Rotary Club District 7620 The Rotary Club North Bethesda - Maryland, USA
Rotary Club Anniversary
Rotary Club North Bethesda
Theme Logo
Rotary Membership opportunity
Home About Rotary The Club Membership Service/Activities Projects Photo Gallery Contact Us
   
 

Paul Rockower - American Voices - May 18, 2012

Formed in 1974, the Rotary Club of North Bethesda, MD., has a diverse membership of 50 business and professional men and women. The club is part of Rotary International with over one million members in 26,000 clubs in 175 countries. North Bethesda Rotary meets each Friday morning at Hamburger Hamlet in North Bethesda to enjoy a hearty breakfast, camaraderie, and to plan activities and fund-raisers for Rotary causes and ideals. We invite all interested individuals to come to a meeting, see what Rotary is all about, and learn how we contribute to the community.
May. 18: Paul Rockower - American Voices
May. 25: Ambassador Wegger Chr. Strommen - Downfall of the Euro
June 1: Jamie Franklin - Humanitarian Mine Action
June 8: Elaine Rose - Classification Talk

 
Potomac Scouting & North Bethesda Rotary Rock Creek Bike Ride
June 16, 2012

Join the Rotary Club of North Bethesda and the Potomac District Boy Scouts in bike rides down various trails in Rock Creek Park centered at the Veirs Mill Park Activity Building in Wheaton. Follow the progress and get all the details on the main event website www.rotarybikeride.org

 
Paul Rockower - American Voices
May 18, 2012
Our breakfast speaker today is Paul Rockower, the Director of Communications for “American Voices” which is a nonprofit that conducts cultural diplomacy to countries emerging from conflict or isolation. Paul previously served as Press Officer for the Consulate General of Israel of the Southwest, directing media and public diplomacy outreach across the five-state region. He has also been a Visiting Fellow at the Taiwan Foundation for Democracy, where he researched Taiwan’s public diplomacy.

Paul graduated with a Master’s of Public Diplomacy from the University of Southern California and his journalism and traveling endeavors have taken him to nearly 55 countries!
 
Chris Perlick - Youth Exchange Program
May 17, 2012
Chris Perlick of the Leonardtown Rotary Club in St. Mary’s County was our breakfast speaker last week, and used the occasion to talk about “the experience of a lifetime—the Rotary Lifetime Exchange.” To be a part of the “Lifetime Exchange”

a participant must be between 15 and 18 and a half, above average in academic achievement, and outgoing and flexible by nature. Those who are selected will spend a full year with two or more host families in a foreign country where they will attend school just like the teenagers of their host country.

Forty-nine foreign countries are involved in the program. The participants start with the shock treatment of learning the language of the foreign country they are in, which usually takes about three months during which time they make lifelong friends of the host students.

Teenagers who are sons or daughters of Rotarians may qualify, and anyone interested in applying for participation should contact the Rotary Club of Essex.
 
Dave Fitzwilliam - U.S. Progressivism
May 11, 2012
Last week’s breakfast speaker was club member Dave Fitzwilliam who talked on “the birth of Progressivism in the early 1900s.” Its objective was the redistribution of wealth by Big Government run by scientists, engineers, and intellectuals.

Before the 16th Amendment (income tax) in 1913, the U.S. had limited, free market capitalism, and a GDP growth of 6%. After 1913, Dave said “we had Big Government and Progressivism that limited GDP growth to 2%.” In the 50 years before 1913, U.S. free enterprise grew the economy from 1/3 of the Brits, to 8 times the Brits. Since 1900, only 3 presidents have not been Progressives (Harding, Coolidge, and Reagan).
 
Rick Bradley - Time for Fitness
May 3, 2012
Richard “Rick” Barry was last week’s breakfast speaker and used a lot of humor in talking about his company, “Quick Fit” which has developed a 15-minute no-sweat exercise program. The company deals with a large number of business firms and professional sports teams, and has published a book and DVD describing the program. Rick’s association with the Washington Redskins resulted in an unusual story which took the form of a dialog between coach Joe Gibbs and Redskin player, John Riggins, who kept saying “I aint gonna do it!” but finally agreed to when the time was reduced to two minutes.
 
Chris Warner - Reverse Mortgages
April 26, 2012
Chris Warner was last week’s speaker, and set about to tell what family members should know about reverse mortgages. ”First of all,” he said, “it is not a loan of last resort. It is a way for adults 62 years of age or older to tap into their home equity and receive loan proceeds for what they might need while they continue to live in their homes so long as terms of the loan are met.”

The terms of a reverse mortgage must be met, and they are not for everyone. Changes in terms have been made over the past 50 years, and are important to understand. Our speaker then cited the cases of Home Equity Conversion Mortgages (HECM) that can make it easier to purchase a new home.
 
Last Week
April 19, 2012
For the first time in your editors memory, neither our breakfast speaker or 3-minute speaker showed up last week (although Kent Mason appeared on the scene about half way through the meeting). All of which meant that club President Gary Lett took time to report on the process of selecting students for scholarships, and the continuation of our very popular program at Thomas Edison High School which rewards students $50 for academic achievements.

Gary cited two students who have done well. The first is a young woman who had lost interest in school, had not been attending classes, and enrolled at Thomas Edison where she revived interest and won a $50 reward. The second was a young man who went the way of a gang, moved to Edison, and also won an award.
 
Pete Minderman - Boy Scouts of America
April 12, 2012
Last week’s breakfast speaker was Peter Minderman who is the volunteer Boy Scout District Chairman of the southwest third of Montgomery County (about 3,000 Scouts), and is one of about 1,000 volunteers in the area. He has three sons who are dedicated scouts.

“How do you raise a boy?” is sometimes a vexing question, and his sons have come up with a few ideas on the subject—learn to fail, learn from mistakes, think on the fly, and dedicate yourself to serving others remembering that leadership can’t be learned from a book.

Only two percent of those who enter scouting become Eagle Scouts, and there are a million scouts. The number is declining, but the number in Montgomery County remains rather constant.
 
Donna Marie Thompson. PhD - Meeting Goals
April 05, 2012
Last week’s breakfast speaker was Ms. Donna Marie Thompson, who spoke of “Meet Every Goal Every Time.” Having lost her mother, her husband, her money, and her health all within several month’s time, she is well-qualified to describe how she overcame the trauma of her losses.

A printed “wheel” was distributed to the club members, showing the steps to be taken while on the way to starting and attaining individual goals. Ms. Thompson then said that “there are two kinds of people—those who are willing to give up on their search, and those who overcome obstacles that are in the way of reaching goals.. She presented a sort of key with the letters “YES” for Yearning-Effort-Success.

During the Q & A session, Donna stressed that a proper goal must be set, in order to foresee how obstacles can be overcome and finally enjoyed.
 
Merlyn Reineke - Montgomery Community Media
March. 29, 2012
Merlyn Reineke, the new Executive Director of Montgomery County Media, was last week’s breakfast speaker, and presented a review of plans designed to transform the organization. He began by pointing outthat 41% of the adults in the county interact with local news agencies, and that use of media is at an all-time high.

Newspapers are struggling but citizens want more and broader news reports, and are willing “to cover” events. Currently, the county is comprised of a diversified population which is served by two TV channels (19 & 21). MCM is setting up a new web site and training people to cover events.
 
Victoria Ivan Feldman, Ph.D. - Last Spring in Venice, Florence, Rome
March. 22, 2012
Victoria Feldman, who visited Venice, Florence and Rome last spring, told of her twoweek tour with an extensive collection of photographs. As an architect, she was struck by the design and construction of ancient buildings. While in Venice, she photographed the Piazza San Marco, and the near-by Doges Palace and the Winged Lion of St. Mark with its two great columns. In Florence, Victoria was fascinated by the imposing cathedral, Santa Maria Del Fiore in the center of the city with its cupola and bell tower. The last stop was Rome where the “grandeur that was Rome” is preserved in the ruins that are left in the Forum Romanum, and its statuary.

 
Grace Yao - Shen Yun Performing Arts
March. 15, 2012
Last week’s breakfast meeting featured Ms. Grace Yao (below), who serves with the Asian Community Service Center in the Washington area, and who told us about the Shen Yun performances to be held at the Kennedy Center Opera House, from March 21-April 1.

Shen Yun performers are among the top classical artists in the world, and its artists turn an intensively difficult art form into something beautiful and effortless, inspired by China’s 5,000 years of civilization. The orchestra blends Chinese and western traditions, the bel- canto soloists are an integral part of each performance, blending with the classical phases of the performance in an all-new show.

 
Tom Walsh, RA - Landmark Destinations / sneak peak of Westfield Montgomery Phase 1 Expansion
March. 08, 2012
Thomas Michael Walsh, who serves as Design Director for Westfield’s Southeast region, was last week’s breakfast speaker and told of the founding of these highlysuccessful shopping centers, and plans for the future of the Westfield Center (Montgomery Mall) in our area. Westfield was founded in late 1950 in Sydney, Australia, and today consists of 124 centers, world-wide. The emphasis is upon strategic locations, and the UK center is at the gateway to the upcoming summer Olympic Games, and the U.S. center is at the World Trade Center. As for the local center, plans call for a showcase of fashion and one-stop shopping with an expanded food court and possible addition of two Cosco stores. The Montgomery Mall location contemplates a large moving picture installation on top of the current parking garage.

 
Ms. Pi-Hsien Yu - Embassy of Singapore
March. 01, 2012
Our breakfast speaker last week was Pi- Hsien Yu, the First Secretary of the Embassy of Singapore, who spoke of the island republic she represents. About the size of Long Island, its population is about 5 million, and comprises a financial and trade center. In 1965, Singapore became independent from Malaysia after breaking free from Great Britain two years earlier. It functions under a parliamentary government with a president and a prime minister.

Singapore’s economy is open, with a free market. It faces a degree of pressure from China with a major portion of its population having come from that country. Its cleanliness is a matter of great pride, its art has seen freedom of expression, and overall has become open in many areas.

 
2nd Annual Wine Tasting & Silent Auction
Feb. 23, 2012
The club’s Wine Tasting and Auction fundraiser at Kenwood Country Club last Saturday was an artistic success, and well-attended by almost 100 members and guests. The financial figures are not yet available and presumably will be “made public” in due course.

Special thanks are in order for those members who worked long and hard in putting the event together– particularly Carmela Carr, Rob Follit, Elaine Rose, Gonzo Accame, Jim Manley and we hope we didn’t miss anybody! A collection of photos taken by Gonzo can be seen here.

Photo Gallery - CLICK HERE

 
Mr. Kent W. Mason - Mountain Light – The West Virginia Allegheny
Feb. 23, 2012
Last week’s very interesting breakfast speaker was Kent Mason, a charter member and past president of our club, and perhaps equally important, a conservationist in the mountains of West Virginia (where he has a second home).

Kent’s program featured photos of the mountains and landscapes in the Alleghenies with appropriate background music plus Kent’s observations of the parkland and wilderness, scenes of West Virginia mountain tops, Norfolk mountain, the Eastern Continental divide—all of which is only about a four hour drive from the Washington area. The mountains are numerous and at one point in history were the highest in the world. It is an area of beauty that is worth that four hour drive!

 
Kristin Panier- Rotary Amb. Scholar
Feb. 16, 2012

Our breakfast speaker last week (courtesy of member Bruce Fowler) was Ms. Kristin Panier—a Rotary Ambassadorial Scholar and Fulbright scholarship recipient from Dresden, Germany who is studying at Johns Hopkins University in Montgomery County.
Kristin’s talk included a Power- Point presentation about her native city, as well as some newsworthy items of current interest. The first pictures were photos of World War II damage to Dresden, a city that is known as the “Florence of the Elbe.” Next came scenes of Christmas buildings and decorations, followed by reports of newsworthy events.
The first event dealt with the mayor of Dresden, Christian Wulff, who apologized for a private loan he had received. The second was a news story about the phase-out of a nuclear power facility which had been postponed, and the third concerned the renewal of another plant that was delayed. The nations of Greece, Ireland, Italy, Spain, and Portugal have, in her view, placed the euro under great pressure. Kristin is planning on completing her studies in International Relations by 2013.

 
Michael Fonte - Update on Taiwan
Feb. 09, 2012
Our speaker was Michael Fonte, and his subject was Taiwan, his”favorite place in the world.” He pictured the history of the island and its significant place in Asia today, and finished by saying we have little cause to turn our eyes away from China and the Orient

 
William Klein - House Appropriations Committee
Feb. 02, 2012
Last week’s breakfast speaker was William (Bill) Klein, who is a member of the “Surveys and Investigations Staff” of the House Appropriations Committee. He gave us an inside look into what he described “as the research arm of the committee.”

S & I was defined by statute in 1943, with a Director and Deputy Director. It is said to be “programspecific and its investigations cover a wide range of requests from committee members. Once a matter is brought to S & I, it is given to a team leader for investigation.

The point was strongly made that little may be learned if you go to Google in an effort to learn the inner workings of the committee or its investigative arm. Bill Klein spent more than ten years with the National Criminal Investigative Service, and now spends much of his time with defense and government matters.

 
Rachel Simko - Youth World
Jan. 26, 2011
Last week’s breakfast speaker was Ms. Rachel Simko, who has served as a missionary and art teacher in Ecuador for the past year. Her talk was about the country and her work in the capital city of Quito.

The country is roughly the size of Colorado and sits astride the equator, hence its name, and Quito is at an altitude of 9,500 feet. It is a beautiful country but impoverished, follows traditions, speaks Spanish, and is Roman Catholic. It schools are poorly furnished, and our speaker uses her own funds to buy supplies.

Rachel’s photographs displayed few desks, one computer that does not work, and a Christmas tree for the holidays. From her conversations, it was apparent that she has a deep affection for her students, and they in turn for her. She was graduated from the Maryland Institute College of Art, and has become proficient in Spanish. She welcomes the support of churches and service clubs in the area.

 
Lobna "Luby" Ismail. - Cross Cultural Relations
Jan. 19, 2011
Last week’s meeting featured Ms. Lobna “Luby” Ismael, an American-born Muslim of Egyptian descent who is the President of the “Connecting Cultures” organization which is dedicated to helping people connect across cultures and faiths. She presented an absorbing study of “Cross Cultural” relations, beginning with the idea that you must know your full name as a tribute to your forebears.

Luby grew up near Gainesville, Florida, and quickly learned that barriers exist to human relations, with language the most obvious, plus traditions, genders, religions, and non-verbal actions. To illustrate, she had two members of the club (Nick Martinez and Kent Mason) stand facing each other about six feet apart, and then asked each one to step toward the other. Each felt the other was in his face, and became uncomfortable.

Hand gestures vary from country to country, the concept of time is either exact or whenever, and eye contact can bring approval or confusion.

 
Lincoln Smith - Forest Gardening
Jan. 12, 2011
Lincoln Smith, a tall young man with a passion for protection of the environment, spoke to the club last week on the subject of “Forest Gardening”, which is based on ecosystems that are layered and polycultural. Roots grow in various forms which has been found to help each other.

Lincoln cited the work of Dr. Norman Borlaug as one of the outstanding men in the forefront of the “green” movement. Forty percent of the land in the world produces our food, but today yields have increased, providing more pounds per acre. Oak trees provide acorns for flour, and plants are adaptable for every type of soil. What may be the most important development is that a sense of moral pressure is today been found in the way our forests and fields perform.

 
Curtis E. Huff, Club Director - International Service Update
Jan. 05, 2011
Curtis Huff was last week’s breakfast speaker in his capacity as the club’s Director of International Service for many years (a duty he will be turning over to Jim Manley). He presented an update on what he has been doing lately and in particular his concentration on a school for girls in Kenya and the two girls who have been awarded scholarships in a private school. Our club has provided funds of $1,800 per year for tuition and living expenses. They have responded with good grades (all A’s and B’s) and have kept in touch with a Rotary club in the area.

Curt feels that Kenya will benefit as a developing country, and it is a good idea to work with these two girls, and a value in building relationships there. He also went on to explain some of his duties at the State Department, notably Fulbright scholarships and Leadership programs by which visitors are invited to the U.S. for three week tours.

 
Gonzo Accame - Christmas Wishes
Dec. 29, 2011
Richard Bray led off our Holiday celebration with his guitar and rousing singing Jingle Bells, to be followed by members recalling childhood memories of holidays in years gone by. The idea was set up by Gonzo Accame , who came equipped with his professional camera and sound system.

Gonzo’s memory was the time he hid in a closet in order to see Santa Claus, fell asleep, and woke up in his own bed where he assumed Santa had moved him. Aaron Overton was next, and related that when he was a child in Alaska he received one glove for Christmas, and the other one was a present on his birthday a week later. Ellen Gillis remembered that her brother got a BB gun, and used it to break a window in the house next door. Dave Fitzwilliam (who was living in Brazil) received a Lionel electric train which had to be set up on a dining room table. John Warden was in South Africa where it was summer was stricken by an upset stomach, and used watermelon as a cure.

Then there was Carmela Carr, who was from a large family, unwrapped gifts one at a time, amid many jokes. Chuck Boteler received a wrapped Christmas present in a Christmas eve ceremony, and when he unwrapped it the next day, there was a notation on the wrapping “For a 6 to 8 year old girl.” And so it went, with further anecdotes from Glenn Blong, Jim Manley, Ron Sigelman, Joe Bunker and Bob Fangmeyer.



 
Annual Meeting - Election of Officers
Dec. 22, 2011
It may not have been legal, but the club managed last week to put together an acceptable and approved slate of officers and directors who will take over next July 1. The following members were elected:

President: Gary Lett.
Vice President: Joe DiPietro,
President-Elect: Nick Martinez,
Secretary: Aaron Overton,
Treasurer: Steve Vaccarezza.
Directors: Carmela Carr, Gonzalo Accame, Claes Ryn, Brent Kynoch
Sergeant-At-Arms: Kevin Flynn

(Immediate Past President Jim Manley continues as a director) Following the election, reports were made by Treasurer Steve Vaccarezza (“We’re solvent to the tune of $10,000 less Holiday Brunch expenses”), Fund Raising Chairperson Carmela Carr (“Auction and wine tasting will be held February 16 at a cost of $45 per person”), Vocational Director Claes Ryn (“We should reach out to business leaders as well as young people through Rotary Youth Leadership”), Curt Huff (“We’re continuing support for two students in Kenya”), and Director Ellen Gillis (“Dictionary project moving well”).

 
Jay Davies- Rotay Curling Championship
Dec. 15, 2011
Last week’s breakfast program was put on by Jay Davies and Bob Pellitier (past President of Elkridge Rotary, past member of Columbia-Patuxent Rotary, now member of Wheaton Rotary) who related the history of the Curling Championships to be held April 1 to April 6 at the National Capital Curling Center in Laurel. Canada has won the championship eight times, with Scotland taking the title seven times and the U.S.A. twice. “Now that we have been awarded this championship, we have to make it a success,” he said, and followed with ways that Rotarians can help.

They can volunteer as drivers, purchase sponsorships, sign up as “friends, and buy advertising spots throughout the championship site. They can even “make up” at the Laurel Rotary Club on Wednesday, April 4, at the Sheraton Washington North Hotel.

 
Louis P. Soloman - Your Story is Their Story
Dec. 08, 2011

Louis Solomon, who holds three degrees in including a PhD, was our speaker and currently concentrates on a new venture which he described by the title, “Your Story is Their Story.” He maintains that everyone has a story to be told and that now is the time to tell it. Start with photographs or letters or memoirs of any kind, but the important thing is to start now, spending time every day to the effort, not just now and then. Our speaker has a firm called “Life Echoes” and publishes books with hard covers and acid-free paper which is put together by a company named “Copy General” near Dulles Airport.

 
David O. Stewart - American Emperor
Dec. 01, 2011

David O. Stewart made his third visit to our club, this time to talk about his latest book, American Emperor, Aaron Burr’s Challenge to Jefferson’s America. Burr had been active in politics and served as vice-president under Jefferson who dropped Burr from the ticket in 1804. Predictably, animosity between the two men deepened.

Burr joined with General James Wilkinson in an effort to separate the western part of the United States, seize other territories to form another nation presumably with Burr at its head—all of which came to be known as the “Burr Conspiracy.” In time, he became nearly delusional about forming a nation in the west. He had been lass than exemplary in his dealings, “a very ambitious man with lofty ambitions.”

 

Older news >>

HAMBURGER HAMLET, HOME of the NORTH BETHESDA ROTARY
We meet at Hamburger Hamlet, every Friday 7:15 a.m.

 
   
 
bottom line
Find us on Facebook