Happy Dollars Moments: More valuable when they are shared
Raffle Winner:No Raffle. No Winners. No Losers.
Fines
None
Birthdays
(Apologies from the scribe. I can't find the video I was counting on for pictures.)
Sue Budde has been a member of the club since June 2012. She says not a lot will get her up early in the morning, but she looks forward to Rotary on Friday. She loves to hang out with other members, and she appreciates what we stand for. She made a donation to the Rotary Foundation.
Greg DeManche was sorry that he could only attend Rotary remotely. He has been in Rotary for sixteen years. He likes that we all do our part and enjoys the friendships, the collegiality, and the professionalism. He and Tom Voorhees share their raffle tickets and have won the raffle once or twice. He is happy to support the Foundation.
The club is getting worse singing Happy Birthday.
Happy Dollars Moments
Editor's note: If you missed our Zoom meeting, the full meeting is posted to our Group Facebook Page
Natasha Haims was happy to have her friend Chris as the speaker at the meeting.
President Alicia was happy to report that her daughter Sarah's pet scan showed no evidence of disease. It was a horrible weekend waiting for the report, but a big relief to receive such good news.
Robin DiNicola had spoken to Paul Pendergast and reported that Linda's surgery was a success. She expects to be in the hospital for 7-10 days and will begin chemo afterward. Robin will be the point person for information about Linda in order to help Paul. The family will appreciate our prayers and thoughts.
Jolly Lux had two wins last week. She had a meeting with a Rotarian from China. They want to help GLO by supporting women who are sewing masks and sanitary kits. They sent $1,800 for this effort. The second win was that the club applied for a district grant right at the beginning of the new Rotary year. A $3,000 drant from the district. Fortunately there is now a project manager in Uganda, so no travel to Uganda is required during the pandemic. She also reported that Don Bonner's wife's nephew is doing research on epilepsy, which is a big problem in Uganda.
Announcements
There is a district membership meeting via Zoom on August 12.All members are encouraged to take part.
Our district was one of the top three in our Zone for its donations to the Rotary Foundation. It was reported that all national vaccination efforts were halted in March. Now they are back, and there were two in July. These efforts are primarily focused on areas where there are outbreaks.
Phil Ferrari reminded the club that the pencil box filling event will be on Monday, August 24. It will be simpler this year due pandemic restrictions. Sign up will be by email, and fewer people will be able to participate. There will be pizza, but participants will need to provide their own beverages. Schools in Hartford are not starting until September 8, and the extra time may help in getting the pencil boxes ready.
Golf News
August 15 is the cutoff date for ads. There will be a golf meeting after the regular meeting each week until the tournament. There is a pretty good response in spite of the lack of personal response. However Sue Budde reported that we have lined up about 1/3 the sponsors of recent years. Only 7 tee signs have been sold that are not part of sponsorships. There are sixty golfers.
Heather Pantano has put the auction online. She is working to have baskets for various themes. There are some suggestions. So far Alicia is creating a hardware basket, Colleen working on a wine basket, Heather a beer basket, Chris a restaurant basket, Sarah a healing basket, Sue Budde a jello shot basket and someone (Katelyn?) is working on a tea basket. Heather encouraged members to create other baskets as they are able. Try to get some sort of help from people you know who may not be able to be a sponsor. Gift cards and items like a t-shirt are encouraged. These need to be complete by August 31, so they can be exhibited online.
Induction of New Members
None this week.
Awards
None this week.
Community and International Service Grants
None this week.
Speaker
Chris Schonenberger was raised in Switzerland and became a Roman Catholic priest in 1984. He went to South Africa in 1989. He had always wanted to help youth, and in the post-Apartheid world with AIDS and high unemployment of 20%, there were many challenges for youth. In Chris's estimation the youth were so involved in this new world that they had become selfish. He wanted to show them they could help to solve the problems.
Chris was about to leave South Africa after being there for seven years, because he felt he was suffering from compassion fatigue. Then he was offered offered some land, and he inherited enough money to build the first house on the property. It was very rural and allowed for a complete change for the youth. He felt that silence was important for those on retreat who needed to get away from the city. Ha Phoro means "people at the waterfall." Water in dreams represents security, and a waterfall is a place to stay for awhile.
Ha Phoro has three labyrinths representing different cultures. Labyrinths has been around at least since 300 B.C. It is a place that offers quiet meditation and a sense of one's spiritual journey. In addition what is built is meant to be in harmony with nature. The area is dry six to seven months of the year, but with water it can flourish.
The buildings at the center are meant to harmonize with the surrounding area. They are also meant to encourage the youth to learn to live together. Some of them come without any experience of eating meals with other people. When they come with that sort of deprivation, it takes more than a weekend to give them new visions of life and community. Some youth come to work at the center. They cook and do the housekeeping for about 18 months before they go on to college.
Chapels are very important to both the quiet of the center and also to the building of community. It is expected that all present will spend some time in meditation overy day. In one chapel 20 people can sit in a circle for whatever service is offered. The worship at the center is inspired by Taize, a retreat center in France where many people come for retreat but they don't belong to a church in that center. They are refreshed and move on. Such is the pattern at Ha Phoro.
Ha Phoro's ministry and fame has spread over the years. Now there are more than youth retreats. There are marriage preparation courses and other experiences appropriate for people of various ages. It has clearly refreshed many people over the last 30 years.
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Special Announcements
None this week.
Mail Bag
None this week.
Photo Credits
Technology Credits
Zoom platform management expertise by Mike Mezheritskiy.
Editor's Notes
Submission Deadline: Members are kindly encouraged to submit all materials for each week's Early Riser as early as possible. Please note that some editions may be published and distributed as early as the Saturday following our meetings, and during those weeks further contributions to the Early Riser will be included in the subsequent week's edition.
“The FOUR-WAY TEST of the things we think, say or do”:
1. Is it the TRUTH?
2. Is it FAIR to all Concerned?
3. Will it build GOODWILL and BETTER FRIENDSHIPS?
4. Will it be BENEFICIAL to all concerned?
