Heather Drinan will be introducing members of the Hopkins Center staff who will be sharing how they are navigating the pandemic and their plans for alternative forms of entertainment that Dartmouth is offering on line. 

 

https://us02web.zoom.us/j/81793645008?pwd=S2RUT29HVUxaL0RtR1FWK1l2akRMdz09

 

As a reminder, here’s the format for our Zoom meetings: 

11:45 AM– The Zoom Room opens. When you enter your video will be on but your microphone will be muted.

 

12:00 PM– Liam McCarthy begins the official meeting, at which point it’s best if all mikes are muted. It may be helpful to go to gallery view when guests are introduced, birthdays are celebrated, and Happy Dollars are offered. During this time Liam may also invite members to share any information on how the pandemic is impacting our region. 

 

12:20 PM(or thereabouts) – Liam introduces our speakers, who will be accepting questions at the conclusion of their talk. 

 

1:00 PM– The meeting ends. 

 

 

Rachel Brooks the Peace Scholar and Michelle Sun, Dartmouth’s Roteract liaison attended the meeting as guests, Michelle checking in from California where she is attending classes remotely. Because of the pandemic the launch of Roteract is currently on hold. 

 

Carol Olwert, a member of the Headrest Board, announced that the Upper Valley non-profit is seeking board members, particularly those with a background in development, law or finance. Please call her (603-259-1044) if you are interested. 

 

Ruby Simon announced that the Rotary Exchange for 2020-21 is cancelled, which means that the three outgoing students from Hanover High School will not be travelling abroad and that Hanover High will not be hosting students. She indicated that the Hanover High students would be offered the option of being exchange students in 2021-22 if they wanted to do so. 

 

Kevin Wenger reported that 19 members had donated $3515 to the Covid 19 Fund set up to receive donations in lieu of meals and that email receipts are generated for the donations. A reminder that those in attendance at the Zoom meetings are saving $18 dollars per week (see section below). 

 

Dick Podolec indicated that the October Rotary Friendship visit to New Zealand has been cancelled and all Friendship exchanges will need to be rescheduled. AS it stands now, in 2021 we are scheduled to do a Friendship Exchange with the Southern California Rotary District that includes San Diego. 

 

Kathy Geraghty offered a Happy Dollar to celebrate the neighborliness that has emerged due to the pandemic. 

 

Wayne Gersen offered a Happy Dollar because his computer continued operating as the Zoom host site even though he was unable to hear anything through it. 

 

Dave Bradley offered a Happy Dollar in honor of his son born 50 years ago. 

 

Todd Allen offered a Happy Dollar in honor of his grandson who was a visitor to the club before noon having returned from the hospital and able to spend time at their home. He also wanted to celebrate the end of their best lambing season ever with 19 newborns. 

 

Heather Drinan won the virtual raffle for a free lunch when Jesse’s reopens and we take over the entire restaurant due to social distancing regulations. 

 

 

Here’s the link to donate in lieu of a meal ticket this week:  

 

 

 

We heard from three leaders in the Upper Valley on how they are coping with the pandemic. I’m sure all club members left with their confidence buoyed by the leadership we have in our region. 

 

Andrew Winter of Upper Valley Strong described how his organization, which was formed following Hurricane Irene, is coordinating the efforts of several non-profits in the region and providing financial and volunteer support. Upper Valley Strong is committed to helping those who are now or soon will soon be jobless.

 

Kyle Fisher of Listen expressed his organization’s deep gratitude for the donation Rotary made and described the tough financial straits his organization is facing due to the closure of the retail stores that bring in 70-80% of their revenues. He noted that this revenue shortfall is paired with double the number of meals they need to provide and an uptick in the demand for all of their services. A number of club members recommended watching a CATV interview with Kyle that described Listen’ contributions to the region. Here’s the link to the show:  https://youtu.be/YgN6gBmScdQ

 

Julia Griffin offered a sobering report on the state of the town’s economy but a somewhat upbeat view on the impact of the pandemic itself. She is envisioning a far more devastating impact from the pandemic than our region experienced after the 2008 meltdown because of pending lay-offs at DHMC, Dartmouth, and the likely closure of many businesses who are suffering because of Dartmouth’s decision to offer classes on line through the end of the summer. She is expecting to receive requests from landlords and homeowners for tax abatements and may need to draw on reserve funds that are typically used for storm relief. She thought that Rotarians might be able to assist small businesses with strategic planning and the submission of paperwork needed to secure federal funds. She did note that DHMC had not experienced the wave of Covid 19 patients they anticipated, but cautioned that the curve has not been completely flattened and it was possible that some overflow patients from Massachusetts could impact DHMC directly or indirectly in the coming weeks. 

 

 

May 6 – Dick Podolec introduces Rotary Scholar Rachel Brooks who will share her experiences abroad… and that’s it!  

 

I am working on a couple of ideas for the near future… but it’s looking more and more like this will be the way we’ll be meeting for a while. 

 

Here’s a thought! With Zoom meetings we could invite speakers from faraway places (i.e. outside of driving distance of Jesse’s) to share ideas and insights. With that in mind, please offer any ideas you have for future speakers. Free Zoom tutorials are available for those who have miraculously escaped the clutches of the small squares! And if you don’t come up with ideas of your own, I’ll be offering YouTube cat videos. 

 

Wayne Gersen