Especially prepared for you by Dr. Ramona Pleva – Official Chiropractor of the Rotary club of Traverse City.
President Mike sent out recognition to all the proud Michigan Wolverines on their win over Michigan State this past weekend. Go Blue!!
In good Rotary form, we sang God Bless America and recited the Pledge of Allegiance. Nikki Sobkowski led our invocation.
President Mike gave out huge shout out to our Kat Paye who was just named Executive Director of the National Cherry Festival. Kat has pretty much held every position possible with the NCF and it’s only fitting that she take the reins. We’re all confident that she will be ridiculously successful in her well-deserved new role. Way to go Kat! Woooo Hoooo!
It was a jam-packed meeting! Hang on to your hats!
Marlene Bevan reminded us of the privilege and importance we have of voting next week and proudly led our club with the singing of My Country Tis of Thee and America the Beautiful.
Bob Stow sported his Michigan suspenders as he introduced two visiting Rotarians. Our Rotarians had a plethora of guests today.
Dale Chilcote introduced a shining new Rotarian. Julie Ann Rivers-Cochran is the newest member of the best Rotary club in the world. She recently moved from Rochester, NY with her husband Dr. Matthew. She holds a Master’s in social work from Florida State University in Tallahassee, FL and a BA in journalism from St. John Fisher College in Rochester. Julie Ann served as the Vice President of Programs and Planning for the Florida Coalition Against Domestic Violence. She’s no stranger to Rotary as she served as secretary of the Rochester Southeast Rotary Club. Julie Ann enjoys the outdoors and birding. It was quickly determined that birding qualifies her to serve on the Gourmet Game Dinner committee.
Roy Pentilla announced that November is Rotary Foundation Month. The goal is “Every Rotarian Every Year” and asks each club to donate $100/Rotarian to support Rotary programs and allows clubs to access funds from the district level. Kathy will gladly provide the appropriate form for you to complete and checks can be made to Rotary Camps and Services or conveniently added to you Rotary account.
Marcia Billings from the Twilight Club announced that her club is once again selling calendars for 2017. They are a must have! Here’s the deal, you buy a calendar for $25 and your name is tossed in a raffle. There are 365 prizes at $25 available. There are four prizes at $500. If you win, your name gets thrown back into the raffle. But wait, there’s more! The grand prize at the end of the year is $5,000! Just think what you could do with $5,000. Rotary would be happy to help you decide where you can donate it. J
Time to clean out your closets! Pete Strom put out a call for coats and cold weather gear “because soon it will be colder than a mother-in-law’s kiss.” One Way Coat Day is happening this month. Please bring any donations to the club on Nov. 15, Nov. 22 or Nov. 29.
“Party Girl” Katy McCain has planned a delightful evening at Painting with a Twist on Nov. 16. You should have received two emails (only one was intentional) about that. It’s $35 and you can bring a tasty appetizer and a beverage. All the cool kids are going! Can’t paint? Don’t worry, you can bring alcohol and magically your inner Piacasso will shine! But wait, there’s more! Put Dec. 13 on your calendar folks because we’ll be rocking the Yacht Club for our Rotary Holiday Party. That’s right! It’s almost time to pull out those ugly Christmas sweaters! J
Break out your bike shorts! Al Bonney reminded us of the Ride to End Polio. The rides will take place the week of Nov. 12-19 at Fit For You courtesy of our friend Vern Gauthier! You can ride on your own or join the gang for an invigorating group indoor ride on Nov. 17 at 12:30 pm (you can sweat off your alcohol from Painting with a Twist!) and Saturday, Nov. 19 at 8:30 am.
Sid Van Slyke took home $42 in the 50/50 drawing today.
Jeff Hickman moderated an informative discussion on Proposal 3 between John DiGiacomo and Brenda Quick. John is a partner with Revision Legal, an intellectual property firm. Brenda is a Professor of Law Emeritus at Michigan State University College of Law.
Proposal 3 states:
Proposed amendment to add a requirement to Section 28 of the City Charter of Traverse City that approval by a majority of the electors at a regular or special election must occur prior to approval by the City or City Commission of the construction of a building with a height above 60 feet.
Shall the Charter of the City of Traverse City be amended to add the following paragraph to Section 28: "It is hereby declared that buildings over 60 feet in height are generally inconsistent with the residential and historical character of Traverse City. Therefore, any proposal for construction of a building with a height above 60 feet, shall not be approved by the City or City Commission, until after the proposal is submitted to and approved by a majority of the City electors at a regular election, or at a special election?"
John is opposed to Proposal 3 and Brenda Quick is in support of Proposal 3.
Each was allowed a 7-minute introduction followed by a 2-minute response to questions previously gathered from Rotarians.
John focused on the small town character that Traverse City has. He mentioned that a lot of people contribute to small town character, saying its “good people doing good”. What is under threat is our zoning process. He believes this process is wrong. He mentioned the review process conducted by the city sounds thorough. He stated that Save Our Downtown does not address any of the elements that Judge Roberts stated in his ruling. He stated that this process works and there is no reason to change the process.
Brenda stated that this is legal. The Pine Street project did start this, but it is about buildings that are over 60 feet tall. She went on to say that people come to Traverse City because they have certain expectations and tourism brings in over $1.1 billion a year. The success of our area is about maintaining Traverse City as a tourism destination. The decision to do something is crucial because “building a tall building is irreversible.”
Question posed to each presenter: Why should or shouldn't voters be allowed to decide the future of TC and the character of the city with a direct vote?
Brenda stated that the big issues should to be voted on by the voters, not by 7 commissioners. A recall is too slow and the damage will already be done. Give people the right to vote.
John stated there is no support for this issue and it is unlawful. “Ask a lawyer, there are plenty in the room” (yes there are!). There is the possibility that voting can be made based on discrimination. Only 27% of the population came out to vote in the last election and elections are costly.
Question posed to each presenter: Why are the systems in place such as elected officials, zoning ordinances, paid staff and various boards to deal with matters such as these not satisfactory as they are in most areas?
John stated that they are good enough, these people care and give a lot of time to do good things.
Brenda stated it went to court and it was decided that the decision made by the commissioners was wrong. Her position is that she is not satisfied that things have been done right.
Final remarks:
Brenda just wants a right to vote. We want small town character to still be here and just want a voice.
John asked “Are you going to do something illegal and unlawful to stop one development from happening?”
Thanks to Connor Miller for contributing to the Proposal 3 program notes. Chiro girl (aka Ramona) just couldn’t keep up on her own!
And with that, it’s a wrap! See all y’all next week at the Coast Guard Air Station Traverse City.
CURRENT CAREER – I’m the Commanding Officer of Coast Guard Air Station Traverse City. It doesn’t get any better than that….why? I’m very fortunate to be with the best people, in the best job, and in the best city (an awesome Coast Guard City) in the United States!
EDUCATION –Tried to get into the CG Academy out of highschool, but the SATs got the best of me. Attended a year of college at Penn State’s main campus in Happy Valley. What a game against OSU huh?? I applied to the CG Academy (New London, CT) again and got in. Had to start over as a freshman. Majored in Electrical Engineering. Also received a BS in Industrial Administration (one year MBA) from Purdue.
FAMILY- Me, Susie and our naughty cat Brisbee (walk on stray from Hawaii). My parents still live in my hometown of Uniontown, PA (about 60 miles south of Pittsburgh). I have a brother that lives in Eastern PA and a sister who lives in the DC area.
FAVORITE DESSERT - It was pretty much just key lime pie until I got to TC. Now it includes cherry and apple Pie from GT Pie and Moomers.
FAVORITE ACTIVITY –Flying, kiteboarding, skiing, running and mountain biking.
LAST BOOK READ – Aviation Radio Communications, Yes, I’m an aviation geek.
FAVORITE MOVIE – Apollo 13, a space geek as well. If I’m flipping through the channels and Shawshank Redemption is on, I can’t pass it up either.
FAVORITE SONG – Southern Cross. Reminds me of my Coast Guard days in the Carribean, and seeing the actual Southern Cross on my trip down to Antarctica.
TELL US SOMETHING ABOUT YOURSELF NO ONE IN THE CLUB
LIKELY KNOWS – I’m a huge fan of the Mercury, Gemni and Apollo space era. Getting to the moon was one of the greatest accomplishments of our country.
LIFE ROLE MODEL – My father and mother. I know it is a typical response, but as I get older and wonder how in the heck I made it this far in the Coast Guard, I really have to attribute all the good stuff that happened to me to my parents. They really taught me the value of working hard and appreciating the great people around us every day.
MOST SIGNIFICANT ACCOMPLISHMENT – I was able to get a pretty and wickedly smart girl to marry me.
PROUDEST MOMENT - Taking over command at the air station. Also, getting my wings of gold after graduating flight school.
FUNNIEST THING THAT HAS EVER HAPPENED TO YOU - Susie likes to scare the life out of me when I get home from work. One time she woke me up in the middle of night telling me that she thought someone had broken in the house and was peeing in our bathroom. I have a great 4th of July story about an adventure I had with a British exchange pilot, but it would take up the whole bulletin.
SECRET AMBITION - Still want to be an astronaut.
IF YOU COULD BE ANYONE IN THE WORLD FOR A DAY (present or historical), WHO WOULD THAT BE---AND WHY? I would have to say Neil Armstrong. I can’t imagine anything cooler than being the first person to set foot on the moon. “That’s one small step for man, one giant leap for mankind….”
MOST FAMOUS PERSON MET - President Bill Clinton was at my academy graduation. Got to meet him on stage.
ANYTHING ELSE YOU WANT TO SHARE –I had an opportunity to visit the South Pole. Even though it is customary to strip naked and get a picture, I passed on that opportunity. However, while I was there, I did take the opportunity to walk around the world in about eight seconds.:)
OK, enough foolin’ around – time to get INVOLVED! Everyone gets Paul Harris credit for all donations AND the club gets credit too.
There couldn’t be an easier way for YOU to help raise some money to eradicate polio – AND IT WON’T COST YOU ANYTHING!
All you need to do is ride a stationary bike (free) for a self-selected number of minutes . . . .and seek donations to PolioPlus in support of your ride. I sent a letter to my entire e-mail list and have over $800 in donations for just doing that. YOU can do this - it’s EASY!
Vern Gauthier is offering free use of Fit for You health club, during that week, ride or work-out – even use one of the Trainers for FREE! Just tell the employee at the desk that you are a Rotarian and what you want to do.
Vern has scheduled 2 team rides for anyone who wants to ride with a group: Thursday, 11/17 at 12:30 pm and Saturday, 11/19 at 8:30 am – both for an hour. Vern will lead the ride. Or you can do your ride all by yourself at home or at Fit for You whenever you want to ride. Doing the ride and fundraising is totally on the honor system.
It’s really simple: drop me an email telling me you would like to participate, go get some people to financially support your ride (Hey, this is a fundraiser!!). I will send you a link to the Rotary crowdfunding site that YOU can PERSONALIZE just for your donors. Check mine out HERE.
Right now we want to build a list of TC riders.
Contact me at RotaryAl6290@gmail.com if this is something you would like to participate in. Come on – You NEED the exercise!
Match forms need to be sign and turned in by December 1st.
In 1999, Rotary Charities donated $2.5 million to the Community Foundation to establish the Rotary Endowment. The Endowment connects the shared work of Rotary Charities and the Community Foundation of promoting philanthropy to enrich the quality of life in our region. Today, the Rotary Endowment provides an opportunity for individual Rotarians and local Rotary Clubs to have their philanthropic support matched by the Community Foundation.
The partnership between the Community Foundation and Rotary Charities is reflective of the quality of philanthropic intent and integrity that makes this a wonderful place to live, work, and give.
This is the last week for the One Way Coat Drive, please donate your gently use coats, hats, gloves, sweaters...We will have a drop box at the meeting.
President Mike sent out recognition to all the proud Michigan Wolverines on their win over Michigan State this past weekend. Go Blue!!
CURRENT CAREER – I’m the Commanding Officer of Coast Guard Air Station Traverse City. It doesn’t get any better than that….why? I’m very fortunate to be with the best people, in the best job, and in the best city (an awesome Coast Guard City) in the United States!.jpg){kind=logo}
Come join the fun, November 16th from 6:00 pm -8:00 pm at Painting with a Twist.
OK, enough foolin’ around – time to get INVOLVED! Everyone gets Paul Harris credit for all donations AND the club gets credit too.
Match forms need to be sign and turned in by December 1st.
