Let these words go forth,
and wither they go south or due north
praise be y’all below-mentioned Rotarians
even those few of us who are not centarians


REMINDER MARCH 10th

It was heartening proof of March Sanity that amiable amblers of deeds of charitable derring do (and a few derring don’ts) filled up the Soule Park banquet hall, whereupon they were removed from their lucre with deft charm and grace by Anne Helson and Matt Clements. Greeting with gusto were Rod Owen and Sid Cohn.

Pledgemaster General Terry Beckett ran us through the routine, while Matt Clements invocated us convincingly. Matt also manned the roving mic.

Prez Bill also gave a shout-out to Ginger for the fine lunch services, as well as to Bill Prather and Rod for their mad setup skillz.
 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Visiting Rotarians: Alexia Parks from Boulder, Colo.

Guests: We were graced by the presence of 50 percent of the Janet Jacobs’ affiliated with our club, as Allan says, “His best friend and love of his life.” The lovely Dr. Beth Prinz of the OQ’s “Ask Dr. Beth” fame was also in attendance, as was Terri Wolfe, about whom more will be heard later.

Announcements:

• Scholarship applications are due by March 17th.

• Rotary District 5240 will be hosting half-day training sessions on the morning of April 1st in Oxnard. Let Bill know if you want to attend.

• Community Grant applications are due by March 31st. If you know of any deserving groups, steer them to our website.

• The Club Directory is in need of updating. Members are encouraged to sign in and update their photos and relevant information. Carl Gross can take your picture after any meeting or you can put in your own photo.

• Marty Babayco, Ojai Impresario, said that the production of “Grease” had a successful debut, and that the performances were selling out. Get your tickets soon!

• Inspired by rapper-in-residence Dr. Carl Gross, Capo Gilbreth announced the nostalgia-fest that is the Burma Shave contest, with a secret Star Chamber judge panel. “All committee decisions are final, any appeals must be in writing, and no written appeals will be considered.”

Colin Jones quickly quipped, “It’s the Ditty Committee."

To get the flow started, here’s a favorite few …

a man, a miss
a car, a curve
he kissed the miss
and missed the curve
Burma Shave

Dinah doesn’t
Treat him right.
But if he’d
shave
Dyna-Mite
Burma Shave

FINING

 

To the smattering of applause, Colin Jones strode with his peerless bravado to the podium to commence the redistribution of wealth that is the fining session …

But first, confessions …
• Jenny Owen dropped in $100 for Polio Plus to honor her son, who was working on a project in Nicaragua.
• Leslie Bouché shared the good news that the club-supported Prashanti School in India had made the cover of the Ventura County Reporter.

Working his way through “This Day in History,” Colin grabbed a cool few hundred from

- Ren Adam/Martha Stewart going to jail in 2004
- Patricia Teague Anderson/Hulu Hoop invented in 1963
- Marty Babayco/Elizabeth Smart's kidnapping rescue in 2003
- Deirdre Daly
- Bret Bradigan/Caesar assassinated 44 b.c.
- Wendy Barker/1996, George Burns
- Don Reed/Rodney King in 1990
- Mike Weaver/Olympic boycott in 1980
- Mike Malone/Godfather debut in 1972
- Bill Gilbreth/shoe-throwing Iraqi in 2009

PROGRAM

Deirdre Daly introduced “friend of the club” Terri Wolfe, executive director of Help of Ojai. Terri gave us a rundown on Help activities. First, though, she shared some surprising facts of about Ojai’s central contradiction - a reputedly affluent area with a large and growing population of elderly in poverty, with 11 percent of 65 and over below the poverty line. This is a significant different from the 7 percent in the rest of Ventura County, and up from 8 percent last year. And 60 percent of renters spend more than 30 percent of their income on rent.

“The Ojai Valley has the largest per capita population senior population, and also the oldest average age, in Ventura County” she said. “We’re the only full-time social service agency serving the Ojai Valley."

Among Help’s program accomplishments, they served 22,274 meals; involved 10,055 people, gave 9,621 rides, provided 7,602 respite hours; and served 1,702 low income and homeless clients. Help of Ojai heavily relies on its roster of 350 volunteers.

Of Help of Ojai’s total revenue of $1,340,332, rents, the thrift store, events and activities raised $537,86; community contributions added up to $491,483 and grants provided the remaining $310,986.

Wolfe said that they were working on several new programs. One was checking on isolated seniors, who were living alone and had no friends or family to look after them. There were also adding cognitive activities to help seniors keep their brains sharp. Help of Ojai also works with county officials from Adult Protective Services.

The greatest need facing seniors, she said, was affordable housing. The housing crisis of 2009-2011 wiped out a lot of wealth held by senior citizens. Add in family situations also exacerbated by the crisis, and it created a lot of seniors trying to live on their Social Security.

Wolfe concluded by saying that volunteers, especially drivers, were needed. She said a lot of retired attorneys and doctors and high-powered executives were driving the meals routes and the vans.

 

Click here for more information.

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President Bill gaveled us to a close, with a few words about the Rotary board of directors, and how Betsy Watson and Deirdre Daly really opened his eyes about the needs of Ojai’s elderly population.