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.
We meet (almost) every Friday at 7 am in the Plaza View Room
of Arcata’s historic Jacoby Storehouse.
For more information and for the meeting links, please visit the RCAS Website.
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 RCAS Calendar
RISE: “Rotary Involvement Strengthens Everyone“
- September 7 – Welcome Party for our new Inbound Exchange Student Lazo and his counterparts from the Mad River Rotary and the Arcata Noon Club
- September 11 – Out of the Darkness Community Walk – Meet at 10 am at the Arcata Plaza (and sign up for the RCAS Team)
- October 1 – Oktoberfest!
- November 17 – The return of in-person Taste of the Holidays! All hands on deck at the Arcata Community Center!
For Openers …
“President Vanessa opened by asking how those with recent birthdays and anniversaries celebrated. Jennifer Coriell said that she recently observed “the 21st anniversary of her 21st birthday” by having a nice dinner with her family and then playing Cards Against Humanity with her co-workers. Terri Clark reported that she and Marty Lay are celebrating 40 years of marriage by working on their new kitchen. Terri also noted that her birthday on August 4th coincided with the official visit of District Governor Jennifer Strong. Romi Hitchcock Tinseth’s birthday is also on August 4th, and she told us about it.
We were reminded of the opportunities coming up – Oktoberfest will take place on October 1st, and A Taste of the Holidays will take place on November 17th. Jeff Stebbins is asking for help with the latter event; contact him if you would like to be on the event committee. On September 11th, many Sunrisers will be taking part in the Out of the Darkness Walk, an event to raise awareness of mental health issues and suicide. Check with Romi if you need help signing up as a virtual or in-person participant. You are also welcome to help on the day of the walk.
Maggie Kraft has been out of town to help deal with the loss of her mother, but she’s been with us in spirit and on Zoom. She wanted to express her appreciation to all of the members of our Club who have sent her their concerns and support, so she made a donation to the Rotary Foundation and one to our Club’s Foundation. Thank you, Maggie!
Charli Murphy (who is sometimes known as Crystal Perez) told us about her recent trip to Alaska. It was a 10-day, multi-city adventure that was very exciting..
Arcata City Manager Karen Diemer Provides an Update
Arcata City Manager Karen Diemer visits RCAS regularly to let us know what’s happening in our community, and to take questions from the audience. She calls it “making her rounds’. Karen has been with the City of Arcata in various capacities for 26 years, serving as City Manager since 2014.
She discussed the recent increase in infrastructure work coming out of the lull forced upon us by COVID-19. She noted that a lot of planning was taking place during the pandemic, and those plans are now in construction. One important project is a one million gallon water tank to be built off West End Road. Construction is slated to begin this fall.
The City has also received bids for a new wastewater treatment plant. The goal is to move away from chemical disinfection of wastewater, and to use ultraviolet light instead. The bids received were above the amounts budgeted for the project, but the City will still look for a way to proceed.
Karen also talked about the new Ambassador Program, which will be overseen by RCAS Member Luke Scown. (When Luke’s not being a Sunriser, he works for the Arcata Police Department as a detective and as APD’s Community Outreach Team Supervisor.)
Other topics she covered included the Safe Parking Program, which Karen described as a pilot program to help local folks with vehicles but no homes; priorities for repairing roads; the conversion of several motels to permanent housing, and enhancements in store for Carlson Park and other sites in the Valley West area. She also answered questions about the Gateway Project.
Foundation Final Friday!
Our Final Fridays are all about the Rotary Foundation. That philanthropic organization receives 100% of the funds we raise through our Auction, and they do amazing things with it. Before the auction, however, Foundation Chair Terri Clark introduced some new and returning Paul Harris Fellows (and she explains in the video what that means). New Sunriser Peggy Metzger was recognized as a new PHF, as was Anastasia Briggs – a friend of Crystal Perez (aka Charli). Charli is already a Paul Harris Fellow, so she named her young friend to honor her work in the community, which is in keeping with Rotary values. Finally, Terri frequently reminds us that you don’t have to stop at one PHF, and Claire Ajina agrees, as she was applauded for taking another “lap” around the track.
Our Auction had quite a few varied items, all donated by RCAS Members. When the dust settled and the gavel was still, the Rotary Foundation had an additional $1,480 to do their great work! Here is a list of the auction items, the donors, and the purchasers:
- Craig Newman brought not one, but two of his popular “Bounty of the Sea” packages, cram-packed with his catches of seafood. These were purchased by Charlie Jordan and the team of Chris Hemphill and Jessica McKnight. You’d think that was a lot (and it was), but Craig was not done – he also offered two packages of albacore loins, and Claire Ajina was the top bidder.
- From Zoom, Maggie Kraft offered a beautiful handmade scarf, which President Vanessa will wear proudly.
- Nick Torres had a two-box set of the makings for sangria. It was enough for more than one package, but since we were short on time, it went as one. And it went to JOYC (the Justice Of Your Club). So watch for a Sangria Party announcement soon … I hope!
- Pat Knittel donated a bottle of North Story Wines pinot noir, which was purchased by President Vanessa.
- Things were moving quickly, so I know that Ian Schatz donated a bag with “big bottles” inside. However, I don’t know what was inside the bottles. Wine? Hard likker? Ketchup? To get the details, you may have to contact the man with the top bid – Craig Newman.
- I do know that the three bottles that Claire Ajina donated contained wine – two were chardonnays, one was a pinot noir. Those went to AJ Gonzales, Lisa Hemphill, and Maggie Kraft. (Although I don’t know exactly who got what.)