May 19, 2023

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, please visit the RCAS Website.

 

Wiyot Tribe Cultural Director Marnie Atkins

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

  • May 26 – Last Final Friday of Vanessa’s Presidential Year, featuring the amazing “Vacation in Paradise” package – you could be pampered by Scott Heller and Robin Meiggs at their home in Maui!
  • May 27-31 – Rotary International Convention in Melbourne, Australia
  • June 3 – Adopt-a-Highway Cleanup
  • June 3 – Black Humboldt Block Party
  • June 3 – Walkathon for Food for People
  • June 4 – Fairy Festival at the Arcata Plaza
  • June 10 – Arcata Bay Oyster Festival
  • June 17 – Juneteenth Celebration

For Openers

President Vanessa thanked all of the people who helped Cairo (our Outbound Rotary Exchange Student) put on her pancake breakfast fundraiser. It was a great success  … We also celebrated AJ Gonzales, Marty Lay, and Tom Tellez for their leadership as we built lotsa Little Libraries. There were quite a few people who participated, and everyone’s handiwork will be distributed throughout the community … Our Club’s Fireside Meetings took place recently, providing guidance for the coming Rotary Year … President-Elect John announced that on Saturday, August 26th, we will be co-hosting the inaugural Arcata Sunrise Rotary / Arcata Noon Rotary Kickball Tournament! The event will take place at Perigot Park in Blue Lake. Details will follow, but please save the date … Vanessa said that the Club “had a blast at the goat farm”, and she applauded Adam of Cypress Grove Chevre for hosting our field trip the previous Friday … Other recent events included the Arcata High School Interact Club’s Spaghetti Dinner, which raised money for the Rotary Action Group Against Slavery … And we noted that Trillium School and Cal Poly Humboldt engineering students worked with us on several projects at Trillium. Vanessa’s favorite was the solar heated handwashing station … AJ Gonzales reported on the recent Community Service Committee meeting … Vanessa also thanked Howard Stauffer for all of the work he has done over the years with our World Community Service Committee …

Bob Johnson introduced Gillen Martin, an Arcata High School graduate who later attended Brown University before returning to her home to work for the City of Arcata. While at Brown, she interned in Congressman Jared Huffman’s Capitol Hill office, and worked with nonprofit organizations. Gillen currently works in the City’s Community Development Department. She has now been accepted to Sciences Po – a university in France also known as the Paris Institute of Political Studies. This prestigious institution admits only 20 students each year. Gillen plans to return to Arcata following her studies to bring her knowledge, skills, and talent to bear in our community. Bob announced that our Club has provided a $5,000 scholarship to help defray her costs.

Bob Johnson and Gillen Martin

Learning About the Wiyot Culture

Our Featured Speaker was Marnie Atkins of the Wiyot Tribe. Marnie is the Cultural Director for the Wiyot Tribe, and she oversees projects such as the language program, which has a tribal linguist and a language assistant on staff. The Tribe received a grant to develop a Wiyot language curriculum that will eventually be incorporated at Loleta Elementary School, and possibly be adopted at College of the Redwoods, making the Wiyot language an option when students are fulfilling their language requirement.

Marnie also oversees the Da Gou Rou Louwi’ Cultural Center in Old Town Eureka, which is “right next to the Gazebo … it used to be Restoration Hardware.” (That reference elicited nods of recognition in the room.) The Tribe originally intended to build a new building for the Cultural Center, but they decided instead to acquire the current building. They signed the papers in September 2020, and Marnie said that the “perfect time to buy an old building that needs to be fixed up is during a pandemic.” She said that it took about a year to prepare the Cultural Center for visitors, officially opening in December 2021. At that time, Marnie was the only staff member, so the Center was open when she was able to be there. Now she has an employee, which allows the Center to offer a consistent schedule. It is open Wednesday through Saturday, from noon to 5 pm. Marnie hopes to hire one more person, which will give her more scheduling and programming options.

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