~ Newberg Noon Rotary Club Newsletter ~
Rotary Club of Newberg, Zoom Meeting
Wednesday, August 11, 2021
~ Call to Order ~
Immediate Past President Shannon Buckmaster welcomed Rotarians and Friends of Rotary to the Hybrid Live/Zoom meeting at 12:00 p.m. Wednesday, August 11, 2021 at the Chehalem Cultural Center.
~ Flag Salute ~
Jeff lead participants in the Pledge of Allegiance.
~ 4 Way Test ~
Karen lead participants in the recital of the 4 Way Test:
Rotary’s Four Way Test of the things we think, say and do:
#1 – Is it the TRUTH?
#2 – Is it FAIR to all concerned?
#3 – Will it BUILD GOODWILL and BETTER FRIENDSHIPS?
#4 – Is it BENEFICIAL to all concerned?
~ Announcements ~
~ Guests ~
Amy Caruso, Guest, Mike’s Wife
Dan Kutzkey, Guest, Amy’s Husband
Florence Maher, Guest Speaker, Peace Fellow
Brenda, Guest of Jim
~ The Rotary Duck ~
Grant: Noted that after deciding to come back to re-join our club, he was excited to get his application approved and turned around so quickly. He also shared that his son got a job working at Nebraska: although Grant didnt go there, he will root for whoever is employing his son. Go Cornhuskers!
Spike: So happy to have Grant back at the Club.
Auggie: Also happy Grant is here and also happy he got his badge back.
Rick: Excited for the eradication of Polio.
Karen: Still thinking about that Installation Banquet and gave thanks to Brandy for the great decorations. She said it was the best outing since Covid.
Jim: Apologized for missing the banquet as he was at 11,000 Feet hiking.
Dan K: Mentioned he and his wife were up late, noted his appreciation for the Good work Joe does at the school district.
Ralph: Celebrated the 11th of August as the 11th was his better half’s birthday.
Joe: Survived his trip to Oaks Park for his youngest’s 13th birthday. This marks his 3rd trip to Oaks Park this summer.
Stan: Noted that he is going to a memorial service for a friend who he’s known for 80 years who recently passed.
~ Today’s Program: Rotary Peace Fellowship Program by Florence Maher ~
Mike Introduced Florence: Florence is a junior social scientist with OECD Nuclear Energy Agency. She works to advance international cooperation on the human aspects of nuclear safety and improving gender balance in nuclear energy. Prior to her current position she was a 2018-2020 Rotary Peace Fellow at the International Christian University in Tokyo, Japan researching multi-stakeholder dialogue on policy processes. From 2011 to 2018 she was a career foreign service officer with the US Dept of State. She holds a Master’s degree in Public Policy and Social Research from the Intl Christian University and Bachelor’s Degrees in Economics and Political Science from Howard University in Washington D.C. Note: Mike also presented her with one of the new Rotary Peace Polos (pictured).
Florence first got to know Rotary a little over a decade ago after graduating from Howard University. She was working on a service project in Jamaica and needed a local partner to put in a computer lab at an orphanage. She partnered with a local Jamaican Rotary Club on that project. After graduating she served overseas for the Dept of State but knew she wanted to focus on professional aspects related to Peace. Thats when she found the opportunity to do the Rotary Peace Fellowship. She was sponsored by the Rotary Club of Las Vegas, Nevada and concluded her 2 year Peace Fellowship program in Tokyo Japan in 2020.
The Vision of the Fellowship is to contribute to sustainable peace by building a network of peace-builders and leaders dedicated to preventing and resolving conflict across the community. It is a big investment by Rotarians worldwide to support 8 Universities on 5 different continents that together educate about 100 Rotary Peace Fellows annually in Peace and Conflict Resolution. There are 5 Programs that do Master’s Degrees (Florence completed) and 2 that do a Certificate in peace and conflict studies which are a 3 month program.
Florence spent 2 years in Tokyo, Japan. First thing they did was language education in basic Japanese. The heart of the program was a 2 year academic program in Peace and International Development (which was all taught in English). The major emphasis in her program was based on the Thesis Research. The program also provided rich experiences outside of the classroom such as a trip they took to Hiroshima to learn about World War II and the bomb that was dropped. She also enjoyed her chance to spend 6 weeks in Mexico doing research on basic human rights in Mexico. She interviewed policy makers, activists, and business representatives about basic human rights in Mexico. She was looking at a policy process to bring together private and public sectors to come up with new government to come up with recommendations with how to shape the human rights regulations in Mexico. She also got an opportunity to meet with many different Rotary Clubs in Mexico. She also did a 3 month internship at the OECD Nuclear Energy Agency in France which she ultimately got a full time job and whom she currently works for. She also had a lot of engagement the local community in many awesome ways, as well as with various Japanese Rotary Clubs and Districts, attending many events and celebrations put on by those Japanese Rotary Clubs.
Florence highly recommended this program, especially for younger folks who are unsure of what to study after college, as it was an amazing experience. If you would like to learn more about Rotary Peace, you can reach out to Mike Caruso and/or attend the Club’s Peace Committee Meetings.
~ Next Week’s Program: Rotary Club of Newberg Project Showcase ~
Check your e-mails for Mike Caruso’s Zoom meeting access information.
~ Joke of the Day ~
Dad: What is a Pirates Favorite Letter?
Victim: Let me guess: “R”…?
Dad: Arrr, you would think! But a pirate’s love be for the “C”.
~ Happy Quotes! ~
“Peace cannot be kept by force. It can only be achieved by understanding.”
– Albert Einstein
~ Published 8/14/2021: Dan Keuler, Newsletter Editor ~
