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WELCOME

President Bill Vermouth welcomed all to the July 12th meeting of the Brattleboro Rotary Club held at the American Legion in Brattleboro. He introduced the member of the Board who welcomed everyone in near unison. (ED NOTE: President Bill needs to work on his bell ringing skills). Chris Hart offered a meaningful invocation:

 

When life is hard, what I need most is not always what I want. What I want is for life to be easy. What I want is for someone or something to come along and make it all go away. But what I need is tenderness. What I need is to be loved. What I need is a companion for the journey. (Br. James Koester, Society of Saint John the Evangelist)

This was followed by the pledge of allegiance. 

 

As a luncheon of pork (yes, again), sesame chicken, black beans, rice, broccoli, green salad, rolls, and chocolate chip cookies for dessert was being digested, the meeting continued.
 
GUEST: Rachel Sorrell, Carter Falk, Alexander Province (3 Gateway scholarship winners) and John Hagan (speaker)
 

TRIVIA QUESTION

What is the oldest private patriotic organization in the United States?
 (answer below)
JOKE OF THE WEEK
 

For our Rotary joke, Marty Cohn told ­­­­the following:

A hip young man goes out and buys a 2001 Ferrari 360 Spider. It is the best convertible sports car, costing about $250,000. He takes it out for a spin and while stopping for a red light, an old man on a moped, wearing an open face crash helmet (looking about 70 years old) pulls up next to him.

The old man looks over the sleek, shiny red surface of the car and asks, “What kind of car ya’ got there, sonny?” The young man replies, “A 2001 Ferrari 360 Spider. They cost about a quarter of a million dollars!”

“That’s a lot of money,” says the old man, shocked. “Why does it cost so much?” “Because this car can do over 200 miles an hour!” states the cool dude proudly. The moped driver asks, “Can I take a look inside?” “Sure,” replies the owner.

So the old man pokes his head in the window and looks around. Leaning back on his moped, the old man says, “That’s a pretty nice car, all right!”

Just then the light changes so the guy decides to show the old man what his car can do. He floors it, and within 30 seconds the speedometer reads 220 mph. Suddenly, he notices a dot in his rear view mirror. It seems to be getting closer!

He slows down to see what it could be and suddenly, whhhoooossshhh! Something whips by him, going much faster! “What on earth could be going faster than my Ferrari?” the young man asks himself.

Then, ahead of him, he sees a dot coming toward him. Whoooooosh! It goes by again, heading the opposite direction! And it almost looked like the old man on the moped!

“Couldn’t be,” thinks the guy. “How could a moped outrun a Ferrari?!” Again, he sees a dot in his rear view mirror! Whooooosh Ka-BbblaMMM! The moped plows into the back of his car, demolishing the rear end. The young man jumps out, and it IS the old man!!! Of course, the moped and the old man are hurting for certain. He runs up to the old man and says,

“You gotta tell me how you got that thing to be faster than my Ferrari !” The old man looks up and replies, “OK..., but first, unhook my suspenders (or braces for newest member) from your side-view mirror, will ya?”

 

 
ROTARY MINUTE
 
For our Rotary minute, President Bill Vermouth outlined his goals for 2018-19 and urged members to sign up for committees.
 
NOTE: 2018-19 weekly assignments are posted on club website.
 
NOTE: 2018-19 weekly assignments are posted on club website.

UPCOMING PROGRAMS

  • 07/19 – Club Assembly
  • 07/26 – Biz Hallett, Brattleboro Ludo Sport
NOTE: 2018-19 weekly assignments are posted on club website.
 

REMINDERS

  • Bottles and cans can be brought to Putney Road redemption center to benefit Pure Water for the World. Please see Mara Williams.
  • “Like” the club’s Facebook page
 
If you like this newsletter, brag at next Club meeting. 
It's a new Rotary year!

ANNOUNCEMENTS

  1. Sophia Howlett was inducted as the club’s newest member. ED NOTE: Members have the next three weeks to introduce say hello to Sophia or be prepared to take the “walk of shame.”
  2. Brattleboro on Wheels will be taking place on 7/14 from 10-2.  If you can volunteer, please contact Mike Mandracchia.
  3. If you know of a Rotarian who needs some assistance, please contact Dart Everett.
  4. The first group of four members (Ron Stahley, Robin Sweetapple, Stan Nowakowski, and Bill Vermouth) will be packing boxes for the VT Foodbank on 7/14 from 9-noon.
  5. If you would like to advertise on the club's website, please contact Marty Cohn
  • Ad that appears on the club bulletin only…$25/year
  • Ad that rotates on the homepage only …$40/year
  • Ad that appears on all secondary pages … $60/year
  • Ad that does it all — rotates on homepage, appears on all secondary pages, and appears on the club bulletin … $100/year
 
Three of the six Gateway scholarship winners were introduced: Rachel Sorrell (Leland & Gray – University of New Haven); Carter Falk (BUHS – Norwich University); and Alex Province (BUHS – UMass Amherst).

FINES

Dart Everett proposed a fine on Marty Cohn for referring to an old man as being 70 in today’s joke. Marty accepted the fine and turned it into a brag for Dart Everett looking good for an old man.

BRAGS

Bill Vermouth – for the board hosting the meeting with District Governor Venu Rao in his absence.
Cindy Jerome – for the Red Sox winning nine in a row.
Joe Little – for the Boys & Girl Club’s “Going the Distance” fundraiser.
Dart Everett – for the daring rescue of the 13 from the Thai cave.
Chris Hart– for missing last week’s Rotary meeting because she was at a Keith Urban concert.
Bill McKim – for the Croatian soccer team reaching the finals of the Worlds Cup.
Ricky Davidson – for the success of the Boys & Girl Club’s “Going the Distance” fundraiser raising $50,000.
Steve Gordon – for the success of the Boys & Girl Club’s “Going the Distance” fundraiser.
Steve Gordon – for Bill McKim modeling his sport jacket.
.

PROGRAM

 
Carla Lineback presented John Hagan, Commander of American Legion Post #5.  Commander Hagan gave us an overview of the history of the American Legion and issues it’s facing as it approaches its 100th year. He is proposing that all service organizations work together for the betterment of Brattleboro. For more info about the American Legion, click here.
 
 
Rotary Cares, Episode 9 – "Passing the Gavel"
 
 
 
Brattleboro Rotary Club past president Marty Cohn talks with Brattleboro Rotary Club past president Roger Miller (1972-1973) and Brattleboro Sunrise Rotary Club past president Will Shakespeare (2007-2008) about their transformation from club president to club past president. Produced in the studio of Brattleboro Community Television.
 
To view the show, click here.
To listen to the podcast, click here.
 

DISCLAIMER

Past President Martin Cohn who attempts to give a gist of the meeting respectfully submitted this bulletin.  However, it is always better to attend.  If you have any complaints about the contents of this bulletin...
 
ED NOTE: Past President Martin Cohn is off to Iceland for a week, followed by a week in Cabot, VT. Therefore, he will not be attending the next three club meetings and will not be publishing a club bulletin. 

ANSWER TO TRIVIA QUESTION

Established in 1783, as the American War for Independence drew to a close, the Society of the Cincinnati is the oldest private patriotic organization in the United States.  For more info, click here.
Russell Hampton
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