Rotary Log for November 14, 2019
A personable Francoise was the greeter on this late Autumn day. Is this weather a portent of a rough winter? Rumor is the Rotary snowbirds have their bags packed…
President Leo called the meeting to order and enlisted Yvonne to sweetly lead us in song. Kaitlin offered a lovely prayer appropriate to our club.
Announcements
Ted is at it again with another Rotaplast trip to Bangladesh. This time he is accompanied by Kevin, Bob Herold, and James.
Intrepid Club Secretary Lindsey told us about a new attendance policy. Starting immediately a make-up will be allowed within a 12-month period. This is a big relief for Ted, who spends more time in Asia than North America these days. Make-ups can be reported directly to Lindsey or at portsmouthrotrarynh@yahoo.com.
Betsy, and Ann Bliss are chairing our 48th Annual Thanksgiving luncheon this year. We heard that there is a desperate need for turkey cookers- 15 of them to be exact.
Looking for a nice night out with some good people? The next Rotary Social, says Susan Gold, is Wednesday the 20th at 5:30 at the Atlantic Grill.
It was wonderful to see Mort back after his hiatus. If you are interested in helping the club plan our 100th Anniversary on March 23rd, 2023 talk with Mort.
Justin took the podium to give kudos to members for filling all Christmas Tree shifts.
For two weeks running, Jon was responsible for causing a late close of a meeting. This time was an enjoyable, but interminable soliloquy on ideas to enhance the already successful sale.
Flagg was up again celebrating the aforementioned 48th Thanksgiving effort. Jon afforded members an opportunity to share their favorite Turkey-day memories. Very enjoyable indeed!
The Program
A bandaged Wayne warned about wasting sun before introducing the day’s presenter Dr. Donald Birx, president of Plymouth State University. This was a redux for Birx who visited us three years ago to talk about Plymouth State’s “cluster-based” model of education.
The so-called integrated clusters allow students to work in open laboratories to solve real-world problems. Dr. Birx is passionate about an approach that links classroom education and work experiences. Students are invited to identify a “wicked problem,” such as terrorism. They develop habits of mind to bring to bear many viewpoints and engage in purposeful communication to solve the problem.
This unique education model, according to Birx, offers broad benefits to solving regional and global problems as well.
Respectfully submitted, Neal Ouellett
Photos by Francoise Meissner
