December 18, 2020

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.

(Please note that we will not be meeting on December 25th nor January 1st.)


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

  • January 13, 2021 – Sunrise Swednesday!
  • January 20 & 27 – RCAS Equity & Diversity Workshops

Opening the Doors …

After we welcomed Seri Walsh and Ian Letts, both from the Arcata High School Interact Club, President Maggie asked for volunteers to show off their holiday attire/swag. Maggie showed off her Christmas sweater, and Scott Heller defied Zoom norms by wearing pants … around his neck? Rebecca Crow shared an ornament patterned after the lamp featured in “A Christmas Story”. Chris and Lisa Hemphill let us see their “baby” (pupper) which was wearing reindeer antlers, and we looked in on Ed Christians, who was wearing his Santa hat and his “ugly Christmas sweater” on his way to work to deliver gifts. AJ Gonzales and Romi Hitchcock Tinseth were also sporting interesting sweaters, but they were both relatively stationary.

It was time for the Official RCAS Elections, and there were few (if any) surprises. The amazing Vanessa Griffin was unanimously elected to serve as our Club President for the 2022-2023 Rotary Year, Terri Clark was tapped to serve as our Director of Club Service, and our new Director of Vocational Service will be Sarah James! Thank you all for your willingness to serve our Club and our community!

We took a special moment to honor Janice and Craig Newman as they celebrated their 49th anniversary. Craig said that they received a Lobster Roll Kit direct from Kennebunkport, Maine. The couple was unable to make their usual fall trip to New England, due to the pandemic, so the delivery was very welcome.

We celebrated some December birthdays, with Jessica McKnight (December 5) staying safe with a COVID celebration, Ed Christians (December 19) planned to stay in, and Dick Johnson (December 20) planned to spend most of the day studying up on Medicare, since it’s his 65th. Cam Appleton (December 31) said that he knows “exactly what I’m doing” – he’s staying home!

December’s Rotarian of the Month

President Maggie’s Rotarian of the Month for December was Terri Clark, who welcomed the opportunity to share some of the important details of her life, especially with newer Sunrisers who weren’t around for her Craft Talk. Terri shared several photos, including some from her time as a child in Japan. Her father, Donald Clark, was a Navy officer who was stationed there from 1960-1962. She loved it there, and she and her husband Marty returned for a visit last year.

Terri told us that 1982 was “the year that changed everything”. That was the year that she married the amazing Marty, but it was also the year she lost her younger brother.

We also saw photos of her furry (and funny) friends Westminster and Waterloo. If you’re friends with Terri on Facebook, you’ve seen these two characters, especially when they are helping Terri with her quilting.

 

RCAS At Work!

President Maggie then offered a few community volunteer opportunities before talking about the previous weekend’s Adopt-A-Highway cleanup. Sunriser Mike Pazeian gave a brief report, noting that 17 people were on hand for the project.

Vanessa Griffin shared the above photo from Rotary Park on South G Street, along with another that celebrated the individuals and businesses that helped support the park’s renovation, including Hensel’s Ace Hardware. (Thanks, Ceva Courtmanche!)

Barbara Browning continues to be busy, making “Masks With a Message” – high quality fabric masks that bear messages of social justice and peace. The masks are $15 each, but if you round up to $20, we will provide a mask to a young person on your behalf. The proceeds will support equity education projects and programs that help local BIPOC youth. And don’t forget that our Backpacks for Kids program will back with the new year, and there is a Signup Genius out there, ready for you to select your 2021 slot!

The Transitional Age Youth (TAY) program to provide holiday gifts to older youth in the foster care community was a success. Sarah James told us that donations from members of our Club were very helpful in filling nearly 100 stockings!

RCAS At Play!

President Maggie then led us in some fun activities, including a holiday scavenger hunt. This was followed by an interesting Zoom-impaired version of the holiday classic, “The Twelve Days of Christmas”.

Then Romi Hitchcock Tinseth read a moving version of the classic editorial from the Baltimore Sun – “Yes Virginia, There is a Santa Claus”. Then we ended our last meeting of 2020 with, “We Wish You a Merry Christmas”.

 


(Click here to view the video of the full meeting.)

Save

Save

Save

Save

Save

Save

Save

Save

Save

Save

Save

Save

Save

Save

Save

Save

Save

Save

Save

Save

Save

Save

Save

Save

Save

Save

Save

Save