Rotateller
September 28, 2004
Calendar of Events
Last
Week: Ed Warren “Election Memorabilia”
This
Week: Club Assembly
Next
Week: Jr. Nationals Volleyball
Coming
Up:
October
12 Ann Cargile “Zimbabwe “
October
19 Club Plans and Objectives for 2004-05
October
26 Rev. James Fenimore “Genetics”
November
2 Apple Pie Festival
Suggestions for future programs may be
given to Rey Whetten or
Linda LeTendre
Other
Events Coming Up:
September 28 @ 5PM
Board
of Directors & Chairs meeting.
October 16 BHBL Apple Run at the BH-BL Middle School.
October 26 @ 5PM
Board of Directors & Chairs meeting.
December 14 Christmas Party at the Glen Sanders Mansion.
Greeter/Invocator/Minute for Rotary Schedule
Date Greeter
Invocator
Minute for Rotary
September 28 Mark Gasparovic Need a volunteer Mary Anderson
October 5 Ken Crotty Need
a volunteer Bob Rasmussen
October 12 Need
a volunteer Need a volunteer Val Mosier
October 19 Need
a volunteer Need a volunteer Doug Turpen
WEBSITES:
BHBL
Rotary: www.bhblrotary.org
Warren
Displays Election Memorabilia
Ed
Warren presented his collection of election memorabilia at the September 21
club meeting. Ed, who was a history
major and taught American history, began his hobby about 15 years ago. He said that in the beginning he did “one
smart thing and one stupid thing”. The
smart thing was to read a book about collecting election memorabilia and the
stupid thing was not to follow its advice.
In short order he learned by experience that you can’t collect everything (ie. buttons, ribbons, banners, bandanas, coins, mugs, post
cards, ballots, etc.) about every candidate.
He decided to specialize in election banners because they tended to be
attractive and could be displayed in his office or home.
Ed also chose to
focus on just four presidents: Garfield
because he was an alumnus of Ed’s alma mater, Williams
College;
Eisenhower because he was Ed’s first president; Truman because his memorabilia
is increasingly valuable; and Carter because Ed admired him as a person and as
president. Ed explained that the value
of an item is based on four criteria: condition, rarity, popularity, and
attractiveness. Collectors obtain
election memorabilia at shows like one scheduled next month in Albany,
at auctions and flea markets, from internet sources like Ebay,
or occasionally from someone’s attic. Ed
attends an annual meeting of a Carter collectors
organization in Plains, Georgia
as often as he can. His Carter
collection is the largest he has. The
evening’s display included a photograph of Ed posing with Jimmy and Rosalyn
Carter in Plains.
Ed showed examples and talked about many
different kinds of memorabilia. Among his favorites were his oldest item, a
William Henry Harrison 1840 banner; a Garfield/Arthur ribbon; a McKinley
banner; and a Garfield
item mourning his untimely death. The
presentation provided an interesting lesson in history and a clear insight into
an unusual hobby.
From the President’s Corner
1. The Torch
of Volunteerism
September is Rotary’s “New Generations” month. Most would agree,
few things are more important for the future of our communities, our nation and
the world, for that matter, than the education of our young. Education in this context is not just
academics. It’s the “whole” person to
include mind, body and spirit. Our club
can be proud that we support education by recognizing young students’
achievements in many of these areas through the awards we present each spring
at the high school. That said, I would like to take a
moment to focus on the concept of volunteerism in relation to educating the
young and Rotary’s ideals and mission.
Americans are unique in the world community in the amount of personal time
and resources we freely give to our neighbors and our communities. No other country approaches what Americans
freely dedicate to their fellow man.
And, should a crisis arise, no other people rises
up and unites as we do to help.
Unfortunately, our world and society are changing. Young couples work longer and harder and have
less time for their children, much less time for volunteer work. And as you so well know, organizations face
increasing challenges to find volunteers.
If this trend continues, we will loose a very important characteristic
of our society, one that brings out the best in people. It would diminish each American, our
collective cultural, and it would harm our economy. Our country needs to work on preserving the
spirit of volunteerism. The torch of
volunteerism needs to be passed to future generations.
I believe Rotarians are doing something about this by serving as examples
when placing “Service Above Self.” I also think we need to think about more ways
we can help. We are on the right track
by sponsoring an Interact Club, and we should help it grow. Rotary’s 100 Year Anniversary in February
will be an opportunity to celebrate Rotary and what it stands for. We can highlight volunteerism through
publicity. We can also seek ways to
engage our young in developing a deeper understanding of what volunteerism is,
how it benefits mankind and why it can rightly be one of the most rewarding
aspects of one’s life. Let’s help pass
the torch!
2. Using Uncommitted Funds for Good
A couple of weeks ago I sent you a rather lengthy note asking you to think
about ideas for ways we can best use the money we have in our checking account
that is not needed for reserve. At
tonight’s board meeting Ken and Val led us in a discussion on factors we should
use to determine how much money we need for reserve. Hopefully, the board will
soon have a solid recommendation on what the size of the reserve should
be. We will then know how much of the
approximately $11,000-$11, 500 in uncommitted money we can use for good. I would think it would be $5,000, or possibly
more. Please think about this!! There is
great need out there that we can help with and we do have a chance to make a
difference in changing or saving lives.
Give your input to your committee chair or me tonight during the Club
Assembly. Have a good
evening, - Steve
News Briefs
New
Member Inducted:
Sandra Kominoski was inducted as a new club member by President
Steve and Membership Chair Ron at the September 21 meeting. Sandra’s classification is Registered
Dietician. She and her husband, Craig,
who was present for the induction, live at 806 Swaggertown Road.
Club Meeting Sites:
Starting
October 5, club meetings will be at the Methodist
Church
the first two Tuesdays of each month, and the remainder of the meetings for the
month will be at the Old Homestead. This
schedule will apply during the 2004-05 year except when a special event (i.e.
the Apple Pie festival on November 2 or the Christmas Party on December 14th)
is scheduled.
Dick
O’Rourke at 372-8287 / robrwo@aol.com
or Ed Warren at 663-7669
/ ewarren@nycap.rr.com