Membership challenge, and communicating for the City.
Notes from the Oct. 27 meeting of
The Rotary Club of Clover Park
Recorded by Tom McClellan
The hybrid meeting format is working pretty much flawlessly now, thanks to the hard work of Mike Killen and Sue Potter to bring that about. Jeannie Hill kicked off the meeting sharing 4 inspirational thoughts:
1. No matter how hard today is, remember you'll never have to do this day again.
2. I believe every human has a finite number of heartbeats. I don't intend to waste any of mine. (Neil Armstrong)
3. The glow of one warm thought is, to me, worth more than money. (Thomas Jefferson)
4. Whatever you do, always give 100%. Unless you're donating blood. (Bill Murray)
Ramona Hinton led us in the flag salute. And Fred Willis helped us all recite the 4-Way Test.
Future Programs
Nov. 3 DG Lorna Curtis, District Governor Visit
Nov. 10 Special Veterans Day Program, Lewis Army Museum
Nov. 17 Nichole Ayres, Cohen Veterans Network, Suicide Prevention
For the district governor’s visit, she may wish to speak to the club’s board members ahead of the meeting, so look for an email announcement about that.
For the Nov. 10 visit to the Lewis Army Museum, a headcount is needed for the box lunches that Carr’s will be preparing. If you have not personally told President Teresa Nye that you are coming, please email her. Becky Newton passed out maps to the museum, and will be getting out more instructions by email for how to get there and attend. We are not planning to do a Zoom option for that Nov. 10 meeting.
Karen George announced that she and Bill Harrison will be hosting a Rotary Christmas Party and fireside event on Friday, Dec. 10. Save the date, and look for more details very soon.
Membership Challenge
Hallie McCurdy brought in a name of a possible new member, and was rewarded with a prize. As a reminder, all members need to think of at least one person who would make a good Rotarian. You don’t need to ask that person ahead of time, and indeed it may be better not to. Just bring in a suggestion.
President’s Moment
Teresa noted that she is trying to convince her husband Chris to buy her new racing tires for Christmas. She wants ideas for how to help with that persuasion. Your humble scribe opined that this is a Goodyear to do that (and let the record reflect that the crowd went wild). But wait, there’s more.
A man is wanted for stealing wheels off of cop cars. Police are working tirelessly to catch him.
If you let the air out from the tires, is it the fresh air or tired air?
What did the front tire say to the rear tire? I’ll see you around.
Why can’t a bicycle stand up on its own? Because it’s two-tired.
It used to be free to fill up your car tires with air, now it costs $1.25. You know why? Inflation.
When the Mystery Machine gets a flat tire who does the work to change it? Scooby Do.
I was hired to fix tires at the bike shop, but I'd rather be their media guy. I guess I'm more of a spokesman.
Fun And Fines
Ed Trobaugh reminded Teresa Nye of her $20 Wachter for go-cart racing. Teresa allowed that to ride, and doubled it, noting that husband Chris Nye had just qualified for entry into the World Series of Poker tournament. He will be one of 8,000 competitors hoping for the big win. She opined that if Chris ends up winning, she is going to buy herself one of the new 2022 Corvettes. But what she did not say is whether she would also pay off her Wachter.
David Cotant and Judi spent 2 weeks in Palm Desert recently, playing a little bit of golf.
Hallie McCurdy went to the Fire Service Executive Development Institute, which is a professional development program for fire chiefs. $25. Paul Webb was asked about this, and noted that he never got to attend. But he matched Hallie’s $25 contribution.
Georgene Mellom took a 1-day trip to LA and back, to visit an ill nephew for perhaps the last time. She got to spend 2 hours with him, not sure if he understood that she was there visiting him, but he did squeeze her hand upon her departure. So she felt like the trip was worth it.
Karen George spoke up and offered a confession for Bill Harrison, who is very proud of his son Charlie having completed an Iron Man Triathlon in Waco, TX in 12 hours. In case you are unfamiliar, that is a 2.4-mile swim, followed by a 115-mile bike ride, and then you get to run a 26.2-mile marathon.
Heidi Wachter offered a “Rat On A Rotarian”, noting that at last week’s meeting, Alan Billingsley had to depart early, and he entrusted his raffle tickets to Paul Webb. Alan’s ticket was drawn, and Paul subsequently failed to draw an ace but won $5. Heidi’s purported issue was that up to this point in the meeting, Paul had not yet informed Alan of the booty. But Paul replied that, while acting in Alan’s stead, Paul had donated the entirety of the $5 winnings back to the club. Rafflemeister Tom Faubion then inserted himself into the fray, confirming Paul's account, and asserting that Heidi had overstepped the bounds of her authority as the City’s main prosecuting attorney for her bringing the rat without first engaging in due diligence.
Heidi was asked if she was ready to pay for both the rat, and for the contestation of it, or would she instead be carrying an eponymous Wachter. She responded that it is her intention that the club should eventually retire that appellation formally, and so she offered up cash money.
Jeannie Hill offered an overdue confession for having “gotten ink” in the Suburban Times over her then-impending appearance at the Lakewood Film, Art, and Books Festival.
And last, Fred Willis offered up his own confession, noting that he was absent in September, and thus unable to make a timely contribution in honor of his 90th birthday.
This Week’s Program
Jim Kopriva is the City of Lakewood’s spokesman (but not in a bicycle shop) and communications manager. He prepares most of the City’s communications, including social media, photos & videos, advertisements, news releases, quarterly magazines, website content, and weekly email newsletters. Jim also oversees MyLakewood311. Before arriving in Lakewood, Jim analyzed Covid-19 data for DSHS, and previously worked in product management and marketing. He has an MBA from Pac. Lutheran, and a B.A. from Indiana University Bloomington.
He spoke about the challenges of doing communications for a city like Lakewood, because it involves listening as well as disseminating information. On issues like the coming roundabouts on area roads, and the City’s goals of tree preservation, Kopriva recognizes that there are often competing interests. He tries to paint the gray between the lines of black and white.
Kopriva likes to tell stories with videos. He recently posted a video about our club’s signature project at the South Puget Sound Wildlife Area:
And there is another about the recent bridge installation over Clover Creek, as part of the trail construction project in partnership with the cities of Steilacoom and University Place.
On the City’s web site, Kopriva has added an “Issues” tab, to capture opinions and concerns, the better to help inform decision makers. Here is a screenshot of the page at https://cityoflakewood.us/issues/.
There is a weekly email newsletter you can sign up for at https://cityoflakewood.us/email-notifications/ to get the City Manager’s Weekly Bulletin.
Anyone with questions or concerns can contact him at jkopriva@cityoflakewood.us.
This Week’s Raffle
Alan Billingsley had the winning ticket last week, via his proxy Paul Webb, who had no ability to draw a good card. Alan had the winning ticket again this week, but experienced his own inability to draw a card. So the $99 pot will continue to grow, with 4 aces and 2 jokers still in the deck.
And Finally…
Another reminder, in honor of Halloween, to be careful out there.
