President Jenny Andrews
President Jenny hit the opening bell with clear and unlimited visibility and an outside temperature of 37° F.
Lee Smith & Tamara Dean
Welcome back to Zul Alibhai, after a period of recuperation. Also returning was Doug Cameron, after two months in Sun Valley. They are both better for the experience.
New member Tamara Dean provided the Invocation and Pledge. Introducing visiting Rotarian (Frank Young) and guests of members was another new member Lee Smith.
New Members Inducted: Nierman & Parail
Greg & Lynn Nierman & Sam & Cynthia Parail
President Jenny introduced Lynne Nierman (classification: Interior Design; Sponsor: Chris Monger) and Sam Parail (classification: Wealth Stewardship Advisor; sponsor: Alan Pratt) as the newest members of the BBRC and of Rotary International.
Lynn’s husband Greg and Sam’s wife Cynthia were on hand for the induction. President Jenny urged them to get involved and to keep an eye open for a very special packet of Rotary “stuff” that was headed their way. It has been a while since “stuff” was held back, so you know it will be special. In lieu of "stuff," Sayoko Kuwahara will provide mentoring.
Rotarian of the Month: Rourke O'Brien
ROTM Rourke O'Brien & President Jenny Andrews
Where in the world do all these new members come from? And, how is it that they get to know so much about the club prior to enlisting? The answer: none other than Membership Coordinator Rourke O’Brien, who went home with the March ROTM for his efforts over the years. An impressive grouping of members who have joined over the last three years stood at the urging of President Jenny as a indication of the scope of Rourke’s efforts.
Mini Club Assembly — International Service
Bob Bowen
Bob Bowen, Director of International Service, introduced his three primary committees: 1) The Rotary International Foundation Committee headed by Cary Kopczynski, 2)The Youth Exchange Committee Mike Ralph, and 3) World Community Service Committee chaired by Steve Szirmai.
The Rotary International Foundation Committee Chair Cary Kopczynski reports that as of February 13, the RI Foundation has received donations from 73 club members, totaling $18,090. This represents 63% of the membership, for an average donation of $247. Bob encouraged the rest of the club to complete their pledges. “Our goal is every Rotarian every year, with an overall club goal of an average of $300 per member.” A special thank you to the BBRC TRF committee members: Norm Johnson, Kim Shrader, Jeanne Thorsen, Don Chandler, and Chair Cary Kopczynski.
The Youth Exchange Committee, chaired by Mike Ralph, has been busy hosting our exchange student Cristóbal Baladrón. The BBRC host family, Morris and Carolyn Kremen, have stepped up to the plate to host Cristóbal for the entire school year. They have received some help and support from these fellow BBRC Rotarians, Margie Burnett, Chuck Kimbrough, Wendi Fischer, Joe Castleberry, Chris Monger, Howard Johnson, and Andrew Face. Cristóbal is planning a fund raiser evening with Chuck Kimbrough to help raise funds for his upcoming June road trip with other Rotary exchange students.
Steve Szirmai
Steve Szirmai, Chair of the WCS Committee, shared a PowerPoint presentation on the projects funded for this year by the committee:
Computers for the World-Antigua, with John Martinka and New port High School is coming this summer. John was able to leverage District and RI Foundation, as well as other foundations, to help our $5,000 project become nearly $55,000 this year.
Kenya and Indonesia water projects, with Curtis Cummings and Chris Monger, have been approved for $5,000 (Kenya) and $2,500 (Indonesia), respectively.
Our education sector was completed by a dictionary project in Cambodia, with Bob Bowen and Jenny Andrews.
Upcoming WCS projects with the rest of our FY-09 funding and for FY-10 approval include:
Kaj Pedersen and a global solar flashlight project and Steve Roberts and the bio-diesel project in Haiti.
Bob Bowen & Chip Erickson
Steve Szirmai and Bob Bowen are looking forward to hearing from BBRC members for FY-10 projects and future projects for funding. Our FY-09 projects are now approved for funding and awaiting project completions. From International Board Chair Bob Bowen, a big thank you to all of the committee chairs and members for making this FY-09 club year an amazing year helping those around the world, and for service above self.
Grand Finale: Bob Bowen joins the “piano man”, Chip Erickson, in a rendition of “What the World Needs Now Is the BBRC.”
- What the World Needs Now Is the BBRC
Lord, the children of the world need clean water,
So the BBRC goes international
Chris and Curtis in Kenya and Indonesia,
Oh listen Lord, if you want to know…
What the world needs now
Is love sweet love,
It’s the only thing that there’s just too little of.- What the world needs now
Is love sweet love,
Something BBRC has plenty of. - No not just for some,
Oh, but just for every, every, everyone!”
So ended the Mini-club Assembly.
Paul Harris Fellow Award: Sarah Lingenbrink
Sarah Lingenbrink & Norm Johnson
When a person provides "Service Above Self," it involves his/her contributions of time, talent and treasure. Sarah Lingenbrink has exemplified these contributions with four international service trips and many hours of volunteer service for worthy community causes, including the Seattle Challenge, Rotary First Harvest, Preserve Planet Earth tree planting, and Agros International. Sarah also organized and ran a volunteer day camp for K-4th graders during mid-winter break. In the treasure department she gave Build-A-Bears and her birthday gifts to Hopelink for the Kirkland Christmas store.
Sarah's parents, Steve and Terri Lingenbrink, selected the Paul Harris Fellow Award as recognition and a thank you for the service provided by Sarah.
The award was presented by Norm Johnson, representing the Rotary International Committee.
Jane Kuechle
Jane Kuechle let it be known that the website is now accepting online registrations. We have also received the Bellevue 5K registration brochure. “Let’s plaster the town with these and insure a record turn out for this event,” implored Jane. Additional registration materials are available. Please contact Jane.
Note: enter your team name on the brochures to insure you receive team credit for your participants.
If you are interested in donating your used cell phones to victims of domestic violence, place the phone and all the associated accessories (charger, extra batteries, etc.), and user guide in one Ziplock bag, bring it to any BBRC meeting, and give it to Sayoko Kuwahara.
Sayoko will act as a go-between for the shelter or center, as its location is not public. A second location, such as a church, is used as a buffer. Donors never come in direct contact with the center’s staff or end users.
If you have any questions, please contact Sayoko.
Three Members Proposed: Anderson-Barnes, Morant & Osborn
Ashley Anderson-Barnes is a doctor of chiropractic medicine, practicing at WellnessOne of Bellevue. She is sponsored by Steve Lingenbrink., and her proposed classification is Chiropractic Healthcare.
Community service was always in Ashley's mind, as her family encouraged her to be involved in helping others. One of her relatives recommended Rotary above all other service organization, and she has been waiting just long enough to settle in Bellevue to jump in.
Ashley lives in Issaquah with her husband Jeff Barnes, and she has been involved in the Seattle Pet Therapy Group, Eastside Women in Business, and the Eastside Entrepreneurs Social Network, just to name a few. Her hobbies and interests include hiking, scuba diving, golfing, motorcycle riding, and playing with as many dogs as possible.
• • •
Celia Morant has been with Microsoft since 1995 and is Senior Director of Connectivity Services. Her proposed classification is IT Maven.
Celia has been a supporter of United Way and been looking for an organization in which to get involved. Celia is a member of the Women in Technology and the Women in IT of Microsoft, and she lives in Mercer Island with her husband and three children.
Celia and Christine Addison have been close friends since high school, and she has heard a lot about the BBRC from Christine and decided that this was the club for her.
• • •
Paul Osborn is Project Manager & Process Engineer at Broker Research Technologies in Redmond. His sponsor is Kaj Pedersen with whom he worked previously.
Paul has visited our club many times now and is eager to become a member. He lives in Redmond with his wife Teresa, and his hobbies include mountain biking and kayaking, among other activities.
Paul's proposed classification is Software Product Management.
Jonathan Koshar
Jonathan Koshar announced that Steve and Terri Lingenbrink have pledged $15,000 as sponsors for the BBRC fund raising events over the next three years. This includes both the Bellevue 5K Run/Walk and the Golf Tournament.
Chuck Kimbrough admonished, "If you have not already signed and submitted your pledge form for the Bellevue 5K, do so now!" The forms are available here: Bellevue 5K Run/Walk Pledge Form and the BBRC Member Fundraising Pledge Form.
Howard Johnson reminded members that the Rotary First Harvest work party is set for the second Saturday of each month. "See you in Kent on the 14th of March."
Paul Martin told members that Expanding Your Horizons (EYH), an outreach project for girls in grades 9-12 that is sponsored by the BBRC Vocational Services Committee, Bellevue Community College, and the American Association of University Women, will be held on Wednesday, March 25th, from 7:45 AM to 1:05 PM. A brochure on this event is available here (.pdf). A registration form, due by March 12th, is available here (.doc).
SAA David Bolson
Our Sergeant At Arms, a tie-less David Bolson, led an off-key rendition of “Happy Birthday” for members with March birthdays. When heckled about the lack of a tie, which is indirect opposition to the S@A’s standard of professional decorum, David responded, "Heck, I’m just lucky I still have my shirt!" So goes the travails of a financial advisor.
Romance, Lust, Passion, Fame, Fortune, Success, Ego Gratification, and Fantasy Fulfillment — or “The Making and Publishing of a Best Seller,” by Garth Stein
Is it true that we all have the hidden urge to write a novel? That lurking below the calm outward surface is a world of emotion and yearning that lies trapped and untapped for the enlightenment of the masses? The answer is “Yes,” according to Garth Stern, the writer of the New York Times Best Seller, The Art of Racing In The Rain, a book that has been featured at Starbucks and for which a movie deal is in the works. Here is another overnight success, as seen through the eyes of a dog. The reason to write, according to Garth, is not just for the dollars, but to have people read your work. (At this point the Reveille writers snap out of our collective reveries with the notion that someone might actually read our work.)
John Martinka
Garth believes in a “hand selling” approach to build a base for his books. This involves many visits to book stores in the Pacific Northwest for readings and the promotion of free workshops on how to write a novel, with suggestions that they have a plot and perhaps some structure. When your publisher gets your book into release, you will find yourself on an 11-city book tour, with dinners, fine wine and “library lunches,” where the “swag bag” comes into play. It seems that librarians love swag, and Garth satisfies this craving with handouts that include bookmarks, buttons, cookies in a special cookie box with a description of the book and ISBN numbers. He also passed out an excerpt from the first chapter. “If I can’t get you in the first chapter, than you won’t buy the book," Garth explained.
Garth Stein
The overriding message is that to be successful in book selling, as in other pursuits, you must have passion for your work. You must also have a good agent, such as Jeff Kleinman, and a good publicist to handle the nuanced dealings with your publisher. Toss in a website and presto! This is all you have to do to build your “brand.”
President Jenny Andrews & Garth Stein
It must be working, for the book has sold 290,000 copies and continues to be available on Amazon.com ($16.29 new, new & used for $10.95). The Art of Racing In The Rain is Mr. Stein’s third book and by far his best selling effort. His other efforts include: How Evan Broke His Head and Raven Stole the Moon. Garth brought his bag of tricks to the BBRC at the invitation of member John Martinka.
President Jenny recognized Mr. Stein with a pin signifying that a donation has been made on his behalf to Rotary’s Polio Plus Campaign to eradicate polio worldwide.
Why God Made Moms
All answers given by 2nd grade school children to the following questions:
Why did God make mothers?
1. She's the only one who knows where the scotch tape is.
2. Mostly to clean the house.
3. To help us out of there when we were getting born.
How did God make mothers?
1. He used dirt, just like for the rest of us.
2. Magic plus super powers and a lot of stirring.
3. God made my Mom just the same like he made me. He just used bigger parts.
What ingredients are mothers made of?
1. God makes mothers out of clouds and angel hair and everything nice in the world and one dab of mean.
2. They had to get their start from men's bones. Then they mostly use string, I think.
Why did God give you your mother and not some other mom?
1. We're related.
2. God knew she likes me a lot more than other people's moms like me.
What kind of little girl was your mom?
1. My Mom has always been my mom and none of that other stuff.
2. I don't know because I wasn't there, but my guess would be pretty bossy.
3. They say she used to be nice.
What did mom need to know about dad before she married him?
1. His last name.
2. She had to know his background. Like is he a crook? Does he get drunk on beer?
3. Does he make at least $800 a year? Did he say NO to drugs and YES to chores?
Why did your mom marry your dad?
1. My dad makes the best spaghetti in the world. And my Mom eats a lot .
2. She got too old to do anything else with him.
3. My grandma says that Mom didn't have her thinking cap on.
Who's the boss at your house?
1. Mom doesn't want to be boss, but she has to because dad's such a goof ball.
2. Mom. You can tell by room inspection. She sees the stuff under the bed.
3. I guess Mom is, but only because she has a lot more to do than dad.
