February 11, 2021

With the traditional ringing of the bell we bring this meeting to order!

Club member's attendance is recorded by logging in.

Visiting Rotarians may complete a makeup form at the end of this meeting; YOUR donation for making up with us helps fund our service projects!  

Visitors are always welcome to browse and register without obligation. 

Our club offers the flexibility of   ROTARY ON YOUR TIME!

and an opportunity to remain connected with Rotary!   

president@StateOfJeffersonRotary.org

Black History Month is an annual celebration of achievements by African Americans and a time for recognizing their central role in U.S. history. Also known as African American History Month, the event grew out of “Negro History Week,” the brainchild of noted historian Carter G. Woodson and other prominent African Americans. Since 1976, every U.S. president has officially designated the month of February as Black History Month. Other countries around the world, including Canada and the United Kingdom, also devote a month to celebrating Black history.

District 5110 Rotarians have collectively put 220 families that lost their homes, work tools, and business establishments in the September wildfires back to work. Occupations ranging from carpentry, home remodel, landscaping, forestry, house cleaning, auto repair, electrical services, hardware stores, and more were re-tooled so that families could return to work to support their families.  Two District Fire Relief Funds have been established to collect and administer relief where most needed throughout Oregon: the D5110 Fire Relief Fund and the United Rotary Clubs of Southern Oregon Fire Relief Fund.  To learn more, support or donate, copy this link in your web browser -- https://www.district5110.org/district-fire-relief-funds-put-220-families-back-to-work/

DG Cindi

In Rotary, February is celebrated as “World Understanding Month.” And on February 23 we celebrate Rotary’s 116th birthday as “World Understanding and Peace Day.”
Service to others in need is an act of peace building. Serving others is a bridge to social justice. Service creates connection, empathy, friendship and understanding among the citizens of our home towns. Rotarians of District 5110 you are incredible peace builders and I thank you for your continued service this year, during COVID, during social unrest, and in the aftermath of devastating wildfires.

Our Clubs in District 5110 have served their communities in so many ways this past year and I am humbled and proud of our work to serve others in these challenging times. DG Cindi's message continues on the website with an awesome list of ALL 5110 has accomplished for our communities and beyond just in her tenure as District Governor--CLICK HERE TO READ MORE--and how you best shout it out!

February is Peace and Conflict Prevention / Resolution Month

Today, over 70 million people are displaced as a result of conflict, violence, persecution, and human rights violations. Half of them are children.

We refuse to accept conflict as a way of life. Rotary projects provide training that fosters understanding and provides communities with the skills to resolve conflicts.

Rotary creates environments of peace

As a humanitarian organization, peace is a cornerstone of our mission. We believe when people work to create peace in their communities, that change can have a global effect.

By carrying out service projects and supporting peace fellowships and scholarships, our members take action to address the underlying causes of conflict, including poverty, discrimination, ethnic tension, lack of access to education, and unequal distribution of resources.

Our commitment to peacebuilding today answers new challenges: how we can make the greatest possible impact and how we can achieve our vision of lasting change. We are approaching the concept of peace with greater cohesion and inclusivity, broadening the scope of what we mean by peacebuilding, and finding more ways for people to get involved.

Rotary creates environments where peace can happen. 

Rotary’s Four Roles in Promoting Peace 

Rotary and its members are:

• Practitioners: Our work fighting disease, providing clean water and sanitation, improving the health of mothers and children, supporting education, and growing local economies directly builds the optimal conditions for peaceful societies.
• Educators: Our Rotary Peace Centers have trained over 1,300 peace fellows to become effective catalysts for peace through careers in government, education, and international organizations. 
• Mediators: Our members have negotiated humanitarian ceasefires in areas of conflict to allow polio vaccinators to reach children who are at risk. 
• Advocates: Our members have an integral role as respected, impartial participants during peace processes and in post-conflict reconstruction. We focus on creating communities and convening groups that are connected, inclusive, and resilient.

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Join "Voices of Rotary" Podcast Training Series

By Dan Smith

We are looking for volunteers to conduct interviews and compile audio pictures to help tell more Rotary stories.

With more than one million Rotarians world-wide, each of us have memories, experiences and service that have impacted our Rotary lives. Powerful stories of service and accomplishments. Rotary District 5110 is compiling a series of podcasts to capture these stories to share with fellow Rotarians and communities.

Each week in the month of January you can experience a new sample lesson from the interactive training program.This week meet award-winning podcaster Dr. Siobhan McHugh, who teaches podcasting and journalism at the University of Wollongong in Australia. McHugh has generously provided material from her training program for our use.

The training, software and access to equipment are provided by the district, free to the podcasting team. There are a limited number of seats. If you are interested in learning more or joining the team visit the sign-up page or contact team@rotaryvolunteerconnect.org with any questions.

Voices of Rotary - Telling Our Stories Through Podcasts

By Daniel Smith

There has never been a better time to be a storyteller – there are so many ways to distribute, with just a click of a button your story can be shared with the entire planet and the world needs to hear our stories. But how do you tell an engaging story? How do you tell a story that cuts through the noise out there?

Matt Livadary is an award winning documentary storyteller and creative director. His goal is to create meaningful stories in all shapes and sizes - from documentaries to podcasts. Watch his introduction to the Story Fundamentals for All course, part of the District 5110 Field Podcaster training program. Matt will also be presenting at the Rotary Now!/Leading Change Forum on February 17.

Find out more and about joining the District 5110 Voices of Rotary Podcasting Team. Watch the first two sample courses and sign up today.

 To listen to more Wheel Tales CLICK HERE

As we end the year, the COVID crisis continues to severely impact the Navajo Nation. We continue to plan for resuming our project in the spring and summer and will continue to provide updates as we go through the first months of 2021.

The Navajo Nation Continues to Fight COVID-19

On Tuesday, the Navajo Department of Health, in coordination with the Navajo Epidemiology Center and the Navajo Area Indian Health Service, reported 118 new COVID19 positive cases for the Navajo Nation and 15 more deaths. The total number of deaths is now 837 as of Tuesday. Reports indicate that 12,545 individuals have recovered from COVID-19, and 208,956 COVID-19 tests have been administered. The total number of positive COVID-19 cases is now 23,978, including 19 delayed reported cases.

The Navajo Department of Health and Navajo Area Indian Health Service have begun the second phase of vaccinations on the Navajo Nation known as Phase 1B, which includes high-risk individuals, those who are 65 years and older, adults in congregate settings, spiritual leaders, frontline essential workers, first responders, essential infrastructure workers, and essential businesses. The first phase included vaccines for health care workers, residents, and employees of long-term assisted care facilities, under the guidance of the CDC and the Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices.

The Navajo Department of Health has extended the stay-at-home lockdown that requires everyone to remain home except for essential workers who have to report to work, for cases of emergencies, to pick up medication, to get food and water, and other essential activities.

For more information or to inquire about how you can help, contact Project Coordinator PP John Allman.

Please visit our project website www.navajosolarlight.org, share it with friends, family, acquaintances, and even strangers. And, of course, think about donating to our cause. Every $300 brings light to another home and family.

NavajoSolarLight.org

NavajoSolar@StateofJeffersonRotary.org 

Every D5110 Rotarian with a business or profession is entitled to a FREE listing in the Rotary Business Network directory. If you have a known business identified through DaCdb, your business is already listed.

If your business is not listed, click on https://rotarybusinessnetwork.org/pricing/ and add your business with either a FREE listing or select one of the upgrade opportunities providing greater visibility. See how it works

Visit the Rotary Business Directory if you have questions.

The satisfaction of stepping up

Feb 2021 K R Ravindran

Giving is more than an activity. It is a way of life and a beacon in the search for hope in troubled times. There is great turmoil today, but these are not unusual times, not in the span of human history. The wisdom of the ages is especially important to help us set our path and purpose.

Such wisdom comes from the 12^th century philosopher known as Maimonides. Born in Córdoba, Spain, he and his family went into exile in Morocco to escape religious persecution. As a young man, he mastered Aristotle, astronomy, and later medicine. After moving to Cairo, Maimonides became known as the city’s greatest rabbi, producing tomes of commentary on the Torah, and he lived out his final days as a renowned doctor.

But his greatest gift to humanity captured his thoughts about giving itself. His Eight Levels of Charity is a masterpiece that teaches us about what giving means and what motivates us to do it.

The bottom rung of Maimonides’ ladder is giving out of pity or grudgingly. The next step up is giving less than one should, but doing so cheerfully. Climb up to the fifth rung and you are giving before being asked. Further up the ladder is giving in a way that the receiver does not know who the giver is. The eighth and highest level of charity is to anticipate distress and giving to avoid or prevent it.

When we immunize children against polio, we are anticipating potential illness. We do so with other efforts, such as Rotary projects that reduce the incidence of malaria or cervical cancer.

When we teach someone a profession that enables them to earn a living, we apply the eighth step. From microfinance to education, The Rotary Foundation helps us give the gift of self-reliance.

All of this good work awaits us, as does the work of supporting newborns, cleaning water sources, recovering from the Covid-19 pandemic, and countless other efforts we lead.

I am proud to say that many Rotary members climb to the top of Maimonides’ ladder. Many of them do so anonymously. Whoever they are and for whatever reason they share their gifts with the Foundation, I thank them.

As an organization, Rotary climbs that ladder as well. Every one of your donations helps us reach higher levels. As we climb this ladder as one, we gain a wider perspective. We see all those who need to be uplifted as well as the countless opportunities we have to help them in Rotary. And as we do so, we find our own meaning and purpose.

K R Ravindran
Foundation Trustee Chair