What I learned was that of the 1,741 American personnel missing and unaccounted for from the Vietnam War, 160 are Californians. I was recently shown a book by a member of the Vietnam Veterans of Ventura County, which listed all of those 160 names. As I read through them, my eyes really focused on the four young men from Ventura County on the list…who today would have been our neighbors.
So let us pause here to contemplate and remember their sacrifices and service, with a quote from a combat soldier from World War II named Art Pendleton, which I read in a biography entitled “Voices of the Pacific”.
He said “In all the history of war, we have learned several different things. It can be created by one man. It can be created by a lot of men. It can be created for many different reasons. Many of them don’t make sense at all. But the reality is you don’t have to have war. It’s not absolutely necessary to exist on this planet”.
I believe the human mind can be consciously aggressive as well as consciously forgiving. I just don’t understand, with people as smart as they are, that we can’t change the system a little bit. Hell, we can get to the moon & back!”
Many thanks to...
Pledge: Dr. David Watson
Invocation: Sue Gilbreth
Greeter/Welcome Table/Cashbox: Leslie Bouche/Michael Scar/Dave Brubaker
Room Setup: Sean McDermott
Fining: Betsy Watson
Reminder Editor/Photography: Carl Gross
Thanks to all for making our meetings so special!
Visiting Rotarians and Guests
We greeted Bruce Hanson for his last visit as a guest, soon to be a member of our Club.
Christine Fenn, Marketing Director of the Gables of Ojai was welcomed.
Welcome to all!!!
Announcements
The first meeting of the Taste of Ojai Committee took place 9/13/22, at the Libbey Park site. Thanks for Cindy Frings and Suzanne Scar for setting up the meeting. Consider joining us and what you would like to do for our premier fundraiser.
A Board meeting was held on 9/15. These meetings are open to all members. Check with Marty or Kay about meeting times.
On October 7th, there will be a change of venue due to the church having an event. It will take place in Bethany Hall. Signs will be posted on site. Author, Robin Gerber will present the book and play about Katherine Graham, Editor of the Washington Post during momentous events in history from the Pentagon Papers to Watergate. This is a great program to bring a guest or spouse to.
RCOEF (Rotary Club of Ojai Educational Foundation) Board meeting will be held on 9/21/22 in the Library.
International Service Committee will meet 9/20/22 at 7:30 AM in person and by Zoom. Contact Leslie Bouche for details.
Something different for 5th Friday. That's what's described for our Rotating Meetings on 9/23. We will meet in the offices and workplaces of the following members, much like they did in the early 1900's:
-Bret Bradigan-
Leslie Bouche
Renee Halbrook
Fred Fauvre
Bryant Huber
Catherine Lee
Jeff Loeble
-Greg Webster -
Michael Scar
Sue Gilbreth
Ren Adam
Bill Weirick
Don Reed
Larry Beckett
Marty Babayco
-Marc Whitman-
Christine Golden
Jack Jacobs
Tony Thacher
Terry Beckett
Tessa Turner
Fern Barishman
Betsy Watson
Cheree Edwards
-Wendy Barker-
Suzanne Scar
Janet Campbell
Carl Gross
Sean McDermott
Jane Spiller
Patricia Anderson
Dave Brubaker
Bruce Hamson
Kay Bliss
Bob Davis
9/24/22--The Rotary Club of Ojai and Ojai Lion's Club are co-sponsoring a Contra Dance at the Ojai Art Center. This is a form of line dancing similar to square dancing. It is $10. Sue Gilbreth guarantees a good time for all!!
We will be having a 5th Friday Social with the Ojai Rotary West Club at Larry Wilde and Dennis Guernsey's beach house on September 30th. Reply to your evite. Contact Larry if any questions. Information/maps/etc. are forthcoming. It is $25.
New Member Induction--Bruce Hanson
Deirdre Daly brought Bruce to the podium with our Presidents to induct him into our Club. Welcome, Bruce. We all look forward to getting to know you and working with you. His sponsor will be Kevin Davis and mentor will be Patricia Anderson. Congratulations!!!
Paul Harris Recognition: Jane Spiller and Lary Wilde
Kay and Marty presented two PHF's to Jane and Larry, in recognition of their service to the Club and the Community.
Jane is a Paul Harris +1 and Larry is a Paul Harris +5. Congratulations and well-deserved.
Fining and Confessions: Betsy Watson
Showing post 
Presidency swagger, Betsy took the podium. There were so many confessions that there was no time for fining:
Marc Whitman just returned from a trip to Iceland.
Deirdre Daly and Terry Beckett were celebrating birthdays.
Christine Golden had an injured fox to worry about, but he
bounced back.
Dr. Fred Fauvre promoted the Ojai Valley Community Hospital's "Let's Walk" event on October 29th. It will commence at 8 AM at the Ojai Valley Community Hospital. The first 150 people registered will receive a commemorative tee shirt. For information and to register, click here.
Leslie Bouche has removed her 8th rattlesnake from her yard.
Dr. Skankey was caught napping on the last meeting while on Zoom.
Upcoming Programs-Bret Bradigan
10/7--Robin Gerber--Author and Playwright.
10/21--Michael Katz--Storytellers
11/11--Keith Nightengale--Allies in the Ukraine.
Tony Thacher: Ojai Rotary History--75th Anniversary
Rotary Club of Ojai Diamond Anniversary 1948 – 2023
Imagine History Is Prelude to the Present, #3
I doubt that any of you ever heard of this charter member of the Ojai Rotary Club, much less may you wonder why he is important to our historical legacy. In 1948 the last charter member alphabetically of the Rotary Club of Ojai was Anton C. Zvolanek.
Here’s a quote from an article in the March, 1960, edition of The Rotarian entitled ‘Two Wills Help Widen the Way’ that may give you a clue. “Born in Vienna, Austria, Anton Zvolanek learned his trade as an apprentice gardener in the Imperial Gardens of Emperor Franz Joseph’s Summer residence. In America he entered the flower seed business, first in New Jersey, later in California. He developed and patented the Winter-blooming sweet pea.‘Tony,” as he was known to his fellow Rotarians, was a charter member of the Rotary Club of Ojai, which was organized in 1948. Earlier he had been a member of the Rotary Club of Lompoc, California. He was 96 when he died. His bequest to the Foundation was $6,150.”
But that was not Zvolanek’s first significant donation to Rotary. He also left 100 shares of Bank of America stock to his home club worth $8,800. This became the seed money that would start a fund that would grow into what is now the Rotary Club of Ojai Educational Foundation. Since the Ojai Rotary Club’s beginning, we had always maintained a ‘loan fund’ of a few hundred dollars to help deserving students from Nordhoff, normally picking one student each year. To quote from President Jim Nelson’s 1952-53 report to the District: “The recently organized student loan fund has assisted one student through his senior year and another student is being considered.”
When I became Secretary-Treasurer in 1976 this fund contained almost $12,000. The club continued to award stipends of $1,000 or less to high school students or students who went off to college. Then in 1991 the possibility of several significant gifts and bequests to the club for educational purposes caused the board, under then President Allan Jacobs, to form a committee to look into forming a not-for-profit foundation. The committee consisted of Bob Chesley as chair, Jim Anderson, Bob Davis, Allan Jacobs, Jack Jacobs, Roger Myers and Tony Thacher. After many meetings and with the concurrence of the club board, attorney Roger Myers formulated and submitted the articles of incorporation and the bylaws of the Rotary Club of Ojai Educational Foundation to the state as well as applying for tax exempt 501(c)(3) status with the IRS. The committee continued to meet to work out the guidelines as to how funds would be accepted, how they would be invested and how they would be used as well as how the new foundation would be compatible with the club and its board of directors. The first formal meeting of the RCOEF board was held January 13, 1992. Allan Jacobs was elected as President, Roger Myers as Secretary and Bob Chesley as Treasurer, with Lerie Bjornstedt, Bob Davis, Alan Rains and Tony Thacher rounding out the seven-member board.
Besides the approximately $31,000 transferred from the club
treasury, the first significant donations to the foundation came from Rotary Club of Ojai member Phil McConnell. Phil had a distinguished career in the petroleum industry, especially in the early days of the oil business in Saudi Arabia including being trapped there during World War II. His retirement in Ojai led him to be keenly interested in the educational field where among other accomplishments he served as President of the Ventura College Board during the period that saw the founding of Moorpark Junior College. He wanted to establish a scholarship in honor of his friend and long-term Ojai Unified School District board member, Eleanor Rupp, said scholarship to be awarded to a Nordhoff graduate who planned to pursue teaching as a career. Before his death, his contributions to RCOEF totaled more than $33,000.
Thanks to Club member contributions and several significant bequests from non-Rotarians interested in the education of Ojai youth, RCOEF’s endowment has grown to over five million dollars, and we are currently able to award scholarships totaling around $130,000 to approximately 30 students every May.
But there is more to be done. Our endowment may seem impressive for such a small group of dedicated Rotarians, but our stipends are modest compared to the rise in college tuition over the past few decades. I would invite you keep RCOEF in mind when doing your estate planning. I can think of no better legacy than helping our valley youth seek to further their education and go on to make a difference in our world. An overview of RCOEF and how you can be a part of this cause can be found at https://ojairotaryedfoundation.org.
The Program: Jonathan Fraser Light--The Cultural Encyclopedia of Baseball
There's a reason why baseball is America's past time. More than any other sport, it occupies a large portion of the nation's psyche and culture. Jon Light spent decades researching this fascinating, fun and important book. Not just for fans of the sport, it is meant for anyone who is interested in the history of the game and its critical role in America's identity. For example, Light traces the beginning of the Civil Rights era to Branch Rickey's controversial decision after World War II to draft a former football standout at USC named Jackie Robinson. The book includes many sketches of Hall of Fame players, owners, executives, umpires and league presidents.
He told stories of Doc Ellis pitching a no-hitter on LSD, Gaylord
Perry (worst hitter in baseball) hitting his only home run when he was told a man would land on the moon before he hit a home run. We landed on the moon, and he hit his only home run.
He spoke of the Society for Baseball Research, a group of nerds that obsess about baseball statistics.
Jon talked about the Women's Baseball League (1943-1954) who replaced the men who went off to World War II.
Jon is an employment and labor attorney having attended law school at UCLA.
Thanks, Jon, for an entertaining and enlightening program, sharing the unexpected and unusual world of baseball.
Final Thoughts
Remember that Friday, 9/23, we will meet at the various sites listed above for our rotating Rotary meetings.
Life Hacks:
Your group can achieve great things way beyond your means simply by showing people that they are appreciated.
Spend as much time crafting the subject line of an email as the message itself because the subject line is often the only thing people read.
It was gratifying to see so many filled seats on this near-fall day with cooler weather. Co-President Marty gaveled the mingling mob to some semblance of order. We descended on the lunch line with Tri-tip, roasted potatoes, salad, and rolls. Yummmm...
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