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Rotary Club of
Allentown West
Pres. Jeanne Shipe
Asst. Gov. Gary Rohrbach
District 7430 Governor
Cindy Hornaman
 
MEETINGS:
Wednesdays at 7:30 a.m.
at Luther Crest
2nd and 4th Thursday
at 5:30 p.m.
at the Holiday Inn
 
WEBSITE
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Here are the AWRC
Board Members for 2018-19
 
 
President  - Jeanne Shipe
 President- Elect   -  Amir Famili
Immediate Past President - Mike Gschwendtner
 
Secretary -Joe Goll
Treasurer - Chris Blechschmidt
Sergeant at Arms and PR Chair - Mitch Huston
Service Committee and Domestic Grants Chair - Gail Micca
 
RI Foundation and International Grants Chair - Barbara Kistler
 
Fundraising Chair - Len Salines
 
Evening Meeting Rep  - Barbara Kistler
Membership Chair - John Scott
 
Youth Services Co-Chairs - Bill Weber and Sue Weber

  ________________

GREETERS

    

Jan 23rd  --  Gwenn Carr
 
Jan 30th  --  Dan Crane
 
 
Feb  6th  --    Ronnee Klotz
 
Feb 13th  --   Scott Hock
 
Feb 20th  --  Ron Coleman
 
Feb 27th  --  Jean Masiko
 
 
Mar  6th  --  Gary Heller
 
Mar 13th  --  Marlene Heller
 
Mar 20th  --  Carrie Ballek
 
Mar 27th  --  Joe Goll
 

-NOTE that the Greeter Schedule also appears as a "site page" accessible on the left of our website Home Page without logging-in.

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THURSDAY  EVE  PROGRAMS
 
 
Jan 24th  --  Dining at Curious Goods 6 PM
 
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TT5  MEETING  SCHEDULE
 

FRIDAY, January 18th at the Holiday Inn at 7:00 a.m. for Breakfast  --  7:30 a.m. is the meeting.
 
 
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LET'S  GO  --  AW  ROTARIANS
PLEASE  HELP  COMPLETE  OUR RECORDS
 
The following members are rquested to e-mail Bill Palmer the date that they first joined Rotary membership anywhere, PLUS the date that they joined AWRC. According to our records you each joined on Jan 1st, 1900. I don't think so.
 
 
Dawn Costello      
           
Chuck Ehninger   
 
Ihor Fedoriw         
 
Jerry Frank 
          
A J Henry              
          
Daryl Smith           
 
 
Bill's e-mail is  bill966@ptd.net          
 
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CALENDAR of EVENTS
 
         
    Jan 18th  --  TT5 Meeting at the Holiday Inn 7 a.m.
 
     Jan 24th  --  Dining Out at Curious Goods at 6:00 P.M. - 7705 Bake Oven Rd, Germansville, PA 18053
 
     Feb 28th  --  Dining Out at Tacos & Tequila in Allentown.
 
     Mar 27th  --  Destination meeting at Parkland H.S.
 
    Mar 30th  --  RLI  - Rotary Leadership Institute  --  in K.O.P.
 
    Jun 24th  --  D7430 Changeover and Awards at DeSales University at 6 PM
 
    
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2019  DISTRICT 7430  CONFERENCE
 
  • Registration for District Conference is open.  The conference this year is in Allentown, so it will be very convenient for us all to attend. 
    • Here is the link to view the event and get registered:
Club Events
9-11 am Lowhill Food Pantry
Mar 02, 2019
 
7:30 am Breakfast at Luther Crest
Luther Crest Facility Main Dining Room in the Administration Building
Mar 06, 2019 7:30 AM
 
7:30 am Breakfast at Luther Crest
Luther Crest Facility Main Dining Room in the Administration Building
Mar 13, 2019 7:30 AM
 
5:30 pm Evening Group Happy Hour
Mar 14, 2019 5:30 PM
 
AWRC Board Meeting
Mar 19, 2019
7:15 AM – 8:30 AM
 
10am-noon Lowhill Food Pantry
Mar 20, 2019
 
7:30 am Breakfast at Luther Crest
Luther Crest Facility Main Dining Room in the Administration Building
Mar 20, 2019 7:30 AM
 
4-6:30 pm Lowhill Food Pantry
Mar 21, 2019
 
Rotary International Foundation Gala
Mar 23, 2019
 
7:30 am Breakfast at Luther Crest
Luther Crest Facility Main Dining Room in the Administration Building
Mar 27, 2019 7:30 AM
 
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TELL  HALYNA
 
     As you become aware of any member of our Rotary family that would benefit from our support with cards, flowers or visits, please notify Halyna Steguta at:  hsteg@aol.com
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CONTACT INFORMATION
AWRC  ACTIVITIES
 
Kingdom Life Food Pantry:-  Jean Masiko – masiko@aol.com
 
Parkland Snack Packing:--  Gail Micca gailmicca@gmail.com
 
Lowhill Food Pantry and Northwestern Snack Packing: 
 
Membership:     John Scott  johnscottl@msn.com
 
Public Relations:  Mitch Huston – jazz111@aol.com
 
TT5:  Len Salines – lenmary3657@ptd.net
          Gary Englehardt – genglehardt@thepegasusorg.com
          Gwenn Carr – gwenn.carr@thepegasusorg.com
 
Dining Out:  Ronnee Klotz – ronneek@gmail.com
                       Jean Machamer – jeanmachamer@ptd.net
 
Evening Meeting :  Herb Klotz
 
Purple Pinkie: Barb Kistlerbarbara.kistler@rcn.com
 
Park Cleanup:  Dennis Houser – houserdah@gmail.com
                          
Purple Pinkie 5K at LCCC --  John Scott --     johnscottl@msn.com
 
Miracle League:  Dale Heffner – dheffner@electrochemical.net
                             Barb Kistler – Barbara.kistler@rcn.com
 
  Meals on Wheels:  Dorothy Bloom – bloomnbunny@ptd.net
 
Kids of Character:  Gwen Pongracz – gwen.pongracz@gmail.com
 
Purses for Polio:  Barb Kistler – barbara.kistler@rcn.com
RLI:   website www.rlinea.org        
 
Threads of Change - Foster care support --  Dale Heffner  dheffner@electrochemical.net
                         
Speakers
Mar 06, 2019
2020 District 7430 Conference Discussion
Mar 13, 2019
New Member Induction + Parkland Cares Talk
Mar 20, 2019
Community Assessment Report
Mar 27, 2019
Student of the Month, Meet PHS Interact Students, PHS Faculty & Staff
Apr 03, 2019
4-Way Speech Contest 1st Round
Apr 10, 2019
Quarterly Club Assembly + Treasurer's Report
Apr 17, 2019
TT5 Light!
Apr 24, 2019
Ready for TT5!
May 01, 2019
May 08, 2019
Annual Scholarship Awards to PHS, LCTI, NWLHS Students
May 15, 2019
May 22, 2019
Truth, Trust, and Tribalism
View entire list

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       MEMBERSHIP  IS  EVERY 

MEMBER'S  BUSINESS

      Consider bringing a friend and colleague to a meeting. Or refer them to Herb Klotz.

       Please bring a candidate to our next breakfast meeting and / or our Thursday Evening Happy Hour.

        Our Evening Meetings  --  2nd & 4th Thursdays at the Holiday Inn in Breinigsville  5:30 to 6:30 P.M.

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ROTARY  INFO  IS  AVAILABLE
 
NOTE  that there is great Rotary information available each meeting at the front table. This includes AW Banners for you to exchange when you visit other RCs.
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HOW  TO  UPDATE  CLUBRUNNER
 
 
TO UPDATE YOUR PERSONAL INFO in ClubRunner:
 
Just login and click an “Member Area” top right. Then scroll down two  lines on the right column and click on “Active member List.”
 
Click on the first letter of your last name, and then on your full name.
 
This page is all about you.
 
Click on any of the six menu items and edit your profile as needed.
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Check out the AWRC
Facebook Page
See Home Page link
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SPEAKERS  WANTED
      Please suggest or request speakers and topics for future meetings and send  your ideas to Jeanne Shipe.  Jeanne.Shipe@gmail.com
Bulletin Editor
Bill Palmer
Russell Hampton
National Awards Services Inc.
ClubRunner
___________________________ 
 
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         QUOTE of the WEEK --
       “Kindness is love in action, not feeling emotions or thoughts of empathy only. Kindness is doing!”
           ― Shannon L. Alder
 
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ROTARY INTERNATIONAL
THEME  for  2019-20
 
The 2019-20 presidential theme was announced at the annual International Assembly in San Diego, CA. on Monday, January 14th as:
 "Rotary Connects the World”
 
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KINGDOM LIFE VOLUNTEERS
 
On Friday January 11th there was a great team helping at Kingdom Life Food Pantry.  Committee Chair Jean Masiko's  grandson even did the vacuuming after the shelves were stocked. These teenagers are great!  We had three there on Friday night.                                          
 
                                               Jean Masiko
 
 
 
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OUR  OPEN HOUSE  MIXER  WAS  GREAT !
 
Twenty five Rotarians and guests attended our Thursday evening Open House Mixer event at the Holiday Inn on January 10th. Membership Chair, John Scott hosted the event and President Jeanne Shipe conducted the meeting.
 
 
The registration, drinks, snacks and conversations started at 5:30 P.M. Seven attendees were there because of their interest in Rotary and the many projects AW Rotarians make happen all year long. Barbara Kistler was the Greeter, and Dennis Houser did registration and also the three drawings for door prizes that went to our visitors.
 
President Jeanne welcomed everyone and she thanked them for coming. She distributed some information sheets, and explained that a number of AW Rotarians will each take a few minutes to tell something important and special to them about their Rotary involvement.
 
 
Diana Dunn told us how she works with Engineers Without Borders and the 9 trips to Sierra Leone to restore a school for 1500 students with proper drinking water, sanitation, solar electricity and safer structures. When AW Rotarians began to support these efforts Diana became a Rotarian.
 
Gwenn Carr told how she has worked on many satisfying projects include the club newsletter, and being project manager of our annual Tempting Tastes fundraiser for 5 years. She spoke about how other Rotarians around the world are so welcoming as she and Gary travel. And when a Rotarian is in need of assistance, other Rotarians are always right there to help.
 
 
Barb Kistler, a former AWRC President and our Thursday evening meeting Host emphasized how the women in Rotary are so  welcome and share a lot pf the fun and the work. She described the District Purple Pinkie 5K race that she works on each year to help eradicate Polio.
 
 
Jean Machamer, our Advisor to the Northwestern Interact Club told us about the students’ activities and fundraising. They are closing in on $1,000 so  they can fund a complete ShelterBox.
 
 
Bill Palmer explained about our Dictionary project now in its 11th year. He told the story of delivering dictionaries to the Salisbury 3rdgraders. A little girl when she was told the book was hers to keep started to cry. When asked why she said “I never owned a book before.”
 
Dale Heffner explained that the Threads of Change is a new foundation that provides donated children’s clothing and supplies to foster families who take in children who have nothing  on a moment’s notice. One of the T.O.C. containers is right outside in the parking lot.
 
 
It was a very informative and pleasant meeting. Our thanks go to all who made it work so well.
 
 
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ROTARY  AT  A  GLANCE
 
Figures are for June 30, 2018 at the end of the 2017-18 RY.
 
          35,678          clubs worldwide
          111.1 million          hours Rotarians spent volunteering
          $414.7 million        Rotarians raised for the Rotary Foundation
          94                 scholarships granted by Rotary Peace Fellowships
          1,195,107      Rotarians worldwide
 
 
          11,198   ROTARACT  clubs;   257,554 estimated members
 
 
          22,952  INTERACT   clubs;   527,896 estimated members
 
 
          United States:        314,224 members
          India:                                139,641 members
          Japan:                    87,684 members
          South Korea:         61,416 members
          Germany:               55,791 members
 
 
          1,306  GLOBAL  GRANTS  awarded   totaling $86.7 million
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Foundation Report
WE NEED YOUR PARTICIPATION
 
Our Club has a goal for the fiscal year 2018-19  to the Annual Fund of The Rotary Foundation of $11,500.  To date we have contributed $4485. 
 
We have contributed generously to the PolioPlus  Fund which also IS part of the Foundation   ---  but those dollars do not count toward that goal.  We have some work to do.
 
I want to make you aware of EREY which means “Every Rotarian Every Year”.  This is part of the strategy of reaching our $11,500 goal.  Every Rotarian is asked to give something to the Annual Fund. Right now we only have 15 members who have contributed to the Annual Fund from amounts ranging from $25 to $500.
 
 The suggested level of giving is $100 or more.  All $100 amounts will be doubled by dollars or recognition points to move the giver closer to a coveted Paul Harris Award.
 
If you have not contributed to the Annual Fund of the Rotary Foundation since July 1st, then NOW is a good time to do it.  Write a check to The Rotary Foundation and give it to me (Barbara Kistler) and I’ll process it from there.
 
If you’re not sure where you stand in your giving this year,  email me and I will help you find out.  As you know, the Annual Fund of the Rotary Foundation is where our club benefits with District Grants and Global Grants, both of which we've received in the past. Support this wonderful organization to which we belong and "do good in the world".  
 
                                      Barbara Kistler, Foundation Chair
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Allentown West Meeting notes Jan 16, 2019
 
Our Greeter today was  Dorothy Bloom and she did a marvelous job.
 
The new arrangement with the table lectern farther in the room made for a more inviting setting.
 
President Jeanne Shipe rang the bell at 7:30 A.M. to open the meeting and welcomed all to AWRC. Then Dottie Bloom gave a very nice invocation
 
 
Pres. Jeanne began the meeting having the members recite the 4 Way test, followed with our saying the Pledge of Allegiance to the U.S. Flag.
 
GUESTS: Dave Dries, President, Spring Twsp RC.
 
Pres Jeanne showed a number of pictures from last  week including some from our Jan 10th Thursday evening Open House Mixer. Then she reviewed announcements.
 
STRATEGIC  PLAN:
Pres. Jeanne said that the AW board is working on a strategic plan to help guide us in the months ahead.
 
 
LOWHILL FOOD PANTRY:
Please remember that the Collection jar is at the registration desk for cash and check contributions.
 
THE ROTARY FOUNDATION (TRF):
See separate article by Chair, Barbara Kistler.
 
THE ALL NEW JAN 10th THURSDAY EVENING OPEN HOUSE MIXER:
See the separate article.
 
APRIL 28TH is TT5. The next PLANNING COMMITTEE MEETING is on Friday January 18th at the Holiday Inn at 7 a.m.
If it snows too much, you will get an e-mail to join in on a conference call.
 
KINGDOM LIFE FOOD CENTER:
See separate article by Jean Masiko.
 
MEALS  ON  WHEELS  PLAN:
Dorothy Bloom from M.O.W. explained that the merger has added more stringent requirements for new volunteers. But those AW Volunteers who have done it before are “grandfathered in” and may continue.
 
 
JANUARY  DINING  OUT:
Thursday, January 24, 2019 – Dining Out at Curious Goods 6PM. A sign-up sheet went around.
 
FEBRUARY  DINING  OUT:
On Feb 28th at Tacos & Tequila in the 500 block and Hamilton in Allentown.
 
NEXT  MEETING  --  Jan 23rd   --   Our Greeter will be Gwenn Carr. The program will be Marlene Heller giving her Classification Talk, all about Public Relations.
 
Pres. Jeanne introduced our Sgt-at-Arms, Mitch Huston who conducted the drawings and collected Happy Dollars. Mitch started with his own happy dollars devoted to his N.Y. Giants.
 
 
The door prize  bag of goodies donated by Dottie Bloom was won by  Gary Heller.
 
The $25 pot of the 50:50 was NOT won by Ralph Witcher’s ticket being drawn  followed by a white marble. Ten marbles will be around for next week.
 
HAPPY DOLLARS:
Bill Palmer is most happy to announce that our own John Scott is now the President of the Northeast Berks Cty. Chamber of Commerce. Congratulations, John
 
Jeanne Shipe is happy to be celebrating another full revolution of the earth around the sun  ---  i.e. her birthday. We sang Happy Birthday to her quite well.
 
Halyna Stegura is happy to be back with us. She also is happy that her daughter Mary bought a house in Orlando that lets her see the Disney World evening fireworks.
Halyna saw Wendy Weaver at the Citrus Bowl game where Penn State lost. Wendy says “Hello.”
 
 
Dale Heffner acknowledged that he and Bill Palmer as Engineers are prone to liking to debate (i.e. argue). Dale said that arguing with Bill is like wrestling a pig in the mud. After a while you realize that the pig is having fun. Hmmmmmmmmmmm……….
 
Gary Heller is happy for the AW Orientation session he attended.
 
Gwenn Carr is happy that their 4th grade granddaughter won her spelling bee.
 
Stephanie Fenstermacher is pleased that the surgery she had on her hands 3 weeks ago has worked out very well.
 
Dottie Bloom is happy to be here. And she and Rick found some old newspapers with AW members’ photos. And they still are learning how to live with Eddie, their 8 month old pup.
 
 PROGRAM:
. Our program today was our member Stephanie Fenstermacher giving her Classification Talk, Using slides she told us her life story.
 
Steph brought some of her lemon blueberry and orange cranberry muffins for us to enjoy this morning.
 
 
Her title was:  “Stephanie Fenstermacher – the book of me” She broke it down into 5 chapters  ----  so far.
 
She was born and raised in Germansville, PA. Her parents were farmers, and she is the youngest of four childfren.
 
Steph says that she loves to learn and is insanely curious. She grew up with kittens and playing in the hay stacks.
 
From age 12 she had a tough time. Her parents opened a Produce Stand on Route 309, and Steph was expected to work there most days and weekends too. This continued until she was 17,
 
“ My husband Tom & I met in high school, moved out when I was 18 and married when I was 21.  Throughout all of this, I attended college part time and worked full time. 
 
“ My first job was being a clerk at UPS during the holiday season.  My second job was working as an Administrator and then Account Supervisor for a transportation company. 
 
“My 3rd job is when I entered the world of Human Resources as an Administrator for a logistics company.  My 4th job was the true start of my career in HR.  I started as an Administrator and when I left, I was the Assistant HR Director.  During that time I also became heavily involved in our local SHRM Chapter and also earned my professional HR certification which I still hold.
 
“Along came two babies and I finally graduated when I was 27.  Baby #3 was my graduation request.
 
“My mom passed away when I was 26.  She was only 60.  It was around that time, that I started to see through a different set of eye glasses. 
 
“There was a key person in my life at that time.  Her name is Renee and she taught me what it meant to have a relationship with God.  I learned to appreciate the benefits of my upbringing – a strong work ethic, commitment to succeed and strength and resilience to overcome obstacles.
 
“Next were  my mid 30’s to my early 40’s.
I was blessed to work at Computer Aid for 17 years, and  to have a close relationship with the company’s founder.   My years at CAI were the awakening of my desire to serve.
 
“I was given countless opportunities to make an impact – through blood drives, by teaching inner city children how to cook, by holding a bake sale to raise $ for childhood hunger, by taking on ad hoc projects like beautifying our corporate grounds and the biggest project of all – helping to establish the CAI Learning Academy in downtown Allentown which serves underprivileged youth.
 
 “In my late 20’s I learned to appreciate what serving meant.  By my mid-30’s, I was hungry to make a difference and yearning for my children to understand what it means to serve.
 
“On my 42nd birthday Tom & I decided it was time to leave my career in HR and pursue a dream that I had of opening a bakery. So I left Computer Aid to start out on my own with my co-owner and oldest sister Sharon, with me.
 
“When I decided to leave CAI, my plan was simply to bake out of my house and see where it took me.  In fact, I recall thinking that I didn’t ever want a storefront.  Well, business slowly took off and
 
“it has grown significantly each year.  In fact, grown enough that the only logical next step for us is to open a storefront.   The flaw in our business plan is that we didn’t believe in ourselves and our capabilities.  If we had, we would have known a storefront was inevitable. 
 
“Consequently, we recently purchased a home in New Tripoli that we intend to convert into a coffee stop/bakery.  We have a lot of work to do and expect to not open before late 2019 or early 2020. 
 
“The baker in me is terrified.  The entrepreneur in me sees it as a fabulous business opportunity and a way to facilitate giving back to our community in greater ways.
 
“2015-ish was my first introduction to Rotary.  My daughter was involved in Interact at her high school.  While I was an active bystander, I was impressed at the impact the program had on our community through the Snack Pack program.  I gradually learned more about Rotary through my relationship with Barb Kistler but due to financial and time constraints, I didn’t think I would be able to participate. 
 
“By 2018 I determined I couldn’t afford not to be part of Rotary.  I don’t mean that in terms of dollars and cents….I mean it in terms of being part of something bigger than myself. 
 
CLOSING:
We closed our meeting by reciting the saying “One profits most who serves best.”

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 Here is a link to our District Governor Cindy's latest Newsletter:

THE  DOUBLE "["

https://clubrunner.blob.core.windows.net/00000050086/en-ca/files/homepage/double-i-inspiration-inormation-jan-2019/DGNL-Jan-2019.pdf

 Give it a try. It is informative and entertaining.

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BIRTHDAYS
 
 
Joel Masiko           Jan 03
Dottie Bloom         Jan 04
Gwenn Carr           Jan 07
Jeanne Shipe         Jan 12
Ernie  Boll              Jan 20
Geoff Legg             Jan 22
Mercedes Scott       Jan 25
Dar Utt                    Jan 26
Dale Heffner           Jan 29
 

Anniversaries

 

Jean & Joel Masiko         Jan 01 1996  23 years
Sally & Jerry Frank          Jan 05 1985  34 years
Dottie & Rick Bloom        Jan 20 1979  40 years
 

JOIN  DATES

 

 
Dawn Costello       Jan 01
Chuck Ehninger    Jan 01
 
Ihor Fedoriw          Jan 01
Jerry Frank            Jan 01
 
A J Henry               Jan 01
 
 
Jean Masiko                 Jan 01
Joel Masiko           Jan 01
 
Daryl Smith            Jan 01
 
Laura Long            2 years         Jan 04 2017
Richard Sniscak    6 years         Jan 13 2012
Gail Micca              1 year           Jan 31 2018
 
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