Scribe Notes, September 7, 2023
By: Hermann Welm
President Patti “The Stylist” Hennigan opened the meeting in The Roundhouse and led us in the Salute to the Flag. She noted that this year’s Rotary International President is R. Gordon McInally, whose theme for the year is “Create Hope in the World.”
The Thought for the Day, presented by our Greeter, PP Gary Sloan, is a quote by a guy named Chinese Proverb: “When the winds of change blow, some people build walls and others build windmills.” He also quoted Sarah Ban Breathnach, author, public speaker and philanthropist: “A fresh start. A new chapter in life waiting to be written. New questions to be asked, embraced and loved. Answers to be discovered and then lived in this transformative year of delight and self-discovery.” No doubt Gary picked this because of the club reorganization we’re undertaking this year!
Visiting Rotarians: David Isenberg and Patrick Flaharty, our Speakers from the Lamorinda Sunrise Club.
Guests: Christopher Eklam, who is interested in Rotary.
Happy Dollars: Dennis Harvey for the fun trip he and Gary Sloan took to Las Vegas. Terry Koehne for he and Christine’s upcoming attendance at a Lionel Ritchey concert in San Francisco.
Announcements:
PP Dennis Harvey noted that we area way short on items to be sold at our Online Auction for Education! It’s time for everyone to get busy securing gift certificates, tickets to event or adventures, etc. so we have a wide range of items to offer the bidders! He passed out envelopes to those present containing a supply of Auction Donation forms.
Carolyn Degnan announced that she has reserved 100 slots for the City of San Ramon’s 40th Anniversary “Light Parade,” to be held Saturday evening, November 4th. Our club will be building a “Rotary” float which will have an escort of “Walkers” consisting of our members, family and friends! Please reserve that time slot and get your friends -- if you have any! -- energized for this event. It is likely that some of the participants will retire afterwards to enjoy some adult beverages. More on this later!
Patti Hennigan reminded all that there will be a 6-Club Meeting at 5:30 on Wednesday, September 27th. It will be held in The Roundhouse Conference Center and will include a tour of the facility led by Alex Mehran, President of Sunset Development. Heavy appetizers, and drinks (including beer and wine) will be hosted by the Sentinels of Freedom organization. Their CEO and fellow Rotarian, Mike Conklin, will be our speaker. Please contact Patti Hennigan soonest about your attendance and the number of guests you plan on bringing.
Patti Hennigan noted that the Club Formation Committee which is working on the San Ramon Valley Rotary Clubs’ reorganization effort is very active. It appears to boil down to three of the clubs combining: Danville, Danville/Sycamore and ourselves. The new name being entertained is Danville/San Ramon Rotary, a very novel and catchy one! An email was sent to the members of all three clubs asking for everyone to volunteer for one or more of several sub-committees which will iron out the details of that groups particular area of interest.
Recognitions: This Scribe was reminded that his wife, Susetta, is having her birthday on Monday, September 11th. Glen Weber’s wife, Ginny, will celebrate hers on September 13th. It was also noted that Judy Lewis has now been in the club for 28 years!
Program: David Isenberg and Patrick Flaharty, from the Lamorinda Sunrise Club, spoke about CARS2ndCHANCE, a 501(c)3 non-profit started by the Clayton Sunrise Rotary Club fifteen years ago and partnered by their club. It accepts donated cars and other vehicles, tows them if needed, transfers ownership to itself and then disposes of them by reconditioning them, scraping them for parts which can then be sold, or if it’s a total Clunker, simply turning it over for junk. They use established retail channels to accomplish these tasks. The donor then gets a document recording the vehicle’s value which can be used as a tax deduction. There is virtually no overhead withing the CARS2ndCHANCE organization since there is no paid staff; it is entirely handled by Rotarian volunteers.
The proceeds from the sale of the vehicle, which can range from $125,000 for a donated RV to $100 or less for a Clunker, are split 50-50; 50 percent to the cooperating Club which secured the donation and 50 percent split between the Clayton Sunrise and Lamorinda Sunrise clubs. Some examples of proceeds accruing to cooperating clubs:
Rossmoor Rotary, over a 6-month period, 5 vehicles sold for $27,000, with Rossmoor receiving $13,500.
Walnut Creek Rotary, over a 9-month period, 7 vehicles sold for $11,249, with them receiving $5,622.
Benicia, over a 3-month period, 3 vehicles sold for $9,691, receiving $4,845.
To become a cooperating club, we would need to designate one contact person and then add a “Donate your Vehicle” link to our website, which connects the individual to the CARS2ndCHANCE organization; the management team from the Clayton Sunrise and Lamorinda Sunrise clubs. There is no cost to us, but it is expected that we would promote this charity among our members, donors, friends and community.
Raffle: The Greeter’s Gift, a crisp $20 banknote, was won by Judy Denning. (The IRS has been notified!) The chance to draw the Golden Marble for a $210 cash prize was won by Julie McKinney -- the third week in a row that her ticket was pulled! -- but she was once again denied the opportunity to strike it rich! All present were naturally very disappointed!
Next Week’s Program: This Thursday’s Noon meeting -- we are not yet on a “varying” schedule -- will be at The Roundhouse and the speaker will be from Climate Action Contra Costa.
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