Rotary Club of Windsor Colorado

Polio Plus Month

2008-11-14T10:58:00.000-07:00

Last Week:
President Susan Van Deren announced that we had 13 people signed up for the Rotary Foundation Dinner in Ft. Collins. She also announced that the luncheon with RI President D. K. Lee would be held at the Ft. Collins Marriot on January 16. The price for the lunch is $25 and $10 of that will be born by the club as the District has asked that all local clubs go �dark� that week and attend the luncheon instead.

Program:
President Susan handled the program last week when she showed a video from Rotary about the Polio Plus Program. This is Foundation Month and Polio Plus Month. The video featured Penny LeGate, a TV news anchor from the Seattle area. LeGate is from Ogallala, Nebraska where her father was the President of the local Rotary Club. His motto was �To whom much is given, much is expected.� LeGate talked about the history of the Polio Plus Program which started in 1985. Rotarians around the world made the commitment to eradicate polio from the world by 2005. We haven�t made that promise because of wars, false beliefs and other obstacles, but we have come very close.

In 1985, there were 125 nations reporting polio. By 2003 it was down to 6. It is now down to four. New polio cases have dropped from 350,000 cases per year in 1985 to less than a thousand. The challenges to reach these populations are huge. In India, there are only two states that still have polio, but they are very poor and have very high populations. Wars and religious strife in Afghanistan and Pakistan are impediments. Nigeria has been hampered by Islamic leaders who have told their people that the vaccine would kill or make their children sterile. These issues and others are being addressed to meet the goal of eradicating polio,

To date US$650 million has been spent on the program. RI recently received a grant from the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation in the amount of US$100 million with Bill Gates saying of Rotary, �we believe in their commitment.� Rotary has pledged to match this amount within three years.

Quiz: What does the term �furlong� refer to in horse racing?

Quote of the week: �The boisterous sea of liberty is never without a wave.� Thomas Jefferson

Bob Traynor--Audiologist

2008-10-26T09:35:00.002-06:00

LAST WEEK
We were glad to again see a full house, and the interesting part of it was there were no guests�all members. President Susan Van Deren announced that we have received 53 applications for trees and landscape assistance. Scott Bailey passed out a printed budget for the remainder of the fiscal year.

PROGRAM:
The program was presented by our newest member, Bob Traynor. Traynor has been an audiologist in Greeley since 1973. He holds three degrees from UNC and a PhD in audiology from Northwestern University.

Traynor described an audiologist as a non-medical diagnostic and treatment professional for hearing and balance disorders. He said an audiologist is comparable to an optometrist in eye care. He said that to become a board certified audiologist one needs four years of college, three years of audiology school, one year of residency, and then must pass the board certification test.

Traynor said there are three types of hearing loss
Sensory: neural loss
Conductive loss
Mixed loss

These losses are generally attributed to one or more factors including noise age, illness, and disease. He pointed out that in farming areas such as this, he sees a number of what he calls �John Deere ear��farmers who have lost hearing from working around noisy equipment most of their lives. He also pointed out that female voices typically have a 20% higher pitch than men, and when one looses hearing it is generally in the higher range.

Traynor said that the only positive choice for hearing loss is a hearing aid. He also pointed out that a hearing aid is less conspicuous than hearing loss. He said that when buying a hearing aid it is better to buy them for both ears to provide better balance. A set of good quality hearing aids will run $1800 to $7600 depending on the sophistication. He went on to show several styles of hearing aids and also showed some of the new ideas that are new to the market or that will be on the market soon. You can learn more about the issue by visiting www.hearingtime.com.

Quiz: The answer to last weeks question: Ronald Reagan had the code name �Rawhide� with the Secret Service.

Quote of the week: �Success is not final, failure is not fatal: It is the courage to continue that counts.� Winston Churchill

Northern Colorado Medical Center

2008-10-19T05:37:00.000-06:00

LAST WEEK
We were visited by Meg Watson and Trish Lueck from the Children�s Foundation who were here to present a certificate to the club on behalf of Casa Hogar for our support of that orphanage in Mexico.

PROGRAM:
Rick Sutton is the new CEO of the Northern Colorado Medical Center (NCMC). Sutton has been in that position for about a month. He was most recently at McKee Medical Center where he led that facility to the top hospital in the Banner Chain.

Sutton pointed out that Windsor is a battle ground in the health care business as it is between NCMC and the Poudre Valley Hospitals, He went on to describe their goals, and presented his approach to hospital management: The vision of NCMC states �Provide the best patient care anywhere.� Sutton said that NCMC focuses on five priorities: The Gallup Q12, NRC Picker, Finances, Quality, and it must be physician friendly. To achieve these priorities, there are certain ground rules:
No excuses
The team sinks or swims together
Everyone�s input is valuable
Poor performance will be addressed
�That�s Not My Job� is unacceptable
Manage up

Sutton went on to describe the Gallup Q12 approach:
Follow the impact plan.
The facility appearance will be the highest standards.
Everyone is highly engaged.
Eliminate the �tail� (get rid of poor performers on the performance scale to make room for more dedicated and eager employees).
Implement ideas from the staff throughout the facility.
Work hard and have fun.
Provide quality off-site functions for the staff.

Sutton closed by saying that the future of NCMC will be to:
Continue to invest in NCMC
Expand necessary services
Make the facility �employer of choice�

Quiz: Answer to last weeks quiz: although Forrest Mars Sr. was the head of Mars Candy that created M & M�s, he partnered with Bruce Murrie who had been with Hershey Chocolates. Next question: Which president had the Secret service code name �Rawhide�?

Great Quotes: �An investment in knowledge pays the best interest.� Benjamin Franklin

Friends of WIndsor/Severance Fire Protection District

2008-10-11T10:36:00.000-06:00

Last Week
We had a full house and then some for the meeting last week. Included were Sandy Haas of CBT Spine, Ember Fortier of Business Services plus our two guests, Brian Lessman and Tom Buxman who presented the program. Michael Warne announced that he was resigning the club because of the press of business requirements. Scott Bailey announced that the Board had passed a budget for the coming year and he would be emailing it to everyone soon.

Our newest member, Bob Traynor gave us a thumbnail background. He received a degree from UNC in Audiology and has twenty years in the active reserves as an audiologist. He is the Senior International Audiology Consultant for a firm out of Bern, Switzerland and has travelled extensively on their behalf. He is the past president of the Greeley Sertoma Club.

PROGRAM:
Brian Lessman gave a presentation on behalf of the Friends of the Windsor/Severance Fire Protection District. He was here to present the needs for the passage of the two bond issues that are on this year�s ballot. Lessman said there are three primary goads.
Meet the demands of growth
Improve response time
Provide quality service for the core areas within the district.

He showed what estimated growth does to future calls. In 2008, there are expected to be 1600 calls. By 2010, the number goes to 1725 calls, and by 2015, it is up to 2075 calls. He showed that the highest percentage of calls occur from 4 to 7 PM. He pointed out that with two schools coming on line in the next two years in Severance, it is critical to get that station remodeled and staffed with full-time personnel. The district has over 100 square miles of service area and it is currently being served with only one fire station with paid staff.

Several other factors lead to the need for better coverage and additional personnel and facilities:
The opening of the Good Sam center, expansion of the Great Western Industrial area and increased truck and train traffic dictate that additional personnel and facilities are needed. He pointed out that 13% of the time there are overlapping calls. The current mil levy of 4.9 mils is the lowest in the area for comparable fire departments. We have a ratio of one manned fire station per 25000 people.

Quiz: Attu Island in the Aleutians is the westernmost point on the North American Continent. Next Question: Given that the first M in M & M candies is for Forrest Mars, founder of Mars Candies, what does the second M stand for?
Quote for the week: �The heart of a fool is in his mouth, but the mouth of a wise man is in his heart�. Benjamin Franklin

Unintended Consequences

2008-10-05T20:19:00.001-06:00

LAST WEEK
We were pleased to welcome Woody Curtis to our club again last week. Kent Stine was a guest of Rex Chambers and Ron Rutz was a visiting Rotarian.

PROGRAM

Marshall Ernst and his wife Barb were here to present a program that Ernst called �Unintended Consequences�. He concentrated on the statistics around ethanol production and how although the intention was to reduce our reliance on fossil fuels and make better use of renewable resources. He pointed out that between 1998 and 2003, the US produced 9 � - 10 billion bushels per year. In 2007, the US produced 13.1 billion bushels. Although some of this could be attributed to advances in corn genetics and growing, most of the increase was caused by adding additional acres to the corn production nationwide.

Ernst said that there has been a 50% increase in corn production in the last 30 years. Recently, the price of corn went from $1.80 - $2.00 per bushel in 1998 to $5.50 per bushel in 2007. The same pattern can be seen in wheat and soy beans. Wheat went from $3.00 per bushel to $11.00. It now sets at about $9.00 per bushel. Soy beans have gone from $5 to $14 per bushel.

Ernst said that it takes about 1 � gallons of ethanol to equal one gallon of petroleum gasoline energy. He also pointed out that ethanol plants use fossil fuels to make the ethanol. In 2007, the US produced 1.6 billion gallons of ethanol which equals about 3% of Saudi Arabia�s production and 0.5% of US energy use. Ethanol accounts for only 0.12% of the worlds energy use. Ernst claims that the subsidy had the unintentional consequence of increasing US food production costs by $16 billion in 2007. Some say when everything is considered, the true cost of ethanol is about $6.00 per gallon. China has stopped building ethanol plants.

Ernst�s conclusions include:
Stop subsidy on ethanol production
Increase domestic oil production
Build new nuclear power plants
Develop wind and solar power
Use natural gas for automobile fuel

Quiz: Answer to last weeks question: Ulysses Grant was president who declared Colorado a state on August 1, 1876 (Hence the term Centennial State).
Next question: What is considered the westernmost point of the North American Continent? Hint: It was the site of the second deadliest battle of WWII. Note: Hawaii is not part of the continent.

Police Chief John Michaels

2008-09-27T06:07:00.001-06:00

Last Week:

Charlotte Ryan brought her husband Ed as a guest last week. We were also visited by Woody Curtis who has recently moved to Windsor and has been in Rotary clubs in Topeka, Kansas and Northglenn where he is a past president. We were pleased to induct Bob Traynor as our newest member.

Program:

Police Chief John Michaels was our speaker for the day. Chief Michaels told us that this last year has been especially tough including an officer involved shooting, an officer run over, two knee injuries, and then there was the tornado. Michaels said that October will finally have a full complement of officers available for work, and the department is requesting funding for two more positions. The department now has 18 officers which is a ratio of 1:1000 people. This is one of the lowest ratios in the area. In addition to the personnel request, the department is seeking a new 15,000 square foot building. The department has for years been housed in the basement of Town Hall, and with the expanding department, the damage done to Town Hall from the tornado, and the growth of other City departments, the space is needed. He admitted that the 15,000 SF building is oversized for the moment, but will be designed for future growth. He said they hope to start construction on the building in April.

When asked about hiring procedures, Michaels told of the lengthy and involved process to hire a new officer. First, the applicants are screened by resume. They must have current POST (Police Officer Standard Training) certification. Then, the prospective officers are subjected to an oral board with three current officers. If they pass the oral boards, they are asked to do two ride-alongs with an officer who can then give a report on the applicant. If the applicant passes these tests, they are subjected to an 18 page background form, polygraph, and interview with a department psychologist. Successful applicants then have a three month stint with a Field Training Officer and are on probation for their first year.

Michaels responded to other questions including:
Windsor no longer has a reserve officer program as the reserve officer must have full certification too.
There are 13 people listed as registered sex offenders in Windsor, and the list is available to any citizen.

Quiz: Marco Polo said� I never told all that I saw because no one would have believed me.� He said this on his death bed when he was asked to recant his tales of the Far East where he spent 17 years.
Next Question: Which president declared Colorado a state on August 1, 1876?

Urban Water Conservation

2008-09-19T14:43:00.001-06:00

Last week:
Guests last week included Rita Lauby and Eric Biberstine who were guests of Pete Hyland. Kirsten Budd was a guest of her father who was our speaker. Bob Traynor was again a guest.

President Susan Van Deren announced that on October 23, Governor Ritter will be speaking to Rotarians at the Merchandise Mart in Denver. Cost to attend is $35.00.

PROGRAM:
Laurence Budd gave a presentation on Urban Water Conservation. He led off his talk by repeating the old saw��Whiskey is for drinking. Water is for fighting over.� He went on to characterize Colorado�s water situation by saying that Colorado is to water as Switzerland is to chocolate, referring to the fact that Colorado is in the unique position of having all of its waters originate within the state and with few exceptions is cheaper to move and process here because it comes to us largely by gravity. He said that Greeley has the most progressive water conservation program in the state. He further stated that Ft. Collins and Loveland pay lip service to water conservation programs.

Budd told us that much of his work is in California which is an increasing level of panic about its water situation. In 1997, California agreed to reduce its water consumption by 10% within ten years. By 2007, water use had actually increased instead. This last year, Los Angeles lost 1/3 of its water supply. San Diego is now building a desalinization plant to take water from the ocean.

Budd talked about the enigma of Windsor. Many of the new developments use untreated agricultural water for irrigation of lawns and common spaces. He pointed out that Highland Hills, Highland Meadows and High Point have huge common areas with lush grass than must be watered and cared for. Two of these developments have a total of 160 acres of common area that require 480 acre feet of water per year (156,000,000 gallons).

He made some predictions including one that our agricultural areas will be forced to line ditches within ten years to reduce a huge amount of seepage loss. This is not without its drawbacks because many of the wells in the area rely on this seepage to charge the water table. He further predicted that in ten years, Colorado will have more and better water to sell to other states. Editorial comment: Protect the state�s water at all costs because water flows to money. Budd showed some water management tools such as irrigation controllers that track weather and water accordingly. Budd�s web site is www.urban-water-conservation.com.

Quiz: Answer to last week�s question: The Grimadi family of Monaco has ruled their country for over 600 years. Next question: Who, on his death bed, said, �I never told all that I saw because no one would have believed me?�

Correction: Last week, I gave the web address of Michelle Rahm�s business incorrectly. It is www.jewelryimpressions.com.

Michelle Rahm, Credit Card Fraud

2008-09-14T12:40:00.001-06:00

Last Week:
Guests last week included a return visit by Bob Traynor who we hope will be a member soon. Ron Clark brought his son-in-law Ty MacDonald as a guest. Karen Trusler brought teacher Amy Heinsma as her guest. It was announced that the Lions Club is holding a blood drive at the Windsor Medical Arts Center on September 23 and 24.

We heard a brief bio from our newest member Rev. Rex Chambers. Rex is originally from Oregon, survived Viet Nam as a LRP (Long-range patrol) and comes to us from the Summit County Rotary Club. He worked in the Breckenridge area for a number of years as a Vice President and General Manager for Hilton Hotels. He had six hotels in the mountains under his direction specializing in taking under-performing hotels and making them profitable again. He became ordained at fifty, and now does similar work for the church by going to troubled churches and bringing them back to viability. His interests are skiing, fly fishing, photography, and he is a consummate reader.

PROGRAM:

We were treated to horror stories last week. To be sure, the stories had no three-headed monsters, shape shifters, or masked killers with chain saws. Instead, we hear about credit card fraud from the merchant�s perspective. The speaker was Michelle Rahm from Mead CO. Rahm is the President of the GIA Alumni Association in Colorado, has her own jewelry website, and is a recognized expert in credit card fraud. She has published numerous articles on the subject and been interviewed by the Denver Post, Life and Style Weekly Magazine, NBC�s Dateline and others.

Rahm claims that the web is a beautiful, wonderful place if you know what you are doing. She went into detail about how to verify that a credit card purchase is legitimate. She said that from the merchant�s standpoint, credit card fraud is especially troublesome because the merchant is ultimately liable for the loss. Some of the things one can do are calling the issuing bank or compare data submitted with other sources such as whitepages.com. She said that sometimes it is as simple as calling the customer to verify the shipping address. If the purchase is fraudulent, the customer will know. Some of the tip offs to credit card fraud are high dollar transactions, rush orders, changes in ship to addresses. Michelle Rahm�s web site can be seen at www.jewelryinpressions,com. Incidentally, the jewelry ensemble she had on during her presentation (featuring a central amethyst, surround by diamonds with tsavorite garnets at the ordinal points) is one of the features of her �solar� collection.

Quiz: Answer to last weeks puzzle. Scott Bailey correctly identified Charlotte, North Carolina as the second largest financial center in the US. This week�s question: At over 600 years, what European family holds the record for continuous rule of a country?

Casa Hogar Los Angelitos

2008-09-06T19:16:00.001-06:00

Last Week:
First, an apology for not having a newsletter last week. Did you ever have one of those weeks that just got away from you? Last week Ron Clark brought guest Bob Traynor who is an audiologist. Pete Hyland and Scott Bailey announced that the beer sales netted between $4500 and $4800. President Susan Van Deren announced that we received a check from the Aurora Gateway club in the amount of $100 for our tornado recovery program. She announced that we now have applications and we will take applications until October 15. Susan also announced that the District is looking for a GSE team leader to go to Chile. She also announced that the Windsor High School Interact Club meets Wednesday�s from 11:11 till 11:55.

We were pleased to induct Rex Chambers as our newest member. Rex comes to us from the Summit County Club in Frisco, CO.

Program:
We were pleased to hear from our own Dorothy Simmons who updated us on Casa Hogar Los Angelitos in Mexico. We applied for and got a grant to help the orphanage last year and with money from the local club, District 5440, Rotary Foundation as well as our club they now have new computers, musical instruments, books, furniture and desks. The total grant combined came to $11,700.

Dorothy said that the children at Casa Hogar are not really up for adoption as it functions more as a rescue mission. She said there are two parts to the program there. There is the Casa Hogar and the Ministries of Love. The program was started by Nancy Nystrom who also has a home in Manzanillo, Mexico. For more information on these programs you can look them up on the net at www.casahogarlosangelitos.com, and www.childrensfoundationinc.com.

Quiz: Answer to quiz from two weeks ago: Terry Schroeder, coach of the 2008 US Olympics Men�s Water Polo Team was the model for the �perfect Olympian� statue that is now in front of the Los Angeles Coliseum. Next Question: Given that New York City is the #1 financial center in the US, what US city is in second place with both the largest and third largest financial institutions in the country.

Brian Martens, Fire Chief

2008-08-27T06:37:00.003-06:00

LAST WEEK
Dick Griffith was our only guest last week as he was here for his club�s peach sales. President Susan Van Deren announced that we now have a new post office box here in Windsor. It is Number 23. Susan also said she would be visiting the clubs that have donated to the tornado relief effort to personally thank them for their assistance.

PROGRAM

The program for the day was presented by Chief Brian Martens of the Windsor- Severance Fire Protection District. Brian showed a video of the tornado of May 22 and its aftermath. He said that Mike Nelson of Channel 7 in Denver told him the storm had wind speeds of up to 165 and was up to � mile wide.

Assessments after the storm showed that there were 102 homes rendered uninhabitable. 154 homes required some repair and 340 showed no structural damage. These were designated with red, yellow and green markings or signs respectively. The immediate storm response was handled from the Emergency Operations Center (EOC) in the basement of the Fire Station. Martens said that in spite of what the storm did to the community, we got lucky. The time of day and the fact that it was the last day of school meant that many children were still inside and protected when the storm hit. Martens said it was also unusual that there were no fires as many of the trees that were uprooted broke gas lines when they fell. There was a police commander training program in town at the time and the participants were enjoying a round of golf at Pelican Lakes when the storm hit.

Martens credits Terry Walker for having everything in place on computers in the EOC.
Some of the things that went occurred included;
800 MHz radio system went down. Emergency responders had to use Simplex (car to car) system.
75 police officers responded within 45 minutes; many from surrounding communities.
Two fire chiefs arrived within hours
National Guard was here the first day.
A �Level 3� Team from Jefferson County was sent in.

Other issues that need to be addressed included portable power for street lights, need for a utility rep in the EOC, and power for a common fueling station.. Martens still gets emotional when he talks about the storm and the amazing response that the citizens of Windsor showed.

QUIZ: Answer to last week�s question: Dalton Trumbo was awarded the Pulitzer Prize for �Johnny Got His Gun�. Next question: A Pepperdine graduate and coach is the model for the bronze Olympic torso that stands in front of the Los Angeles Coliseum unveiled prior to the opening of the 1984 Summer Games. Who is this person?

Mark Ludy, Author/Illustrator

2008-08-15T10:14:00.004-06:00

Mark Ludy of Loodles was our speaker for the day. Ludy told us how a trip to Bulgaria when he was 18 years old made a huge difference in his life. He told how he was so taken and moved by a little girl in an orphanage who clung to him during his visit there. Ludy has been an artist most of his life. In 1998 he got the idea to wrote and illustrate his first book called �The Farmer". He was ready to give up the project and trash it when his grandfather asked him what the farmer would do.

His second book was �The Grump� known only to a deaf mute girl as the man with the upside down smile. He did most of his writing in coffee shops around Boulder and then realized his dream to open a coffee shop that catered to people who want to create something. Ludy says he loves living in this community and that his heartbeat for the future is to facilitate and encourage others. He says, �If you have not love, everything else is worthless.�

Ludy�s latest book is a series of illustrations with no written text, but the illustrations have dozens of subplots. The name of the book is �The Flower Man�.

Guests: We had two guests last week, Rev. Rex Chambers and Mark Linnell. Both are former Rotarians and interested in joining our club.

President Susan Van Deren told us that the food bank perishables was being handled by others so we will concentrate our efforts on planting trees next spring. Karen Kunz has taken over the Senior Cake Day and announced that the next cake day will be September 10.

Quiz: Roberto Clemente was the last major league player to hit an inside the park, grand slam, walk off home run.

Next Question: Dalton Trumbo who was born in Montrose and grew up in Grand Junction won a Pulitzer Prize for a book that was later made into a movie. Can you name it?

ROTARY INFORMATION:

Susan Van Deren told us of some of the Fellowship Groups Rotary has. For a complete list, go to: http://www.rotary.org/en/ServiceAndFellowship/Fellowship/
GlobalNetworkingGroups/Pages/ridefault.aspx

Some of the more unusual ones listed include:

License Plate Collecting

Petanque (that should be a trivia question)

Heart Surgery Survivors

Egyptology

Poultry Industry

There are many more. Check them out at the URL above.

Michael Rothmiller, Author

2008-08-10T05:54:00.002-06:00

PROGRAM:
Michael Rothmiller presented the program last week. Rothmiller has a lengthy and varied resume. He is an author, screen writer, was an executive for Sony, and has served on various boards and committees including some for US Presidents.

Rothmiller�s books include �Old Dog�s Guide for Pups� and �My Hero. He has received letters from Queen Elizabeth�s staff saying she read and enjoyed the �Old Dogs� He has also received a letter from Laura Bush voicing the same sentiment. His book, �My Hero� has hit the NY Times Best Seller List and is endorsed by every living former president. It is a collection of essays and letters from children ages 6 through 18 of service people serving in the Middle East. He said the proceeds from the book are donated to the Armed Forces YMCA.

Rothmiller showed a series of slides and told stories about some of the people he has met and some of the experiences he has had over the years. These have included Arnold Schwarzenegger, President Bill Clinton, Kenny Rogers, Garth Brooks, Charlton Heston, Cheryl Teigs and others.

ANNOUNCEMENTS AND GUESTS:

Bill Braydon of the Ft. Collins Foothills Club was a visiting Rotarian. We also met Rev. Rex Chambers who is the new pastor at St. Albans Episcopal Church in Windsor. Chambers has been a Rotarian in Summit County and is interested in transferring his membership to our club.

President Susan Van Deren announced that we have received a check for $757 from the Golden Rotary Club to be put towards tornado relief. Bryon McAvoy announced that the committee considering how best to use the money came up with two projects, The first, and more immediate need is to refill the frozen meat stores at the Weld County Food Bank here in Windsor. The second is to establish a tree replacement program for the homeowners displaced by the tornado. The club voted to purchase the frozen meats immediately, and put together a tree replacement program for approximately 100 homes for next spring as many of the houses are still unlivable and have no means of taking care of trees at this time,

Our newest member, JaNelle Wamsley, gave a mini-profile of herself. She is a native of Ft, Lupton and works for the New Frontier Bank. She is also a licensed realtor and competes in triathlons in the summer.

Quiz: The Pittsburgh Pirates were originally known as the Pittsburgh Alleghenies. In the late 1800�s the league they were playing in fell apart, and the National League was created. In the process, the Philadelphia club failed to protect a star shortstop and Pittsburgh signed him as a player. Philadelphia cried that they had been �pirated�. The name stuck and in the early 1900�s, the club changed its name officially. An interesting sidelight: Pittsburgh is the only City I know of where all of its professional sports teams have the same color scheme�black and gold.

Next Question: Who was the last person to hit an inside the park, walk-off, grand slam home run in professional baseball?

Larimer County Hospice

2008-08-03T06:14:00.002-06:00

Guests last week included:
Betty Sue Allen, mother of Susan Van Deren
Sol Alsina, former Rotary Exchange Student from Buenos Aries, and Marisa Ryber, stepdaughter of Ron Clark. Both of these ladies were guests of Ron�s.

Ralph Moore was elected as our President Elect. He will be installed as president in June of next year.

PROGRAM:

Our program for the day was supplied by a guest from last week, Gail Neben. Gail is new member of the Ft. Collins Downtown Club and is the director of marketing for Larimer County Hospice which is in its 30^th year. It provides hospice care in the Loveland-Ft. Collins area. Neben said they are largely funded through Medicare and Medicaid, private insurance and donations. No one is turned away. Neben said that hospice is there to provide honor, dignity, peace and to surround the person with love as their life comes to an end.

Neben said that although more than 50% of all patients stay in their homes during hospice care, there is a wing of McKee Hospital with seven beds that serve the purpose also. She said they give comfort care only and do not provide palliative care. Patients in hospice last an average of 30 days longer than those not using hospice care. Each patient is assigned a care team which may include one or more of the following: Registered nurse, medical director, Certified Nurses Aides, social workers/councilors, chaplains, music therapist, massage therapist, trained volunteers, and grief counselors for the families. She commented that the chaplains do not preach, but walk the spiritual path with the patient.

Those who stay in hospice care for six months are required to be reviewed to see if hospice is still needed. Neben said that in addition to their normal funding, they hold four fund raisers per year and some people leave money in their wills or buy insurance policies naming hospice as beneficiary. Also, families and friends of patients can buy memorial �leafs� or memorial bricks.

Tornado relief: We were pleased to have a representative of the Loveland Rotary Club stop by to give us a check for $5000 for the tornado relief fund.

Quiz: Herbert Hoover was the first American President to have a telephone on his desk in the oval office. Next question: How did the Pittsburgh Pirates get their name?

Regional Membership Coordinator

2008-07-27T13:39:00.003-06:00

We were pleased to have two visiting Rotarians last week. Gail Nebeo from the Ft. Collins Downtown Club visited as did Dick Griffith from the Ft. Collins Breakfast Club. The Squicquero�s brought their granddaughter Haley as a guest. We were pleased to induct JaNelle Wamsley as our newest member.

President Susan Van Deren reported on behalf of Dave Thiemann that the newspaper poll found that 60% of the respondents requested unspecified financial assistance, 16% requested yard clean up and 8% sought counseling.

PROGRAM:

Diane Kessel-Knight was our presenter. She is a member of the Ft. Collins Breakfast Club but has been a member of three other clubs and is the PDG of District 5450 (Denver). She is also the Regional Membership Coordinator and is an accomplished singer.

Diane told us how the number of Rotary clubs is increasing, but the number of members is decreasing. There are 465,000 Rotarians in North America. She shared some District and local statistics. Our club, for instance went from 9 members to 33 members in 5 years. He District has grown by 1.35% in the last year.

Diane urged us to �Get your ASK in gear.� Ask guests to come and select guests that would become good Rotarians. She said a membership team includes several factors:

-More than a �one man band�

-Clear goal and action plan

-Clear roles and responsibilities

-Meeting regularity

-Report back to the club

She said there are numerous ways to find new members. Check new business licenses. Check with the Chamber of Commerce. Make contact with any Newcomers Club. She also urged us to consider spouses, speakers, and news makers. Some clubs advertise by posting a �Rotarian Works Here� sign in their business window. She said some clubs use a business card size invitation to ask people to come as guests. She also said the Red Badge Program has worked well in some clubs. This allows new members to go through a kind of orientation process in their first six months so that they have a better understand of what Rotary is and what is expected of the member.

Quiz: At 30 to 35 degrees north and south of the equator is an area called the Horse latitudes. It got this name when many sailing ships jettisoned their horses to lighten the load when they were becalmed. Next question: Who was the first president to have a telephone on his desk?

District Governor Visits

2008-07-21T13:24:00.002-06:00

DG Palmer, Pres. Susan Van Deren, and Susie Palmer

We were pleased to welcome District Governor Stuart Palmer and his wife Susie to the club last week for his official visit. In addition to the Palmers, John Roberts, Assistant District Governor from Ft. Collins was present as was PDG Charlie Peterson. Charlie was also there to sell peaches.

DG Palmer said he saw energy and perspective in the club and announced that he would work on PR for the Windsor Tornado Recovery. Before the meeting, the Board of Directors met with DG Palmer and laid out the club plans for the year.

DG Palmer reiterated RI�s commitment to defeating polio worldwide. It is still a daunting task. He cited for instance the fact that India has 25 million births per year. Each of those children must be immunized. To date 99% of polio has been eliminated in the world. Two billion children have been immunized.

DG Palmer also talked about other focuses of Rotary. Since 2002, 250 World Peace Scholarships have been awarded. He pointed out the Rhode�s Scholarship program awards 30 scholarships a year world wide. Rotary sponsors 520 or more Ambassadorial Scholars per year at $25,000 each.

Other information includes:

To date, over one million Rotarians have become Paul Harris Fellows.
In April, a GSE team from Southern Chile (Patagonia Region) will be visiting the District.
The District Conference will be the last of April/first of May in Jackson Hole to avoid conflict with summer visitors.
The District is planning on chartering buses to carry area Rotarians to the District Conference.
The District Goal is to enroll 216 new members in the next year.

Before departing, DG Palmer awarded �The Quiet Rotarian Award� to Karen Kunz for all she has done for the club over the years.

DG Palmer says Rotary is �ordinary people doing extraordinary things.�

Quiz: Surprisingly, Denver has more park land than any other major City with over 10,000 acres of parks (consider the vast Denver Mountain Parks system. There are 24 of them.) Next question: At 30 to 35 degrees north and south of the equator, these areas are notorious for their calm winds�so calm in fact that sailing ships were often forced to jettison excess weight to lighten their ships. What are these areas called?

Club Committee Meetings

2008-07-11T19:47:00.002-06:00

We are pleased to welcome our District Governor Stuart Palmer for his annual visit. DG Palmer is with the Jackson Hole Rotary Club (Lunch Club).

LAST WEEK
We were pleased to have as our guest JaNelle Wamsley of New Frontier Bank who we hope will be replacing Beth Clarken whose schedule has prevented her from attending many meetings recently. In addition, we were visited by Mark Linnel who has been a Rotarian off and on since 1981. He started in California and later moved to Longmont. He recently moved to Windsor and is interested in continuing his commitment to Rotary.

COMMITTEE MEETINGS
President Susan Van Deren tried something new for our club last week. We held committee meetings during the regular meeting time. Three committees met including Fund Raising, Community Service, and Youth.

Fund Raising reported that in the next few months we will go to the Rockies game on August 13 where we will pass out gifts, and in return, the attendees will get to see the game and the club receives $500. Our big fund raiser of the year is the beer sales at Harvest Fest where we expect to clear $5000-$6000. We will also have a Dinner social in September which is an internal club find raiser.

Community service announced that for the time being we will continue to concentrate on Tornado relief for the community. Dave Thiemann said he would conduct a needs survey through the Windsor Now newspaper and we will work with the Town�s Unmet Needs Committee to see where we can best use our finds ($12,700 to date).

Youth Committee reported that they will concentrate on the Interact club in hopes of assisting with the RYLA program and Student Exchange. Karen Trussler agreed to serve as Club Protection Officer as she deals with many of the same issues in the schools.

QUIZ
�Of Thee I Sing� was the musical that poked fun at the election process. Next question: What city has the largest city park system in the US?

Passing the Gavel

2008-06-28T14:09:00.004-06:00

Our last meeting was what outgoing President Ardin Wright called �President�s Day". It was a day to reflect on the past year, honor special members, and turn over the gavel to the incoming President, Susan Van Deren.

Both Ardin and Susan spoke of the Rotary International Convention in Los Angeles wherein 40,000 Rotarians from around the world gathered. Ardin said everything was first class and he was impressed with the grandeur and organization of it all. He cited for instance that 167 busses were needed to transport conventioneers to the Hollywood Bowl. Rotary International is especially proud (and rightly so) that it�s efforts along with the UN, CDC, and WHO have virtually eliminated polio worldwide. To date, Rotarians have contributed US$700 million and another US$200 million is expected to be expended within the next two to three years to completely eliminate polio.

Awards were given to Bob Penny for attendance, and to Jody Niswender for membership. Jody has brought a guest nearly every week and sponsored many of our new members. Thanks Jody.

Ardin refreshed our memories about what the club has accomplished in the last year:

Club picnic in Main Park

Fund raiser at Harvest Fest

Literacy Carnival at Skyview Elementary School

Christmas gifts for �ranchers� at Triangle Cross Ranch

Led the way for a District Matching Grant for the orphanage in Mulege Mexico

Gave $500 to assist the Windsor High School International Relations Class drill a well in Haiti

Initiated the Rotary Club of Windsor Foundation

Put on the 9 Health Fair for which the club won the District Community Service Award

Provided funds to build cabinets for the Triangle Cross Ranch

Received both the Governor�s Citation and the Presidential Citation at the District Conference

QUIZ
A teraflop is the measure of operating speed of the new supercomputers�measured in trillions of floating point operations per second. Next question: What famous actor and director attended the University of Colorado on a baseball scholarship?

Two Weeks of Newsletters in One

2008-06-23T21:00:00.004-06:00

This newsletter will cover the last two weeks as last week was a field trip to the Cozy Cow Dairy.

Two weeks ago, were pleased to welcome PDG George McIlvaine and Cheyenne Rotary President Bob Womack. Their presence was significant because of the purpose of their visit. Womack presented our club with a check for $2000 from both Cheyenne clubs to assist with the tornado recovery efforts. ODG McIlvaine also announced that the District was giving $5000 for the same effort. It is good to be in Rotary. We were also visited by Galen Schwaner and Ft. Collins Rotarian Bill Brayden. The program for that week was Lee Seward of the Honor Flight Program. Lee is from Ault and talked about the Honor flight Program which raises money and provides for WWII vets to visit the ii memorial in Washington DC. He told us that there are two flights leaving in September and they re taking reservations for flights next May. WWII vets are dying at the rate of over 1000 per day. He noted that the �greatest generation� is passing from the scene. So far, 4000 vets have visited the memorial under this program and another 3000 are on line. The program pays for the chartered planes as well as all meals and expenses. There are 74 to 76 �guardians split between the two planes. There is an MD and a paramedic on each flight. All �guardians� pay their own way.

Last week, we visited the Cozy Cow Dairy where we were treated to a video, tour of the facility and a great lunch. Thanks to Susan Van Deren for setting up this tour, it was very informative and enjoyed by all who attended. The Cozy Cow Dairy is on County Road 17 southwest of Windsor. They have 40 dairy cows that are milked twice daily. As we watched one of the milking of five cows at a time, each produced approximately 65 pounds of milk (about 7 gallons). Tina, the tour guide said that although most dairies including Cozy Cow use Holsteins, Jerseys produce the richest milk.

QUIZ
The answer to the last question posed is: Jefferson grew tomatoes which at the time, people thought were poisonous. Next question: What is a teraflop?

Thanks for a great year President Ardin Wright.

Northern Integrated Supply Project

2008-06-07T20:56:00.002-06:00

We were again graced with the presence of Galen Schwaner who will hopefully be a member soon. Susan Van Deren reminded us that we would be touring the Cozy Cow Dairy on the 17th. Susan also announced that the fund raiser the previous weekend for the Windsor Community Foundation raised about $30,000 plus another $1000 was sent to the Parkersburg, IA.

PROGRAM
Our speaker for the week was Brian Werner from the Northern Colorado Water Conservancy District. He spoke to us about the Northern Integrated Supply Project (NISP). This is the project that calls for a 170,000 acre foot reservoir in Glade Park (US 287 valley north of Ft. Collins), and a 40,000 acre foot reservoir near Galeton. This project, if brought to fruition, will be the product of a very complex set of agreements between municipalities, water districts, irrigation companies, the US Army Corps of Engineers and others. There are fifteen separate entities involved in the project including most of the municipalities in the area. It involves capture of water from the Poudre west of Ft. Collins, exchanges to get it where it is needed, and pipelines and structures to deliver it.

Werner told us that of the original Colorado Big Thompson Project, only 34% of the water is now being used for agriculture. Over the years, more of this water has been converted to municipal use. The area has doubled in population in the last thirty years, but no new reservoirs have been built in that time. The environmental permitting process was started in 2002 and was finally released to the public about six weeks ago. It is now out for a 90 day public comment period. It is estimated that a decision will come down from the Corps of Engineers in about six months. Werner said that the project must stand on its own two feet or it won�t be built. The total cost for the project is currently estimated to be about $400 million. He also said that the �do nothing� option would cost about $800 million to serve the same growth. Even though the Colorado Big Thompson water is easily transferable within the service area, this option is becoming much less viable.

NEW QUIZ
A man of many talents, Thomas Jefferson was a master horticulturist, growing about 70 different species of vegetables in his garden at Monticello. Jefferson was among the first in the United States to grow which vegetable, thought by many at the time to be poisonous?

Reflections on a Tornado

2008-06-02T02:23:00.004-06:00

On behalf of the club, I want to thank Doug DeMercurio for the use of the Main Street Grill for our meeting last week. It wasn�t our standard Rotary Meeting, but rather one where we took stock in what we could do to help our community recover from the tornado of two weeks ago.

We had one guest last week. Ron Clark brought Galen Schwaner, a semi-retired Optometrist who had been the President of the Torrington, WY Rotary Club about 30 years ago.

As we had no speaker last week, and held a general discussion on what the club and its members could do for the tornado victims, there is little to recall on this page. If you will allow me, I would like to put down some of my thoughts and reactions about the storm.

I can tell you where I was and what I was doing on November 22, 1963, when I heard on the radio that JFK had been shot. I can tell you where I was and what I was doing on January 28, 1986 when the Challenger exploded, and I will never forget what I was doing at noon on May 22, when the tornado swept through Windsor bringing �shock and awe� to our community.

Natural disasters such as the tornado have a way of humbling us. We quickly learn how miniscule and powerless we are in the face of nature�s forces. We have also learned how resilient and resourceful our community is. To be sure, it will take months to rebuild and recover, so we must not loose sight of the plight of those who were so severely damaged. We have to be in this for the long haul. Our friends and neighbors deserve no less.

The TV news told of how debris from a tornado in Northern Iowa was found 125 miles away in Crawford County, Wisconsin. Could it be that Windsor�s debris is scattered from here to Laramie, WY?

Our local papers as well as statewide media have done a very good job of showing the destruction that occurred here. So, for a little in the way of serenity I will present a calming photo I took a couple of weeks ago on Buckhorn Creek west of Ft. Collins.

QUIZ
The answer to the question of two weeks ago which few saw except in electronic format...Shortly after WWI Adolf (Adi) Dassler started making shoes in his mother�s kitchen. In 1936, he convinced Jesse Owens to wear a pair of his track shoes in the Summer Olympics in Berlin. Much to Hitler�s dismay, Jesse Owens won with the help of the shoes from Adi Dassler (Adidas). Ironically, Adi and his brother Rudolph had a falling out and Rudolph started his own shoe company...Puma.

A Memorable Rotary Meeting

2008-05-23T21:23:00.003-06:00

After over 25 years in three different Rotary Clubs, I�ve come to expect certain things at a Rotary meeting. I expect good fellowship with other Rotarians and guests. I expect a decent meal. I expect a speaker who is interesting and has information that is pertinent to the area or times. As a Sergeant-at-arms, I expect to show up early to help set up the room, put out the flags, banners, newsletters, bell, and name tags. What I didn�t expect is probably the most memorable Rotary meeting of my life.

I was expecting all of those things when I arrived at the Windsor Community Center about 11:30 last Thursday. President Ardin Wright was already there, and helped me get out the club appurtenances. Shortly, several other members arrived and some of us watched as a severe hail storm moved in and the hail stones kept getting bigger and bigger. The power went off, and the emergency lighting took over-not unexpected based on the severity of the storm outside. I had already come to the conclusion that my car in the parking lot was in a lot of trouble. At about ten till noon, one of the staff at the community center came in to tell us that the speaker for the day could not come in. We were not surprised. President Ardin said lets eat, so he grabbed a plate and had just started dishing it up when another member of the staff came in and said �everyone in the basement, NOW!� We had seen a Windsor policeman at the door and he said stay in the basement until he tells us to come out. So, the eight of us who were at the meeting spent the next thirty minutes in the storage room with staff and about five toddlers.

When we finally were released from the dungeon, we invited the staff and kids to join us in eating the great meal that Doug DeMercurio had prepared for us. There were only eight Rotary members there, and I believe the staff enjoyed the invitation. Only then were we brought to understand how severe the storm had been and that the tornado had passed only a few blocks to the east of us.

As I drove home peering around the multitude of starbursts and spider webs in my windshield, I had to wend my way through traffic snarled by no traffic lights, closed streets and emergency vehicles running lights and sirens. I drove around the middle school, north of the fire station, and then started to get the full impact of what the storm had done, The first thing I noticed was a large old spruce tree on the ground and across the street. Fortunately, it had fallen away from the house. As I turned north on 257, there was a motor home parked on the east side of the street that was laying over at a 45 degree angle on top of a pop-up camper that would never pop up again. At Windsor Lake, power poles and lines were down in the street and then on the north side of the lake, several homes and buildings were badly damaged or totally destroyed. Debris was everywhere.

I feel fortunate that the worst thing that happened to me and mine was a car with more dimples than a beautiful baby contest. I feel for the people that suffered much worse, but I am proud of the response that the community gave. It speaks well for the quality of the people who live here.

I doubt that I will have another Rotary meeting as memorable as this one. One of those in a lifetime is enough.

State Representative Kevin Lundberg-District 49

2008-05-18T15:26:00.002-06:00

We had one guest last week, and that was Bob Aguiar who was a guest of Charlotte Ryan. We were pleased to induct Linda LeFevre as our newest member. Linda is originally from Kansas, but has lived in Windsor since 1970. She spent 24 years in the banking industry. Pete Hyland announced that we are set for the Harvest Fest beer sales. Pete said that the Saturday night event at Boardwalk Park is the one that takes the most volunteers. That occurs on August 30. Sunday and Monday, August 31 and September 1 will see the �fest�ivities at Main Park.

PROGRAM
The program for the day was State Representative Kevin Lundberg. Lundberg is the incumbent from District 49. You may recall we had his opponent James Ross as our speaker last week. Lundberg is running for his fourth and last term as he is term limited if he wins this year.

Lundberg is a third generation Coloradan and lives on a farm near Berthoud with his wife Sandy and three children.

Lundberg talked about the successes of the recent legislative session. He sponsored several bills that never made it through the process. These included educational tax credits for private schools, and options for Medicaid participants.

He was proud to have been successful in helping pass the legislation which provided for higher gas and drug discounts. He also worked to secure funds for the Colorado State Forest Service to address the line bark beetle problem. It was a resolution to have the national congress to take action on the issue under the heading of the Healthy Forest Resolution.

QUIZ
The answer to last weeks question is Tasmania . . . named for Dutch explorer Abel Janszoon Tasman. Next question: What contribution did Adolf Dassler make to the modern Olympic Games?

House District 49-Democratic Candidate

2008-05-10T13:18:00.002-06:00

Doug Couse brought Bobby Morris co-owner of Oil Can Harry as a guest last week. We are checking on the next �Senior Cake Day� Event, but it is tentatively scheduled for the second Wednesday in June (the 11th). We will get more information out on this in the next few weeks.

PROGRAM
Our program for the day was the first of a two-part presentation. We invited both major party candidates from Colorado House District 49. The presentation last week was by James Ross, Democratic candidate.

Ross is a professor of political science at CSU. Originally from Texas, he has been a resident of Colorado for the last twenty years. He is married with three children and lists himself as a �soccer dad�. He said his philosophy is to work hard to make government effective for the people who put you there. Although he could not touch on each issue in the allotted time, he did comment on the following:

TABOR Amendment: This has forced a lot of projects to be delayed or cancelled, and it makes it difficult for the state to do the work it should be doing.

He is a strong proponent of excellent public education for all our children. He espouses affordable health care for everyone. He promotes a flourishing �green� economy. He promotes a restorative justice program and decries the criminalization of young people for fairly minor infractions of law. In addition to the above, he supports a three-pronged �security� agenda.

Economic Security by creating incentives for companies to create good jobs here. Environmental Security through clean air, responsible use of water resources, and opposition to uranium mining on our backyards. Neighborhood Security through smart growth plans and helping people avoid foreclosure and stay in their homes during the mortgage crisis.

QUIZ
Answer to last week�s question: The first Ronald McDonald was Willard Scott later to become the �Weatherman� on the TODAY show.

Next Question: One Australian state is named for a man. Which state is it?

Orthopedic Surgery Volunteer in Malawi

2008-05-04T11:30:00.004-06:00

Ralph Moore brought his lovely wife Sarah as a guest last week. We were also visited by Stewart Farris, guest of Jody Niswender. Kendra Adams was again a guest of Sherry Wertz. It was announced that the Lion�s Club is sponsoring its community blood drive. The NCMC Bloodmobile will be at the Medical Arts Center of Windsor on May 13th and 14th. Call 686-2271 to schedule a convenient time. Susan Van Deren announced that she has made arrangements for the club to tour the Cozy Cow Dairy on June 19th. Lunch will be served there.

PROGRAM
Dr. Richard Kemme, Orthopedic Surgeon gave us an update on the work he has done for over twenty years in Malawi. Dr. Kemme is a fellow Rotarian from Greeley, a founding member of Habitat for Humanity, and has been involved in Health Volunteers Oversees for many years. I first met Dr. Kemme about 20 years ago when he talked to the club in Montrose CO. At that time, almost all of his work in Malawi dealt with surgery to aid polio victims. He tells us now that he rarely sees a polio victim (with great thanks to Polio Plus), but most of his work is on vehicle accident victims and birth defects.

Dr. Kemme says each volunteer serves in a developing country for a minimum of one month, although he has served in Malawi for as long as six months at a time. Malawi is at the southern end of the Great Rift Valley. It is 85% Christian and is the 4th poorest country on Earth. He said that 90% of the population are subsistence farmers. With the rampant spread of Aids throughout Africa, the Malawian life span is now down to 37 years.

Dr. Kemme showed pictures of the Queen Elizabeth Hospital in Blantyre, Malawi which also serves as the training hospital for indigenous health care professionals. He said that in the training, students are taught to do closed reductions of fractures whenever possible because the possibility of infection from surgery is too great. He pointed out that most loans are less than $500.

QUIZ
The State that has the highest percentage of people that walk to work is Alaska. Maybe that�s because they can�t get their cars started.

Next Question: Who was the first �Ronald McDonald"?

Windsor-Severance Library District

2008-04-25T11:31:00.003-06:00

We had one guest last week, and that was Diane Le Fevre. In addition, President Ardin Wright inducted our newest member, Dr. David Squicquero. Dave is the husband of member Sandi Squicquero. Ardin also recognized Ray Keslin for the work he did as interim secretary while Dorothy was in Mexico.

PROGRAM
Our program for the day was presented by Diane Montgomery and Ann Giesick of the Windsor-Severance Library District. Montgomery told us that there has been a library in Windsor since 1906. Last year, there were 190,000 items circulated through the library which has been showing an annual increase in use of about 10 to 12 percent per year. They are averaging 15,000 items per month with some months seeing as many as 15,000 people using the library. Montgomery said they are issuing about 1000 new library cards per month.

Last year, the library had 228 different programs for children and adults. They have a family genealogical program, downloadable e-books, and a variety of other programs. The library is expanding by about 6000 square feet to accommodate the growth in library use.

Last year there were 1068 children who signed up for the reading program. This year, the theme is �Catch the Reading Bug�. The District will be using a new bookmobile which is a custom built motor home to better serve the Severance and outlying areas.

Some of the services provided include:

Books: 2 week check out with one renewal
CD�s Magazines, Books on Tape and CD: 2 week checkout with one renewal
Computer software, Auto Repair Manuals, Encyclopedias, and Seasonal Books: one week checkout with no renewals
Videos and DVD�s: 3 day checkout with no renewals
Interlibrary Loan items: terms set by lending library

QUIZ
During the 6+ hour long, 22 inning game the Rockies played recently, there were three �Stretches�. The traditional 7th inning stretch and two more; one in the 14th and one in the 21st inning. How many times can you sing �Take me out to the Ball Game?�

Next question: Which state has the highest percentage of its population that walk to work?