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“
- February 19 – RCAS Charter Celebration!
- April 17 – District 5130 Training Assembly
Door Number One: Club & District News
After we welcomed our guests, President Maggie ordered up another round of committee reports:
- Charlie Jordan discussed the World Community Service’s activities, even though the group has been largely on hold during the pandemic. However, she did talk a bit about the follow-through from last year’s Guatemala housing project.
- Our Youth Activities Committee is looking at its revised funding, according to Rebecca Crow. She said that they have a “garage full of books” to distribute at some point soon. The Committee is asking the important question, “How can we help?”
- Although the Youth Exchange Committee is on hold this Rotary Year, Ian Schatz told us that we can expect an Inbound Exchange Student to arrive this summer – possibly from Africa.
- The Vocational/TAY (Transition Age Youth) Committee reported that a few Rotarians have stepped up to offer internships to TAY participants, but they are looking for more. The Committee has contacted the Times-Standard and KIEM-TV to help publicize the opportunity.
Following the reports, President Maggie encouraged us to engage is some self-reflection (particularly vis-à-vis Rotary), and to ask ourselves, “What do I hope to accomplish in the next six months?” Once you’ve worked through that, you can ask, “How will I support the Club and my fellow members?”
AJ Gonzales went through a brief overview of Slack, and how we can increase our utilization of this communications tool. AJ noted that our Slack site has been populated with a bunch of channels. You can add more as needed, and you can add yourself to any or all channels. Maggie noted that it helps her find information more quickly than sifting through her email inbox.
Our Charter Celebration has a date! We will be meeting in some fashion on Friday, February 19th. Watch Slack (or your emails) for the details!
Another date to mark on your calendar is Saturday, April 17th. The District Training Assembly will take place that day. The event is an opportunity to learn more about Rotary – whether you are an old-timer [like Your Editor] or a newer Rotarian, you are sure to come away with new ideas and a better understanding of the worldwide organization you belong to. It is also an opportunity to help incoming District Governor (and Sunriser) Dustin Littlefield prepare for his tenure. Dustin said that he plans to focus on collaboration as our DG.
Door Number Two: Recognitions
Last week, JOYC (the Justice Of Your Club) tapped Vanessa Griffin and Randy Mendosa to provide “Gratitude Recognitions”, and they came through!
Vanessa said that she is thankful for having the opportunity to slow down during the pandemic. She said that she has also learned to be resilient and how to ask others for help when it is needed. Finally, she is grateful for the opportunity to rekindle relationships, both near and far.
Randy appreciates his family, who are together since his older daughter returned home from San Luis Obispo earlier this year. He also told us that his father and an elderly cousin both recently received the COVID-19 vaccine. He is thankful for the opportunity to do some home improvement, and he lauded Pacific Builders for fixing his garage. Randy said that he is also grateful that he lives in this community and is a member of our Club. He is also thankful that we have a new president.
We heard from a couple of Sunrisers with January birthdays. First up was Bryan Reeser, who cooked an amazing meal for his birthday on January 10th. He also bought himself a guitar! A few days later (January 15th), Sophie Saucedo celebrated a quiet birthday at home, with sushi and pie!
In other news … Lori Breyer reported that Romi Hitchcock Tinseth holds a narrow lead over Ray Noogle/Noggle in the Club Health Challenge. Lori reminded us that it’s not too late to join in … Masks are still needed and Masks With a Message are still available! Check the link on the RCAS Website … And Craig Newman was the big raffle winner last week, earning $115 plus a Kinetic Koffee gift certificate …
Door Number Three: Learning to Build, Starting Small
Our Featured Speaker was Todd Curry, who teaches the building trades at McKinleyville High School. Todd said that the Future Builders of America Club at MHS started constructing a tiny house in 2018, which became a feature project of Todd’s Building Trades classes in August 2019. A second tiny house, which the class named “Tiny 2”, is now also a part of the curriculum.
The tiny houses allow students to learn many facets of building, including subfloors, insulation, decking, framing and rafters, roofing, and window installation. The program has the support of many local companies, which provide materials at cost or as donations.
(Click here to view the video of the full meeting.)