Monday, January 19, 1998
| President Jim Valinoti called the meeting to order promptly at 12:30 PM and Phil Talamantes led us in the pledge followed by Bob Zeni who provided us with our weekly dose of inspiration. | Mark your calendars...February 27- Rotary Ski Challenge |
Visiting Rotarians were introduced by Bob Lucas.
Among today's special guests were Serra and Priscilla visiting from Sao Paulo, Brazil. They are the teenage children of the Rotary family that hosted Bill Fisher during his stay in Brazil. President Jim extended a special welcome to Brad Benedetti President elect of the Sebastopol club and our own Valerie Mazonni.
We are all sad to hear John Ramzy is leaving the club due to a transfer to Austin, Texas. John's perpetual smile and enthusiasm will be sorely missed. All of our best wishes go with John and his family.
Jeff Ray is heading up the 1998 Tahoe City Rotary Ski Challenge set for Friday February 27th at Alpine Meadows Ski Area. All interested skiers please contact Jeff at 585-0206 for details. The deadline for sign-ups is February 2nd.
New members Paul Stychno, Lori Burmeyer and Rick Rybicki. Paul takes the prize for the most "risqué" past. One wonders how he managed to "progress" from selling bras then on to women's' pants and finally after arriving in Sonoma County to his current product, insurance. Paul loves flying and worked his way through college as a flight instructor. Upon graduation he piloted a Lear jet for Eddie DeBartolo, Sr. Paul, married with two sons, is a Farmers Insurance Agent specializing in commercial and personal insurance.
| Rick Rybicki emphasized his commitment to Rotary during his Craft talk. He is an attorney practicing with Barbara De Adoin. When Rick and his wife transplanted themselves to Santa Rosa he was determined to become involved in a community project right away before the demands of his law career could dominate all of his time. His associate, herself a Rotarian, introduced Rick to Bill Gittins; the rest of the story is well, unfolding before our eyes. |
Lori Burmeyer, a Mid-West transplant, holds the distinction of being the only female General Manager of an auto dealership north of the Golden Gate Bridge. (Applause!!) She has been working with Santa Rosa Dodge for thirteen years where she started as the business manager shortly after her arrival in Santa Rosa. Lori joined Rotary partly as an example to her children. She feels it is important for them to understand the value of giving back to the community. Lori is married and has two children two year old Hannah and nine year old Patrick who was her guest at Rotary today.
Santa Rosa West Rotary welcomes these three spirited new members.
President Jim put us all to the test, THE FOUR WAY TEST. Any and all Rotarians not displaying on their lapels a Rotary pin were asked to step forward and take this opportunity to purchase one for a mere $3.00. Twenty-five plus Rotarians rushed the podium for this first-ever January clearance sale.
Today's Really Big News is the outcome on the Crab Feed. Congratulations are in order once again to everyone who pitched in and especially to those who carried the "heavy end of the load." Dennis Crandall once again proved himself to be the fearless leader. Dennis produced outstanding results throughout this very challenging endeavor. Our gratitude and congratulations to Dennis.
John Withers, modeled a red wool face mask. Surely considered "haute couture" in Rochester where the wind chill factor is 50 degrees below. John braved the cold to see his doctor at the Mayo for a follow up on his knee replacement surgery. John and his knee are progressing well and consequently he was fined only a "saw buck".
The pot is just under a grand. John Withers missed the black marble and the Ken Kushnir consortium donated their $20 winnings to the Community Fund.
Marc Matson brought us yet another outstanding program when he introduced Professor Edward Castillo, Chairman of the Department of Native American Studies at Sonoma State University. Professor Castillo, himself a Native American raised on a southern California reservation, proved to be an intense speaker who excelled at condensing hours of intriguing data into a too short 30 minutes.
| The professor touched on the stories of the Miwok Indians who made the area now Southern Sonoma County and Marin their home and the Pomo Indians who were formerly located in the Northern part of the county. The Santa Rosa Plain remained a border area, a Switzerland, between the two tribes. There are no migration stories, no Native American recollection of a trek across a Northern land bridge. All creation myths have the people being created here in North America. For this reason Ed questions the theory of Bering Straits migration. Research shows that although the men hunted, the women of the tribes provided most of the food through collecting and were therefore held in high regard. The women led battles against the invading Spaniards. |
The Miwok believed the water to the west led to the Land of the Dead. When Francis Drake landed on the coast of Sonoma and Marin in 1579, they thought he and his men were their ancestors returning from the dead. The arrival of the Europeans proved to be bad fortune for the Indians. The typical childhood illnesses to which the Indians had not been exposed were carried to them and they began to suffer and die from mumps, measles and chicken pox. The Spaniards forced the Indians into slavery and during their labors the Indians built many of the California missions commonly thought to have been built by the Padres. These Native Americans, who have been mistreated since the day aliens began to land in the New World, have not been recognized for their labors. Professor Costello indicated that a project much like the Vietnam Wall is being created to acknowledge these original inhabitants of California.
This Bulletin was written by Laura Zlot.
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