Lee Ginsburg (left), Chief of Staff to District Governor Dana Moldovan (center), and Joseph Grossman (right) Assistant District Governor Group 5 all honored us with a visit this morning with Dana giving us a presentation.
Stephanie got the meeting to order and welcomed our special guests this morning. Following are her thoughts she shared with us this morning:
I had a great experience at work this week with the Human Resources team at The Cheesecake Factory. We worked with business professors from Pepperdine University and we talked about the importance of communication in groups. Our case study evolved around the Space Shuttle Challenger disaster and the true cause of that disaster.
Most people think that the cause of the disaster was the failure of an O-ring that caused fuel to leak and the shuttle to explode shortly after takeoff. What most people don’t know is that actual cause of the disaster was not the O-ring but the failure to effectively communicate about the concerns with the O-ring prior to the launch. During the final hours before the launch, a meeting took place to make the decision whether they should launch or delay the launch because there was a concern with the function of O-ring and the identified risks that the decision makers had to discuss.
The take away from the Challenger disaster and my work group case study, was that if the room full of experts had taken the time to actively communicate, if they shared constructive thoughts without manipulating the discussion, if they had listened to those in the room who offered differing opinions and had listened to those who were not talking at all, the disaster may have been avoided.
So often we meet with others in our personal or professional lives and engage in what we believe are constructive conversations and yet, if we took a humble step backwards we would realize that we may not have created an environment where everyone felt comfortable talking and contributing to the discussion. Although we are not talking about launching a space shuttle, our conversations are important and make a huge difference for this club and the people we impact. We should strive to create conversations where everyone feels that they can contribute and be heard without judgement and those who are noticeably quiet are encouraged to offer their thoughts. If we can do this, we can do amazing things.
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President Kathryn also acknowledged and welcomed our special guests thanking them for their visit. She then got right to business.
Kathryn first asked Laura Berger and Larry Borovay up to the front in order to receive a small token of appreciation for the very successful Oktoberfest we just had. They were each given a pair of Oktoberfest socks which we hope to see worn next week.
Kathryn then asked Karen Hyle and Kathy Van Etten to come up front. Both ladies are with the Chamber of Commerce (Kathy is CEO) and Kathy is also president of the local Kiwanis Club. Kathryn thanked them both for the help and support they gave us in putting on the Oktoberfest. Without that help based on their past experiences with similar venues, our Oktoberfest wouldn't have been as successful as it was. Kathryn put it well by saying we all serve the same community.
Lastly, she brought Bill Klepper up to the podium. Quick side note. There was an audible gasp heard in the audience when Bill came up. He was wearing a collared shirt. It wasn't tucked in but it was clean. Anyway, Bill was thanked for the Gold Club Award our Club received under his stewardship. Job well done Bill!
Kathryn ended by asking us to listen for those sounds of silence with other fellow Club members as well as in the community at large. We have listened in the past resulting in bikes being donated, meals being prepared, clean water being made available and orphanages being helped. Kathryn's challenge this week is to think differently and to end those sounds of silence. And you know the song Steve inserted here........
President Kathryn
Larry and Laura receiving their Oktoberfest socks
Left to right; Dorina Timbol, Karen Hyle, Laura Berger and Kathy Van Etten
Bill with the Gold Club Award and a nice shirt
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Dan Gesell lead the Invocation this morning.
Bill Fox lead the Pledge of Allegiance.
Jake Finch welcomed our Guests.
Our Very Distinguished Guests this morning included:
Ms. Dana Moldovan (District 5240 Governor)
Mr. Lee Ginsburg (Chief of Staff to District 5240)
Mr. Joseph Grossman (Assistant Governor Group 5)
Ms. Kathy Van Etten (CEO Simi Valley Chamber of Commerce and Kiwanis President)
Ms. Karen Hyle (Simi Valley Chamber of Commerce)
Mr. Eldridge Armstrong
Mr. Mike McCaffrey (Past Club president)
Eldridge Armstrong
Mike McCaffrey with Kathy and Stephanie. Mike was past president of our Club but he left us for New Mexico. It was good to see him!
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We're happy to announce Mr. Daniel Jordan, a local business owner, as a Potential Member.
Dan Jordan
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Bill Klepper is organizing another graffiti cleanup on Hummingbird trail up by the swing. It is slated for Saturday, November 13th. Meet, where else, at Jerry's at 6:30 AM. Believe it or not they gave the key to the gate to Bill and he's taking his jeep. If you can help, please make sure you're insurance is paid up.
Mr. Klepper
Peter Cicciari, chair of the Rotary Foundation, talked about the success the Foundation has had worldwide, specifically with polio. He said 3 billion children have been vaccinated against polio since 1988 with over $2.1 Billion being given out in grants for polio eradication during that time frame. To that end, Peter presented Richard Perini with his 4th Paul Harris Fellow and Mike Sidlinger with his first for all that they do for the Foundation. And, as is custom, the wheel of the 30/30 Group was spun and Stephanie Shannon received that Paul Harris Fellow. Congratulations to all!
Richard (left), Peter (center), and Mike (right)
You know who these two are
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Yep, it's that time of year again! Sophie Klepper is once again organizing our Club's annual dinner for the Senior Center. It will be a Drive Thru dinner just like last year and will be held on Wednesday, November 24th. Sophie will be looking for help so keep this in mind. Sign up sheet coming out next week!
Sophie Klepper
Don't forget about the Rotary Club of Simi Valley's upcoming Halloween Bash this Friday the 29th. Let's all support Evelyn!
Evelyn Garfield
Carolyn Boucher reminded us that we will be having a Team Ginny booth at the Street Fair with and an estimated 18,000 people potentially walking by. Great exposure that will require help manning the booth. She also added that there will be a kidney bean counting competition with a $250 Gift Card going to the winner. And, Sophie Klepper will be there offering rock painting. Please let Carolyn and Sophie know if you can assist.
!!!!VOLUNTEERS NEEDED!!!!
Saturday, October 30th.Carolyn is looking for volunteers to work the booth between the hours of 8 AM and 4 PM.
Carolyn Boucher
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Ms. Dana Moldovan
Our Guest Speaker this morning was Ms. Dana Moldovan, our District Governor. She was introduced by our Assistant Governor, Mr. Joseph Grossman.
Dana gave us a State of the Rotary presentation but started by thanking our Club for its participation and leadership in District 5240. Dana then spoke about the impact that the pandemic has had on Rotary but feels that things are on the upswing. We have, Dana said, reinvented ourselves and have come out stronger. As, an example our membership is slowly increasing again. And, Rotary International raised over $440 million last year. Quire a feat during a pandemic.
She continued by saying that we should take this opportunity to reshape our clubs. The one thing that will remain the same though will be our values in order that we can continue to serve to change lives.
Dana was also very proud of the retooled District website. She encouraged us all to use it and to add to it. The District is always looking for stories that are worth sharing District wide.
She ended by asking us all to consider attending the upcoming District Conference and Foundation Gala at the Santa Barbara Hilton on January 28th-30th, 2022. Registration can be found online.
Dana receiving the time keeper from Kathy
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Happy Birthday Tim! Don't overdue it but it looks like its too late for that.
Happy 29th (Sort of) Club Anniversary Laura!
Laura wanted to set the record straight in regard to her time in as a Rotarian. She joined Rotary 29 years ago. She then left after 5 years and then re-joined about 5 years ago. Hence, the confusion with the 29 years. I think she was trying to get away with something but she came clean.
Nice socks!
Brett Goldsmith and Steve Munday manning the sign in table. Like herding cats they say.
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Our meeting next week on November 4th will be at the Best Western Posada Royale
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Please remember to bring a friend or an acquaintance to our next meeting. This is a GREAT way to grow our membership! And the guest's lunch is taken care of.
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Rotary Club Finder Need to find a club to do a makeup? Or find out where Rotary clubs meet while you are traveling? Click here to access the Club Finder page on the RI website.
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