Rotary's Theme for 2016-17
The GREETERS:
10/20/16 Ram Nunna and Bridget Herzog
10/27/16 Jennifer Webb and Mark Febus
11/03/16 Kim Senft-Paras and Brandon Gross
11/10/16 Sara McGarvey and Peachy Metzner
If you cannot greet on the day assigned, contact Kitty and she will schedule a replacement.
The guests at the meeting included: Doug Bockrath, a former member who has turned in his application to rejoin the club; Raul Parra, who recently moved to the area from Dallas, Tx., who represents and helps Hispanic residents in the area through the Chambers of Commerce; Jennifer Gibbs, planning to transfer from the Beavercreek Rotary Club; Marilynne Saliqanchik, president of the Kettering Rotary, who has been visiting area Rotaries; Wyeta Adams. of Key Ads. an outdoor advertiser, a guest of Jeff Senney; Saloni Bagwani, our exchange student from India who brought along a gift sent from her mother in India, with delicious Chooda, Chakri, and Soan Cake. The Soan Cake melts in your mouth. It is made with besan (gram flour... Gram flour, also known as garbanzo bean flour, chickpea flour, or besan, is a pulse flour made from ground chickpeas. Used in many countries, it is a staple ingredient in Indian, Pakistani, Nepali and Bangladeshi cuisines. Gram flour can be made from either raw chickpeas or roasted chickpeas.), wheat flour, ghee (clarified butter made from the milk of a buffalo or cow), and sugar. The Chooda and Chakri were more like sesame sticks and spicy flakes you pick up in your hands and drop into your mouth. Yum!; Cathy Campbell, Director of Philanthropy at St. Mary Development Corp., our speaker of the day; Sydney Flowler and Morgan Cline, Centerville High School students representing the Spirit Chain challenge between Kettering Fairmont High School and Centerville High School; and Joanne George, Peachy's guest, a volunteer coordinator for Bethany Village.
Greeters for the next meeting will be: Ram Nunna and Bridget Herzog
The Centerville Rotary Club met at noon at the Clubhouse at Yankee Trace Golf Course. President Ron Hollenbeck led the Pledge of Allegiance, Ray Merz gave the prayer, and Brian Hayes and Ron Hollenbeck led the singing of God Bless America.
ANNOUNCEMENTS:
Club President Ron Hollenbeck reminded members of the upcoming Rotary Leadership Institute Nov. 5, noting the club will pick up the cost.
Ron had more information on the volunteer service needs for Woodland Lights. Cynthi Fraley said they would need help from 10/17 to 10/24 from 9 a.m, to 1 p.m., Monday through Friday. He said there were sign-up sheets on the tables. They will be doing some painting and assembly the first week and stringing lights and bulbs the second week.
Ron said our Operation Warm project just concluded will fund 414 new winter coats for kids this year. That's 69 cases of coats, he said. The club brought in about $7,400 for coats in the last five years, buying 1,350 new coats that were donated to area kids through the help of Hannah's Treasure Chest and local social agencies that supplied the names and sizes of those in need.
Ron said Home Depot had 25 volunteers at the VA Grotto Tuesday. Our club contributed to the handicap ramp, he reminded the group. He said 80 percent of the walkway to the grotto will have paving.
John Beals gave an update, noting that the memorial brick for our member, the late Fred Weir, has been placed in the memorial area near the Kennard Nature Nook on McEwen Road. The evergreen trees planted nearby had not had mowing between them and he said he asked if the club was supposed to mow that, but he said Ken Carter in maintenance said he would bring in a bush hog to clean up the tall growth there.
John also mentioned the upcoming election and Centerville's half of a percent income tax increase request, Issue 3, which will help fund police and help balance state budget cuts, etc. Voting is Nov. 8.
Gerry Eastabrooks showed off the new aprons acquired for the Pancake Breakfast Fund-raiser coming Oct. 22 at Centerville High School West Commons cafeteria from 7 a.m. to noon. She was able to get them for $7 each, she said, thanking Carrie Lifer of some help along the way.
Ray Merz said 18 people signed up to help in distributing the thesauri and dictionaries
in the area third and fifth grades and said several more people are needed so there will
be to people going to each scchool
Our guests were numerous this day. Below you see Jeff Senney and his guest Wyeta Adams of Key Ads.
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Kettering Rotary President Marilynne Saliwanchik knew a lot of our members and is seen here
talking with Rand Oliver before the meeting.
Two of our guests decided to sit at the same table together, Raul Parra, a Veteran of the
Korean War, and Jennifer Gibbs
The two Centerville students are pictured below...Sydney Fowler and Morgan Cline
Guest Joanne George. a veteran of Desert Storm, with the National Guard, sits between Judy
Budi and Carrie Lifer.
Ann Blackburn has sent out notices that our next social event will be at 5 p.m. Oct. 18 at Ollie's Place on Miamisburg-Centerville Road near the Hauer Music building in Centerville. Members, new members and prospective members, and family members are encouraged to come.
HAPPY BUCKS:
Sgt-at-Arms Erich Eggers collected Happy Bucks for The Centerville High School's effort to win the Spirit Chain challenge with Kettering Fairmont High School. The money will go to the Ronald McDonald House. Erich said our club will match whatever we collect with our Happy Bucks, up to $500. Next week we will be back to collecting for A Day of Caring.
The club collected $500 in Happy Bucks, with Erich making the final donation to get the club up to its $500 match. So $1,000 was donated to the Spirit Change challenge.
Erich started the donating with $20, noting that his remodeling company will be moving to a building they closed on by June of next year.
Ann Blackburn gave Happy Bucks for being here and seeing the guests and said she was going to California next week.
A number of others gave $20 or $10 for the Spirit Chain, and for guests and our speaker, including Boyd Preston who wanted to note the big anniversary of the U.S. Navy.
Jeff Senney gave a couple of Happy Bucks for the Cubs and Indians playing.
Ray Merz gave $2 for his oldest getting married at Maumee River Saturday, for her and her bud.
Dan Sortman mentioned his two grandsons when he gave his ten dollars.
Kettering's Rotary president got into the spirit of things, even though she is a mentor at Kettering Fairmont, hoping Kettering still wins the challenge. She said she gave in protest,
Sally Beals gave her Happy Bucks, mentioning her recent visit to Greenfield Village and seeing many of the attractions there, and things that were saved from destruction by being put there, such as the Wright Brother's home.
Jack Workman said he is glad to see Doug Bockrath back and Raul and others gave, but not all their words could be heard by all..Ron Hollenback gave $20 for the Spirit Chain, and obviously many others not mentioned also gave. Drew Carter said he would give $100 to Spirit Chain. Harvey Smith gave $5 for the Spirit Chain and for Peachy giving to the Rotary Foundation. Jim Hester gave $10 in three increments, one including liking the Dayton Art Institute Jazz concert. Ram Nunna gave $20 for the Spirit Chain also.
Just a candid shot to show how the room had filled up with guests and members.
SPEAKER: Cathy Campbell, Director of Philanthropy at St. Mary Development Corp.
Boyd Preston introduced our speaker.
Cathy Campbell said she spent a couple years working for St. Vincent DePaul and then worked on a $100 million campaign for the Archdiocese of Cincinnati, helping they get $151 million, only to be let go after that to find a new job.
She said the St. Mary's Development Corp. was started by Dick McBride and Sister Rose Wildenhaus, who met while serving on a social justice committee looking at ways to help the poor.
She said Dick knew one of the Franciscan brothers at the St. Leonard Seminary in Centerville and learned that the Franciscans were selling the 240-acre campus.
The need is great for senior housing, as there are 46 million seniors 65 years of age and above and that figure is expected to rise to 98 million in the not too distant future, she said.
Dick and Sister Rose purchased the St. Leonard property in 1982, turning the main building into affordable apartments for seniors and then building market-rate cottage homes and a nursing home.
In 1989, Dick and Sister Rose turned St. Leonard over to another non-profit group and moved into the empty St. Mary School on Xenia Avenue in Dayton. They started St. Mary Development Corp., a new faith-based nonprofit, Cathy said. In the Twin Towers neighborhood they raised money to repair and convert the old school building into a community center. They started the Twin Towers Food Mart to create jobs and a place to shop. They bought and converted the old Academy Bowling Lanes into an early learning center for neighborhood children. They founded a HomeOwnership Center to help first-time home buyers purchase homes and rehabbed many single family homes.
They opened their first Low Income HousingTax Credit property, Twin Towers Place affordable senior apartments in 1993, moving their offices there.
They continued with housing development and related resident services and by 2013 had created more than 3,000 affordable housing units. They retired and turned their ministry over to Tim Bete, who had worked with them for seven years.
Cathy said there are 25 million elderly living below 250 percent of the Federal poverty line.
Cathy said the corporation acquires tax credits from state and local government and gets investors to help build houses.
They have built single floor condos, apartments, cottages and homes, and worked with Mike Turner to get property on the VA grounds to build housing for veterans, so they could also get access to all VA activities there.
Most people are not homeless who need the housing, she said. They are your average laborer, secretaries and brick layers and drywall workers who didn't prepare for retirement. Many had homes in East and West Dayton, who lost the equity in their homes when the market crashed. Their investment went out the door, she said. Many get less than $15,000 a year to live on, and some less than $10,000 a year. They have a campus on the West Side of Dayton with different levels of homes, some two stories. They had three bedroom apartments, but people said they didn't need a third bedroom, so they re-marketed them as two bedrooms and a den, she said.
They have a number of on-going building projects and applied in the summer for funds to create two new affordable senior living projects, one in Riverside and the other in Huber Heights. They are working on construction of 30 lease-to-purchase homes in West Dayton. Resident services have included educational programs, connecting residents to food and utility assistance, transportation and health services, among other matters to help low income seniors live healthy, safe and independent lives.
In picture below PDG Harvey Smith and Cathy Campbell talk after the meeting. Harvey said he worked with the St. Mary Development Corp. for 20 years and is very familiar with their work helping to
get housing and help for low income seniors.
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