Today was a Zoom meeting with 29 of us on line.
GUEST:
PDG Bob Hobaugh, Kutztown RC; Austin Fasnacht, Parkland HS student of the month and his parents; Dr. Maggie Drake, Asst. Principal, Parkland H.S.
PRE-MEETING CONVERSATIONS:
Tori Morgan began singing “Hello” to Ernie and Bill. She is very happy, and she said she loves to sleep.
Ernie Boll’s background was a photo of a gorgeous sunset from his AZ home.
Gail Micca says she is feeling sick, probably from too many plane flights.
Karen Rodgers is back from a fabulous trip to Costa Rica. She really liked the rice and beans for breakfast.
Bob Hobaugh is working on a project to identify and drill for fresh water in Haiti.
OPENING:
Pres. Gail Micca started the meeting at 7:33 A.M.
Chuck Ehninger gave a very nice invocation.
Ron Coleman led us in reciting the Pledge of Allegiance to the Flag of the U.S.
Marlene Heller led us in saying the Four Way Test, adding “Is it Fun?”
STUDENT OF THE MONTH:
Nicole McGalla introduced Austin Fasnacht, Parkland High School senior, our Student of the month. Austin belongs to the Honor Society and many clubs at school. He has been snowboarding since he was 8 years old. Recently he donated $3,000 that he earned from flipping houses. He has applied to many colleges to study Mechanical Engineering.
Austin thanked AWRC for this award.
CELEBRATIONS:
Pres. Gail displayed the list of November member celebration events. The list is shown below.
DRIVE THRU HOLIDAY EVENT:
This will occur on Dec 4th.
AWRC HOLIDAY PARTY:
We are holding our annual Christmas party at Twin Lakes C.C. The date is Friday, Dec. 2nd. Registration now is open. We have 28 signed up so far.
BY THIS FRIDAY, please sign up so we get a headcount.
SNACKPACKING:
We did Snack pack at Parkland H.S. last Wed. Nov. 9th. Herb Klotz said they created 250 snack packs.
Today is packing at Northwestern Lehigh with the Interactors.
THE ROTARY FOUNDATION SEMINAR:
Herb Klotz said there were 115 people there, and they had wonderful speakers.
PROJECTS FOR GRANTS FOR 2022-23:
Please tell Pres. Gail your recommendations for special projects for which we can make Grant applications. Herb said we will have one for Sierra Leone too.
PARKLAND C.A.R.E.S. PRODUCE DELIVERY:
Was on Saturday Nov. 12th. They served 175 clients.
NEXT PANTRY DAY is December 17.
KINGDOM LIFE FOOD DISTRIBUTION:
The next distribution will be on November 19th. Volunteers always are needed.
CHAMBER OF COMMERCE EVENTS:
- EPCC & WLCC holiday Luncheon- December 14 11am- 1pm Brookside Country Club
- EPCC & WLCC Movie Tavern Mixer- January 18 5pm- 8pm
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- Chamber Night at Board and Brush Allentown- February 1 5:30pm- 8:30pm
GIFT CARDS NEEDED:
We still need donations of various denominations of GIANT gift cards. They will go to the new families in the new Habitat for Humanity homes near a Giant store. This is the last appeal for this group.
JINGLE BELL RUN:
Will be held on Saturday, December 3rd sponsored by the Whitehall RC.
MEALS ON WHEELS:
The schedule for the next 4 months is coming.
HAPPY DOLLARRS:
Gail Micca is happy that her parents are here with her to celebrate Thanksgiving.
Ron Coleman is happy to say that he loves Gail’s Mother.
Amir Famili is happy to be back from his 4 week trip to Iraq.
Herb Klotz is happy that he got to visit with some long-time friends while at the Rotary Foundation Seminar.
Bob Hobaugh and Florita are going to Pittsburg to see their son, Steve, perform at the Joan Jett show. He plays guitar and six other instruments.
Tori Morgan wants to go too.
MEETING SCHEDULE:
Since November 30th is the 5th Wednesday of the month, and since our Holiday Party is on December 2nd, there will be no AWRC meeting on Nov. 30th.
Starting in January, the first Wednesday will be a Dining out meeting, or equal. It may not be on a Wednesday. Herb Klotz is working on the January event.
NEXT MORNING MEETING:
Wednesday November 23 at Madeline’s in Fogelsville starting at 7:30 A.M. Come early and talk around.
Our program will be Diana Dunne & Tom Powers giving an Update on Projects in Sierra Leone.
PROGRAM:
Amir Famili introduced Dr. Mohsin Hashim, Professor of Political Science and Director of Russian Studies at Muhlenberg College to provide An update: The International Crises in Ukraine -- How and Why it Matters.
Amir said that the Ukraine war affects all of us all over the world. He said it is an honor to have Dr. Hashim back with us again. Dr. Hashim came to the U.S. in 2000 and was at Penn State University. He now is at Muhlenberg College. He loves cricket and soccer.
Dr. Hashim said that it was good to be back, and that he roots for the soccer team underdogs.
Russia’s invasion of Ukraine is the largest attack on a democratic nation since World War II. The global consequences are significant. Not only are more than 40 million lives at risk, but Russia’s invasion of Ukraine has serious ramifications for European and global security and the international economy.
Dr. Hashim discussed the best frameworks for understanding and responding to this crisis. He discussed how we should interpret the causes and consequences of this invasion.
He asked: Could this crisis have been averted? What is the Kremlin’s geostrategic calculus? How can NATO, the European Union, and the United Nations manage this conflict? Is there a special role for the United States? Are diplomacy and sanctions enough to deter Russia from further escalating this conflict?
There is much history between Russia and Ukraine for centuries. Right now there are 8 million Russians living in the eastern Ukraine sections. In 2008 Russia invaded and annexed Crimea to have access to the Black Sea.
Pres. Putin when he had 200,000 troops invade Ukraine last February, believed that there were no leaders to fight back and that it would only take a week or two to win. As it turns out Volodymyr Zelenskyy has stepped up and is leading the Ukraine defenses and recently has had Russian troops leave.
Ukraine is not a member of NATO. In fact until recently Ukraine was not sufficiently structured to even qualify to be a member of the European Union.
Currently there seems to be no end in sight for this war. Putin needs to save face. Ukraine wants to return to its original borders. Stay tuned./
CLOSING:
Pres. Gail led us in reciting our motto “One profits most who serves best,” and adjourned the meeting.
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