Prayer. Gracious God, by turning to you in prayer we are reminded that all we do in earthly life is overshadowed by a spiritual dimension. Help us not to be so occupied with the earthly, that we lose our sense of the eternal.
Bless now our table fellowship and the food prepared for our enjoyment and physical need. We are grateful for these and all blessings received because of your grace and goodness.Amen.
Club Announcements:
It is with a great deal of sorrow that we let you know of the death of Shirley Orlansky, wife of Rotarian David and mother of Rotarian Steve.
Shirley passed away Sunday, September 16, at home following her battle with leukemia. A wonderful obituary was published this morning in the Clarion-Ledger.
There will be no meeting of the Rotary Club of North Jackson on September 25. The Rick- house has a multi-day commitment and is unavailable for our meeting.
Birthdays and Anniversaries:
Birthdays:
None
Wedding Anniversaries:
None
Membership Anniversaries:
Jay Cooke 8 years, September 28
Matthew Turnage 2 years, September 27
Mark Nicholas 15 years, October 1
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Social Media.Want to keep up with the service activities and members of the Rotary Club of North Jackson? Be sure to follow us on Facebook, Twitter (@RotaryNorth) and Instagram (rotarynorthjackson)
Rotary Foundation Thought. This week’s Rotary Found-ation Thought: This week’s Rotary Foundation Thought is the October 2018 President's Message by 2018-2019 RI President Barry Rassin.
"Dear fellow Rotarians,
Every Thursday morning, I receive an email from the World Health Organization with an update on the status of polio eradication. It contains a wealth of information, country by country: where and how immunization campaigns are being conducted, how many millions of children are being vaccinated, and where environmental surveillance has found evidence of circulating virus. But every week, when that email appears in my inbox, my heart seems to stop for just a moment until I read the first few lines – and learn whether a child was paralyzed by wild poliovirus that week.
That, my friends, is where we are today in the work of polio eradication. The question on my mind as I open that message isn’t how many thousands of cases we might see in a year, as we did not too long ago or even how many hundreds. Instead, when that WHO email arrives every Thursday, the single, binary question it answers is: Was there a new case this week, or wasn’t there?
Thirty years ago, 1,000 children were paralyzed by polio every single day. Since then, we’ve marked our progress, year by year, week by week. We’ve celebrated as country after country, region-after-region has been declared polio-free. As we’ve come closer and closer to our goal, and the number of cases has dropped further and further, the children those numbers reflect have become less and less of an abstraction. When I open that Thursday email, I don’t wonder what number I’ll see. I wonder, was a child paralyzed this week or not?
We are so close to eradication – but there is so much work left to do.
This month, I ask every Rotary club to help End Polio Now by marking World Polio Day on 24 October. Last year, thousands of Rotary clubs around the world held events to raise awareness and funds for polio eradication. This year, we want to see more World Polio Day events registered than ever. If you have an event planned, be sure to register and promote it at endpolio.org so that more people can take part. If you haven’t planned one yet, it’s not too late – visit endpolio.org to find ideas, information on this year’s Livestream, and resources to help your club organize a successful event.
World Polio Day is a tremendous opportunity for clubs to highlight Rotary, and our historic work to eradicate polio, in their own communities. It is also a great way to take advantage of the challenge from the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation: For every dollar that Rotary raises for polio eradication, the Gates Foundation will give two more. Join me, and Rotarians everywhere, on 24 October for World Polio Day – and Be the Inspiration for a polio-free world."
BARRY RASSIN"
President, Rotary International
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 mdawkins@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. Please sign up for 2018-2019.
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) He will provide a membership application, check classification availability and discuss occupational qualifications.
Rotary Membership Occupational Qualifications Applicant should be one of the following:
A corporate officer
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:
Mike Pepper, Executive Director of the Mississippi Road Builders Association spoke to the Rotary Club of North JACKSON at the Club’s September 18, 2018, meeting. The subject of his talk was the condition of Mississippi's roads & bridges and the results of the 2018 special legislative session to address infrastructure issues. He summarized by saying that Mississippi needs $350-400 million annually to address the transportation infrastructure issues. The legislature approved an estimated $200.million annually from a lottery, the proceeds from internet sales taxes, and a portion of the BP oil spill settlement proceeds. According to Mr. Pepper, this is a start, albeit, a tenuous one. What is really needed in his judgment is an increase in the gasoline tax and a tax on electric vehicles that use the infrastructure.
Mr. Pepper showed photos of failed bridges in the state. Rotarians will remember that many bridges in the state were recently closed due to their failed state. The photos clearly made the intended point. Mr. Pepper is shown in the following photo during his talk. We thank him for his presentation to our club and for his service to Mississippi.
Dana Larkin, Executive Director of Growing Up Knowing and Ken Hodges of Wells United Methodist Church spoke to the Rotary Club of North Jackson at the Club’s September 11, 2018 meeting. Mr. Hodges spoke about WellsFest, an annual fundraiser conducted by Wells Church. Growing up Knowing is the beneficiary of this year’s WellsFest. WellsFest is held the last Saturday in September, September 29. It features, music, a run, an art auction, a coffee house, and grilled picnic fare. L.last year, WellsFest raised about $70,000. The goal this year is $50,000. All of the funds raised go to the beneficiary. In the first photo, Mr. Hodges is shown discussing WellsFest.
Growing up knowing is targeted at reducing teen pregnancy and the transmission of STIs, particularly by teenagers. According to its website: GROWING UP KNOWING engages young people and their families in real conversations about sexual health and staying safe. The program consists of parent-child sessions with elementary age and middle-school children. The sessions are held at non profit organizations such as Stewpot Community Services, Operation Shoestring, and the Boys & Girls Clubs. Ms. Larkin distributed a fact sheet on teen pregnancy and STI rates for MS and the US.
The second photo is of Ms. Larkin during her presentation.
The photo below shows Ms. Larkin,(2nd from right), and Mr. Hodges (2nd from left) along with Leah Wittenberg, Program Specialist with Growing up Knowing (left), and Club President Anna Powers (right)
We thank Ms. Larkin for what her organization is doing for Mississippi’s youth. We also thank Mr. Hodges and Wells Church for the 35 years that the church has sponsored WellsFest to benefit the Jackson Metro area.
Noah Barbieri, a 2018 graduate of Millsaps College spoke to the Rotary Club of North Jackson at its September 4, 2018, meeting. Mr. Barbieri was named a Rhodes scholar in November 2017. He was previously named a Truman Scholar in April 2017. At Millsaps, he was class Valedictorian and Student Body President with Philosophy and Economics majors and a minor in Mathematics. He intends to pursue a Masters & Ph.D. in Economics at Oxford, UK, to be followed by a J.D. once he returns to the US.
Mr. Barbieri is a native of Belden, Mississippi in Pontotoc County. He intends to return home once he completes his schooling to pursue a career in Public Service. He joins 6 previous Millsaps graduates as a Rhodes Scholar. His desire is to focus on retaining Mississippi college and university graduates to pursue their careers in their home state.
His speech centered on his life experiences, including being homeschooled for the first 7 years of his education because of extreme allergies. He (right) is shown in the first Photo with club member Matthew Turnage who scheduled his talk to the club and in the second photo during his speech.
The third photo is of Club member John Sewell who introduced Mr. Barbieri.
We thank Mr. Barbieri for his presentation and for his commitment to Mississippi. We wish him success in his studies across the Pond and look forward to hearing him again upon his completion of those studies.
RossBjork, Athletic Director for the University of Mississippi (Ole Miss) spoke to the Rotary Club of North Jackson at the club’s August 28, 2018, meeting.He described the enthusiasm at the university about the coming sports seasons and the impact new coaches in Football, Men’s Basketball and Women’s Basketball is having on the university and on the student-athletes. He reported that in spite of the NCAA sanctions on the football program, the athletes are skilled and enthusiastic about the upcoming season. He reminded us that Ole Miss has appealed the sanctions handed down by the NCAA, that the appeal was heard July 18, 2018, and that the results of that appeal are expected 6 to 8 weeks after the appeal or about mid-September or within the next month.
Mr. Bjork discussed several issues facing college athletics, especially the legalization of sports betting. He said that the Athletic Department has two sports psychologists on staff and that student-athletes have been made aware of the problems associated with sports betting. Per Mr. Bjork, there have always been problems of sports betting people inducing student-athletes toaffectthe outcome of contests, but now the problem is expected to become more severe.
Mr. Bjork distributed a card containing the 2018-2019 Athletic Department budget and the Vision, Purpose and Core Values of the Department. Thoseare as follow:
VISION STATEMENT
The Department of Intercollegiate Athletics at The University of Mississippi will strive to be the number one academic and athletics program through the strong emphasis of core values and the opportunity to experience athletic pursuits at the highest level.
PURPOSE
The ultimate purpose of the Ole Miss Department of Intercollegiate Athletics is to develop students to their fullest potential through athletics.
CORE VALUES
Academic Excellence Integrity Social Responsibility Student-Athlete Welfare University Integration Community Engagement Competitive Excellence
The budget for the Athletic Department is $117 million, with the largest sources of revenues being what is called SEC Revenue at about $33.6 million, Annual Fund revenue of $20.6 million, Football Ticket sales of $19.3 million
Wethank Mr. Bjork for his presentation, for his commitment and service to the University of Mississippi, and we wish him success in the athletic activities of the University. He is pictured below prior to his speech with Club member Matt Monsour who introduced him, while speaking, and following his talk with club president Anna Powers ( center), Club members Larry Anderson (left) and Jon Turner (second from left), and Ole Miss Deputy AD Keith Carter (right).
Mr. Jon Gilbert, Director of Athletics for the University of Southern Mississippi (USM) spoke to the Rotary Club of North Jackson at the club’s August 21, 2018, meeting. He is shown in the accompanying photo prior to his speech with club member and Past President Charles Lindsay who introduced him.
Mr. Gilbert emphasized that USM is nationally competitive in several of the sports in which it competes, specifically, football, men’s and women’s basketball and men’s and women's track & field in spite of an athletic budget that is less than 25% of the budget of the larger competitors. He also stressed that 216 of USM’s 350 student-athletes achieved a 3.0-grade point average (B) or higher in the 2017-2018 school year.
USM participates athletically in Conference USA. USM Baseball player, Nick Sandlin, was named as Conference USA’s Male Athlete of the year in addition to achieving a 3.91 GPA as a Construction Engineering Technology major.
Mr. Gilbert also discussed three issues facing the NCAA, including the number and type of scholarships universities can give to student-athletes in various sports, betting on collegiate athletic contests, and Grant-in-Aid Antitrust Litigation that could change the way that college athletes are compensated.
Prior to joining USM in 2017, Mr. Gilbert was Executive Sr. Associate Athletic Director at the University of Tennessee and prior to that Associate Athletic Director the University of Alabama. He is a graduate of Lenoir Rhyne College in North Carolina and received an MS in Sports Administration from Eastern Kentucky University. He (second from right) is shown in the following photo with Club President Anna Powers (right), club Immediate Past President Witt Ruffin (second from the left) and Charles Lindsay (left). We welcome Mr. Gilbert to MS and thank him for what he is doing for USM, particularly the student-athletes.
John Cohen, Mississippi State University Athletic Director, spoke to the Rotary Club of North Jackson at the Club’s August 14, 2018, meeting. The purpose of the speech was to update the Club on the status of the MSU Athletic Department. In the first photo, Mr. Cohen (right) is shown with Bo Hemphill, Deputy A.D. for Development, prior to his presentation. Mr. Cohen was also accompanied by Rob Jenkins, Associate A.D. for Development.
Mr. Cohen discussed the new facilities the Athletic Department has for its sports, including, the new Dudy Noble Baseball complex, the new Templeton Athletic Academic Center, new football Game Day facilities, and the various sports in which the university has teams. He also emphasized that in the just-completed academic year, the MSU student-athletes had a school record cumulative GPA of 3.08 while four teams finished in the top ten nationally of their respective sports, Women’s Basketball (2), Baseball (3), Men’s Tennis (5), and Men’s Outdoor Track & Field (10). Additionally, MSU was the only school in the nation to win a bowl game, reach the NCAA final four, and the College World Series. 2017-2018 was the first time since 1996 that multiple sports won an SEC championship; Women’s Basketball and Men’s Tennis.
We thank Mr. Cohen for his presentation and for his commitment to and success at MSU. He is shown in the following photos with Club President Anna Powers and with club member Dr. Mark Kennedy.
