The Rote – January 13, 2022
Scribe: Linda Singer
President Noreen Timoney called the meeting to order on Zoom. There were twenty nine (29) attendees, including Rotarians from Germany and India.
Jay Almeida gave an invocation commemorating the wonderful work our club does to benefit the community.
Steve Dutton led us in pledging allegiance to the flag.
This Day in History - Robert Bull read some interesting highlights of this date throughout history.
Announcements
BBQ @ Tropical Park: Monday, January 17th beginning at 11:00 a.m. - MLK Picnic/Barbecue at Tropical Park, shelter #8. Remember to enter from Miller Drive (SW 56
th St.). Contact
Noreen Timoney to RSVP @
timoneyrms@aol.com or 305-401-0101
. President Noreen thanked our BBQ Grill Master,
Jay Almeida, for all of his great work planning this BBQ. We are all looking forward to a wonderful BBQ on Monday.
Alpha Generator Investment Club: Wednesday, January 19th – Alpha Generator Investment Club. Contact
Robert Bull.
District Interact Conference: Saturday, February 5th – District Interact Conference. This will take place at the Miami-Dade College downtown campus. We appreciate that
Randy Lichtman arranged for the facility and that
Norby Rudel will be the emcee. Lunch will be provided to volunteers. If you would like to volunteer, please contact
Diane Landsberg.
TBM FIU Pinning Ceremony: Friday, February 11th – FIU TBM pinning ceremony at the campus on SW 8th St. beginning at 5:00 p.m. If you would like to attend, please notify Diane Landsberg. Westbound traffic can be quite heavy, so please make sure to take that into account by leaving early enough to attend on time.
Tree Planting at Crandon Park: Saturday, February 12th – Green buttonwood tree planting in Key Biscayne. This will be the same area that we planted trees last year. This is a good outing for the whole family. You can donate to the purchase of trees and have them dedicated to loved ones with a printed biodegradable tag. Please see the photo below:
Please let
Robert Bull know if you can attend and how many will be in your party. See Robert’s announcement about this that was sent by email.
Rotary International's Seven Areas of Focus: To remind us of Rotary’s Seven Areas of Focus,
Steve Dutton recited and explained them.
Rotary at the Rose Bowl Parade: A video of the Rose Bowl Parade with a Rotary float was shown to depict the impact of Rotary on the communities we serve and the PR given to
Rotary International on National television and around the world.
Jay Almeida shared the video submitted by
Robert Bull.
Keynote Speaker: President Noreen introduced our speaker,
Katie Murphy, of the Alliance for Florida’s National Parks.
Ms. Murphy serves as the Alliance’s Director of Development and Communications. This organization was formerly known as the South Florida National Parks Trust. It is the official philanthropic partner for the Everglades, Dry Tortugas, and Biscayne National Parks, as well as Big Cypress National Preserve. The Alliance for Florida's National Parks endeavors to ensure that our state's greatest natural ecosystems are preserved and protected for generations to come. Ms. Murphy discussed some of the numerous projects that the organization has promulgated or been involved with, such as the beach cleanup program. Last year more than 21,000 pounds of trash were removed from the shorelines to ensure that nesting turtles will have a suitable habitat to lay their eggs. At Big Cypress, there is a python management program. The Everglades is the only habitat in the world where alligators and crocodiles live together. Visit
www.floridanationalparks.org for more information.
Happy $$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$ 
Marcia Brod informed us that if you are interested in seeing manatees, Three Sisters Spring in Crystal River is a great place to go during cooler weather. From the boardwalk, visitors can observe hundreds of manatees. Susan Shelley announced with pride that her granddaughter will graduate from the University of Miami on May 13th, making her the fourth generation in their family to graduate from there. Noreen Timoney appreciated our speaker and Jay Almeida for his work in preparing for the Rotary barbecue and picnic. She was very glad that her family members have recovered from COVID and that she herself never caught it. Phil Seipp was happy to see Dr. Jens Neman and Charlotte Gormsen who have been very generous toward our Club's Foundation.
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Inspirational Messages: Marcia Brod read inspirational words by poet Amanda Gorman.
She followed with a
Plant Your Spring Garden slide contributed by
Robert Bull: 
Four-Way Test was led by
Shirley Pardon, 
To end the meeting,
President Noreen rang four (4) small bells together to signal the end of another great meeting.
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