Almighty God, We pause to give thanks for our country and the freedoms we have inherited from the efforts of patriots in the past. We are grateful for the privilege of engaging in the elections of those who will lead in days and years to come. Grant to them wisdom, courage, and openness to your Spirit's influence.
As we celebrate Veterans Day, we remember somberly those who served faithfully in military service. And for men and women now serving, we offer prayer for their well being and for their families.
Bless this meeting today that it may contribute to the cause to which we are committed as Rotarians. Draw us always closer together as we share in breaking bread and in fellowship. Amen.
Club Announcements:
Administrative Announcement. Please see the following from our club's Administrative Secretary-Treasurer, Don Roberts:
"As you know, last year District 6820 began promotion of a Car Raffle. From a District perspective, proceeds of the Raffle support The Rotary Foundation ( 50%), Polio Eradication[ also The Rotary Foundation] ( 25%), and the District 6820 Foundation [supports small clubs] ( 25 %). Again, this year the District is holding a Raffle, this time of a Ford F-150 pickup truck with proceeds being divided the same as last year. ( Truck Raffle Flyer attached)
Our Club’s Board of Directors has decided to more strongly support the District Raffle. As part of this decision, this year we will not hold our annual Pancake Breakfast.
For several years, we have held our annual Pancake Breakfast at St. James. All Club members have been asked to support this effort by volunteering to work and to purchase tickets. Proceeds from this event were designated to support PolioPlus with some funds available for local charities.
This year, instead of being asked to buy 9 Pancake Breakfast tickets at $ 5.00 each ($45.00), all members are being asked to purchase 2 raffle tickets at $ 25 each ($ 50.00). Members will be charged for their two tickets on the next Club Invoice issued within the next week.
Of course, there will be Club members who would like to purchase additional raffle tickets. These will be available at all Club meetings starting on October 23rd. Members may purchase additional tickets at $ 25 each. Since the tickets are also priced at “5 for $ 100” , members may purchase 3 additional. tickets for only $ 50.
The Rotary Club of North Jackson shares in the proceeds of the Raffle by keeping 25% of ticket sales as an instant fundraiser. All proceeds received by our Club will be contributed to the Rotary Foundation’s PolioPlus Fund to continue the work of polio eradication."
Remember to purchase your District 6820 Dream Raffle Tickets. See Flyer.
Birthdays and Anniversaries:
Birthdays:
John Dorsa November 13
Kevin Russell November 13
Wedding Anniversaries:
Cooper & Frances Morrison November 14
Jeff & Suzie Adcock November 17
Membership Anniversaries:
Kevin Russell 20 years, Nov. 17
Social Media. Do you 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 Foundation Thought is about Matching Grants and how one project brought clean water and hope for a better future.
Matching Grants assist Rotary clubs and districts in carrying out humanitarian projects with clubs in other countries. A recent Foundation Matching Grant allowed Rotarians in
India to provide 36 hand-pump wells to rural villages in Andhra Pradesh state where there is a severe shortage of water. Access to clean water will improve the quality of life
for those living in these villages by helping to prevent disease and alleviate poverty. Every Rotarian, every project, and every contribution makes a difference every
year.
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. Call Bill Osborne @ 601-594-5698 to sign up. This year we will be reading on Tuesdays and Fridays at 09:00.
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:
Ms. Anne LeBreton, Outreach Coordinator, for Mississippi Blood Services spoke to the Rotary Club of North Jackson at the club’s November 6, 2018, meeting on the need for and uses of blood donations. In her presentation, Ms. LeBreton said that she has been with MS Blood Services for 26 years and that she is a native of South Louisiana and a graduate of LSU.
Ms. LeBreton emphasized the ongoing need for whole blood, blood platelets, and red blood cells. A visit to their website, MSblood.com, shows the current status of their need for blood donations. MS LeBreton also thanked the Rotary Club of North Jackson for its ongoing support of MS Blood Services, both by its annual blood drive and its financial support.
We thank Ms. LeBreton for her presentation and for her service to the citizens of Mississipi. She is shown below during her presentation and with Club Member Lori Greer who introduced her following the presentation in the following photos.
Jackson Police Department Pct. 4 Corporal Fred Johnson was recognized by The Rotary Club of North Jackson as the Officer of the Quarter at the Club’s November 6, 2018, meeting. Corporal Johnson was recognized for his community awareness and his perseverance in capturing a suspect of an armed robbery of a Northeast Jackson business. Corporal Johnson received a call from the manager of a business. The manager said that his store was in the process of being robbed. Corporal Johnson had given the manager his telephone no. earlier and told him to call if he had an incident. This was the exact type of incident that Corporal Johnson was talking about. On receiving the call, Corporal Johnson went directly to the store. The robber was still on the premises. He fled and Officer Johnson pursued. By the time Corporal Johnson caught him, the suspect had discarded a red hoodie that he had been wearing and his weapon. Retracing the steps, both were located and the suspect was arrested. Congratulations Corporal Johnson!
Corporal Johnson is shown in the first photo with club Past President Edley Jones who leads the recognition committee. The second photo is of officer Johnson following the meeting. In it are shown (from the left) Past President Edley Jones, Corporal Johnson’s Mother, Corporal Johnson, Club President Anna Powers, Pct. 4 Sgt. Tiny Harris, and Pct. 4 Lt. White.
We congratulate Corporal Johnson on his recognition and thank him for his service to the citizens of Jackson.
Members of the Rotary Club of North Jackson distributed dictionaries to third-grade students in 6 north Jackson elementary schools the week of October 22nd: Boyd, Casey, Dawson, McWillie, McLeod, and Spann. This is an annual project for the club as it has been occurring for at least 11 years. The Rotarians emphasized that the dictionaries belong to the students, that they should put their name on the faceplate at the front of the book, they demonstrate how to use a dictionary and what information it contains in addition to words and their definitions. The following photos are from the event.
Mississippi State Senator Hob Bryan spoke to the Rotary Club of North Jackson at its October 30, 2018 meeting. Senator Bryan is a native of Amory, Mississippi. He represents Itawamba, Lee, & Monroe counties in the Mississippi State Senate and is a graduate of Mississippi State University and the University of Virginia Law School. Sen. Bryan is also a member of the Rotary Club of Amory.
Senator Bryan described how the legislative process has changed since he first came to the Senate in 1984. Committee and subcommittee public debates over the language of bills have generally been replaced by secret caucuses with the Speaker or the Lieutenant Governor followed by up-or-down votes on the floor of the legislature. He compared the open process that led to the adequate education bill in the 1990s with the consultant-driven secrecy that accompanied proposed education reform earlier this year.
Senator Bryan is shown during his speech in the following two photos The second photo also shows Rotarian Luther Munford who introduced Senato Bryan at the speaker’s table.
We thank Sen. Bryan for his presentation to our club and for his service to the citizens of Mississippi.
Mr. Jay McDaniel, Deputy Director, Mississippi Gaming Commision spoke to the Rotary Club of North Jackson at the Club’s October 16, 2018 meeting. He discussed the history and extent of legalized gambling in the state and the role of the commission in supervising gaming. Mr. McDaniel is an attorney and a graduate of the Mississippi College School of Law. Prior to joining the Gaming Commission, he practiced law with the Butler Snow lawfirm.
Per its website, “The mission of the Mississippi Gaming Commission (MGC) is to enforce the Gaming Control Act and Charitable Gaming Laws of the State of Mississippi. The MGC will establish and enforce regulations under the authority of those laws in such a manner that will ensure the integrity of the State of Mississippi and maintain the public confidence in both the charitable gaming and casino gaming industries by working in conjunction with the industry. The Mississippi Gaming Commission will work in concert with international, national, state, county, local regulatory and law enforcement agencies to establish a safe and crime-free environment. In addition, the MGC will ensure economic development that is in both the best interest and safety of the citizens of the State of Mississippi.”
According to Mr. McDaniel, Mississippi currently has 28 supervised casinos plus the Choctaw Indian Nation's Pearl River Casino. The Mississippi Legislature legalized dockside casino gambling with the passage of House Bill 2 in the 1990 Special Legislative Session. This bill established the Mississippi Gaming Control Act to be in force and effect from and after its adoption on June 29, 1990. The Gaming Control Act established the Mississippi Gaming Commission to regulate dockside casinos. The Commission regulates charitable gaming pursuant to the Charitable Bingo Law. The Mississippi State Tax Commission initially regulated gaming in order to prepare the Commission to assume this responsibility October 1, 1993. The Commission is headed by three Commissioners who are appointed by the Governor. Each Commissioner serves staggered four-year terms. The law also provides that no Commissioner will serve more than ten years of total service. The Governor appoints the Chairman. The Commissioners are responsible for hiring a full-time Executive Director who is responsible for all authorized positions.
The Charitable Gaming Law authorized the play of bingo in order to fund groups, associations or clubs that are registered with the Secretary of State’s Office as non-profit organizations. It also limits the times and number of games that are allowable each day and week.
The first regulated bingo hall opened in October 1992. Charitable gaming is now conducted in about half of the counties in Mississippi.
Mr. McDaniel noted that the 2018 Special Session of the legislature authorized a lottery for the State of Mississippi, but that the Lottery will be supervised by a Lottery Corporation and not the gaming commission. He also discussed the introduction of Sports betting which has greatly increased gaming in the state and has proven to be a boon to gaming activities since it was legalized by a May 2018 U. S. Supreme Court decision.
We thank Mr. McDaniel for his presentation to our club and for his service to the citizens of Mississippi. He is shown in the following photos during hs presentation and following it with club president Anna Powers and club member Jeff Adcock who introduced him.
Mr. Drew Snyder, Executive Director of Mississippi’s Division of Medicaid Spoke to the Rotary Club of North Jackson at the club’s October 9, 2018 meeting. Mr. Snyder discussed the State’s Medicaid program, how it functions and its budget. In response to questions, he generally discussed Medicaid Expansion, under the Affordable Care Act and the cost of providing Medicaid services to qualified Mississippians. One point he made is that ⅔ of the births in Mississippi are under Medicaid.
Executive Director, Drew Snyder
As Executive director, Snyder administers Mississippi’s Medicaid program, subject to state and federal laws and regulations and policies as approved by the Governor.
Snyder joined the Division of Medicaid after having served in several public sector leadership roles, including most recently as Deputy Chief of Staff, Policy Director, and Legal Counsel for Governor Phil Bryant. Prior to joining the Governor’s Office, Snyder was as an Assistant Secretary of State for Delbert Hosemann.
Snyder serves on the Mississippi Public Employees’ Retirement System Board of Trustees and chairs the Business Law Section of the Mississippi Bar. He was the non-legislative member of the Legislative Tax Reform Working Group. He also is a member of the Uniform Law Commission. Before entering the public sector, Snyder practiced law at Hollingsworth LLP in Washington D.C., specializing in complex and multi-district litigation, with a focus on pharmaceutical and medical device matters.
A native of Eupora, Snyder received a bachelor’s degree from the University of Mississippi and a Juris Doctorate from the University of Virginia School of Law.
We thank Mr. Snyder for his presentation to our Rotary Club and for his service to Mississippi. He is shown in the following photo during his speech and in the second one following the speech.
The Rotary Clubs of District 6820 Dream Raffle is now underway. This year's Grand Prize is a 2019 Ford F150 XLT SuperCrew 4x4 [or choose $40,000 cash] !!! There will also be 10 additional $500 cash prizes !!!
Tickets are 5 for $100 (or $25 each). Every club gets to keep 25% of ticket sales as an instant additional fundraiser. All clubs have received their tickets to distribute, so be sure to ask your Club President if you have not seen them yet.
Our goal this year is to raise over $400,000 for the great works of Rotary !!! To reach our goal, we are kindly asking every club to fully participate and sell a quota of just 10 tickets per member. Tickets may be sold, purchased or alternatively a donation in kind may be given toward the effort and cause. We can reach our goal but only if everybody does their part.
CRUISE TO COZUMEL, MEXICO GIVEAWAY !!! The member of Rotary District 6820 who sells the most tickets will be awarded 2 cruise ship tickets to Cozumel, Mexico to attend our District Conference May 2-6, 2019 !!! The flyers follow: