September 7, 2005

This Week’s Bulletin Was Written By Scott Silver-Hill

THIS WEEK’S MEETING

Maureen called the meeting to order at 7:30 am and in referring to the terrible destruction and human misery caused by Hurricane Katrina, offered a call to action in the form of a  quotation from an unknown author:

“Why doesn’t somebody do something, and then I realized I am somebody”

The invocation was delivered by Dave Ferguson, with the reminder to all that this Sunday marks the anniversary of the terrible tragedies inflicted upon our country on September 11, 2001. Dave read a retrospective recalling the horrendous events of that day; the great loses suffered by families, the subsequent impact of those events on our country and included an appreciation to our military for protecting our country.

Jeff Christie led the Pledge of Allegiance and Jim Mulvaney and Linda Jalving motivated the group with a rousing chorus of Morning Has Broken.

Visiting Rotarians And Guests

The Breakfast Rotary convened this week without any visiting Rotarians, however six guests were noted, including one guest on her third visit and another on their fourth visit to the club.

Announcements

Ø      Maureen encouraged members to attend the Rotaract Group meetings held the first and third Tuesday of each month at the Kansas City BBQ. Maureen announced that Andrea Espinoza of the Rotaract Group was in attendance this morning.

Ø      Maureen also provided an update on the disaster wrought by Katrina as seen through the eyes of Don Chauvin(?), the President of Rotary District 6200 in Louisiana,  for both his district and District 6840. According to Don there are 50 Rotary clubs in District 6200 and all are doing their best to offer aid and assistance to those that need it. District 6200 covers 22 Parishes in South Louisiana, while the neighboring District 6840 covers most of New Orleans and parts of Mississippi. Don’s message as delivered by Maureen is that the Rotary clubs could utilize all types of aid however the single highest priority is cash contributions.

Ø      Maureen announced the next Board Meeting is set for Monday, September 12, 2005 from 5:00pm – 7:00pm. All those interested in attending should RSVP via e-mail to: eileenhenesey@cox.net to ensure enough pizza is ordered. The Board Meeting will be held at: 3655 Nobel Drive – The Mighty 1090 Conference Room San Diego, California 92122

Ø      Mike Whitehurst reminded members of the upcoming Blood Drive set for Wednesday, September 14, 2005 from 8:30 am – 2:00 pm. Blood will be taken at the 2nd Floor Atrium, 701B Street; San Diego, California 92101. Mike introduced Kevin Bayer of the San Diego Blood Bank who fielded questions. Appointments can be made, and/or questions answered by calling Mike Whitehurst at (619)239-3034.

Ø      Cynthia Sener gave a brief summary of the Dress For Success clothing drive, urging all in attendance to contribute women’s professional clothing during the month of September. All donations will be tax deductible.

Ø      Karen Green provided a briefing on the first Breakfast Rotary social event of the year. Sign-ups are available to attend an evening of dinner at Café Pacifica in Old Town, where a fixed dinner price (including tax and tip) will cost $28.00 and a seat at the Old Town Theater (center section) will also cost $28.00. Attendees can choose to go to either the dinner or theater as well. The event date is the evening of September 29, 2005.

Ø      Gary Green announced the need for hole sponsors for the October 14th Golf Tournament. A sponsorship costs $500, which is likely to be all profit for the club and will be donated to Voices For Children per Melissa Blackburn’s announcement.

Ø      Jim Mulvaney reminded the members of the upcoming senior golf tournament and the Big Brothers at the Races day.

Ø      Maureen told the attendees that 19 members have signed up thus far for the Rotary Foundation breakfast and presentation this coming Saturday, September 10, 2005. Breakfast starts at 7:00 am with the program running from 8:00 am to 12 noon.

Ø      Jay Sener stated his intention to collect and ship 3,000 Teddy Bears to children of families displaced by hurricane Katrina in Louisiana. Anyone interested in contributing cash or Teddy Bears should contact Jay.

SERGEANT AT ARMS

Larry Nuffer came through again with a $100 gift certificate to Scalini’s restaurant in Del Mar that was successfully raffled off. Also, Anita, the Community Relations Director for Sycuan Casino provided a shirt, wind breaker and picnic basket for auction that garnered a winning bid of $100.

NEW MEMBER INDUCTION

Membership Chair Jay Sener announced the induction of a new member sponsored by Karny Stefan. Karny then took the microphone to provide some background on the Rotary Breakfast Club’s newest member, Rachel Humphries. Rachel has spent the last 17 years working with under-privileged children. Rachel started a non-profit agency designed to support Latino children and is enthusiastic about contributing to charitable causes south of the border. Welcome aboard Rachel!

PROGRAM

Jack Gilbert introduced this week’s speaker, Mr. Steven Penhall, General Manager for Sycuan Resort & Casino. Mr. Penhall described his job as delivering profits to the tribe to be used as income to support tribal government infrastructure and feed the families on the reservation. Mr. Penhall made some interesting points as follows:

 

Ø      Tribes exist as separate governments and do not pay corporate taxes on their gaming operation profits to the government. Rather, they pay per a schedule of fees.

Ø      All employees of the casino and resort pay state, federal and payroll taxes to the government like all citizens.

Ø      Mr. Penhall does not believe off-reservation gaming is likely to happen, as the US Secretary of the Interior is on record against approving it.

Ø      The Indian gaming ventures on tribal land are granted legitimacy via a compact with the state that needs to be ratified by the Governor. The current compact is in place for 15 years and will then need to be negotiated again for the future.

Mr. Penhall also fielded questions concerning traffic issues near the casino; gaming abuse; what Sycuan intends to do with gaming profits in the future and a query as to the tax situation for off-reservation investments.

Mr. Penhall’s final points were perhaps the most fascinating in that San Diego is rated the second busiest gaming market in the country. Surveys show that 70% of area residents will gamble in some way in a one year period. Surveys also show that 30% of people who will gamble in that one year period have never been to an Indian casino, presenting a significant marketing opportunity for tribal gaming operations.

Maureen announced that next week’s program will feature Ms. Kathleen Murphy speaking on the legacy of Jonas Salk and the Salk Institute.

proposed new memberS

The following individuals have been proposed as new members of our Club and will be inducted under the classifications listed below unless written objection is received by our Club Secretary within ten days of the date of this Bulletin:

Ø      Elena Bazhenova
Classification: Immigration Law
Proposed by: Sandra Schrift

Ø      Dr. Christopher Carstens
Classification: Child Psychology
Proposed by Joe Marshall

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