 for $1. To take advantage of this opportunity to multiply the effect of your giving, CLICK HERE and download a second Rotary Direct form, this time electing electing "Polio Eradication" for your recurring donations. Those who donate $100 or more annually to Polio Plus qualify in District 5495 as Polio Plus Society Members. If you would like to make that commitment, CLICK HERE to download the commitment form.
The Rotary Vocational Fund of Arizona (TRVFA) provides vocational education grants to Arizona Residents who meet specific low-income guidelines. The grants enable the recipients to lift themselves out of poverty, benefitting themselves, their families and the economy of our state. TRVFA is a 501(c)(3) charity. They also are a Qualifying Charitable Organization for Arizona Tax Credit Donations. Their QCO Code is 20698. Many Arizona Rotarians say giving to TRVFA is a "no brainer." If you can help someone lift themselves out of poverty and it won't end up costing you anything why would you not do it? Mesa West Rotary has the highest number of members who have signed up for automated monthly recurring donations by electing that option on the "Donate Now" button on the TRVFA website. Click the image to learn more or CLICK HERE to DONATE NOW.
Mesa West Rotary Foundation, Inc. is the funding and fundraising arm of our own Mesa West Rotary Club. It is a 501(c)(3) charity. We have had successful sponsorship campaigns the last few years enabling us to spend our energy on service rather than on holding fundraising events. Charitable grants that we get involved with are funded through our charitable foundation, Our signature Gift of Hearing Project in Guaymas Mexico is funded through this foundation. Scholarships are awarded annually to Westwood High School Students (the high school where Mesa West Rotary sponsors an Interact Club). Funds are used to support a variety of activities in four of the Rotary Avenues of Service:
Community Service
International Service
Vocational Service
Youth Service
The process isn't quite automated at this point in time, but we hope it soon will be. For now, you can email our executive secretary who can help you work out a recurring donation plan should you wish to make that arrangement to support our own club's charitable activity.
Program - Tim Kelley - Center for the Rights of Abused Children
In one situation, they provided representation for a girl who was adopted by her grandparents after her parents denied sexual abuse. The grandmother claimed the abuse did not occur. The girl's story was different. The legal representative became the epitome of hope for the little girl who thanked the attorney for giving her a voice.. The girl wanted to stay with her foster parents. She was eventually adopted by them. She was told she could change her name as part of the adoption process. The girl took the name of her attorney.
The charitable work and giving that we do is funded through Mesa West Rotary Foundation. It is a 501(c)(3) public charity. It is the fundraising and funding vehicle for our charitable endeavors: Donations to MWRF are tax deductible.
As most of you know, Arizona has a very unique state tax credit program. If you pay taxes to the state of Arizona, you can specify where your tax dollars go (state taxes only). These instructions are for your reference only. Please consult a tax prep professional with any specific questions about state tax credits.
Mesa West Rotary Foundation, Inc. is the funding and fundraising arm of our own Mesa West Rotary Club. It is a 501(c)(3) charity. We have had successful sponsorship campaigns the last few years enabling us to spend our energy on service rather than on holding fundraising events. Charitable grants that we get involved with are funded through our charitable foundation, Our signature Gift of Hearing Project in Guaymas Mexico is funded through this foundation. Scholarships are awarded annually to Westwood High School Students (the high school where Mesa West Rotary sponsors an Interact Club). Funds are used to support a variety of activities in four of the Rotary Avenues of Service:.png)
