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Thursday, July 27, 2017 VOL. NINETY-FOUR, Issue No. 4 Digging Deeper to Understand Tacoma's Environmental Future: A view from the Center for Urban Water |
Professor Joel Baker holds the Port of Tacoma Chair in Environmental Science and is the Science Director of the Center for Urban Waters. He earned a B.S. degree in Environmental Chemistry from SUNY Syracuse (1982) and M.S. (1985) and Ph.D. (1988) degrees in Civil and Environmental Engineering from the University of Minnesota. The natural beauty of Tacoma and the Pacific Northwest provides tremendous social, spiritual, and economic values to our community. While there is a strong consensus to ‘protect our environment’, the public is bombarded with often widely conflicting information both about the status of our environment and what they should do individually and collectively to preserve and enhance our surroundings. At the Center for Urban Waters, University of Washington scientists and engineers develop and use cutting edge tools to describe the current state of the environment, to assess the impact of a variety of stressors, and to enable decision makers to make science-informed policy. This presentation will explore several Urban Waters projects and challenge Tacoma Rotary 8 members to go beyond the headlines of contemporary issues facing Tacoma.The natural beauty of Tacoma and the Pacific Northwest provides tremendous social, spiritual, and economic values to our community. While there is a strong consensus to ‘protect our environment’, the public is bombarded with often widely conflicting information both about the status of our environment and what they should do individually and collectively to preserve and enhance our surroundings. At the Center for Urban Waters, University of Washington scientists and engineers develop and use cutting edge tools to describe the current state of the environment, to assess the impact of a variety of stressors, and to enable decision makers to make science-informed policy. This presentation will explore several Urban Waters projects and challenge Tacoma Rotary 8 members to go beyond the headlines of contemporary issues facing Tacoma.The natural beauty of Tacoma and the Pacific Northwest provides tremendous social, spiritual, and economic values to our community. While there is a strong consensus to ‘protect our environment’, the public is bombarded with often widely conflicting information both about the status of our environment and what they should do individually and collectively to preserve and enhance our surroundings. At the Center for Urban Waters, University of Washington scientists and engineers develop and use cutting edge tools to describe the current state of the environment, to assess the impact of a variety of stressors, and to enable decision makers to make science-informed policy. This presentation will explore several Urban Waters projects and challenge Tacoma Rotary 8 members to go beyond the headlines of contemporary issues facing Tacoma. |
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Welcome to Returning Member Bruce Dammeier Bruce was introduced by Libby Catalinich. His sponsor is Larry Treleven, but he had a conflict so Libby stepped in as a knowledgeable replacement. Even those of us who know Bruce, as a former 15 year member, learned some new things. For those who haven't had the pleasure; Bruce is a Tacoma native, he was a graduate of the Naval Academy and received his Masters in Engineering from UW. He has been a public servant for many years having served on the Puyallup School Board, the State House and Senate and now serving as our County Executive. He and his wife Lauren have 3 married sons and the newest family addition in February, a granddaughter. He still manages to find time to enjoy the outdoors, cycling and boating and is a devoted community volunteer. Please take the time to welcome Bruce back to the club next time you see him.
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MEMBERSHIP PROPOSAL Unless written objections are submitted to the Board within 10 days of this posting, the following individuals will be invited to membership. Karena Kirkendoll GOVERNMENT SERVICES - Judicial Superior Court Judge Pierce County Superior Court Sponsor: Kathryn Nelson |
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FAMILY JUSTICE CENTER ANNUAL BARBECUE Thanks to the wonderful volunteers above our club participated once again in service for others at the Crystal Judson Center Annual Barbecue.
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THANKS FOR YOUR GENEROSITY Thanks to the Projects Committee and Ann Voves and Rusty Hersey for kicking off our efforts, identifying donors and negotiating some great deals on towels. We have over $1,000 pledged or in hand!
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What an amazing group of volunteers we had, sharing smiles and bunches of fun with the kids at Camp Goodtimes Huge thanks goes to Ann Voves for once again organizing our efforts and to the following volunteers; Kim Bedier, Cynthia Darland and Tim, Heather Faverman, Whitney Grisaffi, Maria Harlow, Kelly Lane, Karen Larsen, Melissa Malott, Debbie and Leo Regala, Greg and Sonja Rolsma, Gil and Joane Quante, Sherri Stanton, Pat Steel, Alex Trettin and Jim Whitacre.  
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VEERLE MIKULAS |
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2017-18 EXCHANGE STUDENT INFORMATION Hello my name is Mikulas Rimanek and I am 15 years old. I live in Ostrava, Czech Republic. I am a Rotary Exchange student who has been assigned to come to beautiful Tacoma, Washington! My parents, Tomas and Barbara Rimanek are very excited for me to meet my new host families for the 2017-18 school year at Stadium High School! I have a “very good” rating for my English studies and I speak German too. I have excellent ratings in all my classes. I like to balance my hobbies with my school studies. I love nature, birding and exploring the wild. I am very concerned about the protection of the environment. I think I will study biology and ornithology in university. I am interested in meeting new people, get to know new places in the world. I am keenly interested in taking biology at Stadium to compare the differences there and in my school. I want to become familiar with organizations that are doing environmental protection operating in Tacoma that can be used in Czech Republic. I love to eat and cook too! Will you be my new host family? Veerle Obdeijn from the Netherlands will be arriving in August from the village of Markelo about 1.5 hrs outside of Amsterdam. Veerle is an avid horsewoman. She loves music and plays violin. In the summer, she joins her older brother in Friesland for sailing camp. Veerle bikes to school. She is in secondary school in Holland. Her Dad works as a project manager with an environmental consultancy and her Mom runs an independent recreation business from home. She has an older brother and younger sister. Her parents report that she loves to sing and has a very even tempered personality. She is very responsible and has persisted through various childhood issues with early surgeries. She makes friends and is very gregarious. Veerle is a well traveled teenager. She has visited European countries and South Africa where she hiked Table Mountain in Cape Town with her family and toured Kruger Park. This will be her first visit to America. Won’t you be one of her lucky host families? |
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10 Reasons to Host an Exchange Student in the words of our host parents - You can learn that country’s may be different (culture, food, art, politics), but we are also not that different (want peace, family issues are the same, people vacation and go to work like we do).
- Teenagers keep you young and you tend to go places and do things you wouldn’t normally.
- You get to know/see your city and state because you want to ensure they see it too. Great excuse!
- Hosting provides an invaluable international/cultural experience for your children without leaving home.
- Creates a lifetime friendship around the world, which inspires a never ending worldly perspective.
- The world gets a little smaller and better. We love our International kids!
- Your entire family has a mutually beneficial education experience.
- Your eyes are open to what the younger generation is thinking. We were able to have tremendously insightful discussions with our student on the different views regarding culture, society, government, world history and even politics.
- You have the chance to learn or practice a foreign language.
- You create a lifetime of memories, with someone who will always be in your heart.
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THIS WEEK'S HELPERS Invocator - Linda Kaye Briggs
National Anthem & Four Way Test - Barry Benson Piano - Jack Warnick Greeter/Roving Mic - Stephanie Farrar Board Greeter/Roving Mic - Elliot Stockstad Membership Greeter - Greg Rolsma Birthdays -Buck Thompson
Fine Counter - Dan Bogart
Meeting Reporter for Gearshift - Michael Thompson Meeting Sponsor - WANT TO HELP AT A ROTARY MEETING?
There are clipboards at every meeting for you to sign up to help out! --Leading the National Anthem & Four Way Test
--Giving the Invocation
--Playing piano
--Mentoring a Pandaka
--Greeter and Roving Mic
--Writing the Gearshift Meeting Notes
Birthdays to celebrate
Peter Carlstrom – July 23 Shanna LaMar – July 23 Pat Steel – July 23 Mike Bitterling – July 24 Anniversaries to celebrate Karen Larsen - 1 year – July 28 Nancy Davis - 11 years – July 27 Becky Fontaine - 25 years – July 23 Deb Robinett - 26 years – July 25 |
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Boring Bylaws? Not on our watch! We need your help as our ad hoc committee (a dedicated quartet of bylaw busting aspiring Rotary Super Hero wannabes) works to review and update the Tacoma #8 Bylaws. Watch your email box or mailbox for the Rotary Bylaw Survey. Please take the time to open and respond to the survey. The mission of our ad hoc committee is to gather input from club members and recommend Bylaws updates to our Club Directors. Any changes to the Bylaws will only be made by a vote of our Members. We need your help to ensure that the governing documents of our Club reflect the needs of all our fellow Rotarians. The text of our Club Bylaws can be found here. Jim Henderson, Jeff Rounce, Stephen Deal, and Mark Anderson
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ROAMERS Becky Fontaine - Tacoma South Becky Fontaine - Poulsbo Fred Moisio - Clover Park Larry Treleven - Eugene John West - Lake Chelan |
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OFFICE HOURS THIS WEEK The office will be staffed this week from 11-4 Monday through Thursday. |
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UPCOMING RELATIONSHIP BUILDING SOCIALS
The Fellowship/Relationship Building Committee invites all members of Tacoma #8 to join them on Thursdays at 5 pm. These socials are a great way to meet some new Rotarians or catch up with old friends. Pandakas, these meetings will fulfill your "social" requirement prior to graduation and, for all members, it’s fun! July 27, 2017 The Fish Peddler 1199 Dock street Tacoma, WA Last week's social at Anthony's |
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HIGHLIGHTING YOUR BUSINESS -- MEETING SPONSORS NEEDED NOW!
It's crunch time! We are looking for meeting sponsors for August and September (and the rest of the year) . Now is your chance to help the club offset the cost of the speaker's meal, gift and other program expenses, by signing up for a meeting. Have your company’s name highlighted and sign up today.
Meeting Sponsor Cost: $100 per meeting. We are now allowing a 1 minute video in lieu of a slide and 1-2 minute presentation. To sponsor a meeting, contact the Rotary office.
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Reflections from the meeting of July 20 by Hunter George |
President Mark Anderson opened the meeting with thoughts about the late George Tanbara, who was our club’s first Art Wickens Community Service Award winner in 1974 and always kept the medallion in a prominent place in his home. George’s son, Greg Tanbara, visited our Board meeting this week to thank Rotary 8 for the award, which was very meaningful to his father. Mark also advised us about the death of former member Alan Bush, and he asked for a moment of silence to remember Dr. Tanbara and Alan Bush. Joyce Glavish, JayRay, gave an inspiring invocation based on the Aug. 21 total eclipse. Chris Serface, Tacoma Little Theater, led the National Anthem and the 4-Way Test. Visiting Rotarians and guests were introduced with the help of Larry Norvell, The Zoo Society and Carol Duris, Timberland Bank. Marcia Burns introduced Sara Vigoureoux, an exchange student from France, who exchanged a club banner from District 1740 with Mark. Violette Lafferty, daughter of former member Angela Tamajka and niece of Corey Hjalseth, will soon head to France for a month long exchange. Libby Catalinich, Pierce County, introduced our first new member for 2017-18 on behalf of sponsor Larry Treleven, who had a schedule conflict. Our newest member is a familiar face: Bruce Dammeier, now the Pierce County Executive, who was pinned with a blue badge since he’s a returning member. It was noted that Bruce spent 8 years in the Navy, 8 years on the Puyallup School Board and 8 years in the Legislature … and now he’s returning to Rotary 8. Mark invited Pamela Transue to introduce the co-speakers, Washington State Reps. Laurie Jinkins and Jake Fey, who represent the 27th Legislative District. They gave an insider’s perspective on what it’s like to serve in the Legislature. Each serves on 3 committees, which can meet for up to two hours a day and delve into a wide variety of topics. They described a typical session in terms of “seasons” as bills move from committees to the floor and then to the other chamber, where they go through a similar vetting process. Legislators spend a lot of time waiting, and dread the frequent announcement “it’s time to mill about” as leaders determine which measures to advance. Amendments aren’t always designed to improve a bill; the minority party will often offer amendments designed to kill a bill. Still, most bills aren’t controversial. Probably 95 percent of bills are approved with overwhelming majorities, and often unanimously. It’s the 5 percent that get the most attention because they are controversial or present strong philosophical differences. When they are not in committee meetings or floor sessions, the moments in between are consumed with meetings with constituents and lobbyists. Meetings are usually scheduled in 15-minute increments, and even “walking meetings” as they go to the next committee hearing. Laurie and Jake expressed disappointment that the Legislature had not passed a capital budget, which would fund billions in construction projects around the state. They noted that the capital budget is being held by the Senate’s majority party until an unrelated water policy disagreement is resolved, and they expressed hope that a compromise can be reached so that work can proceed on important local projects, such as an expansion at Tacoma Community House. Next, Mark recognized this week’s membership anniversaries: Robin Echtle - 7 years cumulative, Donna Haynes - 9 years, Carol Webster - 9 years, Steve O’Brien - 10 years, Maureen Fife - 16 years, Rick Olson - 20 years cumulative, and Ray Schuler - 31 years. Mark asked Harrison Laird, CBRE, to come celebrate birthdays. Of the 7 members celebrating this week, Brien Elvins, Hunter George and Doug Page were present and shared a memory of the night sky in honor of the anniversary of Neil Armstrong’s walk on the moon. Other birthday celebrants this week were Ron Langrell, Linda Nguyen, John Pfaff and Jackie Lindstrom. Mark reminded members that volunteers are needed for the Aug. 26th Courage ride, as he encouraged members to join a committee. Don Doman presented Dick Zamjahn’s joke book to Mark. During True Confessions, members spoke about receiving professional awards, their commitment to Rotary, and family travels. Marcia Burns said we need one more host family for exchange student who will be here for 3 months. Mark adjourned the meeting with a call to go out and Live Rotary. |
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Sound advice for Service Above Self Living, by Past President Bill Baxter |
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" Our deeds still travel with us from afar, and what we have been makes us what we are. " George Eliot
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.JPG)    THANK YOU, TACOMA 8 ADVERTISERS!
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