Presumpscot Scribbler 6-25-2018 (Jun 25, 2018)

Jul 03, 2018

No Meeting

Happy Independence Day!

Jul 10, 2018

No Lunch Meeting

See you at the Lobster Bake!

Jul 17, 2018 11:30 AM

John Lobosco - District Governor 2018-2019

Be the Inspiration

Jul 24, 2018 11:30 AM

GHS Interact & RYLA

Review of 2017-18 and Look forward to 2018-19

Jul 31, 2018 11:30 AM

Michael Bourque - President & CEO MEMIC

MEMIC at 25: Lessons in public policy and process

Aug 07, 2018 11:30 AM

Club Assembly

Sep 18, 2018

No Meeting

Golf Classic this week

View entire list

Annual Lobster Bake

Summer Home of Henry Saunders

Jul 10, 2018 5:30 PM

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The Four Way Test

Of the things we think, say, or do:

First, Is it the truth?

Second, Is it fair to all concerned?

Third, Will it build goodwill & better friendships?

Fourth, Will it be beneficial to all concerned?

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Rotary's Six Areas of Focus

* Promoting Peace

* Supporting Education

* Growing Local Economies

* Fighting Disease

* Providing Clean Water

* Saving Mothers & Children

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Special July Board Meeting

Focus on 2018-2019 Budget

July 17 at 10AM at WRVC

Next Regular Board Meeting

August 7, 2018 10:30AM at WRVC

All members are welcome at Board Meetings

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MILESTONES

* Judith Reidman - Birthday 6/21

* Phil Spiller - Birthday 6/27

* Bill Gowen - Birthday 7/4

* Woody Beach - Rotary Anniversary 6/30 17 yrs

* Henry Saunders - Rotary Anniversary 7/1 51 yrs

* Mody Botros - Rotary Anniversary 7/1 10 yrs

Save these dates!

Final Call for Lobster Bake - Tuesday July 10 5PM. $25 BYOB and a side or dessert to share. Always a fun time. Choose Lobster or steak. Includes corn and boiled potatoes. To sign up contact Nelsen Harmon tnelsonharmon@gmail.com

Gorham Community Night at the Ball Park - Benefit Just Love Ministries which fights human trafficking. Buy your tickets today!! Thursday, July 12, 2018. The Portland Sea Dogs, AA Affiliate of the Boston Red Sox, take on the New Hampshire Fisher Cats, AA Affiliate of the Toronto Blue Jays at 7:00 PM. Ticket $9 Gorham Night at Sea Dogs

Westbrook Community Night at the Ball Park – Benefit Recovery Liaison, a program of the Westbrook Police Dept. Wednesday, August 15, 2018. The Portland Sea Dogs take on the Trenton Thunder, AA Affiliate of the New York Yankees at 7:00 PM. Ticket $9 Westbrook Night at Sea Dogs

Community Food Drive - Co-Sponsored by Westbrook-Gorham Rotary and Westbrook Kiwanis. Hannaford Drive a Saco Biddeford Savings parking lot- Saturday August 18, 10AM-2PM. Contact Sarah Hutchins to volunteer.

Rotary Night Out - Tuesday August 28 5:30PM- In place of our usual lunch meeting, join us for an evening at a local establishment. Look for details soon. Friends, spouses and children welcome. Just let us know so we can plan for enough food!!

Westbrook-Gorham Rotary Annual Golf Tournament - Tuesday September 18, 2018 at Gorham Country Club.

Summer Lunches

Mister Bagel is providing our lunches again this summer and Mike Foley is coordinating. While guests are always welcome, we ask that you let Mike know before 9AM on Monday if you plan to bring a guest that week. Especially if you plan to bring more than one guest. You can reach him at mfoley@me.com.

We want to have enough food for all who attend, but we also need to work within a budget. We don’t want to under order, but we also don’t want to over order and waste money and food. Any help you can provide by giving a “heads up” would be appreciated.

Thank You Notes

President Bill read several thank you notes for donations made recently by our Club. These included notes for scholarships awarded to a WRVC graduate and the GHS most improved student 2018.

Bill also thanked us for our recent contribution to the Stroudwater Christian Church Food Pantry. They serve many families from Westbrook and surrounding communities. The SCC will be taking over 1.5 tons of non-perishable food to Princeton ME this summer in addition to the children’s books we (and they) have been collecting. Princeton is a very small community in Washington County.

Republic of Artsakh

Our speaker on June 12, Anna Astvatsaturian Turcotte, an ethnic Armenian, was born in Baku, Azerbaijan when it was part of the USSR. Stalin had reorganized ethnic Armenians into a small region of Azerbaijan once called Nagorno-Karabakh, a territory whose sovereignty was disputed between Armenia and Azerbaijan. During the Soviet period, the dislike/dispute among ethnic populations was controlled in an artificial "friendship of nations". However, with the break-up of the Soviet Union, tensions resurfaced.

In 1988, when Anna was 10, she and her family were forced to flee to Armenia as the majority Muslim Azeri population drove the minority mostly Christian Armenians out of Azerbaijan using terror and violence. Between 1988 and 1990, over 350,000 ethnic Armenians were either killed or fled from the country. Armenia was still recovering from massive earthquakes and was unprepared to handle so many refugees. Anna and her family lived poorly in a country with little oil and no electricity or public transportation.

In 1990, Anna and her family emigrated to North Dakota where she attended college. She later came to Maine to attend law school and moved to Westbrook in 2004. She published her diaries in 2012 and she travels and lectures extensively on the topic of the 1915 Armenian genocide, the ongoing ethnic hatred in the region, and her desire to see Artsakh in full control of its future. She is currently a Westbrook City Councilor.

Today, this region is known as Republic of Artsakh or simply Artsakh. Although it is a presidential democracy under the control of the Armenian majority, it is still recognized internationally as part of Azerbaijan and travel to/from the area is heavily controlled. The border between Artsakh and Azerbaijan is called a “line of contact” and Anna called Artsakh an “open air prison” for the roughly 100,000 Armenians who live there. Family income averages only about $100 per month.

For those interested in learning more about Ana and the Artsakh region, her book Nowhere: An Exile Story is available on Amazon.

Upcoming Opportunities

The Locker Project - Fresh food and baked goods distribution in Westbrook. Two or three volunteer needed for each date during the summer at either Westbrook Community Center (WCC) or My Place Teen Center (MPTC). WCC arrival 4PM on dates: June 27, July 11 & Aug 8. MPTC arrival 3PM on dates: July 25 & Aug 22. Help lay out food on tables and interact with the kids to encourage them to take items. You will be a welcoming presence, making sure people know they are invited to take food. Everyone is invited to bring food home with them. If you can help on any of these dates, please contact Christine Johnson. For more information, or to donate, visit their website: mainelockerproject.org

5th Annual Westbrook Strong 5K & Matt's Mile - Saturday July, 14 - 8AM at Riverbank Park in Westbrook. Fun run. Kid's race starts at 8AM, 5K begins at 8:30. All proceeds to the Matthew Rairdon Scholarship Fund at Saint Joseph's College. Fun prizes and raffles! For more information or to sign follow this link: Westbrook Strong Run Sign Up Registration ends July 13, 2018 at 12:00pm EDT

Princeton Elementary School Literacy Project - We have collected over 300 books so far!! Books are being collected for the library at the Elementary School in Princeton ME in Washington County. Books will also be given to students in Grades K-8 for their personal use. A week long Literacy program will engage the students in active reading for one week in July. Gently used donations are welcomed. Classics are encouraged as well as series. The goal is to collect up to 800 books. Please bring donations to any meeting between now and July 17.

Can Tabs for Ronald MacDonald House – Ongoing - Thank you for continuing to collect can tabs. Please bring your collection to any meeting this spring/summer. Pat and Cliff Plummer and looking forward to accepting them for Ronald McDonald House.

CLYNK for Literacy - Ongoing - Don't forget to keep filling those bags to help fund the children's books we ask our speakers to sign for the Baxter and Walker Libraries. Extra bags are always available at our meetings. If you have been working on filling a bag for a very long time (6 months or more), please consider returning it and starting a new one. Thank you for your ongoing support of this fundraiser!

Donate to our Club's Charity through Amazon Smile – Ongoing - If you order items from Amazon.com, even if not very often, you can help Westbrook Gorham Rotary Club Charities. Go to http://smile.amazon.com/. Search for our Charity and select it. You may need to login to your Amazon account before being able to finalize your selection. Then, when you shop Amazon.com (always starting from http://smile.amazon.com/) a portion of every purchase will be donated to our charity.

Upcoming Speaker List Details

If you have an idea for a speaker or program, please contact Christine Johnson at cejinmaine@gmail.com. We are also interested in ideas for periodic evening meetings, service projects in lieu of meetings, or in-meeting service projects

We are now scheduling programs for August and September.

Here is the list of upcoming speakers and programs:

* 6/26 - Changeover

* 7/3 - No Meeting -Happy Independence Day

* 7/10 - No Lunch Meeting - Evening Event

See you at the Lobster Bake

* 7/17 - John Lobosco - District Governor Visit - Be the Inspiration

* 7/24 - Gorham High School - Interact & RYLA

* 7/31 - Michael Bourque - Pres & CEO MEMIC at 25

* 8/7 - Club Assembly

* 8/14 - TBD

* 8/21 - Classification Talk - Steve Sloan

* 8/28 - Tentative Evening Meeting

* 9/4 - TBD

* 9/11 - TBD

* 9/18 - No Meeting. Golf Tournament

* 9/25 - Classification Talk??

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Can't make our meeting but still want to enjoy the fellowship of Rotary this week?

Why not attend one of these other local clubs in our area:

Falmouth - Mondays 4:30PM

American Legion Post 65 Depot Rd Falmouth

Scarborough - Tuesdays 5:45PM

Cabela's 100 Cabela's Blvd Scarborough

South Portland-Cape Elizabeth - Wednesdays 6:15PM

Purpoodock Club 300 Spurwink Rd Cape Elizabeth

Portland Sunrise - Thursdays 7:15AM

Cumberland Club 116 High St Portland

Sebago Lake Rotary Club - Thursdays 12:15PM

Pat's Pizza 844 Roosevelt Trail, Windham, ME 04062

Portland - Fridays 12:15PM at Holiday Inn by the Bay or Clarion

check website for current week's venue

Or Attend a meeting online at Rotary E-Club One

Rotary is about fellowship, as well as service to our community. Even if you must miss a meeting, you can remain engaged by attending Rotary-sponsored events of our club or other clubs like fundraisers, by selling Christmas Trees, by volunteering at our Golf Tournament or our Road Race, or by attending District events or training. Just let our Secretary Mike Foley know when you have participated in any of these activities at mfoley@me.com

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