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Bret Bradigan, Editor |
October 2nd, 2009
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October is Vocational Service Month
Upcoming Programs and Events
Presented by Program Chairman, Leland Hammerschmitt and his crew.
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....
Ambling hordes of Rotarian were greeted with warm October sun on another sparkling Ojai day this past Friday at the Rotary Club of Ojai before entering Soule Park Clubhouse for our weekly meeting.
Equally sunny greeters were Scott Eicher and Laura Whitney.
Pledge: Mike Weaver
Roving Mic: Bob Daddi
Visiting Rotarians: None
Guests: State Assemblyperson Audra Strickland with her field representative.
Opening Remarks :
Since October is Vocational Service Month, President Scott Smith chose as the theme of this first meeting of the month:
"The 1989 Rotary Council on Legislation adopted the following declaration for Rotarians in businesses and professions:
As a Rotarian engaged in a business or profession, I am expected to:
· Consider my vocation to be another opportunity to serve;
· Be faithful to the letter and to the spirit of the ethical codes of my vocation, to the laws of my country, and to the moral standards of my community;
· Do all in my power to dignify my vocation and to promote the highest ethical standards in my chosen vocation;
· Be fair to my employer, employees, associates, competitors, customers, the public, and all those with whom I have a business or professional relationship;
· Recognize the honor and respect due to all occupations which are useful to society;
· Offer my vocational talents: to provide opportunities for young people, to work for the relief of the special needs of others, and to improve the quality of life in my community;
· Adhere to honesty in my advertising and in all representations to the public concerning my business or profession;
· Neither seek from nor grant to a fellow Rotarian a privilege or advantage not normally accorded others in a business or professional relationship."
Music Appreciation Tutorial: Scott demonstrated on his keyboard that basic fallacy of being "tone deaf," illustrating through increasingly deft interpretations of Beethoven's "Fur Elise" the delicate sensibilities of our ears. He also played a Chopin prelude, illustrating the great Polish pianist's composing style and ways in which he kept listeners guessing when and how a chord would be resolved.
Announcements. . .
Upcoming Programs:
Chair Leland Hammerschmitt announced that October 23rd, German politician Dagmar Freitag, recently reelected to the Bundestag as a Social Democratic, would again be our guest speaker, courtesy of Bob Davis's international charisma.
Leland also told us to keep checking the website for updates on speakers, especially for Nov. 6, when he promised an extra-special guest.
Vocational Service Committee Meeting October 22nd.
Hello All, October is Vocational Service Month! I will be hosting a Vocational Service Committee meeting at Rabobank at 9:00 am on Thursday, 10/22. I would like to invite anyone who is interested in learning more about this avenue of service, current committee members, or a ny of you who would like your share ideas about existing or new projects . Please e-mail me and let me know if you will be able to attend. Thanks!!
Cari Guerrero
Rotary Club of Ojai
Fining: Kelly Randall
Kelly Randall did the honors, with the aid of Rocky Kemp's netsmanship.
Confessions: Colin Jones 'fessed up to his 62nd birthday. Mary Jo Garrett paid up to pitch Ojai Valley Community Hospital's brand-new emergency room. Tony Thacher put in a $100 challenge grant for his beloved Bears of Berkley in their showdown against USC's Trojans this weekend.
Questions: Berkley Baker was unable to name that smog was the reason for LA's first daytime "dim-out" in 1943. Colin Jones, despite his prior fine, was a good sport and paid up for coming very close to answering that Ojai's railroad line was finally closed in 1969 because of flooding. Bill Ghormley was unable to guess how of his Rotary colleagues had photos of their loved ones in their respective wallets. Maggie Cerminaro was unable to guess how of her cohort carried photos of their pets. Dave Neville and Mike Weaver also paid up.
Why dogs don't like Halloween....
The Program:
Audra Strickland , 37th district Assembly representive, was recently re-elected herself, and is in her second and final term. The Moorpark Republican is married to state Senator Tony Strickland.
She gave a brief overview of the state of the State, noting that the $40 billion deficit gap, while narrowed through a variety of measures, included tax raises, was likely to be $12 to $15 billion more in the whole next year. She noted that water issues were becoming increasingly critical as demands for farming continued to rise above supply.
She also talked about Gov. Schwarzenegger's Tax Commission that filed its report last week, recommending a series of tax reforms, including a graduated flat tax and expanding sales taxes to services such as accountants and attorneys. "The goal is find a more stable way to fund the state that's fair and equitable way," she said. As vice-chair of the commission charged with auditing state operations, she is undertaking a "bottom to top review" of the state, looking to increase efficiency and effectiveness. The larger issue to California's budget woes, is that with 60,000 different kinds of taxes, it creates a very unfriendly environment for businesses to operate and create jobs and prosperity. "We make it difficult to do business with us," she said, before opening for a lively discussion.
Final Thoughts
"Reflect on your vocational service responsibilities this week. Think about my classical music presentation. This same Chopin prelude was presented in the same manner to a group of inner-city students from a gang-torn junior high school. One boy came up after the talk with wet, shiny eyes. He had lost his older brother to gang violence over a year ago. He said “I never could cry about him…until today, when I heard that beautiful music you played.”
Maybe you're a plumber and can unclog a clogged pipe for $200…or maybe you can show a young person how water saving technology can be used in new construction to both improve our lives and protect our resources. Maybe you're a insurance salesman and broke the sales record for the year and won a tropical cruise….or maybe, through creative and thoughtful consulting, helped show a younger agent how she can protect a widow's inheritance when the family business was suffering in recession.
I'll never forget the garbage men who came at dawn to my house when I lived in New Orleans . I knew they were coming, not from the sound of the revving truck engine, but from the sound of their voices, three guys singing a happy, soulful song in unison, with a little hand clapping syncopation. And their song wasn't interrupted, even when the driver suddenly hopped out of the cab, and ran back to my house to pick up a stray piece of trash that I hadn't even noticed. He tipped his hat to me, and didn't miss a beat in his singing. Please take time, especially this month, to think about how you can honor and respect all occupations which are useful to society, and take your own vocation and present it to others through the ethical standards of Rotarian values."
