President Dudley Thompson
Call to Order – President Dudley Thompson
President Dudley Thompson called the 5,354nd Civic Thursday meeting to order and shared impressive Rotary historical facts worthy of repetition. Founded in 1908, our club is the third oldest in the world amongst more than 36,000 clubs, in more than 200 countries. Oakland Rotary has nearly 300 members joining together in “Service Above Self”
Thought for the Day - Merlin Edwards
Merlin Edwards shared an uplifting quote from Nelson Mandela: “What counts in life is not the mere fact that we have lived. It is what difference we have made to the lives of others that will determine the significance of the life we lead.”
Visiting Rotarians and Guests
Past President and Past District Governor Ed Jellen announced that for the first time in many weeks there were no visiting Rotarians or guests. A bit later, however, Lorna Padia Markus introduced her guest, Gerald Thomas of Paylocity.
Membership and Committee Month
President Dudley deemed the month of September “Membership and Committee Month”.
Keith Uriate, Membership Coordinator, shared three key focal points: Inviting New Members, Member Engagement and Membership Retention. Noting we are well on our way towards the goal of over 300 members, Keith reported that since July 1st, the club has inducted ten new members with five more inductees scheduled this month. He appealed to the 59 members attending today’s meeting to “each one bring one”. Fifteen people raised hands in the Chat to indicate their commitment to bring guests, and prospective new members, towards reaching or exceeding the goal over the next 10 months!
David Kersten, Membership Recruitment Chair, announced there will several upcoming events including a New Member gathering in early October. The Membership Committee will meet on September 14 at 6 p.m. and welcomes new participants. Rotarians interested in attending the planning meeting should contact David Kersten at dk@kersteninc.com, Keith Uriarte at keithuriarte@sbcglobal.net or Dudley Thompson at ItsMeDudleyT@gmail.com.
Pres. Dudley suggested we all ask ourselves: Am I a better person for joining Oakland Rotary? Do I know someone who would make a great Rotarian?”
He also reminded us to become familiar with and share copies of the 2020-2021 Accomplishments list, available next week, highlighting the club’s many impactful contributions with data, fun facts and photos to help spread the word and good work!
Rotaract President DeVante Brooks shared the latest partnerships and efforts to benefit local students, much needed as the pandemic continues. DeVante, a former HOPE Program Mentee, announced Rotaract is collaborating with the Enterprise Institute to revamp the curriculum. They are also helping plan special events, including a night out to cheer on the Oakland Roots vs. LA Galaxy, September 18 at 5 p.m. Field-level seating still available! Buy tickets on the club website, event calendar page.
Reach out to Winter Williams at winter@winterwilliamspresents.com if you know local businesses or entrepreneurs who may wish to be involved in support of Oakland youth via Rotaract.
Aisha Wahab
Speaker for the Day - Aisha Wahab
Isaac Kos-Read introduced today’s speaker, Hayward Councilmember Aisha Wahab.
Aisha is the U.S. born daughter of Afghan refugees from “an earlier wave of immigration”, during the Soviet invasion of the late 1970’s-80’s. Isaac noted how her inspiring personal story of loss and resilience influenced her public service today such to “uphold the 4-Way Test!”
Aisha Wahab was the first Afghan-American woman elected to public office in 2018 as a Hayward Councilmember, and in 2020, colleagues chose her to became Mayor Pro-Tempore. She is now running for State Senate, District 10.
Born in New York City and orphaned when her father was murdered, Aisha and her sister were raised in foster care. Growing into adulthood in a post-9/11 world, Aisha always remembered the leadership and dignity of “one American judge” whose decision to keep her and her sister together when faced with deportation was “the most pivotal decision made in my life”. She noted how “Uncle Sam raised me!” but shared how her father imparted a sense of his national pride, encouraging her to “learn your history or others will use it against you!”.
In context of today’s crisis and refugee situation facing Afghanistan, Aisha provided a richly detailed, yet concise history of the country, which previously enjoyed a roughly 40-year period of stability, peace and diplomacy under King Mohammad Zahir Shah, who had been a guest of Pres. John F. Kennedy. Previously in 1919 under Queen Soraya, women were granted the vote and freedom of dress. The country has been rife with corruption and questionable US policy since, resulting in today’s crisis.
The fabled Silk Road has threaded through Afghanistan for centuries and continues to make it a strategic location for economic activity. While agricultural projects have been its main export, it sits on key ores including iron, copper, gold and lithium, making it a potentially important exporter to other countries.
Many Rotarians asked questions in Chat of how best to offer humanitarian aid and support to refugees. Aisha shared the following strategies: provide safe pathways for exit, support vs re-settlement, decriminalization of refugees, stop the forced return, and cooperate with local entities for welcoming and protections. The councilwoman ran out of time before she could answer the many pressing questions facing her, the people of Afghanistan and those of the global community stepping up to support. Read more on Aisha and her story: https://www.aishawahab.com/. Two other websites of interest:
Queen Soraya: https://cutt.ly/FWbrpC3
Great map of Afghanistan in Asia: https://mapswire.com/asia/political-maps/
Bell Ringers
There were no bellringers.
Adjournment
President Dudley adjourned the meeting at 1:27 p.m. as he rang the bell.
Birthday Greetings
Happy Birthday! Celebrating between September 2 – 14 are:
4 – Marie Saverimuthu
5 – Ericka Nicholes
5 – Syd Saperstein
8 – Dominique Enriquez
8 – Marlo Seligman
10 – Nancy O’Malley
11 – Andy Anderson
13 – Gabe Bruck
13 – James Head
14 – David Scharff
Membership Anniversaries in September
Thank you for your years of service to the Rotary Club of Oakland and the community!
Wayne Goodroe – 36 years
Mike Taylor – 28 years
Shanna O’Hare – 27 years
Johanna Leonard – 23 years
Marti Burchell – 19 years
Rosemary Darden – 19 years
Pat Riley – 18 years
Ginni Ring – 15 years
Wendy Willrich – 8 years
Keri Butkevich – 6 years
James Head – 6 years
Alex Kaffka – 5 years
Kyla Johnson-Trammell – 4 years
Winter Williams – 4 years
Ericka Nicholes – 2 years
Purposed for Membership
An application has been received from the following individual. If no objection is received within five days, the application will be submitted to the Board of Directors for approval.
Ed Brail
FUNERAL DIRECTOR
Chapel of the Chimes Funeral Home
4499 Piedmont Ave
Oakland, CA 94611
Sponsor: Isaac Kos-Read
Dean Erwin Chemerinsky
Next Meeting, Thursday, September 9 - Dean Erwin Chemerinsky - The State of the US Supreme Court
Ed Jellen announced next week’s speaker will be Erwin Chemerinsky, Dean of the UC Berkeley School of Law. The author of 12 books, he is one of the most renowned scholars on constitutional law, and a keen observer of the personalities and history of the United States Supreme Court.
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