In the beginning

Co-president Brett Bradigan  called the meeting to order.

Kelly isn't here today because she has just had her first grandbaby!  

She is up in Santa Barbara with her daughter and Baby Alarie 

Iris Ann, weighing in at 6lbs.1 oz. Congratulations Kelly!!!

The inspirational moment today came from Tony Thatcher talking about

the many meanings of August.  Tony remembers being a young person

in Ojai before the days of air-conditioning.  His family would open all the

windows during the night and close everything up tight for the day 

keeping the heat out.

Thanks to today's  crew for setting everything up for this  meeting;

Tech crew - Bill Prather and Bill Hatch

Fining and net - Cindy Frings and Bill Prather

Roving mic - Terry Beckett

Reporter and editor - Tessa Turner and Randy Roth

Treasurer - Dave Brubaker

Greeter - Rod Owen

Chef Ray thank you for a very nice lunch. Ray has been very accommodating

with requests from Rotary members and today used real silverware after Christine

mentioned that we should try to reduce our use of plastic.

There are no visiitng Rotarians today but we do have some guests:

1. Marsha Adams is a guest of Liz

2. Lydia Johnson is a guest of Patricia

3. Ed Webster is a guest of Kay

Announcements:

1. ALL ROTARIANS are being asked to seek out sponsorships for the Taste of

    Ojai Event.

2. Hearing issues are being addressed.  If anyone needs any specific hearing 

    assistance, please let Bret know. Use the mic and speak clearly.

3. Rod Owen encourages us to attend the Ojai Valley Family Shelter 'Friend-

    Raiser' this Septembr 19, Saturday from 4pm-6pm.

4. Catherine Lee encourages us to donate blood in the blood mobile 703 El Paseo Rd.    on Friday 9/11, 10am-1:45pm. Vitalant Blood Donation. 

New Member Induction:  Ed Webster

Today Jerry inducted our newest member, Ed Webster. Jerry welcomed Ed to the

Rotary. The oldest, finest, longest running service organization.  Welcome Ed!

Great Moments In History by Bret Bradigan:

Brett told us the  story of Corporal Wojtek who was actually an orphaned Syrian Brown

Bear cub who was found and nurtured by Polish soldiers in 1942. He grew to become 

their mascot. He liked drinking beer with the soldiers and eating their cigarettes. He grew

to be a rather big bear and earned his rank by helping out  moving boxes of artillery

shells and supplies during the  fighting  of the Italian Campaign.

Upcoming Programs:

   August 28th - Joe Sohm, acclaimed Ojai photographer will take us behind the scenes of

   his ambitious new project, American Mosaic, a stunning 33-minute 'photo symphony'

   created with Grammy-nominated composer Peter Boyer to commemorate America

   250th birthday.

   October 4th - Korinne Bell, Ag Commissioner, oversees Ventura County's Department of

   Agriculture and Division of Weights and Measures. Among a wide range of programs,  she 

   has overseen  the Agriculture Disaster Assessment, and the publication of the annual 

   Ventura County Crop and Livestock Report.

Confessions:

     1. Don said his son and daughter-in-law are on a bike ride across Europe and that today is his birthday.

     2. Candice told us her  1st grade son will only answer to the fictional character's

         name "Rex".

     3. Leah was proud to say that her son has finished his undergrad.

Fining

 Cindy Frings led an entertaining fining session with every table participating.

       She passed out descriptions of certain Rotarian's escapades and we were to

       guess who it was.  Most tables made incorrect guesses so lots of money for Rotary today.

Today's Program:

       Jack Piatt is an Academy Award-winning filmmaker and founder and CEO of Highway

       West Entertainment.  Over the past 20 years, he has worked as a writer, producer and

       director on films, documentaries, television, music projects and commercials.  Jack now 

       lives in Ojai and most recently produced 'The Singers', which won the 2026 Academy 

       Award for Best Live Action Short.  Jack is an advisor to the Ojai Film Festival and has felt 

       that living in Ojai has been inspirational to his work.  Although filmed at a Moose Lodge,

       The setting for Singers was taken from the Hub in Ojai and mostly filmed in town.

       Jack has been working on the idea of a documentary on the history of The Ranch House.

       He was happy to be living in Ojai and happy to take the many questions asked.

Final thoughts:

       Be kind, for everyone you meet wages a Great Battle - variously attributed to Plato,

       Philo of Alexandria, Ian McLaren or John Watson.

Meeting adjourned.

You are invited to visit us at an upcoming meeting.