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Randy Roth, Editor |
September 25th, 2009
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September is New Generations Month
Upcoming Programs and Events
Presented by Program Chairman, Leland Hammerschmitt and his crew.
October 2nd-Assemblywoman Audra Strickland
October 9th-Mary Osborn-Best-Selling Author-"Jewelia-the necklace"
October 16th-Linda LeBrock, Lynn Mikelatos, Jerry Beckerman-Ventura County Career Link-Professional/School Alliance for Job Guidance and Job Preparation
October 23rd-Ms. Dagmar Freitag-German Politics and Nordhoff Music
October 30th-Fifth Friday Social-Halloween Celebration
In the Beginning....
Under the usual September heat, the Club welcomed President Scott Smith back from his visit to Bosnia, Serbia and Croatia.
New member Stacy Benetto led the Pledge of Allegiance and new member Dr. Robin Bernhoft recited the 4-way Test. Dave Neville and his team crisply executed the set-up.
Announcements. . .
Nick Oatway of Ojai West announced their upcoming Chile Cookoff which will include chile, 3 bands and boat trips on Lake Casitas. Save the Date—Saturday, October 3.
Scott announced that Peter Haggerty is doing well and recovering quickly from his surgery; we expect to see Peter hale and hearty at next week's meeting.
Bob Skankey gave a short but heartfelt report on his recent trip to Africa. Bob made the point that the funds our Club donated had a direct and immediate impact upon people who normally do not get much international aid. We are all looking forward to Bob's more comprehensive and detailed report of what challenges he faced and what he accomplished.
Scott Eicher provided an after-action report on the Taste of Ojai. Scott in particular expressed gratitude to those Rotarians who contributed mightily to the success of the event: Janet Mahon, Ren Adams, Larry Simpson, and Bill Ghormley. Scott's preliminary estimate is that the event netted $12,500, which is less than previous years, but commendable in today's economic climate. Scott also made a plea that volunteers contact Dave Neville, who will be commandeering next year's event. Scott emphasized that the size and scope of the effort will require a larger team next year so that the workload can be equitably distributed over more volunteers.
Kay Bliss made a pitch for the Rotary World Poverty conference to be held at St. John's Regional Medical Center on November 21st . There will be no cost to register for the conference, but Kay advised early sign up because attendance is limited to 100.
Fining: Jane McCarthy
Jane McCarthy did her usual interesting and lucrative fining routine; this week's theme was the 7 wonders of the ancient, medieval and modern world. As a result of Jane's effort, we have all learned that Ojai Rotarians have a wide experience of the world.
As seen at the local Bar
The Program: Dr. Laura Danle
Our featured speaker was Dr. Laura Danle, an accomplished and distinguished Astronomer who worked on the Hubble Program at NASA and is now Curator of the Griffith Park Observatory. As President Scott Smith remarked “there are smart people, and there are interesting speakers, but it is rare to find a smart person who is also interesting”. Dr. Danle is definitely one of those rare people: she spoke engagingly on the topic of ice in the solar system. Dr. Danle covered at lot of territory in a short time, but here are some of the more cogent points:
- Water, in the form of ice, is far more prevalent in the solar system than was thought until just recently. In point of fact, Europa, one of the moons in the outer solar system, contains more water than the planet earth.
- Water is a precondition for life, so if there is any justification for the search for extraterrestrial life, it is that there is so much water in so many different places in our solar system.
- The skills of America's scientific community, as demonstrated by such projects as Hubble, Cassini, etc. are astonishing and these skills that solve enormously complicated problems in space navigation are available to solve our earthly problems as well.
Coming Up Next Week: Assemblywoman Audra Strickland
Audra Strickland was first elected to serve in the State Assembly representing the 37th Assembly District in 2004. Receiving overwhelming approval and support from her community, she was subsequently reelected in 2006. Before being elected into office, Audra Strickland taught junior high school students American history and Language Arts. Although deeply committed to educating our children, anyone who has worked with Audra knows she has a strong passion for public policy.
Audra Strickland earned her Bachelor of Arts degree in political science from the University of California, Irvine. Shortly after graduating, she gained considerable legislative experience working in our State Capitol for several legislators including Assembly Members Bill Campbell, Chuck Poochigian, and former Speaker Curt Pringle.
As a member of the Assembly, Audra Strickland's legislative priorities include measures to address the state's economy, tax relief for California's families, public safety and improving education. Major legislation introduced by Assemblywoman Strickland includes eliminating the state's unfair double tax on gasoline, reducing property taxes for homeowners, limiting the ability for state politicians to increase college tuition, and strengthening punishments for sexual predators.
As our voice in the Capitol and at the request of local elected officials and community members, Assemblywoman Strickland authored legislation to strengthen punishments for unlicensed drivers, improve traffic safety on Highway 118, protect the safety and cleanliness of our water resources, strengthen laws that prohibit weapons to be brought onto our school campuses, eliminate the statute of limitation to prosecute sexual predators and change the way property taxes are assessed on affordable housing to make it more fair to homeowners.
Early in her legislative career, Assemblywoman Strickland was appointed by the Speaker of the Assembly to serve on the Little Hoover Commission, the state's premiere fiscal and government efficiency oversight agency. As a good government proponent, Audra Strickland authored the first ever state measure to provide civil penalties to state government officials who knowingly lie to mislead the public on official state reports.
Assemblywoman Strickland resides in Moorpark with her husband, former Assemblyman Tony Strickland and their two children Ruby Ruth and Anthony Paul. Audra is also involved with a variety of local organizations and causes, from a cancer awareness effort to a battered women's support organization. In 2002, her dedication to her community was recognized by her appointment to the Ventura County Board of Education and receipt of the Teacher of the Year award from the Ventura County Republican Women's Federated. More recently, she has been named Legislator of the Year by the Young Republican Federation of California.
Assemblywoman Audra Strickland represents the 37th Assembly District, including the communities of Acton, Agua Dulce, Camarillo, Canoga Park, Castaic, Chatsworth, Fillmore, Los Angeles, Moorpark, Newbury Park, Oak View, Ojai, Piru, Santa Paula, Simi Valley, Somis, Thousand Oaks, and West Hills.
Final Thoughts
President Scott Smith
President Scott provided short but thought provoking observations about his most recent trip to the former Yugoslavia, where in the early nineties, Serbia, Bosnia and Croatia were engulfed in the flames of sectarian and religious violence. Scott described a volleyball game played by men who had lost one or both of their legs to land mines. These men, now in their twenties and thirties, lost their limbs, not as soldiers or combatants, but as children who happened upon land mines left by retreating armies.
Scott expressed the hope that such a conflict could not happen here and wondered whether the 4-way test, properly applied, would prevent, or at least reduce the likelihood, of such an outbreak.
Scott will provide at more comprehensive report at a future meeting.
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