As Presiding President-Elect Malcolm so succinctly said in the invocation:
To Friends, Fellowship, and The Opportunity to Serve
(We loved his day-glo gavel, but don't ask him why an angel is at the top of a Christmas tree, and remind him he cannot fine a non-member such as Kirk)
Best Wishes for a Wonderful 92nd Birthday to our Korean War Hero, George Sousa, on the 23rd
Vicky reminded members to go to Rotary.org and give to the Foundation's Annual Fund on Giving Tuesday, 11/29
Be sure to sign up on the Feeding San Diego website for our food sorting on 12/9 - click on the link under Upcoming Events
Youth Chair, Nicole read another letter from a happy LEAD participant and brought a wreath with numbers identifying families to support for Casa de Amistad Holiday Gift Drive. Gifts can be dropped off from 9-12pm on 12/15 at the Solana Beach Presbyterian Church on Stevens Avenue
Dave Oates from Club 33 who helped launch the District Anti-Human Trafficking Taskforce during Steve Weitzen's term as Governor, gave a great update on the Task Force's activities. He included what to look for in victims, the breakdown of the $70,000 Global Grant that we contributed to, and how they are working with schools to train teachers and focus on prevention.
Malcolm presented him with our OEF Certificate that shows our help with kids in El Salvador
Happy Veterans Day
We began a great Veterans Day listening to God Bless the USA song by Veterans
We also had a table honoring some of our own with items from Bill Sutton, George Sousa, and Paul Butler
and enjoyed seeing George in his decorated jacket and Charlotte in her grandfather's Navy uniform & dixie cup
And fittingly, our speaker today was Akilah Templeton, CEO & President of Veterans Village of San Diego who updated us on their work in helping veterans with temporary housing, drug treatment, employment services, health issues, and financial assistance. We learned there are over 240,000 veterans in San Diego and over 100,000 active duty military here.
Auctioneer extraordinaire, Keven Cahill auctioned items left over from LobsterFest with proceeds going toward our Polio Eradication campaign. $150 was raised from gift certificates for men's & cowboy clothing, massage/fitness, hair cuts, and a great picnic basket won by Di Shimkus
Nicole read a letter from one of the two middle-schoolers we sent to the LEAD (Leadership, Ethics, Aspirations & Determinations) conference with nothing but praise and gratitude for the experience
Di encouraged everyone to sign up under Upcoming Events for our CRC food sorting and Casa de Amistad party. She also shared that we will be giving $500 toward an Honor Flight veteran. Please contact George Sousa if you would like to contribute to the $2500 fee
Welcome to Luis Carranza who was with us today and who was recently named District 5340 Governor for 2025-2026
And Warm Birthday Wishes to Beverly Liberman
We also welcomed Angela Aguirre, Rojan Krishnan, and Connor Chung from Canyon Crest Academy who with the non-profit Nova Spero (New Hope) help refugee kids in City Heights with friendship, tutoring, and mentoring to help them on their way to a successful education and life.
Patricia identified the group after Susan sent out a plea to find and recognize people doing good in our communities
President Susan presented each with our Distinguished Student Service Citation and an "Imagine Rotary" pin
Charlotte gave the final numbers for LobsterFest 2022
Gross Income - $61,985
Expenses - $24,665
Net Profit - $37,320
Great Job!!! All funds go to charities with 40% to our two major beneficiaries - Just in Time for Foster Youth and Casa de Amistad; 5% to our Foundation fund, and the rest split with our service areas - Community Service, International, and Youth
Social Diva Patricia wore her Holiday Sweater to promote our Holiday Party on Sunday, 12/4, from 5-7pm at the home of Barbara & Jon Fish, and to give members time to polish up on their holiday trivia
Vicky passed the Polio Jar to focus attention on the importance of eradicating this disease
Di announced our commitment to help at Feeding San Diego on 12/9 from 12-2pm to pack produce that will be given out at the CRC Holiday Baskets Event the next day
We also will be sponsoring the Casa de Amistad Holiday Party on 12/13 from 4-7pm. Charles & Alicia and Bill & Suzanne will match up to $1000 in donations from club members to help with this event
Jon introduced our speaker, Maren Kavanagh, Community Education Coordinator with I love a Clean San Diego.
Their mission is to create zero waste lifestyles and zero litter throughout San Diego County. Through education and action they are dedicated to empowering every person to be leaders in conservation and waste-free living in order to protect and improve our health and environment.
Susan presented Maren with our OEF speaker certificate and explained how we are making lives better for the less fortunate in El Salvador
It's been a busy weekend starting with our meeting on Friday where President-Elect Malcolm Koll presided in Susan's absence, and was fined by Steve for a bad joke
Happy dollars came for Paul's giant leap with Reality Changers' Over the Edge and Di's leading us on a great walk through San Elijo Lagoon for World World Day; Charles reminded us that the CRC truck has the DMSB Rotary logo on it; and Venky shared info on our $4800 District Grant in Chennai, India for beach cleanup and education
Manuel Camargo updated us on the decommissioning of SONGS power plant which should be done in 2028. He encouraged members to join the Action for Spent Fuel Solutions, a new coalition to advocate for solutions
Lew organized another successful Blood Drive on Saturday, where we had a lot of walk-ups give blood
Thank you to those who helped: Mark, Bill, Suzanne, Herb, Jan, & Beverly and especially to those who gave blood : Sandi, Malcolm, Jon,
Ken, Charles, and Di's husband Al
Susan was busy at the District Conference which consisted of morning/afternoon business sessions and then the Foundation Gala in the evening. The evening activities began with talented Aerialists on the outside patio during cocktail hour and lots of Rotarians in fun costumes to admire
We then headed indoors where we were treated to a performance by the Carlsbad HS Lancers Dancers
which was enjoyed by Susan & Mark Hennenfent, Steve & Ava Weitzen, Beverly & Herb Liberman, and Jan Parsons. Herb, Bev, and Jan had fun with Rotaract members from San Diego State University where they all shared "Rambo's" wig
Chuck started the formal meeting introducing speakers for The Foundation and recognized Susan and Mark as the Newest Arch Klumph Society members for their large donation. He then changed into Superman (super hero that he is) before recognizing Steve as Past DG who never got a live conference due to covid precautions and declared costume winners
Rotarians closed the celebration by dancing to the great music of Matt Heineke & Crown Town Music
The Butler Did It - went Over the Edge in style for Reality Changers
with family & friends cheering on his cheeky form
Reality Changers' CEO Tamara Craver was on hand, along with his admirers, to congratulate Paul on a job well done
Walking to End Polio Now
in honor of World Polio Day 10/24
and enjoying a docent led tour with The Nature Collective
through San Elijo Lagoon
where we saw lots of native plants and local birds
including an egret and a blue heron catching fish
It was wonderful to have distinguished District 5340 guests with us this morning: DG Chuck Pretto, DG Elect Don Fipps, and Major Gifts director John Teish, who was our speaker
The highlight of the meeting was recognition of
Susan & Mark Hennenfent as new Arch Klumph Society Members
(meaning they have contributed at least $250,000 to The Rotary Foundation)
Congratulations & Thank You
And Happy Birthday to Susan on the 24th which she shares with World Polio Day
Happy Rotarians also included Steve for his 3rd granddaughter, Charles for his recent move, Ken for the Clubs support of his 100 Wave Challenge (see his fabulous shirt below), Paul for his upcoming rappel, Jan for Paul's upcoming rappel, Herb for Kevin's wedding party, and Charlotte for joining her mother in Vegas for a John Mayer (oops - John Legend) concert
Register for the fabulous District Conference on the 30th at the Hilton - Be there or be square (and fined $10)
Steve was fined by President Susan for signing up under the SB Eco Club
Chuck also recognized Phil on zoom with a Paul Harris +2 pin for his contributions to The Rotary Foundation
Look forward to seeing everyone at our End Polio Now Walk at The Nature Collective tomorrow, 10/22
2710 Manchester Ave, Cardiff
John gave an impassioned talk about the Rotary Foundation and ways we can fulfill Rotary's Vision Statement to unite people and create lasting change - across the globe, in our communities, and in ourselves
Susan presented him with our OEF support certificate and explained how we have used Global Grant funds to help make a better life for the needy in El Salvador
Come cheer Paul on as he goes Over the Edge for Reality Changers
Sunday, 10/23 at the Manchester Grand Hyatt, San Diego
1 Market Place, San Diego
His window to rappel is between 9:00-10:00am
and he will be wearing his traditional Butler's outfit of white shirt, black pants, and bow tie
And help him raise funds to prepare youth to become first-generation college graduates and agents of change by clinking on the link below. Donate today to help students achieve their dreams and help The Butler go Over The Edge
A fun evening at Bushfire Kitchen
thank you to our social divas Patricia & Suzanne
And it was wonderful to meet Meera's cousin Malini Srinivasan, Past President of the Mysore East Rotary Club, India, who we were able to exchange flags with
Happy Indigenous Peoples Day
Let us remember our history with compassion and understanding
Congratulations and Welcome to our newest member
Barbara Berkovitz
who Susan presented with her new Red Badge, Rotary pin, and Member Certificate
Barbara is a professor at USD, has her PHD in Medical Data Records, and lives between Susan & Bill & Suzanne.
She joins 1.2MM Rotarians in 33,000 clubs in 200 countries who share in friendship and service
We wish Susheela well in her upcoming knee surgery in 2 1/2 weeks, after years of delays
It was good to have Jon back after an Oceana Cruise from Montreal to New York; Charles has two 10x10 pop-ups for anyone interested; and Bill was happy for such warm comradery at the LobsterFest wrap-up meeting
Sign-up with Lew for the Blood Drive on 10/29
Charlotte asked members to watch for upcoming quarterly billings and requested payment by credit card if possible to make accounting easier. And let her know if you have any outstanding LobsterFest expenses for reimbursement.
Susan recognized Charlotte for all the hard work she has done with LobsterFest and as Treasurer.
She also asked members to watch for people in our community who are doing outstanding service so we can invite them and their family & friends to our club to honor them
As Foundation Chair, Vicky announced the upcoming walk To End Polio Now in Honor of 10/24 World Polio Day. The walk will be at the Nature Collective on 10/22 from 9:00-12:00 with lunch after. Let her know if you need a red End Polio Now t-shirt
Di with Community Service took pledges and encouraged support for Ken's 100 Wave Challenge (with the help of daughter Issie) on Saturday 10/8 to help Boys to Men, and awarded a $50 Flemings gift card to Charlotte who won the raffle. Upcoming events may include baskets for the CRC if the club approves and Feeding San Diego food sorting.
Club member Suchandra Brahma, Psychiatrist in Pharmacology, born in Fargo, ND, and founder of A View in Calcutta, India, gave a touching and informational talk and video of the work her non-profit does in providing treatment and rehabilitation to medically handicapped, homeless women in India. We have done a Global Grant to help in her work and everyone was grateful to see the good they are doing.
Susan presented Suchandra with a well deserved Service Above Self Award
Rotarians & friends give a warm welcome to
Vietnam Veterans
returning from their Honor Flight to Washington DC
Veterans finally receive the welcome home they deserved
Susan Hennenfent, George Sousa (former Honor Flight recipient for the Korean War), Mark Hennenfent, Maria Moujaes, Jan Parsons
We had many guests today starting with Dawn Van Siclen, Rotary Asst. Governor Area 6, Carlsbad; our speaker & Rancho Santa Fe Rotarian Amy Scruggs; El Presidente of DMSB Rotary Susan Hennenfent, and Past Dist. Governor and member of our club, Steve Weitzen
Dawn also is the Chair of the District Conference & Foundation Gala on October 29 at the Del Mar Hilton. Sign up at the District website
Also joining us today was former DMSB Rotary Pres., Kirk "the great" Collins; Malcolm's cousin Dave and brother Peter from South Africa, here for Charles' upcoming wedding; and Chris Dinofia from Movement Mortgage, who works with Paul
The other great news regarding Malcolm, is that he is our new President Elect
That means he will be our President for the Rotary year 2023-2024 (his 2nd time in this position)
THANK YOU MALCOLM!!!
It was good to have Venky back in person after his successful knee surgery and Kevin after his recent marriage in Switzerland and honeymoon in The Cook Islands. Susan shared that OEF in El Salvador received a $20K grant from Women's Empowerment International, partly based on all the projects we have done with them
And a WARM WELCOME to our newest member Barbara Berkovitz, who will receive her Red Badge next week in a formal presentation
Susan, Mark, Bill, and Suzanne recently cleaned out our storage locker at Smart Self Storage. If members can store our canopies in their garages, we could clear the locker and save $1000/year. Let Susan know if you can help. Herb took one growler that Bill brought in (but he has more) and extra pens went to Casa de Amistad. Malcolm is in charge is finding a new home for the bocce equipment, and Patricia volunteered to help.
Charles displayed pictures and clippings from club activities over the years, that he hopes can find a new home (he is cleaning out his in anticipation of his move to La Costa Glen)
Herb shared a picture of Chikondi Dyson, the student in Malawi that we are supporting to attend the University of Malawi for 4 years and Lew announced our next Blood Drive on October 29
Our speaker, Amy Scruggs is not only an accomplished country music singer but an expert in digital marketing and media coaching. She shared how important it is to communicate effectively and gave tips on how to tell The Rotary Story. We then were treated to a video of her latest hit "What if all goes right"
Sharing our Rotary Story at the Del Mar Foundation Community Picnic at Powerhouse Park
Thank you Lew, Charles, Sandy, Patricia, Suzanne, Bill, Jan & Paul
Everyone was happy to reflect on our wonderful LobsterFest last week where 100% of club members participated.
Charlotte updated us on current gross numbers which total aprox. $62,000, but are not yet final:
$33,750 sponsorships, $3,750 individual tickets, $8,000 donations, $3000 raffle tickets, $13,584 auction
Happy Birthday to Susheela for her Monday birthday
Patricia announced a change in venue for our October social on the 13th to Bush Fire in Del Mar instead of the Hilton and Paul reminded us to focus on Education/teachers which is the classification for the month. The Holiday party will be 12/4.
We got a wonderful presentation on our local geology and formation of our mountain ranges from Mike Thacker, who is a Senior Staff R&D Scientist at Thermo Fisher Scientific in Carlsbad. Though his knowledge in geology is self taught, it has served him well as a member of the Board of Trustees for the San Diego Archaelogical Center since 2017
President Susan presented Mike with a speakers certificate showing our support for OEF in El Salvador
Another fabulous LobsterFest
Thank you everyone who participated and contributed
Casa de Amistad helped at the registration table; hosts & hostesses welcomed all; we had lobsters helping with raffle and auction items; and while guests seemed to enjoy the tequila tasting, our fabulous guitarist James Clarkston attracted the ladies
We then sat down on the beautifully decorated patio and enjoyed a wonderful lobster tail dinner, baja style
President Susan & LobsterFest Chair Vicky thanked everyone for their help and recognized our distinguished Veterans, and our Major Beneficiaries from Casa de Amistad and Just In Time for Foster Youth. Herb then proceeded to auction off tonight's paintings by artist Heather Roddy
Everyone enjoyed the music of Hot Rocks San Diego, and danced the night away
Clink the link below for full set of pictures:
One day til LobsterFest 2022
Di helping Sandy with the lobster hat
Bill gave Steve a Rotary hat signed by Bob Marley (is it the truth?). The real one is available on our LobsterFest Auction site,
President Susan was seen and captured by The Del Mar Times supporting Del Mar Rotary's Sunset Soiree - and no, she is not married to our former DMSB Rotary President Kirk Collins, but to the wonderful Mark Hennenfent on the left
We were honored to have District Governor Chuck Pretto with us today, who handed out two Paul Harris Fellowship Awards: a PH+6 pin to Art and a PH+5 one to Vicky. Congratulations - well done!!
Chuck talked about how he joined Rotary to fill up his Rolodex but learned the true power of Rotary when he housed a Rotary foreign exchange student and learned how Rotary can create lasting changes in ourselves and the community. A top priority is adolescent mental health, and he has started a 5340 Mental Health Action Group along with Vista Hill and Rady Children's Hospital. Another goal is to put 30 Peace Polls in high schools throughout the county, for which Rotary International President Jennifer Jones will come and dedicate. Let's make it happen!! He ended by handing out the new Rotary pin which tells who we are.
Counting down to LobsterFest on the 17th - this is the week that matters!! 
- We're now over $40,000 revenue
- The article in the paper got attention and Vicky helped two people register
- Charles' friend has donated $1000
- Jon signed up for another table
- Venky donated $500 since he cannot be with us
- Monday is the cutoff as we need to give the Hilton a count
- Check out more auction items
Susan updated us on the $9K District Grant we did with OEF in El Salvador, that helped change the lives of fifty-nine children living in extreme poverty. Dinorah & Dinorah joined us on zoom from El Salvador and shared a video they made with the children, showing us how the funds were used
Happy Rotarians were: Patricia for 36 days of hiking in Europe; Charlotte for their new tortoise; Bill because he only has a stuffed one; Paul as he met Katie's Rotary foreign exchange student; Ken for each year of Queen Elizabeth's rein
Malcolm did a fabulous job when fine-master Steve had him recite the 4-Way Test; Susan held the wheel as he spun to see how much Molly would pay in his place
Contact Paul to sign up to help at the Del Mar Foundation Community Picnic on 9/25 from 1:00-5:00 at Power House Park. This is a good opportunity to share Rotary and attract new members (as is LobsterFest)
Our speaker today was Yigal Adato who shared his experience as a leadership coach to help each person be more successful in business and life
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Service Above Self
Del Mar, CA 92014
United States of America