MEETING RECAP

This Rotary Weekend

Monday, August 2, 2021 By: Gayle Selden

This Rotary Weekend by Gayle Selden

THE LAKEWOOD KEY FOR JULY 30, 2021

The July 30^th meeting of Rotary Club of Lakewood was called to order by President Jim Rooks. Scott Buser led us in the gift of today and the opportunity to make a difference. Ron Irwin led us in the Flag Salute.
Dr. Rooks then thanked Lenna Christian for set up, John Lowney for fine recording and Gayle Selden for meeting recording.

Our President then introduced very special guests Scott and Karen Seitz from the Kenai Rotary (that is Alaska). Scott is a Past President of Tacoma Narrows Rotary (which has been renamed University Place/Fircrest) and came today to challenge our membership to a Peanut Butter drive.
They said: “Last year 11 Rotary clubs collected cash and peanut butter for local food banks and had a great time doing it. (They collected over 6,125 pounds of Peanut Butter AND over $7,550 dollars in cash donations.) They are doing it again and you are invited to join us in our Peanut Butter Challenge.”
Rules are simple: Most pounds of peanut butter per Rotarian. Duration of Challenge: August 1st to August 31st.
Kenai Rotary offered us an additional side bet. They offered us fishing on the Kenai River and a couple nights lodging but we have to come up with an alternative prize to make the side bet.
Last year’s overall winner was University Place – Fircrest Rotary in Tacoma, Washington area with more than 1,330 pounds of PB or more than $2,750 dollars. That equates to 78 pounds per person.
Last year’s winner for the State of Alaska was Kenai Rotary Club with about 64 pounds per person.
Greg Horn started us off with $100 toward the peanut butter challenge.
Jim Rooks also let us know about the Cross Egypt Challenge — Rotary Matters. I had to take a phone call at this time as you all heard as I wasn’t muted but it looks fascinating. (I hope Gayle was fined for that! Ed.)
For Sunshine we send condolences to Stephanie Wilcox who lost her mother.
Mary Horn also reported, despite his wishes, there is a gravesite service for Ward Fletcher planned. It will be held in Mossyrock and we will have a small gathering after to celebrate his life. Date will be forthcoming.
Former member Jim Walter’s son Craig was in a serious car accident in Texas and could use our thoughts and prayers.
September 9^th will be Rotary Night at the Rodeo. The event welcomes the start of the four-day Rodeo at the ~~Puyallup Fair~~ Washington State Fair. You’ll watch some rodeo and then get to enjoy the sounds of the Oak Ridge Boys and dance in the dirt. $36 Tickets get you into the fair and into the special Rotary Section at the Rodeo and a scone. To buy tickets click this link: https://tickets.thefair.com/PremiumSectionSelect.asp?performanceid=1990&qualifierID=62&qualifiertype=paymenttype

Above: It will not get you an Egg like this at Winlock, Washington
President Rooks invited us to join in Fines and Generous giving. Scott Buser started it off with a trip to Minnesota and a Massage he just had ($100). Bob Hammar shared something I missed. Rick Selden paid a Greenleaf (that’s $20) because he got to see Ron Irwin on the screen and $100 to the Peanut Butter Challenge. Jim Rooks also donated $20 to see Ron. It should be noted that Ron didn’t pay a fine back for being seen. David Swindale paid $20 for a trip to Deception Pass. New member Carl Bronkema was taught the acronym ROAR, when Anne Enquist practiced Rat-On-A-Rotarian, about Carl’s recent Farmers Insurance Awards. Barlow Buescher’s wife Karen Johnston was retired and he paid $50 for that and $50 for Peanut Butter. Rob Erb paid $20 to thank the Zoom and Hybrid committee. Wendy McGowen made a donation. Phil Eng paid $20 for an 8-day camping trip and donated $100 to Peanut Butter. Gayle Selden paid $20 for interrupting the meeting by not muting herself after talking, equating it to having a phone ring during an in-person meeting. Mark Edgecomb donated $100 to the Peanut Butter challenge.

Above: A picture from the Saturday night event at Steilacoom Lake
THE PROGRAM
Our Program was our very own Jim Rooks who invited some committees to share about what is coming up in the year and where we have been as well as his personal goals and hopes for our club.
Steve Enquist gave an update on the Foundation. The Rotary International Foundation has given globally over 4 billion dollars. $4 billion leveraged in real projects. Our club used matching grants from the annual fund, we leveraged $7,000 with grants from District and international into $21,000 and the Indian clubs further leveraged that into $129,000 to provide the Dialysis center we learned about from Tom George and Rose Stevens. For a second project the World Community Service committee leveraged $4,500 into $!3,500 which was further leveraged by another Indian club for the Mammography machine.
Last Rotary year (July1 to June 30^th) our Rotary Club gave $18,753 to the Annual Fund, $15,737 to Polio Plus, $12,900 to the endowment and $11,818 to global grants. In total, our Lakewood Rotary giving over time is $1,275,988.
Our club has 96 Paul Harris Fellows, 19 Benefactors, 8 Bequest Society Members, 13 Major Donors, 93 who give at least $100 per year, and 81 Sustaining members of the Foundation. You can donate three ways: at the desk at in-person meetings, online at Lakewoodrotary.com and Direct Deposit to RI.
President Rooks then praised the fundraising committee for a successful online auction. Nicole Hancock let us know that this year we changed and called ourselves the fundraising committee instead of the Sportsman’s dinner committee. The switch to online was profitable due to less expenses. The committee is working to decide whether next near will stay online or go back to a live auction. The committee is also looking to add some members to help in our fundraising efforts. Contact Nicole Hancock to join!
President Rooks also let us know that he has tapped PE Jason Whalen to head a Strategic Planning Committee for our club. If you should like to help shape our future, please join Jason in this committee. He is also hoping that we can start a Rotaract Club at Pierce College or Clover Park Technical College.
Our Little Free Pantry project has been going strong. Special thanks were given to the library builders and installers John Lowney and Mark Blanchard. The seventh little free pantry was just installed at LASA (Living Access Support Alliance). Here are the addresses of all seven pantries:

Lakewood Presbyterian Church 8601 104th St SW, Lakewood
Youth for Christ Family Center 14511 W Thorne Ln SW, Lakewood
Springbrook Connections? 12601 Addison St SW, Lakewood
Crossroads Treatment Center 4928 109th St SW ?
Tillicum #2 8409 Orchard St SW,
Springbrook Connections #2 5506 Boston Avenue SW
LASA 8956 Gravelly Lake Drive SW

Pantries are supported by the giving of the neighbors but Anne Enquist suggests when you grocery shop grab some pop top cans of spam or tuna or hygiene items and drop them off at one of the pantries. Check out the latest on The Sub Times. Lakewood Rotary Dedicates Little Free Pantry at LASA – The Suburban Times (thesubtimes.com)
In thoughts of Membership, Dr. Rooks would love to see us increasing our membership especially with women and people of color. Let’s try and get our club to match the community we serve. The Fellowship committee has been challenged to come up with some more family friendly events.
Jim is looking forward to Hybrid Meetings starting August 27^th. Having a hybrid meeting allows members to participate whether they are immune-compromised, not vaccinated or not ready to join larger groups. Our Assistant District Governor, Tony Camoroda, shared that it is suggested that clubs comply with the rules of the meeting facilities and that all conveners are encouraged to consider others’ health concerns. The Tacoma Country and Golf Club is following CDC guideline and L&I regulations. For us that means that masks are optional for all but those without a vaccination. An unvaccinated person must wear a mask. There is no exception there and the regulations could continue to be changed.
Reminding us of our Rotary motto of Service above Self. . .remember to put others before yourself. Use the four-way test and protect others at all Rotary events—outside and inside. Dr. Rooks believes in the science and that the vaccine is the best way to protect yourself and others.
Dr. Rooks then invited the second half of the Covid Committee to talk about the Delta Variant. Dr. Peter Marsh let us know that The Delta Variant of Covid is much more contagious than the original virus. It presents differently in the vaccinated -with a sore throat, cough and fever being the most prevalent symptoms. There is still a lot being learned but it does look as though vaccinated persons can pass this variant on. Those who are vaccinated are usually saved from hospitalizations and long-term damage. Once more, data is available and recommendations may change. The CDC is a great source of information and recommendations. Dr. Rooks also highlighted the Infectious Disease Society of America as a great source of information as well.
Looks like it’s going to be a wonderful Rotary year.
Thanks Dr. Rooks!

Above: Dr. Rooks

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Saving Lives

Saturday, July 24, 2021 By: Eric T Quinn

Saving Lives with West Pierce

THE LAKEWOOD KEY for July 23, 2021

Jim promptly rang the meeting to order. Chris Kimball performed the invocation. Carl Bronkema led the salute to our Flag. Leanna Christian set up the meeting and co-hosted the Zoom with Jim. Eric Quinn wrote the bulletin and we all remained the designated photographers. Greg Rediske recorded the fines.

Above: The day after the meeting, Five Rotarians Ran the Yard at Zawilski’s

Has anyone heard any good “non jokes” lately? I guess not. Here’s one:
What does one French Guy say to another French Guy? “My name is also Guy.” (We still haven/t heard any good ones. The Ed.)
Greg Rediske introduced no visiting Rotarians. Greg also introduced no guests. But Jim Rooks introduced a guest named Anthony Veliz, who was with us last week too and is checking out Lakewood Rotary.

Jim recognized the Puffins: Mike Brown, Carole Wier, Jessica James, Dave Hall, Carl Bronkema, Rachel Mazoff, Steve Saalfeld, Jamie Simons; James Osundwa, and Wendy McGowan, some of whom were in attendance and some who were not.

Jim is reinstituting the Member Spotlight program that Chris Kimball did a few years back. Our Member Spotlight was on Bob Bruback today. Bob is the new Chairperson of the Community Concerns Committee, and is an outstanding Rotarian. Bob graduated from Bellarmine High School and the University of Puget Sound. After graduation, Bob spent 25 years at what became Key Bank. He then moved on to Columbia Bank for five years. Then he was recruited by Heritage Bank and retired from there in 2013. He enjoys the job of retirement better than any job that he ever had. Bob was sponsored by Jim Rooks. Bob recently became a member of the Lakewood Rotary Board. Bob and his wife Karen have been married for 23 years. Bob paid $50 to the Club. Thank you, Bob, for being an outstanding Rotarian.

Another non-joke: You know what's really odd? Numbers that aren't divisible by two. (Gawd, these non-jokes are non-funny! The Ed.)

John Forkenbrock had no Sunshine to report. Greg Rediske informed the Club that Donn Irwin is making headway toward full recovery after his 11 days in the hospital. He is doing well.

Jan Gee had an announcement about hybrid meetings. Lakewood Rotary is going to be getting back together again, in person, toward the end of August. Jan is the Board Member responsible for Administration and therefore oversees how our meetings take place. Rob Erb stated that as Chair of the Setup committee, he is in need of volunteers to help run the hybrid meetings that we are going to be doing soon. The committee is meeting on August 3 and August 11. To be clear, a hybrid meeting is a meeting where some attend in person and some attend virtually. Jim thanked Jan and Rob.

Above: We get back here August 27^th. Be there!

And another: Why do we dress baby boys in blue and baby girls in pink? Because they can't dress themselves.

Chuck Hellar reminded us that the Courage Classic is taking place on August 28 and 29. We need more volunteers to staff our rest stop on Saturday and help other Rotary clubs on Sunday. Please inform Chuck if you are able to help out. Chuck also informed us that Sam Hunter and his wife are recovering from a recent bout of Covid.

Jim and Jason Whalen went to a general assembly of the Pierce County Rotary Club Presidents, where various members were discussing how to increase membership. Jim informed us about a lead agent of the consortium of clubs, who discussed the “97 Ways to Increase Membership.” Jim has a “blurb” on the “97 Ways” that he can send to you.

Heard any non-jokes lately? Here is one for you: Why did the dinosaur eat the baby? He didn't. Humans did not appear until after the extinction of dinosaurs.
As for fines, Kendra Riconosciuto and her family went on a trip to Orlando and Disney World. The temperature there was over 90 degrees. Because of that, and after adding 90% humidity, Kendra gave $100. Leanna Christian received a scholarship from the Puget Sound Business Journal’s Women of Influence-Lytle Enterprises Scholarship Fund. Here is a link to some information on the fund: https://seattlefoundation.smapply.org/prog/psbjs_women_of_influence_-_lytle_enterprises_scholarship/. Leanna gave $20.00 for her achievement. Jim gave $20 to match Leanna. Rob Erb went on a bike ride recently and he gave $20. Mark Edgecomb and his wife had a staycation in Ruston and told a story about the water they sprayed out of the hotel jacuzzi. Mark gave $20 for that. Barb Spriggs donated $100 for a return to her pre-retirement hospital, about the Arctic Circle in Kotzebue, Alaska.. Barlow Buescher gave $16 for his 16^th Anniversary of his marriage to Karen. Jan Gee gave $25 for a keepsake flag that a legislator gave her upon her retirement. Chuck Hellar’s friend accidentally flew to North Bend, Oregon instead of Bend Oregon. So, Chuck paid $25 for his friend’s screw up. Dave Hall gave $50. Generous Giving indeed!

One last non-joke: What did one lawyer say to the other lawyer? "We're both lawyers!" (Now that is really hilarious! Not. Everyone knows lawyers do not talk to one another—they shout. The Ed.)
Our Program was from our very own resident Fire Chief, Jim Sharp. Jim is the Fire Chief of West Pierce Fire and Rescue (WPFR). The Mission of WPFR is to “Save Lives, Improve Health and Safety, and Protect Property.” The motto of WPFR is “Respond Efficiently, Execute Flawlessly, Be Nice.” Jim provided us an update on WPFR. He obviously spoke about the impacts of Covid. Jim also discussed how wildfires have become a major problem in Western Washington, especially last year (2020). There has also been a lot of civil unrest that WPFR has had to coordinate with law enforcement on. Calls slowed down a little bit last year (about 100-200 fewer calls than 2019 at the same time). This is likely because people were scared to go to the hospital, during the early months of the pandemic.
WPFR received $1.35 Million in Grant money in 2020. This money has been devoted to improving automobile extrication equipment and training, smoke alarm provision, purchasing a new technical rescue vehicle, and improving hazardous-material spill mitigation. WPFR graduated its largest recruit academy in 2020, its largest graduation of recruits in WPFR’s history, despite the uncertainty of the time. WPFR also employed its first all-female firefighting crew. That is a landmark.
One thing that WPFR struggled with in 2020 was community engagement, due to all of the closures resulting from the pandemic. But WPFR adapted. For example, WPFR started a reading program where WPFR firefighters were reading stories virtually to children in the community. They were also delivering pumpkins!
Underlying all of this is the fundamental shift in how emergency medical services (EMS) are being provided, particularly by virtue of low-acuity calls that do not necessarily require EMS. It is important to note that the EMS system was designed to take care of critical patients. Jim discussed changes in the response model of WPFR that have been made in response to the increase in non-emergent or less-emergent calls. To respond to these non-emergent/less emergent calls, a “squad unit” was formed in 2020 as a pilot. The squad unit is staffed with two people in a pickup truck that responds to the low-acuity calls.
Another way that the response model has changed is using a “hybrid program” where a medic unit includes one paramedic and one EMT—rather than having two paramedics on a unit. This allowed WPFR to add a new medic unit. Jim discussed how this change has improved patient outcomes. WPFR now has medic units in five out of six stations.
WPFR also discussed its Connected CARE program (we will call it the CARES program). The term “CARES” stands for “Community Assistance, Referral and Education Services.” CARES is designed to reduce burdens on the EMS system by providing non-emergency services (within supervision of the applicable medical program director) to those suffering from crises that do not necessarily rise to the level of an emergency—such as issues involving mental health, substance abuse or poverty, or issues specific to the elderly. WPFR’s plan was to get its CARES program implemented in 2020. Covid got in the way of that and therefore WPFR is hoping to implement a CARES program in 2021. Jim has great hopes for the program. He opened up his presentation for questions.
Jim Bisceglia asked a question pertaining to how 911 dispatchers (and law enforcement) would be involved in the context of these low-acuity calls. Chief Sharp stated that this is an ongoing conversation nationwide. Chief Sharp noted that it is very difficult for dispatchers to isolate calls by type, and therefore EMS may be dispatched to certain calls which could have been properly addressed by law enforcement.
Dave Coleman—who initially was muted but who made it out of the darkness—thanked WPFR for responding to a few emergencies involving his son, who was suffering from sepsis. WPFR transported his son to St. Clare, and he is doing well. Dave gave $20 for that. Jim wished Dave’s son well.
Jim Rooks thanked Chief Sharp for the amazing presentation. Jim adjourned the meeting at 1:29 PM.

Above: West Pierce F& R: Save Lives, Improve Health & Safety, and Protect Property
The non-jokes today were brought to you by https://bestlifeonline.com/anti-jokes/

Oh yes, remember that if you shop online, do so at Amazon Smile so a portion of your purchase can be allocated to Lakewood Rotary. Also, if you read this bulletin, tell Greg Rediske so you can get a make-up for a missed meeting.

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Looking Forward...and Back

Sunday, July 18, 2021 By: Paula T. Olson

Looking forward…and Back

THE LAKEWOOD KEY for July 16, 2021

Our newly minted President Jim Rooks started the meeting on time. No tricks, no rap music, no dad jokes, just a nice, pleasant “okay folks let’s rock and roll” or something like that. Paula Olson read an invocation as a prayer for travelers. President Jim did a bang up job leading the Pledge of Allegiance. Leanna Christian was at the zoom helm and John Lowney was ready to take any “donations.”

Pres Jim thanked Phil Eng for a very successful Floating Board Meeting the day before but the bad news was that Jim’s wife, Penny, lost her wedding ring. Pres Jim was offering a reward for its recovery. Mike Murtha came to the rescue by donating a metal detector to look for it. Look for an update next week.

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A Real Community

Sunday, July 11, 2021 By: Joseph F. Quinn

LAKEWOOD – A REAL COMMUNITY

THE LAKEWOOD KEY FOR JULY 9, 2021

President Jim Rooks called his second meeting of the new Rotary Year to order right on time. He called upon Bob Hammar who gave a fine invocation. Jan Gee led us well in the Pledge to our flag.
President Jim then asked for a moment of silence to honor Ward Fletcher, who passed away earlier this week. Rick Selden then delivered a brief eulogy of Ward, noting that this quiet-spoken Rotarian always worked on projects. Ward never raised his voice; he just did his job, Rick said. On the Fort Steilacoom Playground project, Ward organized all of the food for the scores of volunteers. A big job for sure. He always helped at the Courage Classic rest stop up near Leavenworth, bringing his motor home to provide security. Ward was the epitome of service. (Ed. Note: Ward was the most humble person you’d ever want to meet. He had earned many, many Paul Harris awards but never wanted anyone to mention how many, as he did not do it for the recognition at all.)

President Jim then thanked Leanna Christian for her help in hosting the Zoom and her great PR work for Lakewood Rotary. Jim also mentioned that our erstwhile Treasurer John Lowney stands ready to accept fines and do all things financial.

(At this point, my mind wandered to the idea that “President Jim” sounds sorta lame and that this writer used to always think of nicknames early in the Presidential year. So let’s see….”President Rooks?” (too formal); “JustJim” (cuz he is so humble); “The Rookster” (Ooolala, I like that one!); “The Runner” (that’s why he’s so lean and healthy); “The Lake Diver” (he did it once so we can make him do it again).   The possibilities are endless.)

Above: President Jim: “The Runner?”
Next, President Rooks noted that the assigned bulletin writer was MIA and wondered aloud what would happen there. As we all know, there is an army that supports the LR President, so not to worry … some sucker will step forward.
Under “Guests” on the agenda, JustJim introduced Anthony Veliz who he knows through the Lakewood (community) Multi-Cultural Coalition. Anthony is also in his second year serving on the Clover Park School Board. Who thinks he should be a member of Rotary? A lot of hands went up. The Rookster (ooolala) then welcomed back member Skip Stephan who has not been with us for a while.

The Runner then featured all Puffins in attendance this day, but noted that really some of them have passed the one-year mark and should no longer be considered Puffins. He called out Tom George, Brehen Freeman, and Mike Murtha in that regard and it was noted that Carole Wier is getting close to the threshold too. We love our Puffins and we want more.

Above: See how we love Puffins
With one eye on the chat box, your writer today noticed that John Lowney said that Little Free Pantries 5 and 6 have now been installed!   Amazing that those are popping up so fast all over Lakewood so we are grateful to Sally Porter Smith, Rose Stevens, Bob Zawilski, John Lowney, Mark Blanchard, and a few others I am too dumb to remember, for the LFP idea which has taken off rapidly in this community.

Above: LFPS proliferating! What a community!
There was no Sunshine Report today as John Forkenbrock was not “in the house” (some hackneyed phrases carry over from year to year).   Seriously, we had enough of sickness etc. for one day.

The Lake Diver then said he and President-Elect Jason Whalen have a desire to resurrect an idea put forward by Past President Chris Kimball (I think that’s who it was): the Member Spotlight. So if you want to spend 1-2 minutes at a meeting telling the new members who you are, or what you do (for those who are still employed) just contact President Rooks.
President Jim then called for announcements. Starting that off himself, JustJim said the Military Appreciation Committee is sponsoring a LR golf team of four to play at Whispering Firs Golf Course at McChord (aka JBLM) AFB on August 14th.   It is a fundraiser for the Air Force Association and the Daedalians, so if you like cigars and booze this is for you.   Rob Erb needs three more golfers so contact him. Oh, forgot to mention that it is free as LR’s Military Appreciation Committee is paying for the round of golf, the cart, and the food. All fees paid! Jan Gee asked if volunteers to help are needed, which prompted the Rookster (ooolala) to mention that we are sponsoring a hole and need one or more persons to staff that hole during the tourney.

The Runner then noted that the next Board Meeting of Lakewood Rotary is this coming Wednesday, the day before the Floating Board Meeting.   You should arrive at the Tacoma Country & Golf Club at 5:00 p.m. for that meeting.
Speaking of Fellowship, the Lake Diver called on Phil Eng to discuss upcoming events. Phil reviewed for new members the long history of the Floating Board Meeting, which used to be a board meeting but is now strictly a social event.   Be there on Thursday evening this coming week! This year it will again be held at Holly Hedge, near the homes of Rotarians Steve Mazoff, Dave Reames, and Jason Whalen. Phil said to bring tents if you need shelter from that sun. We will have steaks and drinks and the cost is only $15 per person. It was noted that the day may include boat rides on historic Lake Steilacoom as the Horns and the Rediskes both have party boats.

President Jim asked Tom George to speak about our prospects for holding hybrid meetings, with an in-person group as always meeting at the Country Club but others, as needed, participating remotely. Before speaking, however, Tom lamented the fact that there was no “cap and gown ceremony” for those members graduating from Puffoonery to being seasoned (old) members. Sorry Tom. Mr. George said our first meeting back at the club will be August 27^th and hopefully this hybrid option will be available. But they need “operators” for the equipment to make that system run smoothly. This new committee would set up and take down the equipment at meetings. The current “hybrid meeting committee” will of course train the newbies

JustJim then explained the tradition (that was lost during the pandemic and Zoom meetings) of passing on the actual Puffin (well, not a real bird but a reasonable stuffed facsimile) when a brand new member is inducted. Usually a gleeful affair!

Someone pointed out that the Courage is scheduled for August 28-29. Volunteers to be asked for soon.
Well it was time for fines but Gentleman Jim (a new potential nickname) said he is going to call it Generous Giving.   So maybe we’ll call him GG or Gigi. (NO JIM, what about Rat on a Rotarian…is that over?) John Magnuson stepped up first and donated $100 in honor of Gary Fulton who usually enjoyed making the first $100 fine of the new regimes, but wasn’t Zooming today. Then some idiot (OK it was me) opened his mouth and said he would donate $100 to the Lakewood Community Foundation in memory of Ward Fletcher. Greg Rediske liked that idea since he is on the board of the foundation, so he pledged to “piggyback” on that with $100 to the same. Well, then, as is the habit at Lakewood Rotary, a hailstorm of generous giving took place so forgive the writer if I missed anyone while scribbling down these names: Also giving $100: Anne and Steve Enquist, Greg and Mary Horn, Rick Selden, Barlow Buescher, Carole Wier, Mark Edgecomb, John Warner, Rose Stevens, and Phil Eng. A quick $1000 or even more. Hope I did not miss anyone. Help…where is Lowney?

Someone was kind enough to put the mailing address of the LCFF in the chatbox: Lakewood Community Foundation Fund, P.O. Box 39578, Lakewood, WA 98496

THE PROGRAM:   Leanna Christian then introduced Suzanne Pak, the Director of Community and Behavioral Health for the Korean Women’s Association (KWA). Her department provides CRISP (Culturally Responsive, Integrated & Strength-Based Parenting) education for parents of young children and many other programs. Suzanne also serves as co-chair of the Pierce County Opioid Taskforce Prevention and Education Committee.
Suzanne started with some history of the KWA, which has been in existence for more than 50 years. She said they bought a building in Lakewood pretty recently and they have a training room that will hold 20-24 people. She invited Lakewood Rotary to sign up to use it; sounds like a possible place for a board meeting. Later in the program, upon questioning, Suzanne said the location is the former Klauser Building, which is on Perkins Lane, right behind the motorcycle shop on South Tacoma Way near the 512 intersection.
Suzanne described the collaboration of KWA with multiple partners such as the City of Lakewood, Communities in Schools, Pierce College, the Tacoma-Pierce County Health Department and many others. The KWA focuses on many health issues such as heart disease and even mental health. She mentioned a few times during her talk that, while the KWA focuses about half of their attention on helping folks of Asian or Pacific Islander ethnicities, their programs are in fact open to all. Almost half of the beneficiaries are neither Asian nor Pacific Islander.
She discussed in depth her program known as CRISP, which stands for Culturally Responsible, Integrated and Strength-Based Parenting. The program focuses on children ages 0-6 and also pregnant women.   They have three classes per month—on the 3^rd Tuesday, the 4^th Wednesday and the 4^th Thursday of each month. Register at: https://survey.alchemer.com/s3/5911890/CRISP-Online-w-Baby-Catchers-Answers-Counseling
She also discussed the PPH Learning Collaborative. Any adult in Pierce County can register:
The online registration form is at: https://survey.alchemer.com/s3/5957869/PPH-Learning-Collaborative-Registration
Then Suzanne talked about Teens for Destiny, sponsored by Greater Density Church, the Family Hope Center and KWA. For ages 12-19 this program offers teens a chance to talk to each other about issues like life skills, leadership, and emotional health. While they focus on certain races and ethnicities it is open to all. Now it is going to be in-person instead of online and they are planning a barbeque.
When asked about the increase in hate crimes against Asian people in the nation, she said that she and the KWA were pleased with responses by the Mayor of Tacoma and others including the County Council, but she told them bluntly that it was not enough to raise the consciousness of society that this phenomenon is real and growing.
Thanks to Suzanne Pak for an informative program.
Who is up for a “Nickname the President” contest? What if someone pledged a $100 contribution to the Paul Harris account for the chosen winner? This writer is ineligible due to an inability to settle on one favorite nickname for Jim.

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A Beautiful Day in the Neighborhood

Saturday, July 3, 2021 By: Mary Marlin

A Beautiful Day in the Neighborhood
By Mary Marlin
THE LAKEWOOD KEY
And it was a beautiful day in the neighborhood!! The 4th of July is soon to be celebrated, Covid is being conquered, summer weather is cooling off and Rotarians in Lakewood are looking forward to welcoming Dr. Jim Rooks as our new Lakewood Rotary President. Bring on the fun, the adventures, and the commitment to helping our community prosper with a variety of projects for the greater good. And all is well! As did our former president, Mark Edgecomb, Dr. Rooks opened the meeting of our weekly Rotary with a pre-meet at 11:30 before the real-meet at 12:30. As the Bulletin writer today, I jumped in early to pick up helpful tidbits of information, humorous chatter, and unknown specifics that often prove helpful.

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What a Great Year!

Tuesday, June 29, 2021 By: John W. Magnuson

What a Great Year!

The Lakewood Key for

June 25, 2021

The Rotary year ends (and begins) with the installation of officers and directors. Dr. Jim Rooks becomes our 65th president. Mark Edgecomb goes back to civilian life as a CPA. He joins the ranks of past-presidents – as PP Gary Fulton has been heard to remark, “The best job in Rotary.”

Above: Incoming Prez Dr. Jim Rooks

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Second to Last Meeting

Sunday, June 20, 2021 By: Paula T. Olson

The Second to the Last Meeting

As President Mark started the meeting two minutes late he reminded us that it was his second to the last meeting as President. So I thought it would be good to share some pithy words of farewell in preparation for next Friday. Dr. Seuss said “Remember me and smile, for it’s better to forget than to remember me and cry.” And smile we will.

Above: Dr. Seuss smiles at Mark

Prez Mark thanked Bill Potter for standing in for him last meeting while Mark was on a mini vacation. His Honor Clint Johnson led us in a heartfelt invocation and Mark did an outstanding job of leading us in the Pledge of Allegiance. Those are going to be some big shoes for the President Elect to fill on that job. Kendra Riconosciuto subbed for Leanna Christian on electronics, John Lowney sitting by to collect fines and other money, and yours truly, Paula Olson tapping out the bulletin.

            Before we move on to more meeting substance, what about this farewell saying. “What we call the beginning is often the end. And to make an end is to make a beginning. The end is where we start from.” By T.S. Eliot. We had another short timer in our midst – District Governor Greg Horn who is also counting the days before his term ends. I wonder how Mary feels. We had a couple of guests: Shiru Osundwa, James Osundwa’s wife, Shiru, and Bob Martin. Welcome! Puffins in the house included Tom George, Steve Saalfeld and our honorary Puffin Carole Wier who put out all of her fires before she logged on, plus Carl Bronkema, James Osundwa and Wendy McGowan. For Sunshine, Rob Erb reported that Donnnnn Irwin was home and doing well and Carole Wier reported that Bob Lordahl was making progress.

            Celebrating his real birthday was Jason Whalen who later reported he was 58 years old and celebrating their real anniversary were Ed and Jayne Shannon with 55 years of marital bliss even though Ed was not present at the meeting. Pres Mark read a lovely thank you letter from the Family Renewal Shelter thanking us for the $2,000 we donated to them. The letter told a story of a single mom escaping a violent relationship and how the money we gave helped her start a new and safe life with her children.

            Pres Mark explained the Rotary year to uninformed members. And that recalled these words of Henry Wadsworth Longfellow: “Great is the art of beginning, but greater is the art of ending.” Our fiscal year ended on June 30, 2021 and started on July 1, 2021 with a new President, a new President Elect and three new board members, new committee chairs, and new committee opportunities. The board approved the 2021-2022 budget which is available for viewing if you contact John Lowney.

Above: A goodbye kiss to Mark is timely

            Pres Mark then introduced our new Program Committee Chair – Sally Porter Smith. Sally told us that we are going to do programming a little differently by getting 20 people to commit to bringing two speakers from their own community. With the wide range of interests in the club, that will be 40 very interesting topics. Sally asked everyone to think about what they would like to hear about. Sally will need an admin person to introduce the speakers and herd them around once we are in person. So call or email her if you want to get involved. Already committed are Carl Bronkema, Mark Edgecomb, Jan Gee, Anne Enquist, Paula Olson, Barlow Buescher, Andrew Neiditz, Dave Hall and Mary Jo Strom-Copland.

            President Mark introduced our newest honorary member: Ward Fletcher. Ward was going to resign because of health reasons but thank goodness someone figured out how to keep him around. If anyone paid for the Rotary International Zoom Conference, see John Lowney about a refund. Fellowship events included the Installation Dinner in person at the Tacoma Country and Golf Club on Friday, June 25^th starting at 5:00 pm social hour. Cost for surf and turf is $60 per person. Puffins are going to get a special invite. July 15^th is the Floating Board Meeting with more information coming. The Reeder Roadster Romp is August 1 -3^rd. And Greg Horn and others want to get Monday Night Football going again.

            Fine time. Someone let the cat out of the bag by wanting to push Mark over some benchmark of fines but Mark was all hush hush so as not to impede fine flow. Jan Gee paid $50 for her three week vacation to Arizona, California and Oregon. Mark paid $25 for his short trip and to honor Bill Potter’s sub. Wendy McGowan paid a Greenleaf for her trip to California to see her oldest granddaughter graduate from high school at the San Francisco Giants Stadium. Jason Whalen paid for his birthday and then rounded up to $100 because he missed the past board meeting. Turns out he was in Hawaii to celebrate a friend’s mom’s 100^th birthday. Barb Spriggs paid $25 each for her twin granddaughters’ high school graduation with honors. Greg Rediske paid $20 in gratitude for a grandchild’s successful heart surgery and another grandchild hitting .800 for the Little League.

            And before we read about the program, here’s a little saying from Peter Pan by J. M. Barrie: “Never say goodbye because goodbye means going away and going away means forgetting.” We’ll never forget this past Rotary year in more ways than just Mark.

Above: Mark presiding from his hot tub

            PROGRAM: Greg Rediske introduced Marc Blau, President of the Shanaman Sports Museum aka Tacoma Sports Museum. Marc is a 1969 Stadium High grad and he attended UPS but graduated from UW with a recreation major. He worked for the Pierce County Parks Department and was a director of Sprinker Recreation. He retired from Parks after 29 years in 2004. Marc has had a passion for sports of all kinds since he was a kid. He’s a baseball nut and reffed high school volleyball. He knows the local sports history like no one else around and he’s met the best and most talented the Pierce County area has to offer. He told story after story.

            His latest venture is with the Shanaman Sports Museum, a rescue operation from the Tacoma Sports Museum that was attached to the Tacoma Dome for about 23 years. It contained all kinds of memorabilia that was packed up and stored. It was originally going to his attic but his wife was worried about theft or fire and Marc wanted to stay married so it went to storage. They are looking for an appropriate place to relocate and now enjoy a great website at: https://www.tacomasportsmuseum.com/ . Marc shared part of a wonderful video on some local sports legends going back to 1858 with the first sporting event in Tacoma being a horse race. In 1874, the Invincibles Baseball Club got started and 20 years later, the Tacoma Country and Golf Club was organized, followed by the Fircrest Golf Club in 1928. Marc told us about the first Tacomans who won Olympic medals in skiing, rowing and swimming.

            Marc walked us through part of the virtual tour of the exhibits in the sports museum and told us some stories. There was a leather hockey jacket belonging to Joey Johns of the Tacoma Rockets Hockey Team. Joey wore it when he changed his car oil, did yard work and as a result, it was in bad shape. He was going to throw it out when someone took it from him, cleaned it up and put it in the museum. When Joey went to look at the exhibits, he saw the jacket and wondered whose it was. He was amazed to learn it was his.

            Marc told stories about collecting soap box derby cars and athletic jerseys. He told us about recreating sports announcers. One very popular was Art Popham who recreated announcing a Tacoma Tigers played out of town. Art’s wife and a manager got information on the phone about the game and passed notes to Art who announced it as if he was sitting in the stands. Marc played a clip of that and it was absolutely astounding. There was no way to know that he wasn’t actually present at the game. Truly a lost art, one Rotarian chatted.

            Marc knew some long time Lakewood Rotarians such as Tom Names who is long retired. He invested in a little company that was going to sell sports shoes and it grew into Nike. The museum has its eye on a couple of physical locations. Marc shared that Fred Shanaman was also a sports enthusiast and he donated money to make the museum happen, hence the museum’s name. Marc has kept busy doing podcasts – check out the website for the schedule. Carole Wier shared that Ted’s company (Weyersomething?) supplied some of the beams to the Tacoma Dome and noted that the late Lakewood Rotarian Jim McGranahan was the dome’s architect.

            Thanks Marc for a very interesting program. And President Mark ended his second to the last meeting of his year. (It was a penultimately good one—The Ed.) Here’s a couple more quotes for next Friday: “Good-bye and hello, as always.” ? Roger Zelazny, The Courts of Chaos. “Don’t cry because it’s over, smile because it happened.” By Dr. Seuss

Remember that if you shop online, you should do so at Amazon Smile so you can allocate a portion of your purchase to Lakewood Rotary. Also remember to tell Greg Rediske that you read the bulletin so you can get a make-up for a missed meeting.

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Letters Matter

Saturday, June 12, 2021 By: Gregory J. Rediske

THE LAKEWOOD KEY for June 11, 2021

It was two weeks ago when acclaimed bulletin writer Paula Olson noted that “words matter”. I’d like to take that one step further: letters matter, too. For instance, President Mark Edgecomb, he of short-timer status, wrote on today’s agenda that the bulletin writer this week is Greg Rediski. Not only did he then send me this agenda with that spelling, but he frequently mentions how we are cousins. I would think a person would know how to spell their cousin’s name! A name that your late aunt and uncle shared! I guess I should just be content that he pronounces it correctly, unlike, say, Bob Zawilski (Zawalski) or poor Carl Bronkema (too many different pronunciations to mention here).

(That aside, I would be remiss if I didn’t point out what a wonderful job Mark has done during this challenging year. Between the bathtub meeting and his frequent fines of himself, he has done it all. And we at the bulletin staff will be especially sorry to see him depart, as ridiculing him for the sake of good humor has been like shooting fish in a barrel. (Which means, “not very hard”, for any Swedish readers who might be out there.))

Here we are, two paragraphs in, and not a word about this week’s meeting of the Rotary Club of Lakewood. This bulletin writing crew will not be held to commonly accepted rules of how to present the events of a Rotary meeting! We will follow our own path, which in this case begins now with the realization early on that Mark wasn’t there, replaced by the familiar face of Mr. Potter, specifically Bill Potter. Bill is in the waning days of his term as Past President. But did you know that except for the 2010-11 year, Bill has served on the Board of Directors of this club since 2008! Ten CONSECUTIVE years! And now he is going out in a blaze of glory, virtually hosting one more Rotary meeting.

Above: Past President Potter has not lost his touch

Or is that hosting virtually….at any rate, here is what happened:
--Guests included Charlie Hancock, Shiro Osundwa, and unnamed dogs of Chris Kimball, Peter Marsh and Greg Horn.

Puffins in the House: Tom George, Carole Wier, Carl Bronkema, James Osundwa, Wendy McGowan.
--Sunshine: Donn Irwin is still in the ICU from his heart surgery, but improving nicely.
--Andrew Kruse’s Invocation/Thought revolved around a quote that said we shouldn’t hide our wounds but use them in service to others.
--Flag salute by Acting President Bill. This is probably where I could note that Bill screwed up the order of the agenda big time, but I won’t because he has already endured his year of presidential abuse.
Announcements: Pay Attention!
--Installation Banquet, not to be missed. Friday, June 25, 5:00 (6:45 dinner). Surf & Turf, $60. No mask required if you are vaccinated, at the Country Club. Check to our PO Box 99786, or credit card online (lakewoodrotary.com; go to Get Involved, then Make A Payment).
--Lunch Pricing: Jim Rooks, John Lowney and Mark Edgecomb engaged in high level negotiations with the Country Club about lunch pricing. After deciding that we love them and they love us, the new lunch pricing after 6 years of no increase is $22 ($10 for cookie and coffee). It should be noted that this includes 18% gratuity. The next Board meeting will be on July 14, 5:30 at the Club. The first back-to-the-club Friday meeting will be August 27.

--Reeder Roadster Romp, aka Rotary Roadster Romp (RRR): August 1-3. On to Astoria and points south! See Phil Eng ASAP.

Above: Some “roadsters” back in the day

Above: Beautiful Rides

--RI International Convention starts now: June 12-16. $65 registration, Rotary.org.
--Little Free Pantry: 5 are up and running. If you have one near you, consider being a regular or semi-regular stocker of the pantry. Popular items: pull-top canned items, baby food, personal hygiene.
--Vaccination: Peter Marsh has been named to a board promoting COVID vaccines. He used the Four Way Test as his guide: Vaccinate for your self; Vaccinate for your family; Vaccinate for your friends; Vaccinate for your community.

--Auction: Wow!!!!! Eric Quinn announced preliminary numbers, a net of nearly $70K. Amazing. Sainthood awaits those on the committee who worked so tirelessly. And kudos also to all the Lakewood Rotarians and guests who were oh-so-generous.

Educator of the Month:
Leanna Albrecht introduced two administrators from the Clover Park School District, Meghan Meakin and Rainier Principal Kylie Danielson. The Educator of the Month is Christina Villena, a 12-year veteran of the CPSD. Leanna’s audio was tough for these damaged ears, so I didn’t hear a lot, but what I heard was: “Great teacher!” And this is a great program of Lakewood Rotary, to honor our best teachers.

Birthdays and Anniversaries:
Sam Hunter won the contest for most years in the Club, 37. Duncan and Joan Cook won the award for most years married (to each other, by the way): 65! And of the plentiful June birthdays, only five were in the house: Andrew Kruse (favorite song: Don’t Stop Believin’), Leanna Albrecht (favorite song: What a Feeling (maybe that was it….). Eric Warn and Don Daniels didn’t pipe up, and Chris Kimball ignored the rules of his own contest.

Program:
Leanna Christian introduced Rachel Vaughn, Executive Director of the UW Tacoma’s Milgard School of Business in the Center for Leadership and Social Responsibility. Rachel took us through the online offerings from the school, including some videos free for the looking (https://www.tacoma.uw.edu/uwt/business/clsr). She highlighted their mentoring program, one-on-one between graduate students and community leaders. Particularly emphasized was the Milgard Women’s Initiative, dedicated to advancing women as creative and innovative leaders in their communities. One of the questions from our group was about “imposter syndrome”. Rachel explained that many of their students are the first in their family to attend college, and they often feel like they don’t really belong. The school recognizes this and addresses these emotions. To wrap up her presentation, Rachel praised Leanna Christian with this comment: “How does she get it all done? She is amazing.” Tell us something we don’t already know. Leanna rocks. Thanks, all!

A Good Story:
Just sit right back and you’ll hear a tale, a tale of…..service above self, and how this very motto works in business and life in general. Barlow Buescher and Karen were hosting several couples for the auction night last week. One of those invitees saw the $500 gift certificate at Ed Selden Carpet One, and immediately bid…..$825, the Buy It Now price. Why, you ask? Some time before, this guest of Barlow’s had purchased and had installed some carpeting from Rick and Gayle’s place. But somehow, the wrong item number was entered or given, and the wrong carpet was installed. Distraught, she went into the store and complained to Rick. Rick immediately assured her that it would be taken care of to her satisfaction, not to worry. It’s what good business people do, and it’s what good people do. This customer was so very impressed with Rick’s response, she felt compelled to show her appreciation by bidding $325 OVER the value of the gift certificate. And that, my fellow Rotarians, is another reason why the Selden family was named this year’s recipient of the Larry Saunders Community Service Award. Leo Durocher was wrong: Nice guys finish first!

At a recent Swedish soccer game, the beautiful blonde cheerleaders yelled out: “Gimme an ‘F’! Gimme an ‘I’! Gimme a ‘G’! Gimme an ‘H’! Gimme a ‘T’! Now what’s that spell????”
And all they got back was heavy “thinking” and total silence…..

NEXT WEEK
Marc Blau, President of the Shanaman (Tacoma) Sports Museum
Marc is also co-author of PLAYGROUND TO THE PROS, an encyclopedic book on the history of sports in Pierce County and nearby. Lakewood Rotary is tied to that history by a number of our past members. The book contains references and pictures of these past Lakewood Rotarians:
Cap Peterson, Ron Herbel, Rudy Tollefson, Jim Rediske, Harry Mansfield, Tom Names, Jim McGranahan, Randy Peterson and many more Lakewood legends.

And lastly, as this keyboard seems intent on going on forever: a new and improved sign indicating one of Lakewood Rotary’s first projects (building the first two baseball fields at Ft. Steilacoom about 1974) is ready to go up. Here’s a picture sent by Mary Dodsworth, along with her promise that it is going up “very soon!”. (No Rotary emblem, but that seems to be how we roll, do the work and forget about the credit!!)

Above: The sign!

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The Auction Is Here

Saturday, June 5, 2021 By: Gayle Selden

The Auction is Here! By Gayle Selden

THE LAKEWOOD KEY
Mark Edgecomb rang the bell to begin the Lakewood Rotary Meeting for June 4^th.
He invited Scott Buser to start the meeting with some great thoughts for Dads and Grads in June. And Mark invited himself to lead the pledge to the flag.
Mark thanked Leanna Christian for making this meeting happen, John Lowney for recording the money transactions, Gayle Selden for writing the bulletin and every single member for sending Joe Quinn pictures to use in this bulletin.

DON’T FORGET: THE AUCTION IS HERE TODAY!
The Auction has so many sponsors to thank for their support of our Lakewood Rotary activities in the coming year. We are so thrilled to have Domino’s sponsor us once again with the GOLD level sponsorship ($3,500). Domino’s commitment to help the community in time and talent is appreciated. The Brown family puts this community in high regard. Thank you, Domino’s!

Above: Domino’s Logo will appear in The Lakewood Key weekly from July 1 to June of 2022.
Mark welcomed District Governor Greg Horn who was putting the final work into the District Conference taking place that evening. He called on Greg to introduce guests and Visiting Rotarians if any—all of whom we will meet later in the meeting. Mark also recognized the Puffins “in the house”. We noticed that one of them in attendance on the screen was Mike Brown, who in case you did not know it is Nicole Hancock’s brother. Their parents (who did a Rotary program a few months back) own several Domino’s franchises, and voila, there you have our Gold Sponsor.

More Auction Sponsors:
We love all our new members but really want to give a shout out to Carl Bronkema who is an Auction Night Sponsor ($500) with the Farmers Insurance Bronkema Agency. Other auction night sponsors include Alliance Law Group, PS; Gary and Cynthia Barton; Connelly Law Office; Phil Eng; Quinn and Quinn, PS and James Rooks. Thank you all for your support.
Mark shared that Donnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnn Irwin made it through his heart surgery and is starting his recovery. We wish him welllllllllllll. Carole Wier reported that Bob Lordahl is making positive steps forward. Great news.
Mark read a letter from EFN thanking Lakewood Rotary for our donations to their cause. Although Mark said Michael Douglas sent the letter, it was Michelle Douglas the Executive Director. Michael is probably too busy with Catherine Zeta Jones to send us a thank you. We hope that is gentle enough for Mark.

$1000 Level sponsors: The Blue Level!
Do you know how we are able to donate $3700 to EFN? Our Auction! Thanks to our Blue Level sponsors ($1000) Christopher Kimball Financial Services, Ed Selden Carpet One, Kelly’s Tax Service, Korsmo Construction, Russo Ranch Veterinary Services and Twin Star Credit Union. You all are helping keep Lakewood Rotary a strong force in making Lakewood a wonderfully strong community.
Leanna Albrecht and Bob Peterson introduced our student of the month from Clover Park High School. Bob welcomed Ron Banner, Superintendent; Kevin Ikeda, Assistant Superintendent and Tim Stults, Principal of Clover Park High School. Rene McCord was also present. Bob highlighted student Rosalie. Rosalie is looking forward to her future at Whitworth College studying business next year. A top student, Rosalie thanked us eloquently during the meeting from Rene McCord’s office at school. Our world is in good hands with you leading us Rosalie!

Purple Level Sponsor is $1500:
Our Purple Level Sponsor ($1,500) Rose Stevens and RMS Financial Services helps us support our Lakewood Rotary programs locally and internationally.
Tom George filled us in on an amazingly completed Global Grant with the Rotary Club of Kottayam North in India. A Global Grant is where two international Rotary Clubs join to complete a large project. Each club finds other clubs to join and then the money raised gets matched by the Rotary Foundation. The goal of this grant was to provide two dialysis machines for the poor to use at two hospitals in India. The project grew and ended up providing five dialysis machines. Mercy Hospital is now home to the Rotary Dialysis Center; before this Global Grant they had exactly ZERO dialysis machines. What amazing change has happened due to the work of this Global Grant. This grant is leading to the next project--providing a digital mammography machine to the same hospital. Tom showed a video that would not leave the room with many dry eyes. BRILLIANT work World Community Service Committee. Thanks to Tom George & Rose Stevens for bringing us this project. Save a Kidney and Save a Life.

Above: Rose Stevens—Grant Guru AND Purple Level Sponsor
Reminder: It is tonight!
Do you know how else you can support Lakewood Rotary’s auction? By bidding or encouraging friends to bid on auction items. If you click this link https://lakewoodrotary.maxgiving.bid/about-us you’ll see that Tom George and his wife, Neeni, have provided an East Indian Dinner for six delivered to your home. Rumor is Bob Hammar thinks he is going to win this item. He better hit the buy it now button because that is an amazing item and will be bid up HIGH.

Above: Tom George?
FELLOWSHIP:
Phil Eng announced upcoming events for Lakewood Rotary. Friday, June 25^th is the date for our Installation Dinner where we will install Jim Rooks as President as well as our board members. We also give an award to the Rotarian and Non-Rotarian of the Year. The event will be held at the Tacoma Country and Golf Club where the dinner will be surf and turf. A $60 ticket must be purchased to attend—you can do that at www.lakewoodrotary.com (under “get involved”) or send a check to the Rotary Club of Lakewood PO Box 99786, Lakewood, WA 98496.
Another Fellowship Event is the “Floating Board Meeting.” A long-standing tradition, the Floating Board Meeting, is actually a fellowship event and not a board meeting at all. It’s a picnic you can bring your family to with a great dinner, some boat rides and a lot of laughter. We will be returning to Lake Steilacoom this year for the festivities. The date is July 15^th and the party starts at 4pm with dinner starting at 5:30. (So come after work!) And as a bonus we will be celebrating our own Greg Horn and the completion of his year as District Governor.
Phil also talked about the Reeder Roadster Romp -a long getaway where you no longer need to have a convertible to join in! This year’s event will be Aug 1, 2 and 3 and everyone will be heading to Astoria, Oregon. There is an email in your inbox to explain the details. Join in on the FUN.
Lakewood Rotary has two sides—Charitable and Operational
Do you know that the auction supports absolutely zero part of fellowship? Lakewood Rotary has two accounts—one operational and one charitable. The auction only raises funds for the charitable side. The money raised goes into the local and international community, not into our own pockets. Fellowship and the operational side is supported instead by fines, so go ahead and fine yourself. You do not have to wait for the President to catch you!
Get Registered now and bid on experiences:
There are many experiences you can buy a ticket to that will feel like a fellowship event at the Auction. If you click on the “item sales” tab you can buy a ticket to a trip around Lake Steilacoom, a wine tasting event, a creative painting party or an online cocktail class. Don’t delay….. buy your ticket to enjoy some fun with friends-old and new.
Joe Quinn and Mark Edgecomb said there will be some changes to our meetings on the return to the Country Club. The Country Club is excited to have us back but the meeting and our food is going to look and be different. Our board will fill us in soon. If you have any input there will be a special board meeting Monday or Tuesday. Please let Mark know if you’d like to be there.

Mark almost forgot to allow our Auction Chairs to speak about THE AUCTION! Almost.

Lakewood Rotary couldn’t provide funding for EFN, School District recognition and international projects without raising funds through the auction. Eric Quinn provided a great rap and reminded us to register for the auction ahead of time. He also mentioned that you need to invite your friends. An easy way to invite your friends is by sharing Lakewood Rotary’s posts about the auction on your Facebook page. Let’s get more outside money into our community by sharing our auction and our actions.
THE PROGRAM
Andrew Kruse introduced South Sounder, Andrea Krook, from the Children of the Nations International group. Andrea got involved in Children of the Nations when visiting a Kenyan slum and realizing the need of the international community. Children of the Nations is dedicated to raising children out of poverty and hopelessness so they can become leaders who transform their nations. COTN currently serves in Sierra Leone, Malawi, Uganda, the Dominican Republic and Haiti.
Andrea talked about the holistic help provided for children in these countries. The destitute and impoverished children are provided medical services, nutrition, education and mentoring. COTN provides full-time care for orphaned children and partners with communities to care for orphaned and destitute children living with caregivers who are unable to provide for them.
From Wikipedia, “COTN's main goal is to raise these children to become future leaders of their communities. This is accomplished through child sponsorship as well as the donation of funds, resources, and volunteer work related to the construction of children's homes, schools, medical clinics, vocational skills centers, farms, and feeding centers. This assistance is intended to lead to self-sustainability, not dependence.”
The organization offers mission trips for giving community members access to see their work in action. Their goal is these countries will have no need for services. And these children’s hearts will be mended.
Your bulletin writer was on her phone listening to the meeting today. I have got to say that is the worst way to experience a ZOOM meeting. You can’t see many faces, the chat is hard to access and when someone calls you on your phone, the Zoom cuts out and you miss Bob Peterson talking about our student of the month. So, as you are writing the bull you wing it and hope the editor makes you look good.
One thing that looks just fine from your phone is the auction items at https://lakewoodrotary.maxgiving.bid/about-us . Don’t forget to use the max bid feature so you don’t have to be married to your phone all weekend!
Also, Congrats Lakewood Rotary on your 65^th Birthday as was just announced at the District Conference.
Gayle

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Letters Matter

Sunday, May 30, 2021 By: Paula T. Olson

Letters Matter!

The Lakewood Key

You know that old saying “What a difference a day makes?” Well, the same can be said for misplaced letters. Confused? What does this have to do with the Lakewood Rotary meeting on May 28^th, the last Friday of the month? Keep reading. All will be revealed.

President Mark started the meeting a minute late but none cared. Chris Kimball gave a nice invocation and President Mark led us in the Pledge of Allegiance. He’s a short timer, nearing the end of his presidential year so I think I saw a little tear in his eye. Our meeting set up was done by the incredible Leanna Christian. Our fine collector guy, John Lowney was missing and President Mark immediately fired him and put Greg Rediske in his place. I, Paula Olson, am your bulleted writer. Everyone is the photographer.

President Mark then introduced the visiting Rotarians except there weren’t any except our District Governor Greg Horn who is also a five week short timer in his job. Then he will no longer visit but just show up. La Marco Mitchell was kicking our tires to see if he likes us. Puffins in attendance included our special honorary Puffin Carole Wier, and the regular Puffins: Tom George, Carl Bronkema and Rachel Mazoff. So back to those letters. Here’s a good example seen on a medicine bottle: Take 1 capsule every 12 hours with wood.” Getting my drift? The Sunshine Report was given by lots of people. President Mark reported he is recovered and his dad is out of the hospital and Mark finally has much peace of mind. Donnnn Irwin will have some major heart surgery so keep him in your thoughts and prayers. Walt Richardson is doing better after back surgery and Ward Fletcher has lost a lot of weight but is starting to come around.

No one was born on this day and no Lakewood Rotarian got married on this day. A day to chill throughout history I guess. Here’s another letter disaster: “Shoplifters will be prostituted!” There were several announcements. The Little Food Pantry program needs a web design upgrade and photographer. If that’s you, contact Bob Zawilski. The District Conference will be held via Zoom on Friday June 4^th starting at 5:30 pm for some great entertainment and then the conference will begin at 6:00 pm. It’s the second time in history that our club will have the District Governor so everyone attend and support Greg in his final moments. Register at rotary5020.org. It’s a grate price – Free!!

Above: Say good riddance oops goodbye to DG Horn!

Calling all tech savvy Rotarians. Our DG Horn needs 6-7 individuals (no couples allowed) to work on a District 5020 Technology Committee. Contact Greg for more info. Greg Rediske reminded us of a great price on advertising: only $180 a year to advertise with our club. Contact Greg for more info. Here’s a spelling error: “No pubic bathrooms!” Please send fellowship ideas to Phil Eng. An upcoming one is the Reader Roaster Rump to Astoria, Oregon during last week in August. The Installation Dinner is a not to be missed affair when we finally get rid of (I mean say good by to) President Mark and the old board members and get fresh new ones, like new President Jim Rooks and new board members. It will take place on Friday, June 25^th so stay tuned for more details as we hope to be in person at the Country Club. The May/June edition of the UD5020 magazine is available on the District 5020 website. Read it; you’ll lick it.

The Rotary International Convention on June 12 – 16, 2021 in Taipei, Taiwan has been cancelled and will be replaced with an outstanding visual event. Registration for the convention is still available but will cost a whooping $65. Barlow Buescher is retiring and giving his last sermon at Lakewood Presbyterian Church this coming Sunday. Congratulations, Barlow! Greg Rediske announced that Ron Messenger is moving to Eastern Washington and leaving the club. Good bye, Ron! Carole Wier announced that Bob Lordahl needs our prayers for his health concerns. But he wasn’t sick enough not to pay his dues. He already did and Greg reminds all of us to pony up too. Invoices are out in the universe. Mary Marlin reported that Bob also donated $2,000 to the auction so we are doubly grateful. President Mark observed that due to the generosity of our members, money flows through our accounts like cool, clean water. Water, water. (Huh? Hey don’t look at me; I just report it.)

IT'S A FINE TIME

How about this one: “Illegally parked cars will be fine.” Speaking of fine or fines, people paid a bunch. President Mark announced another fine contest where you give $20 and you get a ticket for a raffle for a wonderful prize that he has yet to get. I’m waiting until I find out what the prize is. Greg Rediske paid $50 to honor Barlow for his retirement after 35 years as a pasture. (Sorry Barlow, I just had to do it!) Pres. Mark matched that. Mary Marlin paid $50 because she just got back from her trip to Marietta, Ohio where she visited her three sisters. She said that she was Rotary signs everywhere, such as trails, parks, statutes (that last one is a lawyer pun). Carole Wier paid $300 for negligent destruction of Rotary property. Actually, it was her property but it was a Rotary thing. So she likes to store stuff on her range (think oven), including her Rotary book. After a time, she heard the smoke alarm go off and what was burning? Her Rotary book. Her fine was hush money so none of us wood tell Jim Sharp. Rick Selden missed a few meetings for a noble porpoise. He went to Florida to get some dirt on Jim Rooks. Turns out there’s lots to be had there but he was more interested in his daughter and granddaughter so he paid $50.

Gary Barton shared his good/bad news. Good that his son earned his best grades ever in his pre-med program, so Gary paid $50. But the bad news is that his sister in law is in the hospital and not doing well. He also lost a couple of people very close to him so we will remember him and his family and friends in our thoughts and prayers as well. Joe Quinn unfortunately slept through last week’s meeting when son Eric announced he and Johanah are expecting their second child. Joe was $50 proud to announce it thinking it was the first time we heard that. He thought Eric was too cheap to tell us himself or he’d have to pay money. Eric immediately chimed in that he did announce and he did pay so there. Steve Enquist shared more news about Joe. Steve said that Joe won gold in his weight class in the World Masters Championship in weight lifting last Monday in the 75-79 age group. Joe said there were only 9 lifters in the entire age group and he ranked third. Another $50. Congratulations, Joe! Barb Spriggs reminded us to wave our flags on Monday for Memorial Day.

THE PROGRAM: OUR AUCTION

Now for the program and introducing our own Fundraising Committee Chairs, Eric Quinn and Nicole Hancock to talk about the auction. It starts on line on Friday June 5^th with Sip by Sip starting at 5:00 pm to preview auction items and a show of our service projects that we spend that money on. Then bid away starting at 6:00 pm. Steve and AnnE Enquist talked about the Sip by Sip (not to be confused with Slip n Slide) as a new and unique opportunity to spend $50 for an individual and $100 for a couple for wine tasting and a wonderful charcuterie from the Country Club. Delivered to your home or place of party. A non-alcoholic version of sparkling cider is available for half price. So the idea here is to invite NON Rotarians to this shin dig. If you hosted a table in the past, invite folks over to your house and get more Sip by Sip tickets. Of course you don’t need to sign up for Sip by Sip to register for the auction but you have to register for the auction even if you got a ticket for Sip by Sip.

Sally Porter Smith talked about the exciting items on sale at the auction. As of the time of the meeting, there were 54 items valued at $22,788, although they should bring in much more money with competitive budding. There is a huge variety, such as Ocean Shores condo, Long Beach condo, seven days in San Francisco by Knob Hill.

Above: Party boat on Lake Steilacoom

There are birdhouses, a magnum of L’Ecole wine, fun stuff like partying on Lake Steilacoom, and water boarding lessons by Greg and Mary Horn. Yep, you heard her right. Little did we know that Greg and Mary Horn were so torturously educated on the fine art of water boarding. Okay, Sally misspoke. Letters matter. She meant wake boarding because it turns out that water boarding is illegal torture. And Greg and Mary wouldn’t let people sign up for punishment. They are too nice.

Nicole and Eric wanted everyone to recognize new sponsors and donors to the auction. Rose Stevens and RMS donated $1,500, Chris Kimball donated $1,000 as did John Korsmo. Jim Rooks, Quinn & Quinn, Connelly Law and Farmers Insurance donated $500 each. New donors included Gordy Quick at $500 and Bob and Janet Lordahl at #2,000. See that’s how it’s dun. You just take out the check book and write a number with a bunch of zeros and we will be flowing with water.

Deadlines included sponsorship forms in by June 1^st, procurement forms by June 1^st, and Sip by Sip tickets by June 1^st. The club then went into brake out rooms for teams to discuss their procurement plans. When we came back, there was some follow up. There isn’t the traditional Rise the Puddle this year but there is a general ask to donate to the community needs that the Community Concerns can spend where needed. Any questions on sponsorships, contact Nicole or Eric. Take auction items to Gayle Selden at the store. Note any minimum bid on yore procurement form. So far only 46 people are registered, so get with the registration. An email is coming out to remind you if this isn’t enough.

Sally finally figured out her mistake with the water/wake boarding and paid a $100 donation. President Mark ended the meeting with wishes for a safe holiday and great week. And if you are an employer needing new employees, don’t advertise like this: “Now hiring smiling feces!”

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Why an Auction?

Sunday, May 23, 2021 By: Joseph F. Quinn

THE LAKEWOOD KEY
for May 21, 2021

Is it True? The Lakewood Rotary meeting of May 21 took place on the 21^st day of the month, at the start of the 21^st week of the 21^st year of the 21^st Century? Check it out; it is essentially true. And nobody cared, probably because all of us were too excited about the 2021 Online Rotary Auction.
As usual, a few of the faithful gathered before the meeting started just to chew the fat or shoot the bull as we on the bulletin committee are fond of saying. Mary Moss had a good question: as an auction team captain how do you report your team’s donations and/or procurement? It seems the answer is that you as team captain need to submit a form listing all of your team’s procurement AND donations in order to be sure of getting the team credit.
Another revelation was President Mark Edgecomb explaining why he was participating without his usual coat and tie. He was working from home because he has been infected with Covid-19. All are wishing him a speedy recovery. He does not recommend this method of losing weight and added that his appetite has been missing in action for about a week.

John Warner said he wanted to take part in the pre-event (Sip by Sip) but was not sure about delivery and payment. In seconds, the problems were solved with Eric Quinn promising to deliver to his fellow University Place Resident Warner and Sally Porter Smith promising she would take care of John’s payment question. $50 earned right there in a few moments!
Right at 12:30 p.m. our ruddy-looking President rang the bell-- or banged the gavel-- so we could kick off the formal meeting. Paula Olson invoked for us all, Leanna Christian organized us all on Zoom, Treasurer John Lowney collected for us all, and Editor Joe Quinn is writing for us all, while all of us all shall submit photos to the Editor for use herein. See Below.
President Mark, as is his custom, recognized our erstwhile District Governor—Greg Horn—who used rotating winter and summer backgrounds showing Lake Steilacoom in every season. Very cool. Then Mark highlighted all Puffins in attendance.
SUNSHINE:   John Forkenbrock reported that Walt Richardson had back surgery and is recovering. Bob Zawilski was reportedly in the hospital briefly with shortness of breath, but Bob was with us today and rapidly added that he is OK now. President Mark explained to the group what he had revealed in the pre-meeting chat….he is down with Covid-19 for about a week but starting to feel better despite losing weight. He said Nicola, a nurse at St. Clare’s, has been vaccinated and is safe they believe.
EDUCATORS OF THE MONTH:   Leanna Albrecht coordinated and Bob Peterson presented, the awards to our two May Educators of the Month. Bruce Hayes has been a teacher in the Steilacoom Historical School District (and a coach) for about 40 years. He teaches at Pioneer Middle School and is going to retire at the end of this school year. Demetricia Hodges of Lochburn was the Clover Park School District honoree. Both educators were supported by their principals today online; Celena Zanuttini and Greg Wilson joined us as did Ron Banner—the Superintendent of Clover Park School District--and Kevin Ikeda, the Deputy Superintendent. Each of the awardees was recognized with the usual plaque and of course the obligatory $100 bill. They were admonished by the Prez NOT to spend that money on school supplies or on the kids but on themselves. They earned that much and more.
ANNOUNCEMENTS:   Steve Enquist said that, while his committee has received numerous nominations for Rotarian of the Year, only two nominees’ names have been submitted so far for the Non-Rotarian of the Year.   So if you have a person who has made large contributions of their time and talents to the Lakewood community and its people, puleeeeze get those names in to Steve. The winner gets a $1000 Paul Harris award for this recognition, usually given at the Installation Banquet in June.

Above: Send me some nominees puleeeze-Steve Enquist
GLOBAL GRANTS: Puffin Tom George reported on a recent global grant. Rose Stevens mentored Tom on these kinds of international projects and global grants. They were instrumental in getting a grant to install four dialysis machines in two hospitals in India; these are primarily for kidney patients who could not otherwise afford dialysis. Paying patients can also use these machines.

Above: Rose Stevens our World Service guru
Other Announcements: The Little Free Pantry organization still needs help with web design and photography. Contact Bob Zawilski if you have these skillsets. The District Conference for 5020—which will be FREE—will be held by Zoom on Friday, June 4^th from 6:00 p.m. to 9:00 p.m. There will also be a pre-function starting at 5:30 p.m. Feel free to join us in thanking Greg Horn for a great year in 2020-21 despite the challenges. Greg said his predecessor as the District Governor---who we simply know as “Mo”—will be feted as well. She missed out on District Conference in her year due to the pandemic so for those who have not met her, she was also a great DG and you will enjoy meeting her if you join us.
More…. Greg Horn is still looking for tech savvy Rotarians to serve on a District 5020 Technology Committee. And Greg Rediske insists that you can still advertise in our bulletin every week for a mere $180 per year. Speaking of Greg, after the meeting did you notice in your mailbox that the annual dues invoices were sent out by Secretary Rediske? We are sure he would urge you not to drag your feet. Make a positive decision to keep John Lowney happy by paying your dues so that John and Greg do not have to send Luigi Badalucco to your house to break your arm for non-payment.
And remember to send Fellowship ideas to Phil Eng. In that regard, some of you went along on Rotary walks to Fort Steilacoom Park, Point Defiance Park and the Nisqually Wildlife Refuge earlier this year so Anne Enquist and Joe Quinn were wondering if you enjoyed those simple walks in the park for fellowship and if you had any desire to do that some more.   Ideas for walk locations gladly accepted such as Steilacoom and maybe including Farrell Marsh…or the walk to Sequalitchew Creek near Dupont. Call Anne or Joe with ideas or feedback.
The Rotary International Convention will be virtual but will be held, we believe, between June 12 and 16, 2021. Registration fee is now $65.
THE PROGRAM: OUR 2021 ONLINE ROTARY AUCTION – SIP BY SIP
Mark introduced Eric Quinn and Nicole Hancock to lead us through the What, How and the Why as to our 2021 Auction.
Eric said the auction will go live at 6:00 p.m. on June 5^th but first we need to procure a lot more; they want mostly “experiences” but do not want to discourage folks from giving “stuff”—physical items—as we have done traditionally too. But the Committee wants us to reflect now on WHY we do this auction. The reason is that we try to do so much for the community of Lakewood and the world, so the Committee introduced Jim Rooks the Chair of Community Concerns Committee to tell us about their giving (ours really, as a Club) this year. This year Jim said they had a $30,000 budget for these miscellaneous gifts and have about $6,000 left that can carry over to next year if not given away by end of June. Jim has been chair for two years and will be handing the mantle over to Bob Bruback for next year. Jim itemized some of the great grants of this cycle including $3000 for Clover Park Schools for I-pads or computers, $1000 to Operation Homefront, $2,000 to the Lakewood Multicultural Coalition that Mary Moss has championed, partnering with Clover Park Kiwanis to buy a new freezer, the Build a Bike giveaway program at Christmas, Caring for Kids with Diane Formoso, the West Pierce Firefighters Christmas Project, Network Tacoma, LASA, Family Renewal Shelter, and many more. The CCC does great work so thanks to Jim and all those who have done that committee work over the years.
Sponsorships:
Nicole went back a little more into the HOW by stressing sponsorships. There are four different levels of sponsors this year ranging from $500 all the way up to $5000 for the “naming rights” to the entire auction. All levels provide online marketing recognition for these sponsors and this effort basically underwrites the auction for us. If this effort can cover our overhead, the money donated and items or experiences sold at auction are pure profit! We can meet our goal if we get sponsors to underwrite this event. Also buy a ticket for Sip by Sip, Nicole urged.

Above: Sponsorships explained some more
Going back to the WHY, Chuck Hellar was called upon to spotlight the Next Step Program. These mentors carry on the tradition originated largely by Mike McGowan to assist outstanding students with the sometimes mystifying process of applying for college and gaining admission to the best college or university possible. Next Step has an $8000 budget but this committee is all about the close work with students, starting in their Sophomore year. They work with top 10 in the class students ordinarily. They look for students whose parents did not go to college as these are the kids who need to work with someone who knows about college admissions. It is done in teams; Chuck partners up with Nicole Hancock on their team. Anne and Steve Enquist are a team. Rachel Mazoff is interested in being a volunteer mentor as well and she has just finished the screening through our club and district individual certification process for all volunteers who work with youth in Rotary. (Our club has at least 10 or 12 individuals who have completed that process, which includes a criminal background check and--believe it or not-- a check of the National Sex Offender Registry. Every President and all Rotary volunteers who work with youth have to undergo that screening.)
The Next Step Program works. One recent grad got a $70000 scholarship to attend Princeton!
Eric Quinn also mentioned that the winning team captain will get a ticket worth $50 to the Sip by Sip auction pre-event, so get busy captains procuring donations and stuff or EXPERIENCES! So far we have procured a stay at Seabrook near the ocean beaches, some John Lowney planters, Five Rotarians Run the Yard, and a Lake Steilacoom cruise with fun stops at Rotarian docks along the way. We need much more.
Chris Kimball was next up in the Why Group. He spoke of Major Projects such as Network Tacoma that deals with homeless families. Chris has served on the board of Network Tacoma. We gave them $6000 in the summer of 2020. The Major Projects traditionally have included one large donation per year and oftentimes this amounts to as much as a $50,000 grant.
Next, we watched and listened to a video from L’Ecole No. 41 winery’s Mark Clubb, who provided a brief history of this Walla Walla area winery and description of its Frenchtown red blend. It seems that area was first populated by French Canadians so this wine has been developed to recognize that rich French history. If you have not been to L’Ecole you need to visit the old schoolhouse in the small town of Lowden, a few miles before you arrive in Walla Walla.   Just in case you are not a wine lover, this year there is a non-alcoholic libation available. Anne Enquist says she has bought several bottles of Martinelli’s Cider that is a very acceptable alternative. That option costs $25 per person or $50 per couple and comes with the same charcuterie as the wine tasting, brought to you by Tacoma Country and Golf Club.   In that regard, a member of the Country Club Team (Eric is Team Captain) will deliver your wine or cider, and charcuterie to you if you cannot or do not want to pick it up at the country club on the day of the auction.
Eric Quinn urged us to remember the tradition of buying a table for 8 or 10 and inviting our friends and neighbors to come to the auction for dinner, fellowship and of course to bid on items. Instead, how about inviting friends to buy tickets to Sip by Sip, but also register for the auction and bid on items. You can have friends over to join in your Zoom or they can do that in the comfort of their own home.
But WHY you ask? Well, Bill Potter told us about his experience helping out Clover Park Rotary at the recent South Sound Wildlife Park where there was a big cleanup.   Two Rotary benches were installed, which were pictured in a prior bulletin. But look at this cool Rotary Logo that they installed near the benches:

Above: The Rotary logo in that wildlife park.

Thank you to the FUNdraising Committee for an enlightening program but if you still have questions call Nicole Hancock or Eric Quinn.

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Tech is Great Until It Isn't

Sunday, May 16, 2021 By: Tonya Marie Winski

THE LAKEWOOD KEY
For May 14, 2021

Technology is Great, Until It Isn’t

My zoom was being completely uncooperative which made being the bulletin writer very interesting. Was it just me?! Oh the joys of technology (or maybe it’s just my old computer that I can’t seem to part with!)

Mark opened our meeting at just around 12:31.

Our Invocation was given by Bob Hammar with a reminder of Service above Self and the Rotary way.

Mark led us in the Flag Salute.

Huge thanks to Leanna Christian for ensuring that our meetings are always running smoothly.

John Lowney has his pen at the ready to write down all of our generous contributions.

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And Then Came Friday

Sunday, May 9, 2021 By: Mary Marlin

THE LAKEWOOD KEY
May 7, 2021
AND THEN CAME FRIDAY
By Mary Marlin

And then came Friday. Now just so you know, there is a catch-up (not the hot dog ketchup) opportunity with club members if you choose to zoom at 11:30 before the official meeting at 12:30. President Mark Edgecomb will be available to take questions, answer questions and tell jokes! This is a great chance to meet up with fellow Rotarians and learn even more about what's happening in the world.... especially the world of Lakewood. So here is what I learned today at the informal meeting:

John Warner generously mentioned he will be contributing $2000 to the auction! Andrew Kruse said he'd had a rough week. So did Mike Murtha when his car was broken into at Chambers Bay. The good news is that he knows who did it!!!! Wow! Leanna has new curls. Very cute. Rick Selden is living the good life! Said that floormasters live the dream. Mark thought it was the accountants. (To be continued)

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A Startling Discovery

Sunday, May 2, 2021 By: John W. Magnuson

THE LAKEWOOD KEY

A Startling Discovery

In preparation for writing this bulletin, I did some research. I happen to have an August 8, 2003 bulletin on file. It comes as no surprise that the meeting format at the Rotary Club of Lakewood since then hasn’t changed one whit. Or, even two whits. Now some claim that the meeting format is traditional and doesn’t need alteration. Others may say that we are stuck in the whits. It is not up to me as a mere Reporter to suggest change or keep stuff the same. But there is something very sinister that needs disclosure. Reading that bulletin from almost 17 years ago and checking the names of those people involved with and attending that one meeting – many have mysteriously vanished! So, it is not beyond the realm of possibility that the format and conduct of meetings at Lakewood Rotary is making people disappear! Even more disturbing is the possibility that there exists a shadow group of Rotarians who control the format of the meetings and once crossed… Well, I’ll just let you draw your own conclusions, but can you say “Lakewood Rotary Mafia?”

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Shooting Par at Lakewood Rotary

Sunday, April 25, 2021 By: Donn Irwin

THE LAKEWOOD KEY
Shooting Par at the Lakewood Rotary Club Meeting
April 23, 2021 by Donn Irwin
A sure way to hit a par is to leave a four-foot birdie putt two inches from the hole.

Golf, a very short history:
First century Romans played a game similar to golf – it was called “paganica”.
Between the 8^th and 14^th centuries the Chinese played “chuiwan”. They used a club like stick to hit a small ball into a hole.
The modern game of golf originated in 15^th century Scotland while the 18-hole game we have today began in 1764 and was created at St. Andrews, Scotland on the “Old Course”.
The first written record of golf in the west shows up in a document written by King James II in 1457 banning the game because it was a distraction to learning archery. (As well as many other things I would imagine).
In 1502 Jimmy the second’s wiser descendant, James IV, lifted that crazy ban…. mainly because he became a golfer himself.
The oldest golf tournament in the world is the “Open Championship”, better known to us as the British Open.

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A Different Sort of Meeting

Sunday, April 18, 2021 By: Gregory J. Rediske

THE LAKEWOOD KEY

A Different Sort of Meeting, Lawyer Style by Greg Rediske

I looked at my calendar: bulletin writing, April 16. Oh, no. Another meeting with a CPA running the show. A guy whose life is built around 2 + 2 equaling 4. Every. Dang. Time. But wait!!! Who is that in the Big Guy’s chair?!? Why, it’s Joe Quinn, lawyer! 2 + 2 might equal 4, or not, depending on what the judge might want to hear….Yes, a lawyer! The profession with more (scathing) jokes than any other profession (and with good reason, perhaps?). You know, the guys of whom it is said that 99% of them give the others a bad name. Lawyers, who are buried 600 feet in the ground, because deep down they’re really nice people. The age-old question: If a lawyer is talking in the forest and there is no one around to hear him, can he still bill for it? And what’s the difference between a CPA and a lawyer? CPAs KNOW they’re boring. (Like the lady who is given 3 months to live, and the doctor advises her to immediately go out and marry a CPA. “But why?”, she understandably asks. The doctor replies, “Because 3 months will then seem like an eternity.”)

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Our DG Greg Horn

Sunday, April 11, 2021 By: Gayle Selden

THE LAKEWOOD KEY for April 9, 2021

All Hail the District Governor by Gayle Selden
The April 9^th Meeting of the Rotary Club of Lakewood was called to order by President Mark Edgecomb. Mark called on Andrew Kruse who provided an inspiring thought relating to Martin Luther King, Jr and Dietrich Bonhoeffer and our service as Rotarians. He shared this quote from Bonhoeffer, “We are not simply to bandage the wounds of victims beneath the wheels of injustice, we are to drive a spoke into the wheel itself.” A life committed to service does not come without a cost but it surely seems our work is worth it. Andrew provided a great start to the Official Visit of District Governor Greg Horn.
In honor of the District Governor, we had both the American and Canadian Anthem played. I am thankful for Zoom as we didn’t have to sing them this time.

President Mark thanks Leanna Christian, John Lowney and Gayle Selden for helping with the meeting.
President Mark introduced District Governor Greg Horn and AG Tony Camoroda. Greg Rediske welcomed Bob Martin, former Rotarian and new Lake Steilacoom resident and visitor Tom Georgen. Joke was on Greg as Tom Georgen was actually our member Tom George with his camera off and a typo in his name. Wynn Hoffman introduced his friend Stan Liebenberg from the San Juan Rotary club, who was in town with his spouse for a visit with the Hoffmans.
President Mark gave a shout out to all the Puffins in the House.
President Mark shared a sunshine report to think of member Sonia Martinez and her family as her husband is having continued surgery on his brain.
BIRTHDAYS AND ANNIVERSARIES
President Mark then congratulated Rob Erb for his 44^th Anniversary which was happening this very day (the 9^th). Then District Governor Greg Horn interrupted Mark and said “WAIT, aren’t we doing Birthdays and Anniversaries?” (Meaning he and Chris Kimball, our own Lakewood Rotary Birthday and Anniversary Committee.) So, President Mark immediately ceded to Greg and Chris to begin Birthdays and Anniversaries for April.

Above: The DG doing his thing
Chris led his drum solo and congratulated all the Anniversaries. Then Greg highlighted the Birthdays and asked those present what was the best April Fools Prank they have experienced. Tonya Winski told of a boss leaving dixie cups of water throughout a hallway so in order to reach your desk you had to empty all the water cups first. Then President Mark totally Bah humbugged and said No April Fools for me. Note for next year: I have a feeling then Past President Mark will have lots of stories. And then Greg, thinking we were not going to hear from him enough today shared his favorite April Fools joke in which he read an email he wrote five years ago to then President Chris Kimball in which he said he loved Rotary but was being called to join the Lions and also to make note of the date.
Happy Birthday to: Dan Livingston, Leon Titus, Bill White, Dave Betz, Mick Johnson, Mary Covelli Johnson, Donn Irwin, Tonya Winski, Jerry Williams and Mark Edward Edgecomb.
Happy Anniversary to: Troy and Stephanie Wilcox, Kim and Tom Prentice, Bill and Sue and Harry Potter, Donn and Debbie Irwin, Rob and Vickie Erb and Bob and Stacia Cammarano.
Happy Rotary Anniversary to: Mary Marlin, Barb Spriggs, Christopher Vernon Kimball, Kim Prentice and Joan Strait.
DACdb:
Super thanks to Greg Horn for sending me the list. Apparently, I can now pull it myself in Dacdb. I need to practice using that database! I love how I learned today that Chris Kimball’s middle name is Vernon. So next time when he plays his drums too loud we can bust out the middle name to keep him in line. In fact, that would’ve come in handy when he was President. I blame my hearing loss on his weekly drumming.
AWARDS:
President Mark then shared two awards for Lakewood Rotary-one from Pierce County for a Special Service Award for volunteers helping at a vaccine event and the Sterling Circle from Multicare for Lakewood Rotary’s giving to the Multicare Foundation.
FUNdraising:
For a Fun change of pace Kendra Riconosciuto talked about the SPRING FLING GAME NIGHT! April 24^th join in on Zoom to play games and raise FUNds for Lakewood Rotary. The games will be easy for you to play at home. You will be playing with your fellow Rotarians via Zoom, your partner at home or a mini party with a few friends. If you don’t want to play you can still join for the entertainment. We can have more than Lakewood Rotarians present so please invite your friends. It’s a fundraising event but we are trying to have some FUN too! Use this link https://lakewoodrotary.maxgiving.bid/about-us to make your $30 donation (includes your game pack that includes all the items an individual needs for game night). You can also enhance your ticket with a party pack for two or six which includes wine, Domino’s pizza, dessert and party décor. This is going to be a great opportunity to get your spring sillies on and raise funds for Lakewood Rotary. If we raise $5000 President Elect Jim Rooks will be jumping into Lake Steilacoom to celebrate. And the committee will celebrate members with the BEST Spring Fling costume by delivering you ice cream at a later date. Please sign up today and join this new FUNdraising effort.

Above: Kendra was stoked!
WORK PARTY
Not announced at the meeting but still on our calendar is the work party at the South Sound Wildlife area Community Work day on May 1st from 9:00 a.m. to 1:00 p.m. Come join Rotary, Kiwanis and Lions clubs and other community groups as we work together to improve Lakewood’s Wildlife area. Located on Phillips Road just across from Hudtloff Middle school, this public space has been adopted by Clover Park Rotary as a signature local project to improve public accessibility and to return it to the educational area it was 50 years ago. Workers will be dispersed over the 100-acre site to maintain social distancing and working in family groups. Jobs will include: Picking up garbage along Phillips Road, install permanent benches along the trail (including one from Lakewood Rotary), Hanging Signage, Weeding Indigenous garden area and rock wall, pull Scotch broom in education area, pull Scotch broom around Garry Oak plantings and Cut down black berries at North end of fence. Come join your community and enjoy some safe outside time helping make our community a better place. For more information contact Alan Billingsley alanb@toolpak.com project coordinator.

THE program: Our very own DG
President Mark then tried to introduce our speaker, but Tony Camoroda did a much better job with his introduction (minus a misdate on the Presidency Greg had) telling us about Greg’s commitment to Rotary. A man not afraid of change and a world accomplished bare foot skier.

Above: The barefoot DG
It could have been the program--so many wonderful things Tony said about Greg and his life on water, with family and with Rotary. He and his Wife, Mary Horn, have raised three boys and count 12 grandchildren as part of their family (4+8 bonus—ask the story… it’s phenomenal).
Greg’s Rotary career includes being President of Lakewood Rotary (2009-2010), being Assistant Governor to Area 12, Creating Beer Fest (a homebrew festival that supports Polio Plus) and creating district change by converting the District from Club Runner to Dacdb. Greg is someone who truly has fun getting things done!
Greg joined us for his 88^th official talk of his year (out of 93 total clubs in the district). He is thankful for Zoom as because of Zoom he has gotten to visit clubs multiple times during the year. His unofficial count is 200 Rotary meetings attended for the year (so far). And he is learning so much more about clubs and their members. He also officially thanked Lakewood Rotary on behalf of Rotary International for the work this year with Food Insecurity and virtual learning. Two tasks that became more important to spring into action with the year of Covid.
District 5020 is the largest district in number of clubs (93) and number of members (4400). We are part of the largest international district with 38 clubs on Vancouver Island and 55 in Western Washington. The District, and Greg as District Governor, operates to serve the Rotary Clubs. The District Governor, Assistant Governors and a multitude of chairs work together with clubs to strengthen our membership and our efforts.

Above: Greg and his hard-working Chief of Staff
Greg talked about the future of Rotary and VIP meetings. That means Virtual and In Person meetings. He has attended a couple in person meetings this year and they always include a Virtual component.
Greg is very excited about Dacdb, a database that will help clubs operate better. Lakewood Rotary joined Dacbd April 1^st (no fooling). Get on and explore and learn people’s middle names. He suggests using the mobile version as well.
Greg highlighted the power of 1 in Rotary and talked about the District Conference held in Tacoma a few years back where one person, our own Sally Porter Smith, asked if we could add a day of service-a food packing project to the conference. That one thought turned into 15,000 meals made.
He also thanks Lakewood Rotary for donating 1-1/4 million dollars to the Foundation. He spouted off some numbers I caught—96 Paul Harris Society Members, 20 Benefactors, 13 Major Donors, 34 Polio Plus Society Members. He thanked committee chair Steve Enquist for his hard work as chair. And encouraged us to continue to donate to the Foundation.
District Conference will be taking place in person Oct 29^th and 30^th at the Great Wolf Lodge. Greg invites us all the join in on the fun.
Greg also let us know that Rotary International has added a seventh area of focus which is supporting the environment. He also highlighted the connection between Rotary International and Toastmasters and suggested checking out the local group.
Greg talked about coming from Lakewood Rotary and realizing that we were a special club that runs very well. He credits Greg Rediske, super secretary, for helping us maintain such a good ship.
Greg shared so much more information than we can share here and so much great praise. Greg included these notes of tips in the chat for all of us to use:
DACdb.com – to log in to DACdb. Just use your e-mail you use to log in to ClubRunner, then click “Forgot password.” You may then reset it with any new one. m.dacdb.com is the mobile access for cell phones
rotary5020.org is our District website – lots of great information
zone2627.org is our Zone website – lots more great information
endpolio.org for the latest updates on our fight against polio. This is updated every Thursday morning. 140 cases in 2020, only 2 cases as of yesterday in 2021!

tgig.org – The Global Impact Group – V/IP meetings – the future of Rotary club meetings
Rotarians Leveraging Technology for the Greater Good

toastmasters.org – to locate a nearby Toastmasters club

rotary.org/donate – to sign up for Rotary Direct donations. You may specify Polio Plus

rotary.org/learn – to get to the Rotary Learning Center

gigharborrotary.org – club to Zoom visit for great, fun meeting ideas

We are really lucky to have a Rotary Champion like Greg. We are proud to be the home club of the District Governor and will continue to proudly display the banner on Zoom. His dedication to Rotary is unequaled. He believes that Rotary is changing the world and we as Rotarians have it in us all to be the changemakers.
I have personally seen the dedication he and Mary have to our district and I cannot wait to celebrate in a VIP way their accomplishments as our District Leaders. Cheers Greg and Mary thanks for being amazing Cheerleaders!
Gayle Selden

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Spring is Here

Sunday, April 4, 2021 By: Paula T. Olson

THE LAKEWOOD KEY

Springtime comes to Lakewood Rotary by Paula Olson

When President Mark opened the meeting on Friday, he was stepping into a special period of time with flowers coming up and bees buzzing and starting with yesterday’s April Fool’s Day on April 1^st. Next, Easter or Bunny Day on April 4^th for some, Passover for others and Ramadan a bit later for more others. Maybe it was the excitement that caused our Prez and our Illustrious District Gov. Greg Horn to talk about staging a coup d'état and staying in office for two or three more years. And why he was not willing to relinquish control of the meeting to our top tech person, Leanna Christian who had to get stern with the Prez so she could get the controls to mute us, since we are so wild and crazy, we can’t mute ourselves. Nonetheless, the meeting started promptly at 12:30 pm.

Scott Buser opened with a very nice Invocation and Prez Mark led us in the Pledge of Allegiance (yet another sign he doesn’t intend to step down in June). Leanna Christian did and continued to do meeting set up, John Lowney was not present to take fines so we were all off the hook, Paula Olson was madly taking notes to write the Bulletin and all of us served as photographers.

            Visiting Rotarians included our aforementioned District Gov. Greg Horn, Howard Svigals, 5020 District Foundation Chair, Becky Fontaine and Daniel Wirth from Tacoma 8 Rotary and Alan Billingsley from Clover Park Rotary. Our guests, also participating in other parts of our meeting, were: Emily Woodford, Karen Mauer-Smith, Kevin Ikeda, Moira Neal and Carmela Neal. Puffins in attendance were Tom George, Mike Murtha, Jessica James, Carl Bronkema and Rachel Mazoff. There was no official Sunshine Report but Greg announced the passing of Eric Warn’s beloved wife, Kathie. Eric shared with us some of his thoughts, that after a heroic two year struggle she is now in heaven and out of pain. Eric is also free of caregiving and looking forward to finding new activities for his time. May Kathie rest in peace and our love to you, Eric!

            Although Prez Mark was not able to play any April Fool’s jokes on us, I am happy to announce that coming up on April 4^th in addition to Easter Sunday is National Hug a Newsperson Day. I hope you all celebrated appropriately. Prez Mark asked us to give a round of applause to Troy and Stephanie Wilcox on their wedding anniversary in absentia. Alan Billingsley sent us a chat message that the Lakewood Rotary bench is being dedicated at the work party at the old game farm site on May 1, from 9:00 a.m. to 1:00 p.m. More details to come but put it on your calendar.

Howard Svigals, the District Foundation Chair, reported that Lakewood Rotary is known as a “great club” which exceeded $10,000 in contributions to the Foundation and $7,000 to Polio Plus in the match program during March. He explained that since March is usually a low month for contributions, he did the match to beef it up. And we responded like the champs we are. Howard also said that we are just short of $250,000 into our next $1 million. He said that we should be very proud and he thanked us profusely. He reported that there are only two cases of polio in the world right now, one in Afghanistan and one in Pakistan. Steve Enquist also chimed in and said that in one week, we contributed $4,000. Last week 89 different people contributed $17,800. Steve wanted us all to know that Howard was using his personal points to match contributions during March. Steve then gave out a Paul Harris to Rachel Mazoff, her first. He had wanted her dad to present it to her but life intervened. Congratulations, Rachel!!

            Leanna Albrecht stated that we are starting up our Teacher and Student of the Month program again and today we honored the Student of the Month for April: Carmela Neal from Lakes High School. We welcomed Kevin Ikeda, Assistant Superintendent of Clover Park and Karen Mauer-Smith, the Principal of Lakes High School to share in Carmela’s achievement. Bob Hammar described Carmela’s qualifications. Carmela is an excellent student with a 3.8 GPA and participates in many other activities and programs. She is the Editor of the school Newspaper, Lancer Ledger and intends to major in journalism and poetry when she goes on to one of the many universities and colleges that she has been accepted to. She is on the cross-country team, volunteers for Red Cross and church programs, and participates in theater productions at JBLM. She graciously thanked us for our recognition.

            Dr. Jim Rooks, who is duly elected to serve as our next President if he can combat the impending coup, announced that the Community Concerns Committee recommended that we give a $2,000 grant to Palmer Scholars, an organization that works with students from low income families for assistance in higher education. These funds are particularly needed now with many students have difficulties. A motion to approve the grant was made and seconded. All members voted affirmatively to pass the motion. Thanks Jim and CCC for this opportunity to help needy students.

            Tom George talked about two Global Grants he’s involved in with Rose Stevens and others assisting, with one almost completed. We are supplying two dialysis machines to Sacred Heart Medical Center and Mercy Hospital in Kollayam, North India. These machines will enable poor people to get the treatment they need at no cost. Ordinarily, it would cost about 80% of their total monthly income if they were forced to pay. The hospitals are both run by religious nuns and they have pledged to subsidize the cost of treatment for ten years. Tom showed us pictures of the acknowledgement of the first machine. Lakewood Rotary will be memorialized at the contributing organization by a banner and plaque at both locations. Tom said that Lakewood Rotary was also mentioned in the local news for its donation. The second machine will be installed in another two weeks. Yet another example of how Lakewood Rotarians’ generosity is known around the world!

            Thank our lucky stars that Prez Mark acknowledged that he was unable to imitate Eric Quinn’s excellent rapping to announce the next fundraising event. Eric came on the screen and commissioned Gayle Selden and Kendra Riconoscuito to take a paper plate and a marker, put the plate on their heads and draw a picture of Prez Mark in a hot tub, clothing optional. We watched these three for 60 seconds although someone was done in less time. Showing us their efforts, Eric and Kendra’s were what you expect of drawing on your head in front of 40 or so people and eerily recognizable as Mark sitting in a hot tub. Gayle on the other hand cheated. She produced a photograph of Mark which she photo shopped to make it look like she drew it. This stunt was part of introducing “Let the Good Times Roll Night” on April 24^th at 6:00 p.m., virtual of course. It’s game night and there are several ways to play. Pony up $30 a person and you’ll get the basics of what you need. Kick in $100 for two people and you’ll get pizza, dessert from the Partners, a bottle of wine and playing stuff. Go the distance for a party of six for $400 and you’ll get even more pizza, more dessert, two bottles of wine, lots of playing stuff, and a decorating kit to be the envy of your block. In addition, if that’s not enough, decorate your house and/or yourselves in your best rendition of spring fever for extra excitement. This is only for those whose health is strong enough. Let’s have a ball together and raise some cash!!

Above: Miracle Drawing!

THE PROGRAM:

            Finally, we got down to the program with Daniel Wirth, dubbed “Mr. Hurricane” by Prez Mark and the Executive Director of South Puget Sound Red Cross. Dan was so nicknamed because of the all the hurricanes he had responded to in his job with the Red Cross as well as other disasters. Dan and his wife also served in the Peace Corps in the Dominican Republic back in the day. Dan was joined on stage by Becky Fontaine who heads up the development end of the local Red Cross. Dan gave us an overview and an update on the Red Cross in our area.
            Dan began his presentation by showing us a very moving video of the work of the Red Cross and the many ways in which it helped people though natural disasters, big and small. The Red Cross has five lines of service: Disaster Relief; Biomedical; Service to Armed Forces; International Service; and Training. Within the Disaster Relief area, Dan also wanted to emphasize the Home Fire program now going on. Taking each area one by one, Dan walked us through what the Red Cross does for the world.
            For Disaster Relief, the Red Cross responds to 60,000 disasters a year, mostly single family or multi family home fires. There were 250 such fires locally. The critical needs are within the first 72 hours providing shelter, food, medical care and clean up supplies. Since COVID, victims are sheltered in hotels throughout the area to reduce the number of people in group settings. The home fire program that Dan wanted to emphasize started in 2014 as intentional preparedness. The Red Cross is working with the fire department to canvass neighborhoods with a higher risk of home fire to pass out smoke alarms and help people develop a fire escape plan. You have two minutes to get out of a burning house and it’s important that everyone knows where to meet each other outside. Now with COVID, you can set up a virtual appointment to go over potential hazards and develop your escape plan.
            In the biomedical arena, the Red Cross supplies about 40% of the nation’s blood supply. Locally, it supplies 60 hospitals with blood. Probably a less known service is that to military families. The Red Cross is a 24/7 call center for active duty military and their families. It is the only approved message service between a commanding Officer and family, such as a death announcement to a deployed service member. The Red Cross can also provide loans for emergency travel. It also puts on transitioning workshops when going from active duty to civilian life and networking for work and home.

Above: Giving Blood

            The Red Cross trains about five million people a year with such skills as First Aid, CPR and AED as well as swimming and life guarding. With COVID, the classes are reduced but still available. Internationally, the Red Cross assists with disasters such as the recent hurricane in the Bahamas. It provides a reconnection service of separated family members. Dan told a story about the several days that a young son looked for his father and the joy that he shared when the Red Cross could unite them.
            Dan emphasized that the Red Cross relies heavily on volunteers to the tune of 90% of their workforce. They have about 300,000 volunteers in 235 chapters across the country. There are eight counties in the South Puget Sound chapter covering 30,000 square miles. Contact Dan with more questions or opportunities to help or donate at dan.wirth@redcross.org.
            In response to a question about how we can help, Dan turned to Becky Fontaine. Becky told us that the Red Cross very much appreciates cash donations instead of hard goods like clothing and food. They are able to leverage cash to obtain far more goods than the average person could provide and they make efforts to buy locally. Unless you have 50 pairs of new shoes, cash is much more valuable as relief. A disaster is simply not the time to clean out the closets and dump a pile of clothes on the doorstep of the Red Cross and call it help. It becomes too much to organize when time is of the essence. Becky encouraged everyone to sign up for a home fire appointment at redcross.org/NWhomefire or call 1-833-918-1531. There are Spanish speakers available for those who communicate in Spanish. Becky said she could be nicknamed “Mrs. Wildfire” for the number of fires she has responded to including the one at Paradise, California.

Above: ARC Home Fire program

            Greg Horn stated that the district is behind the home fire program in an effort to help people from dying in fires. Jim Sharp expressed the Fire Department’s appreciation of Dan and the Red Cross for all they do to help people. Jim said every volunteer is fantastic.
            Prez Mark wanted to know if his nickname for Dan, Mr. Hurricane, was appropriate. Dan stated that he would attribute the nickname to Mark and told us about all the hurricanes he had responded to in his work with the Red Cross, giving care and comfort and assessing needs to be met. He was able to offer a warm meal and safe shelter to folks who had lost everything. Dan said that he loved his job and how rewarding it was to help people every day.
            Prez Mark led us all in a round of virtual applause to Dan and Becky for a very interesting and informative program.

            A few odds and ends before we closed. First, we must remember to ask Mark how he celebrated National Deep Dish Pizza Day and Read-a-Map Day on April 5^th or if he was too wiped out from partying with the Easter bunny.
            Next, Greg wanted to remind everyone that we are officially hooked up to dacDB.com so delete Club Runner and be sure and set up your email service for announcements at mailservice@dacdb.net. Finally, Prez Mark wanted to acknowledge Chris Kimball for a new award he received. Chris explained that he has made so much money for so many people that he was awarded the Top of the Table award, one of the highest industry awards in 2020. He’ll get a glass plaque that he’ll display proudly in his office. He will only charge a small fee to see it and he’s going to do some calculations to figure out if/how much he can pay as a fine for his accomplishment. Congrats, Chris!

            Be sure to show up next Friday to hear District Gov. Greg Horn talk about the district and what he’s been doing the past year or so. Have a wonderful week, everyone!!

                Remember that if you shop online, you should do so at Amazon Smile so you can allocate a portion of your purchase to Lakewood Rotary. Also remember to tell Greg Rediske that you read the bulletin so you can get a make-up for a missed meeting.

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State of the City

Sunday, March 28, 2021 By: Eric T Quinn

The State of the City by Eric Quinn
Lakewood Rotary Key for March 26, 2021
President Mark Edgecomb rang the meeting to order at 12:31 PM
Invocation: Chris Kimball gave the invocation. He asked a Higher Power to assist us in knowing “who to help, how to help, and when to help.”
Flag Salute. Jim Bisceglia led us in the pledge.
Making Our Meeting Happen
Gayle Selden ran the Zoom meeting.
John Lowney handled the cash.
Eric Quinn wrote the bulletin.
Everyone at the meeting took photographs (well almost everyone)

Visiting Rotarians
Our very own District Governor Greg Horn was with us.
Steve Saalfeld was a visiting Rotarian and so too was James Osundwa.
There were no guests.
Mark recognized the Puffins, specifically those present at the meeting, Tom George, Rachel Mazoff and Jessica James
For Sunshine. Jan Gee had back surgery. Bob Lordahl is at Tobey Jones. Send them your thoughts.
Announcements
Mark wished Walt Richardson a Happy Birthday.
Steve Enquist thanked everyone for their generosity. The Foundation collected $6,000 in the past week (!).
Anne Enquist made an announcement about Little Free Pantries. John Lowney has been doing an amazing job of building all of the pantries. The second pantry has been installed in Tillicum on the property of Youth for Christ. There was a great turnout of Rotarians for the ribbon-cutting. The pantry is chock full and is being used. The third (and perhaps fourth) pantry will be placed in Springbrook. Anne will entertain thoughts from the Club on other good locations for the pantries. Anne thanked members of the committee for their work.
Eric Quinn announced that Youth Exchange has been cancelled for 2021-2022. So the Youth Exchange Committee will turn its attention to the 2022-2023 Exchange Year.
The District Conference will be held the last week of October 2021 (Friday Oct 29-Sat Oct 30) at the Great Wolf Lodge and will, for the next 4 years, be held in October. Greg and Mary Horn showed us a video about that. He was of course, in characteristic fashion, made the star of the video. There was even a clip of him careening down a waterslide in a suit. Classic Horn.

Gayle made an announcement about the Break Bag Delivery that will be taking place on March 29, starting at 9 AM. Thus far we have about 10 cars to help out, but we could always use more.
Mark informed us that the Tacoma Area Literacy Council thanked Lakewood Rotary for our generous donations.
Andrew informed us that Communities in Schools is going to be having a virtual Champions for Youth breakfast next Wednesday, March 31. Go to their website for more details: https://lakewood.ciswa.org/event/champions2021/
Greg Rediske reminded us that $180.00 will get your business regular advertising on the Lakewood Rotary website and in the weekly bulletin. Contact Greg with questions.
UD5020 Magazine: The March edition is now available on the District 5020 website.

The Rotary International Convention, which was scheduled to take place on June 12?16, 2021 in Taipei, Taiwan has been cancelled and will be replaced with an outstanding virtual event.
Registration for the virtual convention will begin in mid?April.
Fines
Mark thanked Jim Bisceglia for being present. Jim asked whether Mark was fishing for money. Jim informed Mark that a $50.00 check is in the mail.
Jason Whalen said that his oldest daughter will be coming home for a family trip to Hawaii. He paid a fine $50.00 for that. Greg Rediske ratted out Jason’s dog (a French Bulldog) for being a member of the second-most popular breed of dog in the country. Jason gave $10 for that.
James Osundwa had a trip to Kenya and discussed his purchase or donation pertaining to 67 goats. The writer did not capture the full details of James’s goat triumph. He gave $1 per goat for a $67.00 fine.
John Lowney gave $21 for his grandson’s 21^st birthday.
Dave Coleman paid a fine for his 52^nd wedding anniversary. I think it was $52.

Above: Open your eyes John!
Program
Our very own John Caulfield presented to the Club on the State of the City of Lakewood (“City”). John joined the City in September 2013, after being appointed by the City Council. He previously was City Manager for Mountlake Terrace from January 2006 to September 2013. Prior to that he was Deputy City Manager, Community and Economic Development Director and Finance Director for the city of University Place from 1997 and 2006. Caulfield also worked for the city of Federal Way from 1991 to 1997 as a Senior Financial Analyst, Financial Analyst and Accounting Technician. Caulfield served in the U.S. Army as an Army Ranger assigned to the 2nd Ranger Battalion at Fort Lewis, Washington. John provided a very informative overview of the State of the City:
The City was incorporated on February 28, 1996. So the City is celebrating its 25^th anniversary.

Above: Yay for 25 years.
John discussed the promises of incorporation that were made by the City and how those promises have been kept. The City Council adopted some goals for the City in 2015, to be met in 2026 in the 30^th year since incorporation. Those goals include improvements to economic development, dependable infrastructure, public safety, fiscal responsibility and transparency, and promoting a robust community.
As for 2020-2021, John spoke to continuity of government services and how much technology has helped in responding to Covid-19. The City created a website to keep the community informed. The City’s revenue did fall off somewhat but the City is in sound fiscal shape. There will not be a Summer Fest this year. The numbers just won’t shake out. Although the City’s budget was constrained somewhat by Covid-19, John was proud to announce that the 2021-2022 budget is balanced.
Although many events were cancelled during this pandemic, John was happy to announce that a variety of events are being reinstituted, such as the Farmers Market. Also, the Concerts in the Park and even drive-in movies are going to be available at Ft. Steilacoom Park.

Above: The Mountain from Fort Steilacoom Park
John discussed the important safety net that the City provides through a number of programs devoted to Human Services, i.e. LASA, Boys and Girls Club and Greater Lakes Mental Health, to name a few supported programs. Of course, partnerships are crucial in all of this and the City has a great one with Pierce County. One item of note: Housing is very affordable in Lakewood (second only to Spanaway in lowest rent in Pierce County).
The City received $2.865 Million from the State for Covid relief, much of which was put toward Human Services.
John discussed the various programs the City is implementing right now, which include but are not limited to LASA Expansion, a Community Policing Partnership at Western State Hospital, Wards Lake Park improvements, American Lake ADA Accessibility and a Multimodal Transportation Plan.
Some transportation projects include improvements to Onyx Drive, Veterans Drive and the Phillips-to-Custer stretch.
The City is commencing Phase One of Lakewood Landing, a 25-acre park along I-5. John also pointed to the various other transportation projects that are ongoing. One such project is the JBLM-North Access Road Improvement. It should start in May and continue through October 2022.
Crime is down.
For a full copy of the State of the City, go here: https://cityoflakewood.us/city-manager/state-of-the-city/
John opened it up for questions:
Jim Sharp commended the City for engaging in milfoil cleanup, which drastically increases West Pierce Firefighters’ ability to rescue potential drowning victims.
Bob Hammar thanked John for the fantastic presentation. Bob commented on the upgrades to Onyx Drive, but wondered whether the new awesome mailboxes are going to be available for use. John said that would be happening shortly.
Jessica James asked who the best person is to contact with respect to road repairs. John pointed her to My Lakewood 311.
David Swindale voiced his appreciation for the services and affordable housing that are being facilitated by the City.
Thank you John for the thorough and highly informative presentation.
Remember that if you shop online, you should do so at Amazon Smile so you can allocate a portion of your purchase to Lakewood Rotary. Also remember to tell Greg Rediske that you read the bulletin so you can get a make-up for a missed meeting.
At our next meeting on April 2, Daniel Wirth will be giving a Red Cross Chapter update.

And of course, April 9, District Governor Greg Horn will be giving the presentation.

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Puppies, Kittens and Much More

Tuesday, March 23, 2021 By: Tonya Marie Winski

The Lakewood Key for March 19, 2021 (corrected version)
Kittens, puppies and so much more!
By Tonya Winski

Kittens, puppies, vacuuming, bells ringing, and so much more! The sights and sounds of Zoom meetings are always entertaining (and maybe just a little distracting, Barlow!).

I’ve noticed over the past several months of reading our weekly bulletin that I am more of a meat and potatoes writer – I suppose I’ve been trained to get to the point in my writing, using the fewest words possible, so here I go with today’s bulletin:

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