Rick Tarbell opened the meeting with the ringing of the bell. Ken Donoughue led us with a word of prayer and the pledges. President Tarbell welcomed our guest speaker today, Major General Angie Salinas, United States Marine Corps (retired), CEO Girl Scouts of Southwest Texas.
Also introduced were guests Assistant District Governor Jackie Parsons and Dwayne Hopkins, CMSgt, USAF Retired, CEO/Executive Director of Fisher House.
Afrika Ray is a guest of Veronica Ruse. Afrika visits our meetings often and has become a familiar face to our club. She a Director at USAA.
Dwayne Hopkins was invited to share with us about the Fisher House. He compared their services to the Ronald McDonald House in that they help military families stay close to their loved ones who are in the hospital. With 3 big houses, last year they were able to host 429 families. 6000 volunteers helped last year.
President Rick shared some sad news: former member Marlene Maddox lost her 22 year old son last Wednesday who tragically died a car wreck. Our hearts are grieved and our sympathy goes out to Marlene and her family. We expressed our condolences and sent a sympathy card.
President Rick shared a very nice Thank You Note received from the Girl Scouts of Southwest Texas for our donation.
Past President Fred announced that we are seeking nominations for President Elect, Vice President, Secretary and Treasurer.
Ken Donoughue announced that Rotary Leadership Institute will be Feb 8 at Spring Creek United Methodist Church in Fair Oaks. Ken will be one of the facilitators.
Ken Ruiz announced that he enjoyed the last Happy Hour on Jan 16 at the Flying Saucer along with Ken Donoughue, Veronica Ruse, Derek Matthys and his wife Sheila. The next Happy Hour will be Thurs,
Feb 20 at Europa, a new Pan-European Restaurant located at 8811 Fredericksburg Rd, behind USAA. Find out more info about it
HERE!
Bruce Richter and Secretary Mary Denton enjoyed coffee fellowship on Jan 10 at Einstein Bagels on DeZavala Rd. For your GPS, the address is 12730 W IH 10. Click
HERE to find out more! Next coffee will be again at Einstein Bagels on Fri,
Feb 14.
Allyson Hamlin announced that the Basura Bash 2020 will be Sat,
Feb 15 at Walker Ranch. We will meet at 8:30 a.m. Parking is at Coker United Methodist Church (off Wurzbach Parkway)
Recommended: wear comfy shoes, bring your own gloves, some of us bring "grabbers" like the ones at Home Depot and don't forget sunscreen. Allyson said that she will bring yummy br
eakfast tacos. There are usually other snacks available as well.
Please remember to invite your friends and family too! Everyone is welcome to help.
If you need a Rotary t-shirt they are always available for sale at our meetings. They are so stylish and only cost $10!
We always have a good crew at these events - please let Allyson know if you are interested so she can know how many tacos to bring! Advertised as
"The largest s
ingle day waterway cleanup in Texas" - 26th year!
Humor
Past President Fred Timmons is never at a loss with all things Texas! He shared these bits of Texas trivia:
GREAT THINGS ABOUT TEXAS
- THE DOMINO GAME OF 42 WAS INVENTED IN TEXAS AND IS PLAYED ALMOST EXCLUSIVELY IN TEXAS.
- EVERYONE OUGHT TO HAVE A CHANCE TO GET THEIR PICTURE TAKEN IN A FIELD OF BLUEBONNETS
- OTHER GREAT PLACES TO HAVE YOUR PICTURE TAKEN:
- CADILLAC RANCH – AMARILLO
- HOUSE CONSTRUCTED OF BEER CANS – HOUSTON
- TEXAS TOILET SEAT MUSEUM – DALLAS
- NATIONAL MUSEUM OF FUNERAL HISTORY – HOUSTON
- STATUE OF POPEYE – CRYSTAL CITY
- STATUE OF PETER PAN – WEATHERFORD
- USS TEXAS – WE HAVE A BATTLESHIP NAMED FOR OUR STATE AND IT IS STILL AFLOAT.
- MOST TEXAS CITIES HAVE AT LEAST ONE COUNTRY SONG NAMED FOR THEM.
- WE HAVE MORE MILES OF ROAD THAN ANY OTHER STATE AND THE MOST MILES OF CONSTRUCTION AT ANY GIVEN TIME.
- TEXAS CLAIMS TO HAVE INVENTED THE HAMBURGER (ATHENS), AND FOR SURE WE PERFECTED IT.
- THE SAN JACINTO MONUMENT OUTSIDE OF HOUSTON IS DEDICATED TO THE HEROES OF TEXAS INDEPENDENCE. OUR MONUMENT IS 15 FEET TALLER THAN THE WASHINGTON MONUMENT IN WASHINGTON D.C.
- THE STATUE OF SAM HOUSTON (HUNTSVILLE) IS THE LARGEST STATUE OF A HERO IN THE WORLD.
Today in History
- Kansas became the 34th state in the union
- 1924 R. Taylor patented the ice cream cone rolling machine
- 1936 the first members of major league baseball Hall of Fame were named in Cooperstown NY
Famous Birthdays
- 1843 William McKinley
- 1954 Oprah Winfrey
Pass the Hat goes to Elf Louise
Our program next week is: Sgt. 1st Class Anthony Strickland, US Army - he is a member of the Northeast Rotary Club. He will speak on military deployments.
Feb 19 – put it on your calendar for this speaker - Detective George Segura. He spoke at the last District Conference on Human Trafficking. This will be very informative and he is a good speaker.
March 4 - We will NOT BE MEETING at Outback Steakhouse - Meeting place to be announced.
Business Lunch Program
Brenda Jackson introduced today's speaker, Major General Angie Salinas, United States Marine Corps (retired), CEO
Girl Scouts of Southwest Texas. One of the many reasons why Angie is an advocate of Girl Scouts is that it helps girls build character and learn leadership skills. As a retired officer of the US Marine Corps, who took an oath to defend her country, Angie identifies with the uniqueness of Girl Scouts, who also take an oath, the Girl Scout Promise:
Girl Scout Promise
On my honor, I will try:
To serve God and my country,
To help people at all times,
And to live by the Girl Scout Law.
Girl Scouts is sometimes misunderstood as "only making macaroni necklaces." Girl Scouts is so much more! Girl Scouts helps girls learn leadership skills through earning badges, going on trips, exploring outdoors, selling their world famous cookies, doing community service projects and more! She knows we all love our cookies and not to fear! Cookies are being being delivered now to headquarters and this is a HUGE event! "It's like the Super Bowl!"
Did you know? Angie reminds us that whenever a Girl Scout approaches you asking if you want to purchase cookies, remember that you can pay for cookies that will be delivered to our troops defending our freedom. You can also buy cookies and they will deliver them to the Fisher House! She says that the headquarters welcomes volunteers to assist in this tremendous operation. To sign up as a volunteer click HERE! To learn more about Girl Scouts of Southwest Texas click HERE!
Thank you Angie for speaking to our club today! A book in your honor has been donated to the Locke Hill School Library.
Thank you Brenda Jackson for donating the books for this month!
Umbrella Time
Past President Fred Timmons owns the Umbrella. His winning bid goes towards his Paul Harris Fellowship. He asked our guest speaker Angie to talk about Blue Skies of Texas, formerly known as Air Force Village. Air Force Village was originally for widows of military officers. It is now for everyone. It is known as "San Antonio's premier life plan community." Angie shared that it is for anyone, military or not, who are retired. It is designed for all stages of life, ranging from independent living to hospice. For more information click
HERE!
Show Low Pot and RaffleOur show low pot today was $125 and the wine offerings were Francis Coppola Sauvignon Blanc and Sonoma Vineyards Red Wine Blend. Rick Rhodes owned the first ticket drawn. Unfortunately he drew the 6 of clubs. Since no one is a loser at our club, his consolation prize was a bottle of red. Joe Montagna owned the second ticket drawn and walked away with a bottle of white wine.
The wines for this month were donated by Bruce Richter. Thank you Bruce!
Brags and Confessions
Past President Fred Timmons recently celebrated his birthday and added to his Paul Harris Fellowship.
Brenda Jackson also celebrated her birthday and attended the Neil Diamond concert.
Dwayne Hopkins shared that last year 42 cases of Girl Scout cookies were donated to the Fisher House!
Missing Pins and Fines
Treasurer Stuart Dudley's phone rang during the meeting so he paid a fine.
Did You Know?
Joe Montagna and the MUNSA Interact Club he sponsors marched in the Martin Luther King March on Jan 20 this year!
Mary's CornerDo We Have a Volunteer?
Please don't forget to submit your photos and volunteer for Rotary activities!
1.You will be credited with a Meeting Makeup
2. We want to brag about you in the Bulletin
Why Become a Volunteer? According to the Mayo Clinic there are 6 health benefits...
- Decrease risk of depression
- Gives a sense of purpose and teaches valuable skills
- Helps people stay physically and mentally active
- May reduce stress levels
- May help you live longer
- Helps you meet others and develop new relationships
For more information click
HERE!
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District 5840 Cruise Raffle tickets available at our weekly meetings!
Win a 6-8 Night Royal Caribbean Cruise
Caribbean * Bermuda * Canada * Alaska * Europe
Royal Diamond Level for 2, Balcony Stateroom
Winner & Seller each win a cruise for 2!
$10 per ticket
Drawing at District Conference, May 1, 2020
Winner need not be present to win
For more info click
HERE.
Invite Someone to Rotary!
President Rick encouraged members to bring a guest to Rotary. He then closed the meeting with the recital of the "Four Way Test" by the Club members.
