It’s been an interesting few months at the club. We have had a flurry of new members and I want to welcome them all in as Rotarians. I look forward to watching all the great things they will be doing going forward.
A few things to mention: The Clergy panel was very successful and powerful and I wanted to thank Anna Sakvarelidze, Ron Supancic and Sandy Rosenholz for working so hard in making this a successful event. Special thanks goes out to Anna’s husband Julian who worked really hard in setting up and breaking down the room. My intent is to continue to grow the event and expand the participation.
Having Henry Oster a Holocaust survivors speak at our club for Holocaust Memorial Day was an honor and it is important that we continue to memorialize that horrific time in the worlds history. (see story and photos below)
As most of you know we are partnering with the Calabasas club this year for our Poker & Casino fundraiser on June 3rd at the Canyon Club in Agoura. We all like to do projects and many of us come to the club for funding of their projects and favorite causes. Needless to say the money does not grow on a Rotary Tree, we need to fund raise. Quite frankly, I have an expectation that every club member do their part in a way that they can. There are multiple ways for club members to help. Buy tickets and attend the event, buy tickets for friends and family, help sell tickets, buy sponsorships, donate auction items and help spread the word. This is the opportunity for each and every club member to be a giver. We are 5 weeks away from the event so let’s get to work! (see information below)
Yours in Rotary service,
Paul
Bringing Peace to Our Community
by Ron Supancic
"Somewhere within us all exists a supreme Self who is eternally at peace."
Elizabeth Gilbert, author of Eat, Pray, Love
At the April 17 Peace Committee meeting the Bill Eddy method of high conflict problem solving was revisited. There was discussion of the tactics, techniques, and steps that are necessary in separating people from the problem. It is best to focus on issues, minimizing conflict, stimulating conversation, and provoking solutions that end conflict.
Members of the Peace Committee are encouraged to share incidents, events, and opportunities for using the tools from their Peace Maker Tool Kit. The kit is being developed by the United States Institute of Peace coordination with the United Nations Mediation Support Unit and in collaboration with a number of other mediation institutes and experts. The toolkit will include a series of "best practices" on key aspects of mediation and peacemaking.
During Ramadan, between May 15 and June 15, there will be a dinner with the Muslim community. A Peace March will be held in West Hills on Valley Circle, from St. Bernadine’s Catholic Church to Temple Alia and ending at the mosque in Woodland Hills across the street from El Camino High School. The Peace March Committee will be meet at 6 p.m. on April 30 to discuss the event.
The club has 10 Buddy Benches ordered and three schools are confirmed. Seven additional schools to be confirmed. The process starts with locating decision makers the selected schools and sending a congratulatory letter to them. A meeting is scheduled with the decision-maker, faculty, and student council to talk about any objections or concerns. It is vital that we establish an installation date, which should be an event in which we invite the media so that the community is informed of Buddy Benches and their purpose.
Buddy Bench coordinators included Sheri with Pacific Boys Lodge, Jeff Stern with Reseda Elementary and Serrania Charter, and Ava Teherani with Willow Elementary and Lupin Hill Elementary and A.E. Wright Middle School. Other places being considered are Viewpoint, Fulbright Elementary, Woodland Hills Elementary West Valley Girls and Boys Club and New Directions for Youth.
The club's first Buddy Bench.
Casino Night Volunteers Are Needed
Auction prep - put together auction baskets and other items, make bid sheets, create master list of items for tracking and close out
Auction set up - On the day of the event, set up auction items and bid sheets at the venue
Auction monitoring and close out - Monitor auction tables through out the event, pick up bid sheets at the end of the auction, assist with collection of funds and delivery of auction items to successful bidders
Venue set up - One the day of the event, set up and decorate prior to the start of the event
Check in table - Check in guests and provide instruction/direction on the night of the event
Your name, email address, phone number and the area(s) you are available to help.
Please indicate if you will be able to help on the day of the event. Remember, if you are playing poker or casino games, you need to tell me that so we won't be counting on you to help during those hours.
(If you have any comments or questions, please contact the editor)
Stories
Posted by Lonnie Mintz
2nd Annual Poker Tournament Was a $28,000 Success
The Second Annual Woodland Hills Rotary and WELIFTLA Celebrity Poker Tournament and Casino Night raised $28,000 to support our club's projects. There were more than 200 participants and everyone had an amazing time! Special thanks to the celebrities who came out to support the tournament—Donny Most (Happy Days), Jeffrey Simon (Drop Stop), Audley Harrison (Gold Medal Winner Heavyweight Boxer), Lenora May (Actress/Writer), Ross Porter (Dodgers Announcer), Sabrina Berliner Miles, Amy Fournier Mesages, and LAPD Officer Rudy Rocha, We want to especially thank Co-chairs Shaun Carris, development director at WELIFTLA, and Jeff Stern, past president of the Woodland Hills Rotary, for their truly tireless efforts to make this event a smashing success. Some of the Rotarians who assisted with the tournament were Lois E. Koch, Paul Gross, Eva Hainer, and Diane Nelson. We know we missed a few but please know that you have the club's thanks!!!
And the tournament poker winners were: Ricardo Salazar (1st Place); Dan Pelter (2nd Place) and Michael Donald (3rd Place). Ricardo is the credit manager at DCH Audi in Oxnard and Dan is retired and a huge UCLA fan. They have offered to donate part of their winnings back to the Club and WELIFTLA. Ricardo is also part of a large group of good friends and supporters of Shaun Carris.
Photos by Alex Wasserman
Ferne Saltzman (l to r), Sheri Polak, Jay Saltzman, & Marty Fentress.
Victoria Burke, (l to r), Rotary President Diane Nelson, & Dale Gross.
Angie & Jack Whitson
Steven Prakash, (l to r), Penny Leon, & Lois Koch.
Linda & Harvey Tapper
LAPD Officer Rudy Rocha, Christina Rymsza, & Lonnie & Steve Mintz.
Jeffrey Seltzer & Lori Greiner. Jeffrey is the co-inventor of the Drop Stop. He is a Shark Tank success story and partners with Lori.
Tournament Co-chair, Shaun Carris, development director at WELIFTLA.
Tournament Co-chair, Jeff Stern, past president of the Woodland Hills Rotary.
As of July 1—club members will pay the same price whether or not they eat lunch.
The country club requires advanced notice for a lunch when the guest count is more than 25 people. The Rotarian who arranges for the day's speaker will be responsible for overseeing the RSVP process and notifying the country club of the guest count. The club's contact is Rebecca Bauman. She wants to know the number of guests by the Thursday prior to the next meeting. It's also important to ensure that we have the large banquet room for special events and larger crowds.
Holocaust Survivor Henry Oster
At the April 11 meeting Henry Oster told his compelling, inspiring life story, battling prejudice and the politics of fear as a Holocaust survivor. As a young German boy he survived deprivation in the Lodz Ghetto, a life-or-death selection in the Birkenau extermination camp, a firing squad in Auschwitz, being strafed by an Allied fighter, and starvation in Buchenwald. Henry rebuilt his life in America, arriving at 18 with no family, no English, no money and no education. Of 2,011 Jews uprooted from Cologne, Germany in 1941, he is the only survivor. Henry was still working as a world-respected Professor of Optometry on his 89th birthday, helping the world to see.
Michael Turner ► editor ► bearsworth@earthlink.net
P.O. Box 144 ► Woodland Hills, CA 91365 ► (818) 344-5776