29 June Program

Installation 2009-2010

Thanks to John Bond for sharing his lovely yard to host the annual Installation of Officers.  Participating in the evening’s festivities are Brad and Rita Sears and Rocky and Jo Jacobs.  Both Brad and Rocky have been past District governors. This evening ORC announces:  Paul Harris Fellows to Bill Fink and John O’Shaughnessy; The Bill Mason Award to Dr. Sue Lee for the Heartworks  Program; and, Rotarian of the Year Award to Hugh Midyette.  Relax and enjoy a quite delicious buffet prepared by Chef Jeff and his staff.

 We will miss President Ed …the breezy style…convivial manner…can-do and can- get- things-done- spirit and easy laugh.  But Ed please do not retire that magnificent, Technicolor-patchwork jacket.  It’s just sooo you!  And now, we welcome John Mitchell and his team to ORC’s 2009-2010 year!

 RI’s 09-10 Theme: The Future of Rotary is in Your Hands 

The theme acknowledges the important role individual Rotary clubs will play in shaping the future of Rotary. From RI President (09-10) John Kenny… “The future of Rotary will not be shaped at RI headquarters — it will be shaped in each and every Rotary club,” Kenny said, “because it is for each of us — as Rotarians — to do what is necessary to keep Rotary strong.”  Kenny acknowledges the foundation established by past Rotary leaders and places the responsibility for building upon that success on every Rotarian.  “Each one of us is standing on the shoulders of generations of Rotarians past, and it is our responsibility to determine Rotary’s future,” Kenny says. 

Financial update on the global financial markets and their impact on Rotary   ( From Ed Futa, General Secretary, RI, posted 3 June 2009)…

I’m happy to report moderate improvement in Rotary’s financial situation… Both Rotary International and The Rotary Foundation saw positive investment results in March and April, marking the first consecutive two-month period of growth this fiscal year. As a result, our investment losses have dropped from US$26 million recorded through February to $18 million as of 30 April for RI and from $222 million to $187 million for the Foundation. Most of the year-to-date losses remain unrealized and should reverse as the markets recover.  Revenues from club dues remain slightly ahead of budget, and total contributions to the Foundation are comparable to last year. However, a dramatic shift in current fund contributions from the Annual Programs Fund to PolioPlus in response to Rotary’s US$200 Million Challenge has reduced the Foundation’s cash available to fund operations. As a result, we will soon be selling some investments to pay for the Foundation’s operating expenses.  …operating expenses for both RI and the Foundation remain favorably below budget in most areas, with these reductions projected to continue through the end of the fiscal year.

 While trolling for some interesting commentary your editor read an article (www.goodnewsnow.com) about astronaut turned artist.  

It has been nearly 40 years since Alan L. Bean walked on the moon as an Apollo astronaut, but he still wrestles with the experience every day, trying to recapture what he and other astronauts saw and felt in the medium of paint. Becoming a painter has been a long slog for Bean who describes himself as a slow learner. He has had to give up the hyper-rational way of seeing the world he had learned as a Navy test pilot and engineer. He has trained himself to see things not as they are but as they feel to him, to translate emotions into colors and to resist his scientific urges.  “When I left NASA, I made up my mind I was not going to be an astronaut who painted, but an artist who used to be an astronaut,” he said. “It takes a while to change the heart.”  …Mr. Bean, 77, … has developed a following among private collectors who pay up to $175,000 for one of his works. In July, the Smithsonian Air and Space Museum will mount a show of 45 of his works and will release a book of reproductions of his paintings. He has high hopes that the 40th anniversary of the moon landing may lure critics to take a look at his work.  Bravo Mr. Bean for cultivating a new dimension to your life.