This Rotor can also be found on the FRONT PAGE OF OUR WEBSITE,
on the right side (where it used to be).
ANNOUNCEMENTS
Remember September is Basic Education and Literacy Month in Rotary, hense today's program;
Today, Sept. 21 is International Day of Peace - see below;
Mon, Sept 25, 2-4:00 P.M. on the grounds of Government House, 4607 Dewdney Ave. - Their Honours Russ and Donna Mirastywelcome all to spend time with them at theSaskatchewan Residential School Memorial to remember the children who were taken from their homes to attend Residential Schools;
Thurs. Sept 28 12 noon, Regina Eastview hosts Joint meeting with the RC of Regina - Guest Speaker will be CTV Journalist Nelson Bird - you really want to be in the room;
Christmas Hams is our October Fundraiser and Eastview's "Ham King", John Van Koll has set the stage for us to sell 700 hams - let's do this;
Oct 24 - World Polio Day - a fundraising special evening celebration - information coming;
Jeanne Alexander is looking for Guest Speakers for our Club meetings - please provide Jeanne with the names and contact information of potential presenters and she will make the connection.
RPL - ADULT & YOUTH PROGRAMMING - WITH DEVON STOLZ!
Rotary is this amazing organization where people set up to "fill-in", and so it was today at Regina Eastview. President Al Hoeft feeling confident in his leadership role, stepped away from his Presidential responsibilities and tasked immediate Past President Jeff Barber with this lead role. Behold it was a smooth transition. PP Jeff identified and he acknowledged our visitors and Guests; shared the Land Acknowledgement; reminded us of Birthdays and acknowledged celebrants attending this meeting; invited "Happy Dollars"; and found a spot for Gail Bradley to share Words of Wisdom. Having allowed the Guest Speaker access to our ZOOM meeting, Acting President Jeff called on Jeanne Alexander to introduce Devon Stolz.
From Jeanne we learned, Devon Stolz is a professional librarian and his career is, “… dedicated to creating engaging, accessible programming that promotes social justice and equity through public education. ". Devon has been with the Regina Public Library (RPL) since December 2021, and for the past 22 months as the Adult and Youth Programing Lead for the RPL. His previous experience included the Head of Information Management for the Saskatchewan Region of Indigenous Services Canada and before that as a teacher in international settings where he, “..gained valuable insights into the importance of accessible information and cross-cultural exchange while working with marginalized groups.”
In expressing his appreciation for the opportunity to speak to Regina Eastview, Devon indicated his appreciation for opportunities to speak about the programming components over which he has control and in general to be an advocate for the importance of literacy at all levels in a community. The following are some of the aspects on which he touched;
.1) "Read Together" a long running RPL program at the General Hospital where every baby born in the Hospital gets a "bag of books", so with the help of parents the child is on the road to literacy - children born in other facilities can get a "B of B";
2) All RPL Branches have the early library program, which includes the building blocks for readers;
3) School Supports - RPL works closely with schools and teachers encouraging Library tours, visits and provides return visits to schools;
4)The RPL has a Summer Slide reading program that runs throughout the summer months so children don't fail to keep up their reading skill level;
5) Grand Pals is a RPL, first in Canada program which is an intergenerational initiative pairing seniors and school children who love to read;
6) Reading Buddies which rather matches the above except the student ages would be more closely aligned;
7) Book Club programs are community led initiatives which RPL staff help organize;
8) New immigrant Program - the RPL has been a critical contributor to helping new Canadians with the transition to English but also in keeping them connected to their "home" language;
9) The RPL has the longest running "Writer in Residence" in Canada - Holly Luhning fills this role at the present time;
10) Devon concluded his presentation by touching on the newly created RLP Reading Challenge which is a challenge which allows individuals to create a documented “reading plan", which is monitored and serves as an inspiration to succeed.
Devon Stolz, thank you for speaking to us today sharing with us the "Library" role in Basic Education and Literacy. But maybe even more importantly reminding us of the role you and your library colleague’s play in our communities to keep us reading, thinking and building a world where peace is the foundation.
THANK YOU!
Devon Slotz
INTERNATIONAL DAY FOR PEACE
Yesterday President Al Hoeft alerted Eastview members to the, “Raising of the Peace Flag at Regina City Hall to mark International Peace Day”. Peter Neufeldt and I, along with a 20 other citizens joined in marking this day. World Understanding and Peace are two of Rotary’s founding principles with peace and conflict resolution standing as one of our seven Areas of Focus.
Following is today’s story on the Rotary Service Blog.
Every year, on 21 September, the world comes together to observe the International Day of Peace, a day dedicated to strengthening the values of peace and non-violence as declared by the United Nations General Assembly.
International Peace Flag Raised at Regina City Hall Today
As we mark this day, we also find ourselves at the midpoint of our journey toward achieving the UN Sustainable Development Goals, which provide a roadmap towards a more peaceful world by addressing global challenges such as poverty, inequality, climate change, environmental degradation, and peace and justice. Our collective task is to work together to accomplish these goals by 2030, and the Rotary community stands at the forefront of these efforts, with the Rotary Action Group for Peace (RAGFP) playing a vital role.
Gary Carlson joined todays ZOOM meeting from his comfortable room at the William Booth Centre. He arrived there this morning and is looking forward to his discharge home. Gary welcomes visitors.
We do not sing Happy Birthday on ZOOM as we find it more "meaningful" when done at in-person meetings - so that will happen next week at the Delta - look forward to seeing you there, Leo.
Leo Ell - President
Regina Eastview1994-1995
FELLOWSHIP HIGHLIGHTS
Leo Ell was at the meeting (you already knew that), what you did not know was that their children, ALL their children, surprized Leo and Helen by an unbeknownst visit - "they came from all over" because it seems Leo was celebrating his 90th Birthday on September 18 - CONGRATULATIONS Leo!;
It is important to understand "surprizing" 90 year olds has to be done with a degree of caution;
Peter Neufeldt had 10 happy dollars for the opportunity he had together with the other Peter, to be part of the International Day of Peace Flag raising ceremony at Regina City Hall - good for Rotary to be there;
Ann Grahame is stepping back from Regina Eastview's Community Service Committee but is heading up the Club's annual Gifts of Warmth for the Canadian Mental Health Association Regina Branch - look for warm clothing, mitts, toques, socks under wear - large - Ann has wool and will makes this available to "knitters" - wool comes with instructions;
Gifts of Warmth can be delivered to any in-person meeting at the Delta on or befor the fist week of December;
Peter Peters was pleased to report that the 3 person Peters Pedalers Plus Team participating in the MS Society Bike Tour Fundraiser raised in excess of $10,500.00 for the MS cause;
The PPP Team placed 7th in the Saskatchewn MS Bike Tour which raised over $247,000.00 - Jean-Marc and Peter welcome donations until the end of September;
Look forward to seeing you next Thursday at the Delta;
Enjoy tomorrow - it is summer.
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"This is a changing world, we must be prepared to change with it. The story of Rotary will have to be written again and again.”
Paul Harris
Today's guests
We were pleased to welcome Guest Speaker, Devon Stolz to our meeting, in addition to Visiting Rotarians Doug Keam (RC of Regina) and Bob Durston (RC of Neepawa). You helped make this a good Rotary day.
Next MeetinG
SEPT 28, 2023
Joint In-person meeting with the RC of Regina at the Delta.
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