Minutes of Meeting of May 24, 2006

Posted by Paul LeRoy

President Pieter Stam announced that on Monday, June 19, 2006 the Rotary Club of Woodstock will be having a special meeting with David Patterson, Vice President of General Motors Canada as the guest speaker. It was decided that our meeting of June 21 would be cancelled in order to join the other club on June 19 at the Quality Inn. There will be a reception at 6:00 pm followed by dinner at 7:00 pm. Tickets are $25.00 per person. Tables of 8 or 10 are available.

A Monte Cristo cigar from Cuba, compliments of Pieter Stam, was auctioned off by Steve Halyk. The esteemed winner was Rama Murthi.

We will be participating in the Great Canadian Outdoor Show June 9-11. Norm Narancsik announced that a raffle has been proposed for which tickets could be sold at the Outdoor Show, the Outdoor Farm Show and the Wood Show. It has been proposed that the auction items could be: a set of golf clubs, a BBQ, and $200 in cash. Tickets would be $2.00 each or 3 for $5.00. Some discussion ensued about the best approach to take regarding prizes and ticket selling. The raffle is temporarily on hold.

Garry Honcoop reported that the final numbers regarding the finances of the Fish Fry are not yet available, but the proceeds should be between $16,000 and $17,000 with $5800 of this coming from the silent auction.

The Rotary Medals evening is approaching - Wednesday, June 7, 2006. Tickets are $20.00 each and Rotarians are encouraged to bring spouses.

Our guest speaker was Marianne Riach Ferris, representing Operation Sharing in place of Greg Visser. Marianne was formerly the public relations co-ordinator for Operation Sharing and continues to volunteer as a member of the Development Committee. Marianne informed us that Operation Sharing was established in 1981, so marks its 25th anniversary this year. It was initiated by Dr. Harry Parrot and several churches in Woodstock. Over the years its services have varied and developed. It is best known for the soup kitchen and food bank. There are also education programs, pre-employment training, and the extended family project designed to assist children in addition to their parents. Overall, Operation Sharing serves about 2000 people annually. The Food for Friends project is the newest initiative. It is considered by many to be an innovative and non-traditional way to assist. When visiting a local grocery store, consumers are asked if they would like to include a 25 cent donation in their grocery bill. The greatest challenge thus far has been to get the store staff to consistently ask for the donation. The intent is to replace the food bank with a food card provided to those in need which they can then use to purchase non-taxable items (ie. food only) at the grocery stores. In order to accomplish this, $150,000 must be raised annually. Operation Sharing has committed to closing the food bank and replacing it with the Food for Friends program and is hoping for continued strong community support.