Rotagram for Wednesday, Sep 28, 2022

Meeting was called to order by President Joe Lins. He thanked the set-up crew for today’s meeting. Special nod was given to Randy McFarland, who was told a joke, “what do you call a bear with no teeth? A gummy bear!”

Update on the CIA’s, “36 members have donated for a total amount of $15,125! We are on our way to a hearty ‘thank you’ to those who have sent their contribution. We need to raise a minimum of $20,000 to keep the OC Community Foundation as our partner.” Retro Jog-A-Thon T-Shirts are on sale at the check out table for $5. All proceeds of the sales go to benefit our Foundation, “sizes available are small, so sales have slowed down,” he joked.

On this Day, Francis Scott Key penned “The Star-Spangled Banner,” on September 14, 1814, after he witnessed the American Flag flying over a Fort in Maryland while being bombarded by the British during the War of 1812. President William McKinley passed when he succumbed to his wounds on September 14, 1901. He was shot twice at close range by Leon Czolgosz, while on visit to the Pan-American Exposition in Buffalo, New York. Vice President Theodore “Teddy” Roosevelt was sworn into office on the same day.

Orange County Power Authority announced on September 14, 2022, that it will be transferring residents in OC cities, Fullerton, Buena Park, Irvine, and Huntington Beach, to a new service provider, on October 1, that will appear on their power bills. They will receive 100% renewable energy, the most environmentally friendly, but also most expensive, energy blend option offered. Leslie McCarthy asked if you can opt-out if you have solar power. Answer is yes, “unfortunately for residents, I know it’s an additional step that they have to take [to opt-out],” said mayor of Fullerton to The Orange County Register, Fred Jung.

S-R 91 eastbound lanes and SR-60 westbound lanes closed for construction over the weekend. Stay away from 9 p.m. Friday evening through 5 a.m. Monday as crews repave lanes.

For our commencement ceremonies, everyone’s favorite member, Brett Ackerman, led us in our Invocation. He recited the chorus of his favorite song, “Where Is the Love,” by the Black Eyed Peas featuring Justin Timberlake. It was an excellent choice. Our Patriotic Moment was given to us by Dan Kiernan. He led us in the Pledge of Allegiance to the best nation in the world. Today’s guests were Assemblywoman Sharon Quirk-Silva, today’s Program’s speaker, and Eduardo Carmona, guest of Sharon.

Our Rotary Minute was given to us by one of the coolest person in Rotary, Sir Robert Jahncke. “I joined Fullerton Rotary Club in 1985. I was 43 years old.” He remembers working for Beckman Instruments at that time. “I got my education at MIT. I was an introvert but I had a young family with two young kids. I grew out of my shell here at the club. Joining is one of the best experiences of my life. It’s the highlight of my life. We have fun together. I want to thank you all for that.” This is why Robert Jahncke is a Rotarian.

Our Songmaster Bud “Woody” Lang, handed out kazoos to a select few audience members. He led us in a fun rendition of, “Joy to the World” by Three Dog Night. During the bridge section of the song, he asked the kazoo holders to play their hearts out. Great Job Bud Lang! Today’s announcements commenced with Leslie McCarthy. “Fullerton Rotary Club is calling on all of you for memorabilia for our 100th Anniversary celebration! We have gongs and drums from a visit to Korea.” Matt Howells announced Tara’s Chance, “Riding With The Stars” event on October 1st, 2022. “This is an event where we are able to come together with the community.” Monica Fernandez announced the District Gala on October 14th, 2022.

Zoot Velasco announced 2022 Lexus Champions for Charity in support of the Fullerton College 4th Annual Veterans Golf Classic, on November 7th, 2022, at Eagle Glen Golf Club. Tickets are $50 and a lucky ticket holder has the chance to play at Pebble Beach Golf Links, The Links at Spanish Bay, and Spyglass Hill Golf Course. “If you don’t buy one of these tickets, you don’t like Veterans,” jokingly said Zoot. Leslie McCarthy immediately bought one because she loves Veterans.

Our Recognition Master and Finemaster was introduced with a drum roll and a kazoo fan-fare, everyone’s favorite member, Brett Ackerman. He was unconventional with his segment, walking around the room with the microphone, similar to an Andy Kaufman special. He first recognized Monica Fernandez for her Rotary anniversary. Sir Robert Jahncke was recognized and fined $3 for his Rotary anniversary, congratulations! Raco was fined $5 and recognized for his wedding anniversary, congratulations Raco and Robin Marie. Terri Grassi was also recognized and fined $5 for her birthday on September 20. Special guest speaker, Sharon Quirk-Silva was recognized for her birthday as well. Sharon’s assistant Eduardo Carmona, who informed Brett of her upcoming birthday, was fined $2, in what was a funny interaction. John Phelps was asked a question but “WHO CARES.” He then took the microphone to defend himself from a “couple of week’s ago” fine from Mike Oates, since he wasn’t present. Thad Sanford wanted to know if he paid it, to which John asked, “how much is that going to cost me?” Everyone in attendance humorously yelled, “Who Cares!” Brett Ackerman switched gears and asked for any Humble Brags. Captain Dick bragged that his daughter is starting UC Davis this year. In a funny turn of events, Raco bragged but was instead fined $1 for his brag. Zoot Velasco brags, ‘I pre-fined myself for this brag. Leslie is the only American here. She bought a ticket for the 4th annual Veterans Golf Classic.” Leslie McCarthy asked for a prayer for her humble brag, “today is my first employee review in thirty something years. I didn’t dress properly for a review so please pray that it goes well.” Our thoughts and prayers are with you Leslie. Marty Burbank donated $50 as an act of kindness, partially because of Leslie helping Veterans with her purchase of a ticket from Zoot. Marty is a proud Veteran. Great Job Brett Ackerman!

Our Program at Hand was introduced by President Joe Lins, “Assemblywoman Sharon Quirk-Silva. Silva was first elected to serve California’s 65th Assembly District in 2012. In 2018, she was re-elected to serve the communities of Anaheim, Buena Park, Cypress, Fullerton, Garden Grove, La Palma, and Stanton. Prior to her service in the State Legislature, she served in local government as a member of the Fullerton City Council from 2004 to 2012, including serving two terms as Mayor. Currently in her fourth term, State Assemblywoman Sharon Quirk-Silva has developed the reputation as a hard worker, one who presses for more transparency and communication between state government, local government, and the people of Orange County. She knows it takes people working together, with bipartisan effort, to find common ground when solving the state’s challenges. Please welcome Assemblywoman Sharon Quirk-Silva.” She thanked Fullerton Rotary Club for all of our long service to the city of Fullerton, “that’s what Rotary is about. Doing more to make the community better.” Two quick humble brags, Quirk-Silva used to teach elementary in the city of Fullerton and her second daughter is having her first baby, Quirk-Silva’s first granddaughter. Congratulations! Assemblywoman Quirk-Silva went over her take on the challenges/issues/opportunities on both local and statewide levels. “What is happening on the state level happens locally too. We see the state rebounding in many ways. The bright spot is the California economy is the 5th largest in the world.” She credited the movie industry, manufacturing industry, and Silicon Valley as major players in the world, but she also acknowledges that the hardest, toughest issues in the world are here in California, “It’s not an easy job to be a state legislature. We have to have security now because we are a much more aggressive state than we used to be. I am proud of my work I’ve done in the 8 years in assembly.” Quirk-Silva has brought close to $200 million to the district. Some of those millions have gone to housing. $2 million for WTLC (Women’s Transitional Living Center). $2 million for the healthy neighborhood community. “$70 million for Cal State Fullerton University’s Engineering Department. New Dorms with 600 beds!” State legislature has been working for 10 years in creating a Veterans Cemetery in Orange County. She is one signature away from making it a reality. What are the struggles that Orange County faces? “If you enter OC through the streets, you will see an increase in homelessness. We see camps by Angels Stadium that have grown to over 1000 people. One of the issues is the resistance to take advantage to what is available.” California has spent a huge amount of money and time on how to house students. Her district has 3 campuses with over 100,000 students. When students graduate, they face the typical California problems, housing problems were rent is $3000. Securing a job is another major issue that California students face, so she just signed a bill to bring more work to help graduating student secure gainful employment. She is also aware of the personal issues that student go through like mental issues, “our youth’s problems are suicide attempts and while some are dealing with eating disorders. Mental health is important.” She went over the things that are going well too. “The positives are that people are coming back from the pandemic. Some are working remotely or attending school in-person and some are virtual.” Work places and business are asking her what she wants. “Housing and homelessness are the top of the heap. Climate change/weather patterns are another. We experienced a heat wave last week. We no longer have fire seasons, now we fight fires year-round. We need to address this by planting trees. Monitoring our water usage helps a lot as well.” She addressed the gas price crisis as well. “Fuel has been a huge issue. Gas prices are at an all time high!” She mentioned the transition from gas fuel vehicles to hydrogen or electric. “We need to look towards those goals.” Assemblywoman Sharon Quirk-Silva has 11 bills on the governor’s desk that deal mostly on housing solutions. She took some questions from Rotary Club members. Leslie McCarthy asked her about any good news on water shortage in Fullerton. “Bad news, Leslie, is that we are in a severe drought. We get our water from Northern California. We{state} need to have more conversations for alternatives. Maybe D-Cell?” Thad Sanford followed up to Leslie’s question in regards to a state initiative on water, Quirk-Silva replied, “there have been a few storage facilities built but the money from that state initiative didn’t go a long way. We have the money to clean up various areas where water is very poor, but it’s taking forever. If elected, I will create a bill that creates a timeline. But, to answer your question, a few storage units have been built.” She ended her speech with some great insight, “people move to California because we have the best higher education institutions. My advice is to listen to both political sides. There is a variety of ways to get things done.” She received praises a grand ovation for her speech and was awarded with the highly coveted speakers gift by President Lins, “thank you, Sharon. Funny thing about this gift is there is nothing political about it.”

Assemblywoman Sharon Quirk-Silva presented him with a gift of her own for the club, a California Legislature Assembly plaque presented to Fullerton Rotary Club for celebrating 100 years! President Joe Lins thanked Bud Lang for the Kazoos, “brought me back to the 2nd grade.” Save The Date, Monthly Board Meeting is next Wednesday at 10:45 a.m. at Coyote Hills. October 14th is the District 5320 Foundation Dinner at the Old Ranch Country Club in Seal Beach. Also, October 26th is our clubs 100th year anniversary with a celebration at The Summit House. Invitations went out so make sure you RSVP.

Last thing on the agenda was the 50/50 drawing and two lucky winners take home a free Retro Jog-A-Thon T-Shirt. Lucky ticket holder 6369195 is the winner of the $23. Assemblywoman Sharon wins! She donated the money. Ticket number 6369183 and 6369186 wins the T-Shirts. Congratulations Jim Ripley and Bud Lang. “Thank you for coming today. We look forward to seeing you next week. Our Program will be Sex Trafficking brought by Mark Lee with WTLC. Don’t Miss it. Thanks again and if you need anything between now and then make sure we know. Charge on! Meeting is adjourned.

	(published using 100% recycled electrons)
	this edition was published in fullerton, ca