Prayer: Most Holy God, to whom we turn in the midst of Christmas and Hanukkah celebrations, we are thankful for the meanings of these holidays. We acknowledge that our needs are more than physical so we rejoice in the spiritual provisions for those needs in the overtures of your love and grace conveyed to us through our churches and synagogues. In our respective worship situations outside of Rotary, we pray that inspiration may be gained to better fulfill our Rotarian calling to look to the needs of others. We are grateful for all men and women who have responded to that call through the years. Make us zealous to accomplish more.
Keep us in your loving care until we meet again.Amen.
Club Announcements
Birthdays and Anniversaries
Birthdays
Mark Nicholas Dec. 20
John Allin Dec. 22
Witt Ruffin Dec. 23
Jim Almas Dec. 24
Anniversaries
Sean & Marybeth Culhane Dec. 20
Membership Anniversaries
Suzie Baker 11 years, Dec.19
Nominees for 2018-2019 officers and directors are as follow:
Incoming Treasurer: Uriel Pineda
Incoming Secretary: Lee Carney
Incoming President-Elect: Greg Campbell
Incoming President: Anna Powers
Incoming Past President: Witt Ruffin
Nominees for Board of Directors:
Jeff Adcock
Larry Anderson
Suman Das
Steele Dehmer
Lori Greer
Lee Jenkins
Matt Monsour
Luther Munford
Steven O'Neill
Andy White
We will elect 5 from this list of Director nominees.
Holiday Party. The Rotary Club of North Jackson celebrated the Holiday Season by holding its annual Holiday Party at the River Hills Club Tuesday evening, December 12. The club was decorated festively for the season. A great time was had by all! Special thanks to Club Vice President Anna Powers for chairing this event and to River Hills for providing a great venue and excellent eats and drinks.
Rotary Foundation Thought. This week’s Rotary Foundation Thought is about Health, Hunger, and Humanity (3-H) Grants.
It is called the Paul Harris Memorial Road, a half-mile long concrete walkway which helps the villagers of Nabapally, India keep from being isolated during the rainy season. It is also one of the many infrastructure projects supported by a Health, Hunger, and Humanity (3-H) Grant that has brought prosperity to a rural corner of India. Sponsored by the Rotary Clubs of Calcutta Metropolitan, India and Medicine Hat, Alberta, Canada the grant has supported schools, microcredit loans, wells, toilets, and a health clinic for several communities.
The road is not just a way out of isolation it is a road to a brighter future – thanks to Rotary.
District 6820 Dream Car Raffle. District 6820 needs your help with the Dream Car Raffle (www.dreamcarraffle.org). The grand prize winner will choose between a 2018 Porsche Boxster, Macan S, or $40,000 cash. There will also be 10 additional $500 cash prizes! Tickets are $25 each or 5 for $100. Winners will be announced at the Rotary Foundation Gala on January 26th, 2018 at the Country Club of Jackson. Proceeds—less prizes and expenses—will go to The Rotary Foundation (50%), Polio Plus (25%), and the District 6820 Foundation (25%). Each member is encouraged to sell a minimum of 10 tickets. Please see Witt Ruffin to pick up your tickets. The deadline to return tickets and money is December 15.
Billy Brumfield House. The Rotary Club of North Jackson is serving supper once a month at The Billy Brumfield House, a Stewpot Community Services ministry. Our club serves on the 1st Tuesday of each month. Interested members need to meet @ Baker Donelson located at the corner of Eastover Drive and the I-55 North Frontage Road @ 5:15 PM and then travel together to Billy Brumfield. Also, if you are interested in sponsoring a month, the est. cost is $180 for the food. Mike Dawkins is project chair and can be reached @ 601-351-2428 or dawkins@bakerdonelson.com.
Between the Lions. Please remember to sign up for Between the Lions. During the school year, we read weekly to pre-Kindergarteners at William Walton Elementary School on Bailey Ave. It is a wonderful experience! The children are truly information sponges and very willing learners. Contact Jenny Price (662) 213-1294 for more information. We have resumed reading and are really enjoying it.
Member Care Committeereminder: for anyone who needs assistance getting to a meeting, please call Luther
Munford at (601) 985-4418.
Thinking of Proposing a New Member?
First, discuss with Classification Committee (Paul Miller or Julian Carroll). They will provide a member-
ship application, check classification availability and discuss occupational qualifications.
Rotary Membership Occupational Qualifications
Applicant should be one of the following:
A corporate officer
A Professional (Attorney, CPA, Physician. Engineer,
Architect, etc) A Proprietor
An Agent of a reputable company
A Manager or Supervisor of a department or section
of a business
Rotarians, don't forget to like the club's Facebook page to stay up to date on the latest happenings. Search us out at Rotary Club of North Jackson or click the link:
Children try on shoes as part of the Rotaract Club of Kampala South’s service project.
By Immy Julie Musoke Nakyeyune, president of the Rotaract Club of Kampala South, Uganda
A mist was rising over the meadow when I arrived early in the morning at Nyakishumba with members of my Rotaract club, brimming with excitement for the day ahead. Located in the hilly Kabale District of western Uganda, Nyakishumba is colder than most of the surrounding region. So we were bundled in our heavy coats this September day as we hurried to set up the medical camp in time; coordinating with the health care workers, arranging the necessary medicines, and establishing diagnostic stations and areas for HIV testing.
It has been almost three years since we first visited the community to do our needs assessment, discovering their unique concerns and needs. The first phase of our project in 2016 had focused on supporting education at the primary school. Now, we were addressing disease prevention, maternal and child health, education, and economic and community development. We were all excited at the opportunity Rotaract was providing us to work with members of other clubs to help this community.
Rotaractors collaborating on the project with the club’s logo in the background.
The Rotaract Club of Kabale and the Health Sciences unit at Mbarara University helped us organize a free medical camp at the school. We provided physicals along with testing for HIV and malaria for 247 members of the Nyakishumba community, with close to a third being elderly. We diagnosed and dispensed medication for a number of malaria cases.
Smiles and jubilation
But the most meaningful moment of the day for me came after the medical camp when we provided school supplies for children at the primary school. The smiles and jubilation as each child received a new pair of shoes were remarkable.
“You’ve given him his first pair of shoes,” I heard a school teacher say. I was astounded by how much we take for granted. By early afternoon, a donation of 10 classroom desks arrived. I loved watching the children run to help unload the desks from the pickup truck. We also renovated the classroom floor and blackboards to give the school a fresh look.
Through the #iamforagirl campaign initiative, we handed out sanitary pads to girls in the community. Our day ended by distributing maize seeds and planting an assortment of fruit trees in the school compound, including mango, guava, and orange, for the benefit of the entire community.
Nyakishumba tales are one of a kind. The difference we were able to make in the lives of the community was incredible. Rotaract has given us an opportunity to address the needs and concerns of the community and add purpose to life. We do not take this for granted. What truly makes Rotaract special is the ability to come together, to break the “walls” between clubs, and work side-by-side on projects like these.
Suman K. Das, M. D., a member of the Rotary Club of North Jackson, spoke to the club at its December 5, 2017, meeting. The subject of his talk was "The Chemicals of Emotion." He distributed cards with the chemicals used by our bodies to express emotions. In his talk, he gave examples of his own emotions during his life from riding an overcrowded tram in his native India to a dinner with his widowed mother, and a near-death experience of his own from drowning. It is interesting to consider the chemicals released into his brain at those times. Dr. Das (Center) is shown followings his talk in the accompanying photo with Club President Witt Ruffin (left) and Club Member Bill Osborne (right).
Dr. Das' handouts on the chemicals released by the brain in various emotional circumstances are shown below:
We thank Dr. Das for his interesting and informative talk and for his membership in our club.
John Noblin, Director, MS Blues Marathon spoke to the Rotary Club of North Jackson at the club's November 28, 2017, meeting. He discussed the fact that this will be the 11th annual event in Jackson and he discussed the history of the event. The event will be held January 27, 2018, and will include full, half, and quarter marathons plus a 5K and a relay marathon. The first MS Blues Marathon was run in 2008. This year's Title Sponsor is Continental Tire which is building a plant in Clinton, MS. The first Blues Marathon was run in January 2008. Normal participation is about 4,000 runners, representing all 50 US states and 30 or more countries in addition to the US. The race begins and finishes in downtown Jackson with the course going to West and Northeast Jackson. Expert marathoners complete the 26-mile course in 2 1/2 hours, but the course will be open for about 7 hours. The experts average about 5.8 minutes per mile.
Mr. Noblin (center ) is shown in the accompanying photo with Club Past President Sean Culhane (left) and 2017-2018 President Wittt Ruffin (right). We thank him for his presentation to our club and for his efforts on behalf of the Blues Marathon and our city.
December promises to be a busy month for the Mississippi Department of Archives and History (MDAH), as the state agency prepares for the opening of two new major museums along with the celebration of the state's bicentennial.
Chris Goodwin, director of public information at MDAH, provided an overview of the agency's mission and its role in the development and support of the new Museum of Mississippi History and the Mississippi Civil Rights Museum.
"The Mississippi Department of Archives and History is a comprehensive historical agency, started in 1902," Goodwin said. "The agency holds the greatest collection of Mississippi artifacts." In addition to its work in collection and preservation, the agency oversees several museums around the state, works with local agencies and municipalities on historic preservation, and assists state, county, and local agencies with the management of their records.
In his remarks to the Rotary Club, Goodwin also provided a brief history of the founding of Mississippi. A group of elected delegates met at historic Jefferson College in Washington, Mississippi in 1817 to develop the state's founding constitution and submit it to Congress as part of their application for statehood. Mississippi officially became a state on December 10, 1817.
Goodwin also offered a sneak peek into the two new museums scheduled for their grand opening on Saturday, December 9. The Museum of Mississippi History will give visitors a chance to experience a broad spectrum of history from 13,000 B.C. to the present day. The Mississippi Civil Rights Museum will focus on the state's often difficult history, from the period of 1945 to 1976.
Once the museums are permanently opened, operating hours will be 9:00am to 5:00pm Tuesday through Saturday, and 1:00pm to 5:00pm on Sundays. The museums will be closed on Mondays.
Lt. Col. (Ret.) Greg Raimondo , Chief, Public Affairs Office for the Vicksburg district of the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers discussed the role and mission of the District with the members of the Rotary Club of North Jackson at the club's Nov. 14, 2017, meeting. Col. Raimondo retired from the U.S. Army after 26 years of worldwide service. He described the service area of the District which is part of the Mississippi Valley Division and includes;
the Mississippi River from below Memphis to just below Natchez at the point where the Red River joins the Mississippi and the Atchafalaya River exits the Mississippi.
The Red River to approximately Texarkana,
The Ouachita/Black River to its headwaters in the Ouachita Mountains, and
The Pearl River.
The District also includes several lakes in Mississippi, which were built for flood control purposes and for which the Corps is responsible for maintaining their ability to control floods.
The district is also charged with implementing the requirements of the Clean Water Act, including the prevention of pollution or "navigable" waters as well as managing the water flow levels in the rivers in the district.
Col. Raimondo (Center) is shown in the accompanying photo following his talk with club president Witt Ruffin (left), and Matthew Monsour (right) who introduced him. We thank him for his interesting and informative presentation to our club and for his continuing service to our country.
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