December 17, 2021

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,

Please note: Our next meeting will take place on Friday, January 7, 2022.

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 Calendar …

RISE: “Rotary Involvement Strengthens Everyone

  • December 24, 2021 – No RCAS Meeting
  • December 31, 2021 – No RCAS Meeting
  • February 1-6, 2022 – District 5130 Environmental Tour in Mexico
  • June 4-8, 2022 – The 2022 Rotary International Convention in Houston, Texas.

For Openers …

Lisa Hemphill provided a brief recap of Taste of the Holidays @ Home, and Sarah James told us about the previous weekend’s successful TAY / Foster Families Movie Night at the Eureka Theater.

President Ian held a Flash Auction – eight TOTH@Home tote bags with wine inside were quickly sold at $50 per bag. That added another $400 to the coffers of our RCAS Community Foundation!

We welcomed the “Newest Rotarian in the World” – Angela Robershotte! Angela is a fourth generation resident of Humboldt County who graduated from Arcata High School and Humboldt State. She lives in Arcata with her two teenage sons, Anthony and Andrew. We’re very pleased that Brandi Easter invited her to join us, and that Angela accepted! Welcome!

Past President Maggie Kraft reminded us that we should be thinking about the future – specifically, our Club’s future. We have openings for the Club President for the Rotary Year 2023-2024 as well as two soon-to-be-vacant seats on our Board of Directors. We are also seeking additional families to host our 2022-2023 Inbound Exchange Students. If you would like more information contact Claire Ajina or anyone on the Youth Exchange Committee.

Whilst we were pondering the RCAS future, President-Elect Vanessa Griffin asked us to provide a quick but thoughtful response to the survey that should have popped up in your inbox. We are discussing our Club’s attendance rules, and Vanessa would like to know how important this issue is to you.

And … President Ian put out the call for someone to serve as our Club’s new Webmaster. With the sad departure of Ed Christians and his family, the post is vacant – and it’s very important! Please give the position some consideration.

Then President Ian recognized (who?) himself! His company Advanced Security was named the “Dealer of the Year” by SDM Magazine, a security industry trade magazine. The firm is celebrating it’s 50th anniversary this year, and it was selected due to its commitment to service, a concept familiar to Rotarians.

District Governor Dustin “Visits” RCAS

This year, the District Governor’s Official Visit was a bit different, since the DG Du Jour is RCAS’s own Dustin Littlefield!

Assistant Governor (and Sunriser) Howard Stauffer introduced Dustin, noting that he grew up in Humboldt County, attending Arcata High School and Humboldt State. Dustin was also involved with Rotaract prior to joining our Club. He served as Club President during the 2017-2018 Rotary Year, and he works in property management.

Dustin applauded our Club for its dedication to serving others. He feels that service is a way of life for him, as it is for many of us. He also noted that Rotary as an organization of 1.2 million people, united by its principles. Rotary has faced war, strife, and political stresses, surviving and even thriving because of our organization’s guiding principles. He noted that each of us has resisted any stray urge to leave the organization because we believe that, in applying the principles of Rotary, we can help make the world a better place.

Dustin wants us to continue to adapt to changing circumstances, to be creative in finding and engaging new members. He wants us to develop pathways for younger Rotarians to develop as leaders in our Club and in our community. He believes that this is the year that Rotarians will return to projects that may have been sidelined in response to the pandemic. He told us that he has been impressed by our Club’s ability to get things done despite pandemic limitations.

Jingle Bells?

We closed our meeting with an online/offline version of Jingle Bells, led by Sunriser Dick Johnson. (It wasn’t quite the end of the meeting, however – several volunteers remained to help fill stockings with gifts for our Transitional Age Youth friends.)

 

 


President Ian’s Closing Haiku …

Holidays are here
Happy, Merry, Sometimes Sad
Love one another


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