President Connie Bunyard opened the meeting, Gerry Paulus led the Pledge of Allegiance, and Dick Myren gave an invocation. Then John Bunyard led the club in the Rotary Four-Way Test. Today’s visitors included Breanna Lederer, Christian Wohl, Jeff Long, and Jane Benedict.
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Today’s raffle was won by Tara Dacus. She did not draw the Ace of Clubs, so the large pot carries over. Next, Happy Bucks were collected.
- Colleen Coons was happy for all the Rotary Builds Bridges/McKinney Vento program volunteers for the next school year
- Tara Dacus was happy to be part of Mesa West Rotary and for Dave Dacus
- Liz Paulus was happy that her granddaughter was selected as President of Westwood HS Interact
- John Birks was happy to have helped his sister move to New Mexico
- Christian Wohl was happy to have volunteered at St Mary’s food bank last week
- Kayla Mudge was happy that both her parents attended today’s meeting
- Angela Mudge-Long was happy that Jeff was here today and was happy about the Kenya trip
- Harry Grossman was happy to have visited Boston when the Scottish World Cup fans were there
- Dick Myren was happy to donate on behalf of himself, Rod Daniels, and Don LaBarge
- Gerry Paulus was happy that the Arizona replica of the Liberty Bell will be dedicated as a formal monument on October 1st and announced that on December 31st there will be a “night at the museum” gala event at a Mesa museum.
- Barbara Gless was happy that it rained
- Ed Koeneman was happy to have visited his granddaughter in Georgia and showed the club a very cute picture
- Pam Cohen was happy to tell a funny story about spending a day at a waterpark with her grandson
- Connie Bunyard told a story about a client who did not realize Rotary was anywhere outside of India
Numerous Paul Harris awards were issued to the following:
- Jeff Long
- Liz Paulus (PH+2)
- Gerry Paulus (PH+3)
- John Benedict (PH+5)
Today’s speaker was Steve Koyle, the founder of Elephant Care Unchained, which is dedicated to eliminating cruelty and improving elephant welfare in their native countries. They provide professional services such as veterinary support, foot care, behavioral management, facility optimization, and enrichment to facilities that cannot otherwise afford these things. Elephants should be housed on natural, soft ground and should not be chained. Part of what Steve does is train elephant caregivers to use positive reinforcement rather than negative reinforcement or punishment.
You can learn more on the website: https://www.elephantcareunchained.com/
Announcements:
July 23 – This meeting will be a Club Assembly
July 30th – No lunch meeting. That evening (at 6:00pm) is the East Valley Rotaract Induction Ceremony