Submitted by Graham Pearson August 29th, 2016

AUGUST 29th, 2016 - MEETING RECAP - PAST ADG DAVE SUNDBY ON ROTARY.ORG - AT THE HOTEL BESSBOROUGH

President Jack opened our meeting bang on time as promised. We sang our Rotary grace owing to the fact that our "Gracer" Steve was legitimately delayed at the office, a sin for which he paid dearly before the Sergeant.

Our Visitor today was Quinn Friesen, an insurance adjuster and member prospect, ably introduced by Wayne M.

President Jack led off with some announcements including Rotary International news about the
Italian disaster relief initiative and a new program on Club Revitalization.

Jack reminded all to load up on Grocery cards as an important and painless fundraiser, and gave another prompter about the upcoming Corporate Challenge on September 12th - 16th.
http://www.saskatooncorporatechallenge.com

The Rock for RAP fundraising event is upcoming on November 18th at a cost of $100, with more details to follow.

The Club's 100th Anniversary planning meeting will be held September 7th , 4pm at the Saskatoon Media group board room.

Sergeant Dave was next up, righteously relinquishing reluctant Rotarian's riches re:
Lack of Archive's Case knowledge, Number of RI Presidents as guests of our Club (three), MIA Steve for Grace, Deron's birth place, Gary E.'s reappearance and Wayne S. for his success with grocery card sales but resulting in low inventories.

Happy and Sad dollars were volunteered for:
-Peter W's 12 weeks of strong recovery since his surgery and a return to golf, with special thanks to Wayne M. and Gord for their support
-Peter Z. for attending Citizenship court
-Mark for football results and the Hilltop's golf tournament
-Graham for Mallory's safe return from her South American travels
-Wayne M. for his dog's show ribbons, but sadness when his dog tried out Wayne's sleep apnea equipment (no mention if it helped with his dog's snoring)
-Dave S. for a delightful lunch with Deron

ROTARY.ORG

Our Program today was delivered by Dave Sundby, our past Assistant District Governor and a member deeply immersed in all things Rotary.  Dave's comments centred on the interesting things he has learned about Rotary, with a special focus on the content of the Rotary.org Website. Dave interactively covered topics including:
- Ebay's special live auctions supporting Rotary causes, evidence that Rotary is working with different partners in unique ways
- The upcoming June 10th to 14th, 2017 Atlanta International Conference where one can register early for only $340
-The June 24th to 27th, 2017 Toronto International Convention,
-The Louisiana floods disaster relief fund set up by District 6200,
-The Italian earthquake shelter box program that was deployed within two days of the event,
-The Fort MacMurray fires and certain insurance claim issues,
-A Rotary International Card received by Dave regarding the Rotary Foundation's Centennial and the various levels of support needed to allow for another 100 years,
-Information on how to be a more vibrant Club, "connecting for good" while building leadership skills, lifelong friendships and giving something back to make a difference in the World, 
-Lunch with Police Chief Clive Weighill that also included Dave's son, where they heard the Chief's strong support of RAP.

Dave summed up his comments by noting that at 1.2 million members World Wide, Rotary's impact on a World basis has never been bigger. "Service above Self" is making a difference to people's lives, evidenced as examples by Polio Plus and our many fresh water projects in impoverished countries.

Rotarians need to be active in Club initiatives in order to get fulfillment from their experience. "Share your ideas, participate, volunteer and identify a need in your community" says Dave. All of these concepts are promoted on the Rotary website - Rotary.org. Programs such as Rotoract, the Rotary Community Corp, Peace Fellowships and many special interest groups are highlighted. As an example Wayne M. shared his story about joining the Rotary Ski Group outing at Aspen that was not only a great fellowship event but also a fundraiser and community builder. Gary R. also spoke to his experiences at the RI convention in New Orleans. 

Thank you Dave for your insightful comments today and for all that you do for Rotary.

President Jack closed with thanks to Dave and today's meeting organizers. He also commented about the Rotary Foundation's success at focussing 93 cents on every dollar towards it's targeted causes.