Rotary Log for October 25, 2018
Today’s Greeter, Rich Greulich, warmed a crisp and windy Autumn day. Our intrepid president
Cleo brought the meeting to order with the Pledge of Allegiance. John Rice switched
his customary role to lead the song, “Take Me Out to the Ball Game, a tribute to our beloved
Red Sox. The Sox had just won their first two 2018 World Series games in convincing fashion. The invocation was humbly offered by Paris.
After a tasty fall meal of roasted pork, vegetables and potatoes, Jon was first up with a
Rotary historical moment. He recalled a 1967 meeting on this date with the speaker being then-State Senator Eileen Foley. God rest her soul!
Cleo took a few moments to share a slide show and update from our Rotoplast emissaries to
Bangladesh. They have already assessed over 120 candidates for life-changing surgery and
completed 50 procedures. We all look forward to their final report at a future meeting. The team returns Saturday to a very proud Portsmouth Rotary Club!
Three important messages followed:
Tiffany announced that we will be preparing and serving dinners at Crossroads House every Wednesday evening.
Christmas tree rosters are ready now. Get your preferred spot by signing up soon.
The Thanksgiving luncheon is fast-approaching. Turkey and pie cookers, prep help, servers and cleaners are needed for the big day. Get your name on the list next week! The holiday falls on November 22nd this year…
The raffle for $57 was won by Marie Brownell. And there was a match, much to the
disappointment of the Liff table, bringing Marie an additional $375. Good things sometimes do
happen to good people.
The Program
Today we heard from Democratic Gubernatorial candidate Molly Kelly, who was ably
introduced by Caitlin Burke. A 10-year veteran of the New Hampshire Senate from Harrisville,
Ms. Kelly is the second of 11 siblings. A lesson learned from growing up in such a large family
is that nobody can be left behind. That belief is also the focus of her platform. To Senator Kelly, every New Hampshire citizen matters.
Ms. Kelly applied that message to three priorities of her campaign. Her top issue is the
importance of public education. She does not support school vouchers because, she feels, they would undermine public education by diverting public funds elsewhere. Additionally, she
believes that State support of higher education is weak, unnecessarily saddling graduates
with considerable student loan debt.
Jobs are a second area of importance. There is a shortage of workers in the state, yet younger
people are moving away in great numbers. Ms. Kelly calls for a partnership with business and
industry to make the state attractive to professionals and trades people. Family leave and a $15
minimum wage is on her platform.
She addressed a third concern of real urgency- health care. Ms. Kelly has long supported
The Affordable Care Act. She is a strong proponent of Medicaid expansion, which she views as critical to attacking the opiate crisis.
After answering a number of respectful questions Molly Kelly ended with her campaign pledge
to build a New Hampshire that works for every Granite Stater. The election is now less than two weeks away.
Respectfully submitted, Neal Ouellett
Photos by Sara Treacy
