Tuesday, July 25, 2006

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

                       

                       

 

          

 

 

 

 

 

 

Pinch hitting for President Linda, President-Elect Ron Serapilio struck the bell as only a trained musician can.  He then flawlessly presented the customary tribute to our club’s past, present, and future accomplishment in both English and Italian before the announcements below were made:

 

            •  Ron commented that the 7/25 presenter on the topic of peace in the Middle East does so from the perspective of an Arab who lives in Israel.  Raed Habib-Allah is a high school computer teacher who is involved in working for peace in Israel.  He is a leader in a group called “Common Paths”, which gets both Jewish and Arab students to work together on environmental projects and even has a mixed soccer team.  Mr. Habib-Allah obtained a scholarship for leadership training in the United States from “Leaders for Peace”.  He and his wife, Samadhi, arrived in America in early July. Raed will also speak at the Albany Rotary Club on July 27.

 

            •  Laura Linder announced that all Rotarians were invited to attend the barbeque at the Saratoga County Fair on 7/20 and she had tickets for those interested.  Featured that day will be a book signing by our own Stan Garrison.

 

            •  Treasurer Ken Crotty urged all members to make an effort to attend club meetings regularly since the club has not been making its minimum number guarantee to the restaurant in recent weeks.

 

 

 

 

 

            2006-07 District 7190 Governor Anne Cargile addressed the club and identified the goals she will seek to accomplish during her tenure.  AG Dan Stec introduced Anne and cited the Rotary credentials that led to her leadership role. Anne joined the Shenendehowa Rotary Club in 1991 and became club President in 1995-96. She was Assistant 7190 District Governor from 2000 to 2002 and served as District Secretary from 2003-05. Anne was awarded the District Rotarian of the Year in 1995. She retired as a Bank Officer from the Cohoes Savings Bank in 2001 and joined with her husband, Harry, in Cargile Associates, Inc., an engineering consultant business.

 

            Anne used her time with the club to talk about her priorities as District Governor and hoped we shared her excitement in starting a new year with the opportunity to add to Rotary’s record of service.  Among her goals for District 7190 were the following:

•  Each 7190 club would support the water filtration project by    purchasing at least one system in 2006-07.

            •  Offer a CPR course for Rotarians.

            •  Provide flu shots for the disadvantaged.

            •  Promote literacy with a dictionary project for school children.

            •  Co-sponsor a vocational project in Africa with the Zambia Rotary.

            •  Attract new members by improving Rotary’s community image.

She characterized her approach to goal achievement with an apt quotation: “If you want to go fast, go alone; if you want to go far, go as a team”.

           

            Anne had begun her presentation with a recording of the song “Be Happy” and joked that she was happy that club members showed up knowing that she was coming.  She closed with a dramatic recitation of the lyrics of “The Impossible Dream” from the musical, “Man of LaMancha” The lyrics include lines such lines as,  “This is my quest, to follow that star…to fight for the right  without question or pause…and the world will be better for this, that one man…still strove with his last ounce of courage, to reach the unreachable stars.”  It was a fitting close that underscored  Anne’s theme from beginning to end of her remarks that Rotary needs planning, cooperation, and hard work to achieve its dreams.

               

As reported by Dick O’Rourke