Greetings fellow Rotarians!  We started the meeting with a classification talk from one of our newer members, Don Imgram.  Don grew up in Westchester County, New York and worked as a talent agent for a number of years in New York City.  He is now working as a realtor in the area and is looking forward to serving as a member of our Club.  Thank you to Don for letting us get to know you.  Our program today was a presentation on the Club’s expanded presence into social media.  Pat Spielman and Greg Morgan took us on a guided tour of our Club’s Facebook page and Front Porch Forum and the many features we can find on those platforms. We were also introduced to the Club’s new Instagram and Twitter pages by Damon Clark and Hannah Ricard.  Damon and Hannah each discussed the differences between these new features and the ways our members and the public can stay connected to the Club through them.  To learn how to utilize Instagram, please visit the following link: http://www.gcflearnfree.org/instagram/getting-started-with-instagram/1/   Once you sign up, you can find the Club by searching for “essexvermontrotary”.  You can also follow the Club on Twitter by going to, https://twitter.com/essex_rotary.  Thank you to Pat, Greg, Hannah and Damon for this very informative presentation.

 

 

 

            Just as a reminder, the Vermont Rotary All-Star Hockey Classic will be held on Saturday, March 25^th at the Essex Skating Facility. This is our Club’s second largest fundraiser, so we will need everyone to help by volunteering on game day and by providing donations to the concession stand. You may sign up to volunteer for shifts and concession donations online at:

 

 

 

 

            The Literacy Committee is pleased to report that it has donated $1,000.00 to the Reach Out and Read program.  This program provides books for pediatric offices to hand out to children under 5 during well visits.  We are also on the lookout for gently used books to donate to this project. If you or your family members have any children’s books that you have outgrown, this is a great way to recycle them.  The committee is also donating $1,000.00 to the Children’s Literacy Foundation. This organization provides literacy programs to low-income and at risk children 12 years old and younger in rural communities throughout Vermont and New Hampshire. 

 

 

            The next opportunities to volunteer at the Heavenly Food Pantry will be on March 23^rd and April 27th.  Please contact Sharon Dettenrieder if you would like to sign up for shifts.

 

Upcoming Meeting Schedule:  March 8, 2017 – Our speaker will be Kristine Bickford, Executive Director of the local Ronald McDonald House.

 

For the complete list of upcoming speakers and information about the Club, please go to our website at www.essexrotary.org   Be sure to also visit us on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/EssexVermontRotary

 

       Yours in Rotary,

 

Jason Ruwet