Alex David was inspired by the solar eclipse that he viewed in Maine that had 98% totality- it was awesome!
Visiting Rotarian
President Kris welcomed DGN Nicole Brien of the Woonsocket Rotary Club who will be the District Governor in two years. Nicole is visiting Clubs in the District to get to know members better. She invited golfers to participate the Woonsocket Club’s golf tournament on June 22 at Crystal Lake in Burrillville.
On Zoom
Don Saracen, Lew Hassell, Barry Fain, Troylynda Williams, Michael Durand, Ben Hadsell and Richard Applebaum
Announcements
Kris asked members to make a donation to the recent appeal from the Providence Rotary Charities. Donations directly support the club’s charitable initiatives.
President-Elect Pete Brock asked members to attend the Club assembly on April 16 to help make plans for the new Rotary year. All club committee members as well as incoming board members please plan to attend this important club assembly – “show up and be heard!”
District Events
On April 20th from 10 AM to 1:00 PM at White’s of Westport there will be a free workshop with lunch to help clubs to prepare their goals for the coming Rotary year in the area of membership, public image and diversity. The workshop will focus on storytelling, engaging audiences and taking action!
It's not too late to sign up for the District 7950 conference on May 3-5th. The business meeting will be held on Saturday at 10:00 AM.
Registration information for both district events can be found on the District 7950 website.
There will be a
Rotary Youth three-day leadership camp for high school sophomores and juniors that will take place May 17-19 at Camp Rotary in Boxford, MA. If you know of anyone the Club can sponsor to attend this program, please see Kris. For more information contact Lew Gordon at
lew.gordon77@gmail.com.
Help support the Metro Providence Rotary Club’s food packaging event on Saturday, April 27th at the Nuesto Mundo Public Charter School,17 Gordon Ave in Providence. Setup is at 9:00 AM and packaging starts at 10:00 AM.
The International Service committee is exploring projects that we can support in the future. If you are interested in joining this committee, please contact Alex David, the International Service chair.
Bill Applegate announced that at next week’s meeting there will be a salad bar, rather than the usual entrée.
Literacy
Art Norwalk encouraged members to return to reading at our partner schools in Providence as part of the Club’s commitment to literacy. You can sign up to read to students for 45 minutes at the Harry Kizarian elementary school on April 22–26, between 9:45 AM to 3:30 PM and at the George J West elementary school May 28-30, 9:45 AM to 3:30 PM. Books will be provided, or you can bring a favorite book. Please let Art know if you are available.
Happy Bucks
- Pete Brock was $5 happy because he made the decision to be happy again this week - happiness is a decision, not an entitlement.
- Jane Bernstein had $10 happy bucks for introducing speakers from the Boys & Girls Club of Providence, Sam Lawrence and Ashley Berry.
- Jonathan Kaufman had $18 for his honeymoon in Japan and $2 for the weight he gained during the trip.
- Kris David was happy to attend the 31st San Miguel Gala, where she was once again touched by the boys’ poetry performance.
- Mike Kelly was grateful to Anthony Landi for spending time with Mike’s grandson. Anthony shared insights into his career with Mike’s grandson, who is also interested in finance.
- Emily Bernstein was happy that she’s going to Napa Valley to celebrate her birthday!
- Bill Applegate was happy to see Nicole and that Rob Black will be back to handle tech next week.
- Don Saracen was $31 happy for his 31 years in Providence Rotary!
- Richard Applebaum was $5 happy for nature’s awesome display on Monday.
Speakers
Jane Berkowitz introduced Sam Lawrence, chief philanthropy officer and Ashley Berry, philanthropy officer at The Boys & Girls Club of Providence (BGCP.) CEO Nicole Dufresne was unable to attend the meeting, but provided a short, recorded video on the vision and mission of the Club here. We couldn't get the audio to work and they will provide a link to it. (editor's note: I did not receive the link in time for this newsletter, but will provide in the next one.)
BGCP seeks to build resilient kids who feel safe and cared by adults. The agency’s programs are designed to overcome the many obstacles to success faced by the 41,000 children of Providence and their families.
Challenges to children and families include: 85% are children of color, 82% qualify for free or reduced-price lunch, 57% of family income is spent on rent, 13% of high school and 23% of middle school students are worried about violence in school and in their community, 36% are multilingual learners and 48% are chronically absent from school.
BGCP, the longest continuously operating BC in the country, serves 3400 students who participate in educational and recreational programs, swimming, team sports, after school homework assistance and youth workplace programs. Job programs offer students an opportunity to identify career interests and gain workplace experience in a supportive environment. BGCP also serves 95,000 meals a year and offers parents an affordable source of daycare, the largest expense for most families. The agency has launched,
Forever Change, a $10.5 million capital campaign to increase programs, serve more children and improve facilities. They have raised over $8 million to date. Sam thanked Jane Berkowitz for her literacy work with the agency’s children.
