~ Newberg Noon Rotary Club Newsletter ~
Rotary Club of Newberg, Zoom Meeting
Wednesday, May 5, 2021
~ Zoom Meeting Participants ~
Shannon B, Mike, Dan, Denise, Spike, Larry, Auggie, Kim, Brandy, Ralph, Amy, Shannon K, Judy, Laura, Steve, Om, Doug, Wendy, Michael S, Paul, Amber, Michael P, Lisa, Michelle, Patrick, Stan, Dale, Paula
~ Call to Order ~
President Shannon Buckmaster welcomed Rotarians and Friends of Rotary to the Zoom meeting at 12:00 p.m. Wednesday, May 5, 2021.
~ Flag Salute ~
Judy lead participants in the Pledge of Allegiance.
~ 4 Way Test ~
Brandy 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 ~
- Pro Classification Talk series: Walter’s idea of inviting veteran members of the club to come back and re-introduce themselves in pro-classification presentations has come into form beginning today with Steve Palmer. Other members who have been slated to present in our pro classification series include Eric Bergquam, Lynn Montoya Quinn, and Spike Sumner.
- Plans are in the works for a hybrid virtual/in-person club meetings. We will return to the Chehalem Cultural Center tentatively starting May 19th. An RSVP process to order boxed lunches will be how we plan to order ahead of time. Please contact Shannon B if you will be ordering a meal for May 19. The costs will be $10 per meal, but you pay have a 2020 credit that can be used to pay lunches in the meantime. There will also be different options for the Duck, be in cash or charge.
- The District Conference was last weekend, thanks to everyone who attended.
- The Rotary International Convention is virtual and will take place June 12-14. There is still time to register, and there is a registration fee but compared to the tpyical costs to attend, this is a huge opportunity to participate without traveling or spending big money.
~ Guests ~
Michelle Palmer, Guest
~ The Rotary Duck ~
Mike: Announced that the peace committee will follow the meeting today.
Shannon B: Saw a Rotarian in the Wild: Stan Kern at the pharmacy.
Om: Wished a Happy Brithday to herself, Auggie, Paula, Ralph, and everyone else with a May Brithday!
Wendy: Had a great conversation with Laura, where she got to learn all about the international projects an grants.
Judy: Gave kudos to Lynn and the Scholarship Committee for all the hard work everyone have put into the scholarships. After Lynn came down with an illness and Kathie experienced an unfortunate death in the family (our club sends condolences), Brandy, Om, and Judy helped keep the team moving forward. Also gave a shout out to Michelle and Ann Dolan who joined Judy at the Senior Center Tuesday to serve meals.
Mike: Announced that Natalie, a Beaverton Rotarian from Armenia, sent word from her travels in Russia that a Club in Russia is seeking to be the first Russian Peace Club and is installing their first Peace Pole. They are also looking to put poles near the borders of North Korea and China.
Laura: Mentioned that she loved her conversation with Wendy and that Wendy expressed interest also in speaking to Auggie to learn about our activity in Guatamala and Patrick about Nepal. It is exciting to see Wendy really getting involved in all areas of the club so quickly. Also thanked Patrick, Paul, and Paula who has worked so hard on international projects.
Auggie: Celebrating his 68th Birthday with a donation to the Foundation.
Total Collected today for the Duck: $50
~ Today’s Program: Pro Classification Talk by Steve Palmer ~
Steve Palmer has been a Rotarian in our Newberg Noon Club since 2011, is a Paul Harris Fellow, and is our Wine Procurement Champion as well as volunteer in many other ways with relation to the auction as well as the Pancake Breakfast. Steve was born in the Bay area, but moved back to and grew up in Oregon, which is where he considers home. In high school he joined and excelled in the Debate team, becoming a National Champion and eventually was recruited for Debate in college, where he attended and competed at Carroll College in Helena, Montana. After graduating he returned to Oregon to attend the University of Oregon. After being a Clerk for a while he was recruited as an associate by the firm he now works at and is partner of: Brown, Tarlow, Bridges & Palmer P.C. at the recommendation of a judge he frequently worked with. He wanted to come to Newberg for that opportunity as well as to raise his son in the community oriented, small town feel of Newberg. His son currently lives in the Newberg area and recently Steve was blessed with his first Grandson. His wife, Michelle, is also a lawyer who specializes in social security and disability law and he gave her kudos for being exceptionally patient with him as they were together for 20 years before getting married 3 years ago. Steve also mentioned he has a passion for snow skiing, kayaking, golf, and dirtbiking. He also shared that he has taken to Cancer awareness and prevention activities. He was inspired by several tragic cancer related experiences over recent years including the tragic passing of his Cousin as well as his lifelong best friend, and shared that his sister is currently battling stage 4 cancer. He pointed out that many cases like these are preventable with early intervention/detection and that we should all take care of ourselves and get phsyical issues checked out to avoid these tragically early deaths. You are never too busy to take care of your health.
Steve also discussed his efforts with relation to the auction as our Wine Procurement Champion. He shared how he was mentored in this way by local wine specialist and philanthropist Jack Czarnecki. His efforts over the years have netted a lot of revenue from local wineries with whom he has built relationships. In more recent years it has become more difficult to procure as these wineries are heavily pestered by organizations like ours to contribute. This is why it is critically important that we all reach out to these wineries who do donate after the auctions to thank them and order more if possible to support them.
Steve currently is a partner at Brown, Tarlow, Bridges & Palmer P.C. This firm is the second oldest firm in Yamhill County and oldest existing firm in Newberg having started in 1971. The founding partners, who are now retired, were both active Rotarians in Newberg and both Past Presidents (Don Tarlow was our Club President 1991-92). His partner is also currently a member of the Early Birds Club. Steve started out with a focus in Family Law as it was personally relevant to his life. He then moved towards his current specializations as a divorce attorney as well as working in estate planning.
Steve discussed the importance of Estate Planning to everyone as it provides a lot of relief with regard to setting up your estate for your family. He pointed out that there are 3 major aspects to estate planning that we should all strongly consider looking into if we haven’t already. These three factors include setting up a will, setting up a power of attorney, and setting an advance directive. The will is what we all are likely familiar with, and is important to provide specific directions and allocations of your estate to meet your expectations and preferences in specific ways. The power of attorney is a legal document that nominates someone you love and trust to legally act on your behalf if you are incapacitated in some way. For example, if you are in an accident and unable to sign off on your taxes, this person will be able to act on your behalf in important ways while you are unable. Finally the advance directive (sometimes known as a living will) is a legal order made out by you, or a person you give such authority, to determine directives with regard to your end of life health instructions. i.e. whether you do or do not what to be kept alive on life support, etc. Steve insisted these are all important but that we should all AT LEAST have a simple, low cost Will, as it provides direction for your assets and more importantly your wishes for who should take legal guardianship over your kids assuming they are minors. For more information you can go to his firm’s website at https://www.newberglaw.com/.
~ Next Week’s Program: Classification Talk by Shawn Daley ~
Check your e-mails for Mike Caruso’s Zoom meeting access information.
~ Joke of the Day ~
“Geology rocks… But Geography is where its at.”
~ Happy Quotes! ~
“Winning doesn’t always mean being first. Winning means you’re doing better than you’ve ever done before.“
– Bonnie Blair, Olympic Speed Skater
~ Published 5/9/2021: Dan Keuler, Newsletter Editor ~
