Del Norte Rotary Club

NorthWind Monthly publication of the Del Norte Rotary Club ■ Albuquerque, New Mexico USA

Vol. 28, Issue No. 10 Ed Hughes, Editor November 27, 2015

Maximizing: Del Norte Foundation seeks bigger impact Page 5

Veterans honored: 25 Rotarians served in military / Page 3

Nova Scotia visit: RFE Team boasts of geography, too

Candid Camera goes to a N.M. “Chili” Cook-off, Page 7

DOING GOOD IN NEW MEXICO AND AROUND THE WORLD

Del Norte Rotarians show they “can do” for needy

D el Norte Rotary volunteers—some 20 strong—spent a busy two hours on Saturday, November

21, sorting cans and packages of dry

food at the Manzano Post Office to

help the Postal Letter Carriers dur-

ing their massive food drive for the

Roadrunner Food Bank. In the fore-

front are Rotarians Ruth Ronan, Karen McCann and Bob Rausch with

a food bank helper. In the rear is

Donna Pedace. See story on Page 6.

Rotary

N ova Scotia brags that it is the “Gateway to Canada,” yet it is a very

proud providence of Canada. Two members

of the Nova Scotia-Newfoundland Rotary Friendship Exchange (RFE) Team, Freida

Burger and Shirley McCaughey, hold up a

Canadian flag during their visit to the Del

Norte Rotary Club on November 4. See story

on Page 6.

Del Norte Rotary NorthWind November 27, 2015 � Page 2

2015-2016 Leaders Rotary International

www.rotary.org President: K. R. Ravindran

President-Elect: John F. Germ Vice President: Greg E. Podd

Rotary District 5520 www.rotary5520.org

Governor: Tom Walker Governor-Elect: Dave Anderson

Governor-Nominee: Doreen Kelsey Executive Secretary: Kathy Fuller

Rotary Club of Albuquerque Del Norte www.rotarydelnorte.org

Club Officers President: Barbara LaGree

President-Elect: Bob Rausch Vice President: Scott Stafford Board Secretary: Ruth Ronan Treasurer: Paul Christensen

Past President: Kathie Williams Sgt.-at-Arms: Maria Montoya-Chavez

Directors Club Service: Caroline Chamblin

Community Service: John Freeman International Service: Kim Helm Membership: Clarence Hughes

New Generations: Terry Boulanger Public Image: Sonia Torres

Program Services: Donna Pedace Vocational Service: Art Humphries

Office Information Edwin S. Hughes

Executive Secretary P.O. Box 3951

Albuquerque, NM 87190 secretary@rotarydelnorte.org

Phone: (505) 344-9162

Rotary Del Norte Foundation, Inc. Officers

President: Chuck Brown Vice President: Carol Rickert-Asbury

Secretary: Sandy Seligman Treasurer: Da vid Foster

Directors Richard Follingstad

Darcy Savage Scott Honsowetz

Nick Ritz Bob Rausch (Club representative)

Inside Del Norte Rotary

Oscar’s Eve Party!

APS Officers of the Month recognized The Del Norte Rotary Club recognized APD’s two Officers of the Month

for November, Gerard Bartlett and John Gallegos. Of-ficer Bartlett was noted for his negotiation skills during a recent SWAT situation. Detective Gallegos was cited for his daunting task of rewriting all Internal Affairs Standard Operating Procedures for the department in

connection with DOJ mandates and agreements.

Christmas party set for Sunday, December 13 Marc Powell and Holland Sutton will be hosting the club’s annual Christ-mas Party on Sunday, December 13, at their home at 806 McDuffie Cir-cle NE in the Monte Vista area. Del Norte Rotarians and their spouses or guests are welcome. Cost will be $25 per person, which will be billed to members in January.

Election of new officers, directors for 2016-17 Del Norte Rotarians will elect new officers and four new directors for the 2916-2017 fiscal year at the club’s annual Club Assembly on Wednesday, December 9. Officers to be elected include Vice President, Board Secretary and Club Treasurer. Directors include those responsible for Club Service, Community Service, Programs and Vocational Service.

Gala theme for February 27 is set for night of fun

W ith much fanfare, hugs and thanks, Maria Montoya-Chavez proudly holds up her

“Oscar” from Gala Committee chair Scott Staf-ford as they announce the new theme for the 2016 Del Norte Rotary Gala — ”Oscar Eve Par-ty” — which will be held on Saturday, February 27, on the eve of the real Oscars Awards Night in Hollywood. The club’s biggest fund-raising event of the entire year will be held at Hotel Albuquerque at Old Town with net proceeds going to our own Rotary Del Norte Foundation. There will be

a red carpet to greet everyone, including the paparazzi, Cham-paign, lots of silent auction items, and a live auction that will fea-ture exotic trips — maybe even to Hollywood! Invitations will go going out soon, but Rotarians should start lining up their auction items and making plans to buy a table or two! But above all, save the date!

Del Norte Rotary NorthWind November 27, 2015 � Page 3

Veterans honored: 25 Rotarians served in the military

I n a near-reverent setting, lights low and a screen full of the stars and stripes of the U.S. flag, the Del Norte Rotary Club saluted 25 Del Norte Rotarians who had served at one time or another in the military on, ap-propriately, Veterans Day, November 11.

Fred Bryant and Fred Pugh, veterans themselves, put together a magnificent show of national pride and professionalism as they showcased photos of members who served in just about every arm of the military, with dignity and a dab of humor. Who wouldn’t poke fun at a photo of Fred Bryant himself asleep while “on duty.” or ooh-and-aah at swash-buckling Capt. Marc Powell in his USAF blues? The Veterans Day recognition luncheon ended on a serious note as Len Faulconer of TAPS played “Taps” on his bugle as narrator Fred Pugh cited General MacArthur’s famous line, “Old soldiers never die, they just fade away.” Our club’s former military servicemen included Ken Abbott, Dale Alverson, David Anderson, Steve Beck-er, Frank Bird, Terry Boulanger, Fred Bryant, Paul Christensen, Greg Chalmers, Michael Creedon, Clarence Hughes, Ed Hughes, Art Humphries, Bill Johnson, Brooks LaGree, Norm Liss, Michael Madanick, Robert Maruca, John Pierucki, Marc Powell, Fred Pugh, Bob Rausch, Mike Skolnick, Chet Stewart and John Wright.

Golf for Fun winners: Donette Wagner and Terry Boulanger

S ome two dozen Del Norte Rotarians and their golf buddies participated in the club’s annual

“Golf for Fun” event in October at the Canyon Club and about one-third of them won some sort of award — i.e., closest to the pin, best gross score, etc. But only two won the coveted Del Norte Rotary Golf Traveling Trophy: Donette Wagner, lowest women’s net score, and Terry Boulanger, lowest men’s net score. Donette’s name is all over her trophy, mean-ing it hasn’t traveled very far from her hold.

Rio Grande Academy: Five Del Norte Rotarians graduate

F ive Del Norte Rotarians became graduates of Rotary’s Rio Grande Academy Leadership Program in October

and November—including four at the same time: Greg Chalmers, Michael Madanick, Marty Padilla and Steve Becker. The fifth Del Norte Rotarian to graduate was Keely Whittington, who was part of a two-day experi-mental project held in Santa Fe whereby all three required classes were conducted by the Rio Grande Academy over an entire weekend. All five graduates will also receive Paul Harris Fellow awards thanks to the generosity of Del Norte Rotarians Dave and Maureen Anderson.

Veterans salute during the playing of “Taps.”

Del Norte Rotary NorthWind November 27, 2015 � Page 4

Blowin’ in the North Wind ... Commentary by Executive Secretary & NorthWind Editor Ed Hughes

Random note-taking, wondering what if there were no hypothetical questions?

N ovember 4 – A brief respite from the comfortable digs at the Sheraton … Was I the only one who felt lost in the giant Yucatan Ballroom of the Marriott Pyramid North Hotel? … Sometimes, when we make a venue change, we forget important things—like having a U.S. flag posted in which to pledge our allegiance.

Thank goodness Kathie Williams had a flag-adorned table decoration in her magic bag. … Karen McCann led the pledge, after Ruth Ronan led everyone in singing “God Bless Ameri-ca.” Yours truly pinched hit as the prayer guy. … Caring Hearts guru Steve Becker asked for prayers for Charter Member J.J. Jimenez, whose health suffered a medical hiccup and he ended up in Presbyterian Hospital, Room 480. Visitors are welcome. … Unabashed Fred Pugh, with a lot of “Pints for Polio” T-shirts and pint beer glasses left over from Rotary Polio Day celebrations, offered them for a cut-rate $15 (one shirt, two empty pint glasses). He said the fun fund-raiser for Rotary’s End Polio Now campaign had raised $9,875 by five Rotary clubs in Albuquerque. By the time the meeting was over, he announced his little T-shirt sale had put the Polio fund-raiser over its $10,000 goal. … PDG Dick Jones and PDG Bobby Wallace presented PDG Randy Gleason his turquoise PDG pin — only a few years late! Does that mean Randy can always claim to wear his Rotary pin — the one on his pinkie? … Wedding anniversaries this week: Scott and Megan Honsowetz, 7 years, and Mike Skolnick and Joyce Haden, 10 years. Club anniversaries: Dr. John Siebel 22 years and ditto for Bill Johnson, give or take a few while he was a legislator in Santa Fe.

November 11-- Back at our old digs at the Sheraton Uptown, and the Wurlitzer Ballroom and its same-old problems of where do you put the big AV screen? … This was Veterans Day, and the program honored our club’s own military servicemen (Page

3), and it deserved a standing ovation for our two producers, Fred Bryant and Fred Pugh. … It was fun trying to figure out from all the old photos who they were some 30 to 50 years ago! … Don Wagner led the full house in the Pledge of Allegiance and Michael Madanick gave the invo-cation. … Many thanks to my neighbor, Len Faulconer, for his magical bugle that played ‘Taps” to end the program. … President Barbara LaGree handed out Rotary sponsor pins to Fred Bry-ant and Kathie Williams, two of our most recent new-member recruiters. … Best quote of the day from Sgt.-at-Arms Maria Montoya Chavez, after Art Humphries spun the official Wheel of

Fines and paid $2 (not $1) for not wearing his Rotary pin. “Are you still having fun?” she asked Mr. Fun Guy … Wedding anni-versary celebrants this week: Ken and Chris Abbott, 27 years, and Roberto and Rose Marie Espat, 50 years! ...

November 18 — Ah, back in the Roxy Ballroom, and a pretty darn good crowd for an in-house meeting to learn more about our own Rotary Del Norte Foundation (see story on Page 5). … Ruth Ronan, of course, started everyone off with singing “My Country ‘Tis of Thee,” and Karen McCann led the Pledge of Allegiance. Mike Creedon was tabbed at the last minute to give the invocation, and he simply asked for a minute of silent prayer and reflection on the 129 who were killed by terrorists in Paris five days ago. … Steve Becker of Caring Hearts reported that J.J. Jimenez was back home from his hospital stay. … John Freeman gave kudos to Marty Padilla for all the work he’s been involved in collecting turkeys and food for 20 families now being cared for by Saranam as our club’s Thanksgiving project. He said Marty had a huge freezer brought into his office to store the turkeys. John asked for volunteers to help deliver the turkeys and all the other dinner stuff to Saranam on Thanksgiv-ing Day. … John also noted that our club will be ringing Christmas bells for the Salvation Army along with Boy Scouts of Clar-ence Hughes’ Scout Troop in December. … President Barbara LaGree awarded Gary Williams with his new member spon-sor pin. … Birthday guy this week: Art Humphries. Ruth Ronan was recognized for her 17 years as a Del Norte Rotarian. … Bernie Butterfield proudly noted that Butterfield Jewelers was named the Family Business of the Year by the UNM Anderson School of Business. … The Lucky Bucks pot is now at $1,142. Sgt.-at-Arms Maria Montoya-Chavez swears there is a Joker in the card deck.

Luncheon Notes and meeting highlights

Del Norte Rotary NorthWind November 27, 2015 � Page 5

R otary Del Norte Foundation has a new slate of officers and is looking at a new direction in making a difference in the community with their funding outreach to non-profit organiza-tions, but before they nail down their new vision for the Foundation, they have decided to get

input from members of Del Norte Rotary Club who are “members” of the foundation. Chuck Brown, newly-elected president of the Rotary Del Norte Foundation, spoke to his fellow Rotarians on November 18 to get a sense of direction from foundation members and not just from his board. He passed out questionnaires to help in the feedback. “There are 2,200 non-profits in Albuquerque and we have to fig-ure where our $45,000 to $60,000 in funds will go to have the great-est impact,” Chuck noted. Two years ago, the Foundation set a goal of establishing an en-dowment of one million dollars, and it now has reached nearly $900,000. “What we need to decide (as a board) is whether we con-

tinue to feed the endowment to reach our goal, or do we use the monies we raise through the Gala and Charity Golf Tournament as ready funds for dis-tribution in the community,” Chuck said. “No matter which direction we go, we want to make sure we are good stewards of our funds.” In the past, the Rotary Del Norte Foundation has spread its giving out to 40 or more non-profits, averaging about $1,500 to $2,000 per organization. In the past year, the Foundation Board has been discussing a new direc-tion—one in which many foundations follow today—by focusing on certain areas, such as children and education, and then provide greater grants to fewer agencies, perhaps in the $5,000 to $10,000 range. “The idea is that bigger awards make a bigger impact on the agencies that reach out to our target audience,” Chuck said. “But it’s hard to say no to 160 agencies in the community who all do great work.”

Maximizing: Del Norte Foundation seeks bigger impact, input

Inside Rotary: What’s going on in Del Norte land

A Park Above: Rotarians play big part in NM’s unique park

B ill and Donna Pedace of Del Norte Rotary greet Jody Wheatley of Rio Rancho Rotary at the ded-

ication of A Park Above in Rio Rancho that will allow those with handicap issues a place to enjoy and have fun. The idea came from Rio Rancho Rotarian Jeanie Baca who came up with the idea seven years ago and got the community involved. The Rio Ran-cho club raised more than $40,000 over time. The Del Norte Club also contributed $2,000 to help fund the park’s main pavilion. The park hopes to open to the public in about two months.

Chuck Brown, Foundation president

Rotarians are asked for their ideas about Foundation matters.

Del Norte Rotary NorthWind November 27, 2015 � Page 6

Program Highlights The world around us

Nova Scotia Maritime provinces of Canada beckon to “come visit us”

D el Norte Rotarians learned a lot about a land that seems so remote that it was a little surprising to hear that Nova Scotia is known to be "the gateway to Canada." In fact, it is the far eastern province of Canada that almost touches the Maritime provinces of Newfoundland and Labrador.

As Brooks LaGree noted, "It is refreshing to hear foreigners speak such good English." Our guests were part of a Rotary Friendship Exchange Team that has been touring our vast Rotary District that includes not only all of New Mexico but a good part of far West Texas. PDG Tom McCaughey noted that while our District 5520 is the largest Rotary District in the U.S. geography wise, his District 7820 that includes Nova Scotia, Newfoundland, Labrador and Prince Edward Island is the "second or third largest" Rotary District in the world in total square miles. "If we

were part of the U.S., we would be the fourth largest state in size, and would push New Mexico back to being the 6th largest," Tom noted in fun. Indeed, the photos they showed of their homeland showed that it would be a good place to visit to have fun -- whether fishing, beach-combing, eating or playing golf.

F or most Albuquerque citizens, filling up a paper bag full of can goods and pack-aged dry food for the U.S. Postal Office Letter Carriers Food Drive is not back-breaking work. Just set it out by the mail box, and their good duty is done. But then what happens after that? Well, there are 20 Del Norte Rotarians and others who vol-unteered to help the letter carriers finish the job who can tell you: It can be chaotic.

“I have never seen so many cans and bags of food,” said Rotarian Karen McCann, who helped separate out

cans from dry food during a two-hour shift last Saturday. “And the carts of

food kept coming and coming!” The job seemed simple enough. Canned food went into one big box, packaged dry food in another, and glass containers — well, there was a place for them, too. And then there were all those paper bags for recycling. Rotarian Donna Pedace took that task on by stomping on the bags in postal containers to make room for more empty bags. It looked like she was dancing a merry tune as she worked. The Del Norte Rotary Club service project was coordinated for the third straight year by Billie Adams, a member of the club’s Community Service Committee. “Yes, it’s two hours of non-stop work, but it feels good to feel like you’re doing good,” said Billie, who is expecting her second child in December. Said a postal worker: “You work good and fast as a team. I don’t believe I’ve seen anyone work harder at getting the job done.” That is Rotary and its “can-do” spirit.

“Can do” Spirit: Rotarians help out in Letter Carriers Food Drive

November 4 program PDG Tom McCaughey Nova Scotia RFE Team

November 21 service project Letter Carriers Food Drive for Roadrunner Food Bank

Del Norte Rotarians busily separate cans from packaged dry food on the loading dock at the Manzano Post Office.

Del Norte Rotary NorthWind November 27, 2015 � Page 7

Candid camera goes to a N.M. “Chili” Cook-Off (Hosted by Barbara and Brooks LaGree at their new home in Sandia Heights)

There has long been a “hot” battle between Texas and New Mexico about how they spell “chili.”

But as New Mexicans know, their “chile” is not a meat dish, it is a pepper to help spice culinary

food. So when Del Norte Rotarians held their annual “Chili” Cook-off, it did feature spicy bowls of chili meat concoctions, and — yes — some included spicy New Mexico chiles!

November 27, 2015 � Page 8 Del Norte Rotary NorthWind

Looking forward and looking back

Getting to know you ...

Bryan Williams believes the qualities of being a Rotar ian have really nothing to do with what you do in your professional life, but have more to do with what you do day in and day out. There may be good logic in that from Bryan’s perspective. He is the managing attorney for Ron Bell & Associates,

handling injury cases for a very outspoken long-time Albuquerque at-torney who doesn’t shy away from publicity. But that is not Bryan Wil-liams. He was raised in a small Texas Panhandle town where he learned to “work hard, treat people fairly, and lead by example,” he said. He did that as a football all-state linebacker. He did that as a chemical en-gineering student at Texas A&M. And he did that working in the oil fields in Hobbs, N.M. and Midland, Tex. And he did that when he changed professions as a financial consultant with Morgan Stanley in

Albuquerque, where he met the late James Mehlberg, who was a charter member of Del Norte Rotary who also worked in the same office. “I learned from Jim that we have a bigger role to play in life than being employed. Yes, I was good at what I did as a petroleum engineer, as a financial consultant, as a trial lawyer. But I am more than that. I was meant to be a Rotarian.”

Alice Mehlberg, new member but long-time friend of Rotary Alice Mehlberg may officially be a “new member” of the Del Nor te Rotary Club, but she has been “active” in a silent way since Day One of the club’s existence. That was when her late husband of 44 years, James Mehlberg, was inducted as a new member of the then brand-new Rotary Club of Albuquerque Del Norte in 1988. “Between Jim and my father, who was a Rotarian, I have always felt that I should have been a Rotarian all my life,” she said. But when she at-tended one of her father’s club meetings, she announced she would like to join Rotary and “he told me that Rotary doesn’t accept women. And that was that.” And that was then. Giving her vocational talk on Veterans Day, Alice noted that her father was a World War II veteran who saw combat in the Philippines and was destined to be among U.S. Marines forces to invade Japan when the U.S. dropped atomic bombs to end the war. “I guess if it wasn’t for the A-Bomb, I wouldn’t be here today to give tribute to our veterans,” she said. “I am so glad to be here and to have the opportunity to give back to my community — and have fun doing it.”

December doings ... (Note: No meeting Dec. 23 & 30, Christmas & New Year holidays)

Dec. 2 — Robert D. Martinez, Asst. State Historian Dec. 9 — Club Assembly, elections Dec. 13 — Christmas Party, home of Marc Powell * Holland Sutton Dec. 16 — Christmas Program: Sweet Adeline Golden Girls

Bryan Williams, managing attorney, Ron Bell & Associates

The Vocational Committee selects new members—and long-time members—to share their life experiences and career paths, with a little dose of why they became Rotarians. Here are highlights of two of those five-minute vocational talks.