Bulletin for August 27, 2013
Rotary Bulletin for August 27, 2013
Last Week’s Program: Mike Foss introduced Mark Vukovich, the Director of Blank Park Zoo. Mark spoke about the incredible success of Blank Park Zoo. Until 2009, the zoo was run by the City. In 2009, a nonprofit organization was created and bought the zoo from the City. The Zoo is in the process of a record year for visitors. As a Central Iowa attraction, the zoo is second only to the Iowa State Fair in the terms of the number of people attended on an annual basis.
The zoo is more than a place to see the animals and the biological exhibits. There are teachers on staff who travel the entire state to help educate people about the zoo and related matters, often traveling with zoo animals. It is part of the initiative of the governor which is known as the STEM Initiative, which stands for Science, Technology, English and Math.
The second portion of Mark’s talk concerned efforts to conserve wildlife that is in great danger of extinction. He mentioned many different species of animals including giraffes, rhinoceros, elephants, Siberian tigers and pandas, all of which are at a great risk at the hands of poachers.
The zoo is part of a worldwide preservation and conservation program to try and help the animals survive and to perpetuate their natural habitats.
As a side note, Mark is a member of the Downtown Rotary Club and his father, Dewey was a member of the West Des Moines Club for many years.
Mark and Mike, thank you for an interesting and stimulating program.
ANNOUNCEMENTS:
Please note that the meeting on September 3rd will be at the West Des Moines Sheraton and not at Des Moines Golf.
Farmers Market Report:
The last few weeks have continued to be strong. We ask that all members continue to volunteer as they are available.
Hosting Opportunities:
Our exchange student from Mexico is in Des Moines and will be visiting the club soon. Alejandro is currently staying with Tom and Carol Narak. He is looking forward to activities both inside and outside of school. Tom mentioned that he is eager for a chance to accompany Tom on a pheasant hunting trip later this Fall. Please consider inviting Alejandro to join you and your family as outings, or even just for a visit to your home.
ROTARY NEWS:
The District Governor Elect will be visiting our club soon, and the District Governor is scheduled to visit our club in October. Also, there is a rotary district training event in late September at the Ankeny DMACC location.
Dictionary Project:
Mike Foss mentioned that the dictionary project is getting ready to gear up for the school year. Through the dictionary project, every third grader in the West Des Moines School District is given a dictionary. This project is funded by our club and the dictionaries are distributed by our club. Mike can always use a hand in delivering the dictionaries. Please see Mike Foss for any details.
Rotary Foundation:
Past President, Tom Larson is heading up the efforts concerning the foundation and our club. Tom shared many interesting facts about the foundation and our club’s participation in the Foundation. Many of our club members are Paul Harris Fellows and most are sustaining members – making a contribution each quarter to the Foundation. November is Foundation Month, when you can expect to learn about more opportunities to participate.
Three Minute Speaker/Sergeant at Arms:
Long time club member, Doug Hillman was our Sgt and 3 minute speaker. Doug is a native of Rockford, Illinois. After receiving a B.A. from Augustana College and a Masters degree from Denver, he received a Ph.D. at University of Missouri. Doug recently retired after 43 years of teaching accounting at Drake where he was named Teacher of the Year on several occasions. His wife of 38 years, Sue Ann, passed away a few years ago from breast cancer. Doug has four adopted children, all of whom live in the Greater Des Moines area. Doug then returned to his professorial mode and shared some interesting tidbits in a quiz about service dogs. We learned that it costs about $15,000 to $20,000 to train a service dog, and it takes 24 months to do so. He closed with an interesting question: “Why is a dog not a good dancer?” See Al Cross for the answer.
Root Beer Floats:
Janet Nelson reported an excellent result this year for root beer floats. Several members of the club, including Caroline, Dana, Allison, Doug, Norm, along with children and grandchildren of the members. All proceeds go to charity.
Other Rotary News:
The Johnston Rotary Club will host their 4th Annual Community BBQ Fund Raiser Meal on Thursday, September 12th, from 5 – 7 p.m. The event will take place at the Simpson Barn, 6169 Northglenn Drive, Johnston, IA 50131. Proceeds will benefit the Johnston Schools Foundation.
The Northwest Rotary Club is hosting a golf outing on 9/13 at 11 AM at Urbandale CC. The format will be a four person best shot at $75 per person. The winner receives a traveling trophy. (Perhaps we should have a conversation with the NW club about the Bunny Harper?)