“The difference between science and the arts is not that they are different sides of the same coin even, or even different parts of the same continuum, but rather, they are manifestations of the same thing. The arts and sciences are avatars of human creativity.” – Mae Jemison
 
“People cannot be free unless they are willing to sacrifice some of their interests to guarantee the freedom of others. The price of democracy is the ongoing pursuit of the common good by all of the people.” – Saul Alinsky
 
“What is lovely never dies, But passes into other loveliness, Star-dust, or sea-foam, flower or winged air.” – Thomas Bailey Aldrich
 
 
 
ANNOUNCEMENTS
(notes provided by the distinguished gentleman from Connecticut, Col. Edward Perry)
 
Nestor reminded everyone that the Rotary Blood drive starts Monday July 30 and goes thru Saturday, August 4.
 
Phyllis is looking for a few more people to help with our volunteer project at Salt & Light in Urbana on Saturday, August 11th from 9am till 11am.
 
Darrell thanked those who have signed up to help with our Club’s booth at the Taste of C-U event on August 18^th at West Side Park. The mission of our booth is to spread the Rotary word, invite those interested to provide their email address so we can in touch with them, and raise money from donations for the “CU Sunrise” coffee packet. Darrell also passed around a signup sheet this morning for our Club’s booth at the Urbana Sweet Corn Festival on Saturday, August 25th.
 
Angle received special recognition from the club as she has been selected in this year’s “40 under 40” community group. 
 
 
PROGRAM
 
Tom Ulen introduced Dr. Darren Pascavage as this morning’s speaker. Dr. Pascavage is the founding head of Academy High, the new independent, college-prep high school here in Champaign, IL.
 
Dr. Pascavage joined Academy High with an exceptional educational background and a wealth of experience in leading Independent Schools. He has served as founding headmaster and director at several schools in Atlanta and the State of Georgia as well as the Executive Director of Escuela Internacional Sampedrana in Pedro Sula, Honduras. He is a Trustee and remains active on several National Independent School Associations. He has also won several teaching awards in the State of Georgia. 
 
Dr. Pascavage first touched on the historical aspects of what we have thought education should be and the methods of teaching and learning in the future. Historically we have always wanted to use the best methods to inspire students so they can lead lives of excellence, purpose and joy. Today with all that technology has to offer, the future methods of learning are ever expanding. Past educational focus was for the students to learn for the known present, then there was a shift to learn for the known future and now learning should also include learning skills for the unknown future. 
 
Academy High is located at 2302 Fox Drive, Champaign and the facility is an open plan with flexible areas of learning. The first year there were 9 freshman students ,and with the start of the second year they are expecting enrollment to grow to 25 to 30 as the word gets out about the school. With classes starting at 9am the school has an academic core of math, science, social science, English and a second language. In addition they offer several “Modules” of learning to engage the student in art, technology, music, logic, geographic information systems, and communications to fill out the day. Independent studies at the U of I and Parkland are also emphasized.
 
The school does not receive any money from State or Federal government. Tuition is a sliding scale based on what the family can pay. The first year the range was approximately from $3,000 to $15,000 and scholarships are available.     
 
 
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UPCOMING SCHEDULE (with program committee member responsible listed in parentheses)
August 2nd – Bruce Knight, Planning & Development Director, City of Champaign (Bob)
August 9th – District Governor Pennie’s visit
August 16th – Jerri Kirshner, CU Symphony (Charlie) 
August 23rd – Ondine Gross, mediator and consultant who participated in the Conflict Management Training provided by a Global Grant (Mary)
August 30th – No regular meeting
September 6th – Emily Reichman, Hope Lives Rescue Ranch (David)
September 13th – Lola Lewis, Donation Liaison, Gift of Hope Organ & Tissue Donor Network (Phyllis)
September 20th – Deb Feinen, Mayor, City of Champaign (Tom)
September 27th – TBD (Bob)
October 4th – TBD (David)
October 11th – TBD 
October 18th – Kate Williams, Associate Professor, UIUC, and Abdul Alkalima, Professor Emeritus, African American Studies, UIUC, will discuss New Philadelphia, the early settlement in western Illinois  (Ed)
October 25th – TBD (Phyllis)
November 1st – TBD (Tom)
November 8th – TBD (Bob)
November 15th – TBD (Charlie)
November 22nd – No Meeting – Thanksgiving
November 29th – TBD (David)

 
“Technology can be our best friend, and technology can also be the biggest party pooper of our lives. It interrupts our own story, interrupts our ability to have a thought or a daydream, to imagine something wonderful, because we’re too busy bridging the walk from the cafeteria back to the office on the cell phone.” ― Steven Spielberg 
 
“Preservation of one’s own culture does not require contempt or disrespect for other cultures.” ― Cesar Chavez 
 
“To enjoy good health, to bring true happiness to one’s family, to bring peace to all, one must first discipline and control one’s own mind. If a man can control his mind he can find the way to Enlightenment, and all wisdom and virtue will naturally come to him.” ― Buddha 
 
 
ANNOUNCEMENTS
(notes provided by the disgruntled gentleman from Connecticut, Ed Perry)
 
Nestor reminded everyone about the Rotary Blood Drive that will take place July 30 to August 4 at the Blood bank on University Avenue. Most everyone qualifies to give blood, but if you have questions please contact the Blood Bank by phone or stop in and pick up a pamphlet.
 
Phyllis noted that volunteers are needed for a variety of activities at our Club’s volunteer project at Salt and Light in Urbana on Saturday, August 11 from 9-11am. Let Phyllis know if you can join in.
 
Darrell passed around a sign up sheet with time slots for our Club’s informational booth at the Taste of CU in West Side Park on Saturday, August 18. A special blend of CU Sunrise coffee will be sold at the booth too!
 
 
PROGRAM
 
Phyllis introduced our speaker, Jayne DeLuce, who is the President and CEO of Visit Champaign County. Jayne has been in the Sports and Tourism industry for over 30 years since getting her bachelor’s and master’s degrees from UIUC in Recreation, Sport & Tourism, with an emphasis on marketing. Prior to heading “Visit Champaign County” in 2009, she worked on various national and local committees including the Atlanta Committee for the Olympic Games. 
 
Visit Champaign County is a primarily publicly-funded organization whose mission is to market the many attractions of Champaign and surrounding counties. Through the use of PowerPoint and video, Jayne explained the various marketing tools that they use, the national conferences and trade shows that they attend, and the local associations they are part of to get the word out and bring groups in to visit this area. Jayne highlighted several positive organizations, festivals and attractions here in Central Illinois. The University of Illinois, agriculture, technology, research, arts & crafts, nature and outdoor activities, sports, and food and drink are just a few of the attractions that makes this area unique and a great place to visit. She emphasized that the friendly and welcoming attitude of the people in our community are among our strengths. 
 
Jayne touched on various examples that they continue to market and develop. One such example is the recent growth of Champaign’s downtown and midtown areas with plentiful food and drink options. U of I sports continues to be a big draw with emphasis on maintaining and attracting new activities, including Illinois high school football and wrestling state finals, baseball, soccer and sport camps. The Illinois Marathon draws an estimated $10 million benefit to the area . In addition, various conferences dealing with agriculture, technology and research also bring in visitors. We have so many activities taking place and Visit Champaign County tries to show case it all. 
 
In closing, Jayne again emphasized that the people here are truly the ambassadors that make this area a friendly place to visit and stay.  
 
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UPCOMING SCHEDULE (with program committee member responsible listed in parentheses)
July 26th – Dr. Darren Pascavage, Founding Head of School, Academy High (Tom)
August 2nd – Bruce Knight, Planning & Development Director, City of Champaign (Bob)
August 9th – District Governor Pennie’s visit
August 16th – Jerri Kirshner, CU Symphony (Charlie) 
August 23rd – Ondine Gross, mediator and consultant who participated in the Conflict Management Training provided by a Global Grant (Mary)
August 30th – No regular meeting
September 6th – Emily Reichman, Hope Lives Rescue Ranch (David)
September 13th – Lola Lewis, Donation Liaison, Gift of Hope Organ & Tissue Donor Network (Phyllis)
September 20th – Deb Feinen, Mayor, City of Champaign (Tom)
September 27th – TBD (Bob)
October 4th – TBD (Charlie)
October 11th – TBD
October 18th – Kate Williams, Associate Professor, UIUC, and Abdul Alkalima, Professor Emeritus, African American Studies, UIUC, will discuss New Philadelphia, the early settlement in western Illinois  (Ed)

 
“I have always believed, and I still believe, that whatever good or bad fortune may come our way we can always give it meaning and transform it into something of value.” – Hermann Hesse 
 
“True friendship multiplies the good in life and divides its evils. Strive to have friends, for life without friends is like life on a desert island… to find one real friend in a lifetime is good fortune; to keep him is a blessing.” ― Baltasar Gracian 
 
“Life is thickly sown with thorns, and I know no other remedy than to pass quickly through them. The longer we dwell on our misfortunes, the greater is their power to harm us.” ― Voltaire 
 
 
ANNOUNCEMENTS
 
President Cary nominated Billy Stull to form a search committee to find a new location for our meetings. Our current contract expires in December. Contact Billy (bstull@stephensstull.com) if you’d like to participate or if you have suggestions (not sure if Kams if open that early).
 
We are returning, on Saturday August 11th, to the Salt & Light retail store on Philo Road in Urbana. Our help is needed to sort and price clothing and in departments such as books and electronics. Contact Phyllis (phyllismischo@gmail.com) about this opportunity.
 
District 6490 Governor Arlene Pennie will visit our club on August 9th.
 
The next Rotary Leadership Institute will be held on August 18th at Richland Community College. Our Rotary Board will pick up expenses for all that wish to go. The purpose of the Rotary Leadership Institute (RLI) is to strengthen your club and strengthen your life. Rotary provides an opportunity for all of us to provide service to our community and throughout the world. (Service Above Self) With that service comes a learning experience in the areas of leadership, team building, planning, marketing, communication and organization. RLI provides an opportunity to enrich that learning through sharing experiences and ideas with other Rotarian’s throughout the region.Contact Mary Kay Smith (mksmith1991@yahoo.com)
 
Rotarian Nestor Ramirez along with Terri McCarthy from the Community Blood Services in Urbana urged all Rotarian’s to participate in the Community Blood Services Rotary Donor Week from Monday July 30 through Saturday August 4th. Nestor stressed this is 1) good for the community, 2) counts as a make-up and 3) you will receive a beautiful Rotary pin with 10 red jewels. Blood supplies in our community are particularly low during summer as the student population is gone and many families are on vacations. 1 donation hour will save 3 lives.
 
PROGRAM
 
Ata introduced Dylan Gunn, a senior at Champaign Central. Dylan is involved with Mayan Families.org. Mayan Families.org works to educate, feed, shelter and heal the impoverished populations of the Lake Atitlán region of Guatamala.
 
Dylan recently made a mission trip to work in such Mayan communities. After the devastation of Hurricane Stan in 2005, Mayan communities have struggled immensely with daily necessities. Mayan Families.org helps build schools, install residential stoves, provide veterinarian services and elderly food programs. Illiteracy in Mayan communities is about 60%.  In addition. 50% of children under age five are malnourished, and 3 million people lack access to safe water. Over the years, Champaign Central’s Spanish Honor Society has held fund raising drives (shoes in 2015, back packs the past 3 years) to provide donations for elder care, a Hope for Animals program (strays are a big problem), support for entrepreneurial programs, and have also purchased and installed stoves and water filtration systems.
 
Dylan gave much credit to his mentor and Champaign Central educator Veronica Thompson for placing into motion most of these local initiatives. Champaign County has a significant Guatemalan population.
 
Please check out and donate if you can at: www.mayanfamilies.org
 
 
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UPCOMING SCHEDULE (with program committee member responsible listed in parentheses)
 
July 19th – Jayne DeLuce, President and CEO, Visit Champaign County  (Phyllis)
July 26th – Dr. Darren Pascavage, Founding Head of School, Academy High (Tom)
August 2nd – Bruce Knight, Planning & Development Director, City of Champaign (Bob)
August 9th – District Governor Pennie’s visit
August 16th – TBD (Charlie)
August 23rd – Ondine Gross, mediator and consultant who participated in the Conflict Management Training provided by a Global Grant (Mary)
August 30th – No regular meeting
September 6th – Emily Reichman, Hope Lives Rescue Ranch (David)
September 13th – Lola Lewis, Donation Liaison, Gift of Hope Organ & Tissue Donor Network (Phyllis)
September 20th – Deb Feinen, Mayor, City of Champaign (Tom)
September 27th – TBD (Bob)
October 4th – TBD (Charlie)

 
“Forgiveness is not always easy. At times, it feels more painful than the wound we suffered, to forgive the one that inflicted it. And yet, there is no peace without forgiveness.” ― Marianne Williamson 
 
“Someone who hates one group will end up hating everyone – and, ultimately, hating himself or herself.” ― Elie Wiesel 
 
“Satisfaction lies in the effort, not in the attainment, full effort is full victory.” ― Mahatma Gandhi 
 
 
ANNOUNCEMENTS
(notes provided by the erudite Mary Hodson)
 
Global Scholar Miranda Meng made her last visit to our club.   She will be returning to Taiwan on July 19.  
 
There will be a volunteer opportunity at Salt and Light on August 11.  
 
 
PROGRAM
 
Darrell Hoemann and Mary Hodson attended the Rotary International Convention from June 23 through 27, 2018 in Toronto.   
 
Over 25,000 Rotarians from around the world were in attendance.   During the convention, they heard from Her Highness Princess Anne, former First Lady Laura Bush, Canadian Prime Minister Trudeau, the outgoing and incoming Rotary International Presidents and many more.  
 
The opening session on Sunday featured unique Canadian entertainment which included Cirque de Soleil performers, First Nation dancers and music performed on an Earth Harp.  
 
The schedule for the succeeding days consisted of a morning general session featuring inspiring speakers followed by afternoon break-out sessions and an evening ticketed social event.  
 
Darrell showed several slides from the House of Friendship, which showcased projects and programs from around the world.   
 
Mary signed up early enough to go to the Zone 30/31 Toronto Harbor Cruise and the Home Host Hospitality event.   She and Tom attended a barbecue hosted by three small rural Ontario clubs.  There they met many interesting Rotarians.  Mary was particularly impressed with PDG Wade Nomura from California.    Wade is a Foundation Cadre who travels the world to assess Rotary Global Grant projects.   Wayne supervises the volunteers who work on the Rotary Rose Bowl float.  Starting this year, he will also be in charge of 33 multi-District PETS.   Wade volunteers about 40 hours a week for Rotary, in addition to running his business and serving as vice-mayor of his town!
 
Darrell spoke about an informative breakout session on alternate membership categories.   Mary attended Wade Nomura’s break out on the new Global Grant requirement for a pre-project community assessment.  
 
Both Darrell and Mary agreed that the most valuable aspect of the convention was making new Rotary friends from around the world, and both recommended signing up early for the 2019 convention in Hamburg.  The 2020 Convention will be held in Hawaii, and the 2021 Convention will be held in Taiwan.  
 
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UPCOMING SCHEDULE (with program committee member responsible listed in parentheses)
July 12th – Dylan Gunn, Champaign Central High School Senior, will discuss his trip to Guatemala  (Mary)
July 19th – Jayne DeLuce, President and CEO, Visit Champaign County  (Phyllis)
July 26th – Dr. Darren Pascavage, Founding Head of School, Academy High (Tom)
August 2nd – Bruce Knight, Planning & Development Director, City of Champaign (Bob)
August 9th – District Governor Pennie’s visit
August 16th – TBD (Charlie)
August 23rd – Ondine Gross, mediator and consultant who participated in the Conflict Management Training provided by a Global Grant (Mary)
August 30th – No regular meeting
September 6th – Emily Reichman, Hope Lives Rescue Ranch (David)
September 13th – Lola Lewis, Donation Liaison, Gift of Hope Organ & Tissue Donor Network (Phyllis)
September 20th – Deb Feinen, Mayor, City of Champaign (Tom)
September 27th – TBD (Bob)
October 4th – TBD (Charlie)