Welcome to the Sunrise Spirit –
the Weekly Newsletter of The Rotary Club of Arcata Sunrise
We hope that you will attend one of our lively Friday meetings,
whether or not you are interested in joining Rotary.
Usually, we meet on most Fridays at 7 am in the Plaza View Room
at Arcata’s historic Jacoby Storehouse,
however, during the COVID-19 pandemic, we are meeting online.
Please visit the RCAS Website for the meeting links.
Rotary Vision:
Together, we see a world where people unite and take action to create lasting change
– across the globe, in our communities, and in ourselves.
The Calendar …
RISE: “Rotary Involvement Strengthens Everyone“
- April 16-17 – District 5130 Training Assembly
- June 12-16 – The 2021 Rotary International Convention – Online!
- November 11-14 – The Zone Institute, tentatively scheduled for Tuscon, Arizona
- June 4-8, 2022 – The 2022 Rotary International Convention in Houston, Texas.
Gratitude, Recognitions, and Fellowship
After we greeted visitors Joann Taijala (our Featured Speaker), Raven Alvarez, and Monique Molina, President Maggie said that April 9th is a day of celebration! She noted that it was Name Yourself Day, Chicken Little Day, Gin & Tonic Day, and Be Kind to a Spider Day. Who knew?
We heard expressions of gratitude from three Sunrisers:
Barbara Browning said that she is grateful for Rotary and for the coming Rotary Year when Dustin Littlefield will serve as our District Governor; she is appreciative of her home and her health; and she is very grateful for her “dear, sweet husband Ron [Sharp]”. Barbara noted that she had plans to retire on her birthday later this month, however her work is expanding rather than winding down, and she has been able to do more consulting of late.
Amanda Nelson said that she is also grateful for our Club, and she is happy to have the support of her friends and family. Amanda recognized a “silver lining” to the COVID pandemic, since she has been able to travel to the Bay Area to see her ailing mother.
Bob Johnson’s family has been a source of gratitude – always, but especially lately. His sons Patrick and Aaron celebrated their 34th and 32nd birthdays recently, and he said that he is pleased that both his parents are alive. He appreciates being part of our Rotary Club, and he is happy that his business has not been affected negatively by the pandemic.
Bob’s wife Susan forwarded a shout-out to Dick Johnson (related by Rotary, not by genetics). Her sons Aaron and Patrick, and her nephew, Garrett Cooksey, are all nurses, and they have been serving their communities throughout the pandemic. She sent photos of each – garbed in full PPE – to Dick, who used a program to enhance the pictures, and Bob has had special prints made up. A nice tribute to these three young men who have been risking their lives to serve their patients.
There were several comments regarding sourdough starter, mostly stemming from President-Elect Ian’s recent baking lesson. Rebecca Crow and her daughter Mary created a sourdough “Tribute to COVID”, and Past President AJ’s starter seems to have taken on a life of its own!
We also celebrated these April birthdays and anniversaries:
- April 2: Nick Torres did what he tries to do every year on his birthday – he sat down and relaxed.
- April 5: Jamie Anderson’s family held a combination family Easter / birthday bash.
- April 8: Mike Pazeian spent some time on his birthday interviewing a member of the Trinidad Rancheria, then he spent some time prepping his garden.
- April 20: Chris Hemphill expects to be off making sales on his coming birthday.
- April 23: Although she will not retire on her birthday, Barbara Browning does plan to reduce her schedule to four days per week,. She is looking forward to being able to hug her Mom on her birthday.
- April 5: Lori and Dave Breyer celebrated their 24th anniversary by dining at Gallagher’s.
- April 18: Cam and Lisa Appleton will celebrate their anniversary preparing for a long excursion to Tubac, Arizona.
Here are the winners of the RCAS Fitness Challenge that ended March 31st: Three Sunrisers logged over 300 miles, qualifying them for pies from Gregg Foster: Vanessa Griffin, Romi Hitchcock Tinseth, and Ray Noggle. Woo-hoo! Participants who completed at least 200 miles included Stephanie Lane, and those who reached the 100 mile plateau included Lori Breyer, JOYC, Scott (Heller or Hunt – one or both of those guys), and President Maggie. The program rebooted April 1st, and now you can use the Braava app in addition to the Nike app.
Service Near and Far
President Maggie thanked Bob Johnson, Sue Johnson, Amanda Nelson, and Ashley Donnell for packing and delivering Backpacks for Kids last week. She also asked for volunteers to help with upcoming vaccine clinics on April 17th and 24th.
She shared sad news from Afghanistan, where three people were murdered while immunizing children with the polio vaccine. Nonetheless, we will celebrate World Immunization Week from April 24-30, and you are encouraged to make donations to Rotary’s End Polio Now campaign.
Don’t forget about the District Training Assembly, which will take place this weekend (April 16 & 17), and the April 15th presentation by Lisa Altieri on “Understanding Your Carbon Footprint”. And on April 28-29, you can learn about “Confronting Climate Change – Food Security in a Changing World”.
Temporary Housing for Transitional Age Youths
Our Featured Speaker was Joann Taijala, who founded and serves as the Executive Director of Home Grown Host Homes, a nonprofit that serves young people between the ages of 18 and 24 who are homeless or are at risk of homelessness. They match those young adults with community members who are willing to open their homes for a period of three months to a year, to help the young people find jobs and save enough money to find more permanent homes.
Young adults may become homeless due to abuse in their previous home, being abandoned by their parents or guardians, being emancipated, or exiting foster care and/or the juvenile correctional system. According to the US Department of Housing and Urban Development, there were 88 transition aged youth in Humboldt County who experienced homelessness in 2019. Eleven people obtained transitional housing services, and another eleven were housed in emergency shelter, but that left 66 young people without shelter, leaving them to sleep in cars, in the woods, or in other places not intended for human habitation. Homeless people face difficulties finding and maintaining employment, which perpetuates the cycle of homelessness.
Joann established Home Grown Host Homes with a focus on transition aged youths because she believes that that population will benefit most from early interventions, before they have experienced long-term homelessness. The organization pairs these young adults with community members in Humboldt County who are willing to share extra space in their homes. While the young people are in a host home, Joann’s group works with them, helping them develop realistic plans for securing stable employment and housing. The program uses the host home model because it is cost-effective and utilizes existing residential infrastructure. Joann notes that long term relationships can be established through the program, positively changing the lives of the participants – both the youths and the hosts.
Visit the Home Grown Host Homes website for more information.
– Click here to view the complete meeting –