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History
for
The Rotary Club of Space Center (Houston), Texas, and U.S.A.
Rotary
International
District 5890 (589)
Club
2010
Chartered August 6, 1964
Forty
six years of serving the local and world communities
with a passion for “Service Above
Self”
Rotary
Year 2009-2010
Narrative
The Club continued to meet at the Bay Oaks
Country Club Houston, Texas each Monday at noon. The
Programs Committee, chaired by John
Nugent, provided a variety of
interesting programs from guest speakers with several of the
time slots used for club activities such as Club
Assemblies and fund raiser updates. Occasionally
special guests would be on the program or just visited the
Club such as District 5890 Governor
Sunny
Sharma (2010-11), U. S.
Congressman
Pete Olsen, District
5890 Governor
Ed
Charlesworth, and Assistant District 5890 Governor Chris Schneider.
The title of the weekly programs
and often a brief write-up on the program with pictures was
captured in the Club’s newsletter, Blastoff. The
newsletter contained a lead-in from
"President Jon" who always gave an encouraging, insightful,
and challenging message. Debby McBride led the
members in songs for most of the meetings and the members
shared in leading the Club in the pledge of alliance to the U.
S. flag, prayer, and The Four-Way Test. Golf outings on
Thursday were a favorite under the leadership of
Dick Kidder for
most of the year and later by Bill Duesnbury. Club
fellowships, held about twice a month, were facilitated
by
Roger Donnelly and
held at a variety of places such as restaurants with good
attendance and great fellowship. A Christmas
Dinner, a
St.
Patrick’s Day Celebration
during Family of Rotary Night Out, and a trip to the Rodeo
provided additional opportunities for fellowship for the Club
members and invited guests.
President McKinnie also introduced some
new activities and retained some previous ones to facilitate
more interaction between the members and guests, and provide
more general information. These were: opened the Club
meeting with a “greet our guests and fellow Rotarians” where
Club members move about the room shaking hands and speaking to
individuals; implemented a “Secret Handshaker” who had $5 to
award to some lucky member; implemented a 50/50 weekly raffle
managed and operated by the Red Badgers to fund their local
community service project; continued the tradition of “the
Rotary International Foundation Message of the Week”, the
“Membership Moment” and a “Committee Short Report” for the
purpose of keeping members informed; and closed the meeting
with a “good thought for the week".
Three of
the Club members were former District 5890 (589)
Governors,
Floyd Boze 1981-1982, Billy Weseman 1993-1994, and Susan Howe 2006-2007. Vince
Lipovsky
(center), a chartered member of the Club, 18
past presidents, Floyd Boze, and Susan Howe continued to
attend the weekly Club meetings. February 8, 2010 was
proclaimed "
Floyd Boze Day" with a
Proclamation from Houston City Councilman, Mike
Sullivan. Words regarding Past District 589
Governor (PDG) Boze from President McKinnie
(photo of PDG Boze and
President McKinnie) follow: "There are some things in
life that just seem meant to be. Dedication of Monday’s
club meeting to the celebration of PDG Floyd Boze’s birthday,
his life and dedication to the “Purpose of Rotary” will be one
of those moments. From humble days on a farm, one of 11
children, Floyd advanced through life both academically
(Doctorate at Tennessee) and militarily (Colonel, serving in
WWII and Korea) Floyd and his wife, Nancy, grew up
across the street from each other. Some say “they went
to kindergarten and came home holding hands”. They
worked side by side for so many years, again academically
(Professors Emeritus at University of Houston at Clear Lake)
and militarily. PDG Floyd Boze serviced as Lubbock’s
Club President, before transferring to Space Center Rotary in
1973. Floyd was elected District Governor in 1981-82 (Space
Center Rotary Club's first governor). As of last
year, Floyd had 58 years perfect attendance, with make-ups in
more than 20 countries. He is both a Paul Harris Fellow
and Floyd Boze Fellow. When I grow up, I want to be just
like Floyd Boze, a true Rotarian in every sense. Happy
Birthday, Floyd and God Bless!!!!". The February
8 and 22 Blastoffs contained
more pictures and information about PDG Boze. Also
a newspaper article with PDG Boze and friends can be viewed. PDG
Boze received a Texas State Legislative
Proclamation from State Representative John
Davis at the May 3 Club meeting. More
pictures of Floyd Boze Day in
photo gallery.
View video of the event.
The Board of Directors met twelve times in
regular session and seven times in special meetings. Actions and
decisions by the Board are recorded in the
Minutes.
The avenues of service committees
and
committee members were very
active during the year.
Billy R. Smith was the
Club’s Parliamentarian, and maintained and interpreted the
Club’s Constitution and By-Laws. The Constitution and By-Laws were revised
to reflect the way the Club actually operated
and included improved processes and procedures. There were 3
Club assemblies held; July, January, and June.
Over $289,000
was raised for
service projects, The Rotary Foundation, and The Space
Center Rotary Club Endowment Foundation. The service
projects have a brief write up in the summary of
accomplishments.
Particularly noteworthy
was the
donation to the Shriner's Children's Hospital in Galveston and Houston which
consisted of training and recreational equipment totaling $11,000.
A comprehensive overview of the financial condition of
the Club can be viewed with the following
documents:
summary of the cash and
investment balances in various accounts as of June 30,
2010;
profit and loss
statement
from July 1, 2009 through June 30,
2010;
administrative budget;
and
service
budget.
The Club added 21 new members and
lost 2, one due to job transfer and one was moved
from active to honorary. This resulted in a net
gain of 19 members (17%), and a
membership from 112 to
131 plus 11 honorary members, which was unheard
in a large club (based on June 15, 2010 Board
of Directors meeting minutes). The Membership Manual was revised to
incorporate procedures and information which resulted in
a 3 week turn around from proposal of new member to induction,
improved new member orientations, formalized new member
induction event, and increased participation of members in
bringing guests and new potential members to the club
meetings. Maintained an up to date membership
directory,
with members pictures and included it
in the protected area of the club’s ClubRunner web
site.
There were 34 color issues of the
Club’s newsletters,
Blastoff, out of
a possible 43. The newsletters were multi paged and
contained a variety of interesting items such as human
interest stories about the Club’s members; future programs;
make-up opportunities; fund raisers, Shrimporee and
Springoree, information including pictures and list of the
associated sponsors; general information about the Club,
District 5890, and The Rotary International; and write-ups
about the weekly programs including
pictures.
Patrice Sutherland was the editor until November 30, 2009 and
then President McKinnie became the editor.
Bob Mitchell and
John
Lee
were the photographers.
The 36th Shrimporee,
with the theme of “The Future of Children is in Our Hands”,
was held on October 17th at the Clear Lake Park, in Seabrook,
Texas. It was a beautiful sunny day with no clouds in
the sky and the many guests (more than 1,800 meal plates
were served) enjoyed the delicious food, children’s
activities, music, and great auctions and raffle.
President Elect
Dr. John Wilson was the Chairman. President
McKinnie selected the primary beneficiaries for the Shrimporee
as Hurricane Ike Continued Relief, Shriner's Children's
Hospital, and Armand Bayou Nature Center. In addition
there were 37
service projects
for Rotary Year 2009-2010 supported by the funds generated
from the Shrimporee. Information on the Shrimporee was
placed in the Club's history archives and can be viewed by
clicking on
2009
Shrimporee. A
perspective on the tremendous planning and work done by the
Club members, and adult and student
volunteers can be reviewed by clicking on
Behind the
Scenes.
The festivities of the day were recorded and
placed on a
video
by Bob Swint of ATA Associates. The net income was over
$76,000. This was the largest amount made from a major
fundraiser since the first Shrimporee in 1974.
Springoree 2010 (the tenth year for a major fund raiser to be
held in addition to the Shrimporee) was
a fantastic success! About 140 Rotarians
and friends gathered at Bailey's American Grille, 2320
NASA Parkway, Seabrook, Texas, on May 20, 2010 for a great time of
fellowship with good music, excellent wine and food, and of
course the opportunity to contribute monetarily to the Club's
future service projects and at the same time to acquire some
great items being auctioned.
Steve Owens,
Springoree Chair for the third year, and a number
of Rotarians put together every aspect of the event; the
donors of auction items and raffle item, and the sponsor
companies and the attendees to the Springoree that reached
down to their pockets and so generously bid for the many
auctioned items. The event brought over $20,000
from the live auction, silent auction, raffle tickets and
the Connoisseur Club. The Club was also
honored to have in attendance Assistant District 5890 Governor
Chris Schneider and wife, Lori, and past District 5890
Governor Suzi Howe and husband, Bill. The raffle
prize was a beautiful stainless steel ladies Omega
Constellation Watch with a pink mother of pearl
dial, donated by Travis Vermeer and Ben
Bridge Jeweler and won by Club member Art Oswald.
View an article and pictures from
The Bay Area Citizen.
More pictures in The Bay Area Citizen
June 10 issue. Both fundraisers brought the total amount raised
to at least $1,394,567 since 1968.
The popular TV ABC show,
“Extreme Makeover Home Edition” kicked off its latest new
home makeover in Kemah, on January 7, when Ty Pennington,
popular host for Extreme Makeover - Home Edition screamed into
his bull horn, “Good Morning Beach
Family”. The hand over of the keys
of the old home took place and a whirlwind of
activities started, culminating on January 14 with Ty again
leading a chorus of "Move That Bus". In the course of 7
days, over 1,100 volunteers worked 24 hours a day
to tear down the Hurricane Ike damaged home and build
their new home, the largest home ever constructed in Extreme
Makeover history. President McKinnie saw a great
opportunity for
Rotary to be
involved and jumped in “head first” he noted in the January 11
Blastoff. "This once in a lifetime
project is the
perfect opportunity for us to give back to those less
fortunate and to share our Rotary story on a national stage",
noted President McKinnie. Rotarians across the greater
Houston District 5890 had an integral part, supplying
material, supplies, food, labor totaling over $50,000, plus
financial support. Club member and Vice
President of Lewis Jewelers, Slade
Lewis,
relates his story on the efforts raise money
to pay off the Beach's home mortgage. A
write up by Mary Ann Hellinghausen and pictures of the
family and house can be viewed by clicking on
write up and
pictures. You can
view some of the action of the Extreme Makeover on
YouTube: Video
1,
Video
2, Video 3,
Meet the Beaches;
Video 4, The
Build; and Video 5 Completed House and
Credits. Videos 3, 4, and 5 by Bob Swint of ATA
Associates.
There were
extensive publicity concerning the Club's activities and
projects with approximately 15 publications in the
local
and surrounding papers, and at least
one in the Houston Chronicle, and 5 in District 5890
newsletter. Also the Club received local and national TV
media coverage with ABC regarding the Beach Family Extreme
Makeover Project. Space Center Rotary Club was noted in
the 2 hour special that aired on April 4, 2010 as collecting
over $100,000 for the Beach Family to be applied toward
their home mortgage. Since the program on TV, $139,000
has been raised with about $3000 remaining on the
Beach's mortgage as of June 21, 2010.
The Club had a unique opportunity to
sponsor a Leadership Camp for four high schools within the
Clear Creek Independent School District School System in
September. Several hundred outstanding 11th and 12th
grade high school students gathered at Clear Lake Recreation
Center to learn more about community service through Interact
and Rotary. Several Club members attended and supported
the efforts;
Dr. John
Wilson,
Art
Oswald, Alan
Wylie, and President McKinnie
addressed a very attentive crowd stressing the importance of
community service. Volunteer cards were distributed and
Art received over 200 commitments to work the
2009 Shrimporee. More about the meeting by
President McKinnie in the September 21
Blastoff.
A Rotaract
Club at University of Houston, Clear Lake (UHCL) was
established in September.
Stavan Vora
completed the Rotaract constitution for acceptance by UHCL,
under
Ted
Cumming's
(Club Rotarian and Dean
at UHCL shown with his wife Leslie) leadership and was elected
the President of
Space Center Rotaract
Club
. More can be viewed about the Club in President's
McKinnie's
comments.
Dr. Cummings was presented a
Presidential Citation by Assistant
District 5890 Governor Chris Schneider at the June 14
Club meeting from the President of Rotary
International for the outstanding work he had done with the Rotaract
program.
Clear Lake High School’s
Interact Club’s outgoing President Marissa
Cilento thanked
her outgoing officers for a job well done and
introduces the incoming President and officers. Rotarian and Clear
Creek Independent School District Superintendent, Dr. Greg Smith,
congratulated the
incoming Officers of Clear Lake High School’s
Interact Club and sponsor, Mrs. Jamie Edwards. Dr.
Smith (right) was presented a
Presidential Citation
by Assistant District 5890 Governor Chris Schneider at the
June 14 Club meeting from the President of Rotary
International for
the outstanding work he had done with the Interact program.
The Rotary Clubs
of Space Center, League City, and Seabrook; and the Clear
Creek Independent School District School (CCISD) hosted
the second Rotary/CCISD Teacher of The Year Awards on May 25th
at the South Shore Harbor Resort and Conference Center.
Karen Hearn from Landolt Elementary (Elementary Division) and
Erika Bondy from Creekside Intermediate (Intermediate/High
School Division) were named Teachers of the Year. The
other four finalists were: Maria Scardasis-Wyatt from Goforth
Elementary, Kristina Digman from Ward Elementary, Pat Jones
from Clear Brook High School, Michael Houston from Clear View
Education Center. More about the
event and photos
of the winners, and the
Awards Program. Read more in an article in The
Bay Area Citizen.
Karen Hearn,
Elementary Teacher of the Year and
Erika Bondy, Secondary Teacher of the Year were
guests of the Club on June 14. View a video of
Karen Heard and
Erika Bondy at their respective
schools. This was the 20th year for the Excellence in
Education Program. The winners received $1000 each and
the runnerups
$500 each.
"In
Recognition
of
Your Dedication and Commitment to the Fire Fighting Profession"
was the heading on the awards for 6 outstanding fire
fighters recognized on June 7 at the regular Club meeting.
Each one received a certificate of award and
$600. The Fire Fighter of the Year Award went to Edward
Bridges who received an additional $600.
This was the 18th year of the Excellence in Law
Enforcement and Public Safety recognition program. The other five
finalists were Robert Herbert, Dan Reynolds, Mark Head,
Kelly Head, Edward Bridges, and Matt Roper. Pictures in
June 14
Blastoff.
Dick Meyer, Youth Committee
Chair, hosted the Youth Exchange incoming and outgoing
students, along with their family, friends and sponsors at the
August 17 Club
meeting. Sirida Sombatto (Jen) from Thailand and Leonardo Briones from
Ecuador were inbound international exchange students
introduced in the September 14
Blastoff. Jen
turned 16 years old shortly after arriving in the U.S. and is
a Junior at Clear Lake High School. She enjoys watching
movies, hanging out with her friends, American music and loves
playing basketball. Leonardo is 17 years old and is a
junior at Clear Lake High School. He enjoys listening to
music — salsa and meringue especially — and lifting weights.
He is a member of the Clear Lake HS JV Tennis team and a
member of Interact Club. Both made a presentation about
their respective homeland in the
March 1 Club
meeting. A note from Sofia Berlund, a Swedish Youth
Exchange Student sponsored by the Club can be viewed in
the July 13
Blastoff. President McKinnie noted that
she had returned to her home in Sweden and
that " She has
touched the hearts of so many - students,
athletes, adults and every Rotarian. We wish her well in her future
endeavors and hope she knows that she carries a
piece of our hearts also". The Club has actively participated in
the International Youth Exchange for 25 years.
Alex Hall,
Ambassadorial Scholar, received The
Rotary Foundation Alumni pin from Bill Barmore, District 5890
Ambassadorial Scholar Chair on November 23.
Dr. Greg Smith, Superintendent of
the Clear Creek Independent School District,
presented $1,000 scholarship each to
six high school seniors (Dr.
Smith center) based on Scholastic Achievement. The winners
were Allyson Brinton, Kathryn Hageman, Lisa Nicholson,
Reid Scofield, Brian Bloomfield, and Alex Judd.
In addition, a $1,000 scholarship was presented
to
Cole Heidman,
winner
of the Drug Awareness Essay. This was the 22nd
year
for the Drug Awareness Essay
Program.
The Club had the
honor of being the first Rotary Club in District 5890 to host
the incoming German Group Study Exchange (GSE) Team on April
12 through April 16. The team was headed by Team Leader
Helmut Munstermann with team members Ramona Kiesel, Tino
Jentsch, Cindy Altkrueger, Toni Kodantke, and Marion
Engelhardt. Hilmar Zeissig and his wife, Rose, hosted
the reception for the team, district leaders, the former
German Consulate General, and Space Center Rotarians at their
town house. Mike Dennard and
Hilmar Zeissig coordinated the reception and activities while
the team was visiting the area. Pictures of the team can
be viewed in the
picture from the
April 19
Blastoff. Hilmar Zeissig was the District 5890 International GSE
Advisor. In May a
Japanese GSE team visited the
Club and exchanged banners.
The
World Health committee had no patients this year but was
planning for the next one. Mike Hernandez was in
contact with a Mexico club for patient identification awaiting
confirmation from Dr. Fustok as to which hospital can
accommodate medical requirements for the patient
identified.
Carlos Villagomez
offered to host and serve as "tour guide" and Dick
Kidder would coordinate the visit
.
Over 20 Rotarians
of the Club's
members
visited 4
local area nursing homes the day before Valentine’s Day
distributing “roses (400) of love” and spending time with the
resident senior citizens.
Pat Doughty,
Project Chair, and Club volunteers completed a 4 week
community
service project
at Interfaith Christian Ministries in
July. Activities
included re-striping the parking lot, painting offices on Hwy 270, and stocking
the food pantry.
The Club
added 5
Paul Harris Fellows
bringing the total to 342 since the
first recorded Paul Harris Fellow in 1973 and gave $23,809 to
The Rotary Foundation resulting in a total of $
387,616 since 1964. There were 4 Paul
Harris Society Members, 57 sustaining members, and 17 Benefactors.
The Club members also
gave $5,080 to Polio Plus.
Club
members who not only contributed to the Club's
activities, but participated in District positions were:
President Jon McKinnie, Director of Technology and District
Web Master; Past District Governor
Suzi
Howe, Director of District
Rotary Foundation (DRFC); Alan Wylie, Youth Exchange
Director;
Stan
Galanski , Water Resource
Director; Mike Dennard, Group Study Exchange Committee;
Courtney Lindberg, Earth Day Chair; and Hilmar Zeissig,
District 5890 International GSE Advisor.
OH!! What a weekend! was the introduction
of President McKinnie's words about the District 5890
Conference held April 22 - 24, 2010 at the Houston Hyatt
Regency Houston, Texas. His entire write up and
photos of the Club members can be viewed
in
OH! What a Weekend!!
See President McKinnie and Stan Galanski
with the
rewards
at the Conference.
Rae DeCastro and her husband Howard
attended the 101th Rotary International Convention held in
Montreal, Quebec, Canada June 20-23, 2010.
The Rotary National
Award for Space Achievement (RNASA)
Foundation presented
William H. Gerstenmaier, NASA Associate Administrator for Space
Operations with the 2010 National Space Trophy at the 24th
annual gala held April 30 2010 at the Houston Hyatt
Regency Houston, Texas. Proceeds of the event went to
benefit the High School Aerospace Scholars program
held at Johnson Space Center for the 11th year. The
front cover of the 2010 Rotary National Award for Space
Achievement Program can be viewed by clicking on
2010 RNASA Program.
Read President's McKinnie's
Closing Remarks
to the Club
on June 21, 2010
President McKinnie approved the history
for Rotary year 2009-10 and it was placed in
archives August 16, 2010
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