JANUARY 3, 2017

Next Meeting: January 10

Evening meeting6pm
Soda Center, St. Marys College
Program: Justin Clark, nephew of a
pilot that crashed on 9/11 into the
World Trade Center in NY
Greeter/Invocator Frank May
*Jan 17 Maria Dempsey: Jet Suite (New airline in
Concord)
*Jan 24 -- TBD
*Regular Noon Meeting

** Dinner meeting

~BUSINESS MEETING~

the club $10, plus $5 for his first day of

retirement . . . . Sgt. at Arms Doug Damaschino
confessed to John that the birthday recognition
was considerably more, and that he should
pungle up the difference . . . . Debbie Roessler
gave $2 for the great exposure on TV of the
Rotary International Rose Parade float, which
won the Princess Award . . . .Debbie Koo gave
$5 for a happy Christmas gathering with family,
and the resulting engagement of her daughter. . .
. . Ron Mucovich gave a HB to be finally rid of
2016. . . . .John Erickson gave $2 to celebrate
that his stores annual inventory has finally been
completed.
~ALL--ACCESS PLAYGROUND~
John Erickson reported that total cash in the
bank for the AllAccess Playground is about
$147,800, and the total amount of pledges is
about $49,000. Upon hearing that last figure,
Marv Ellenberg pledged another $1000 to round
out the total amount of pledges to about $50,000.
Some of the pledges are from a prominent local
foundation ($30 k), Kiwanis Club of Moraga
Valley ($6 k), Orinda Rotary
and Orinda
Community Fund ($5 k each), and Rossmoor
Rotary ($1 k).

The first meeting of 2017 was called to order by

Past (way past) President John Erickson,
replacing President Kevin whose car had broken
down in Bakersfield and the repair was awaiting a
new part, probably from Pyongyang. (Is there a
Clunkers4Charity donation in his future?) The
Thought for the Day and the Pledge of Allegiance
were capably delivered by John Tomei. Our lone
guest was Damon Casatico, our go-to
auctioneer. The meeting today was a Club
Assembly to discuss our All-Access Playground
and our A Nite at the Races dinner/auction.
Confessions: Frank May for his 70th birthday,
when he and his brother and family had dinner at
Amoroma. . . . . Al and Marilyn Simonsen were
surprised on their 55th wedding anniversary by
their family in Santa Barbara. . . . .John & Mary
Sue Ericksons 58th wedding anniversary will be
this week, and they will celebrate at home, by
themselves, with a fire and pizza. . . . . John
Tomei confessed to his 70th birthday and offered

John strongly emphasized that all members of

Moraga Rotary should donate to this project, and
soon, because 1) it is an excellent project for the
community that we should all be enthusiastic

about supporting, and 2) potential donors ask if

our Club has 100% participation (meaning
donations). The Club is not asking members to
donate above their means, but your donation is
really important! Get your check to Treasurer
Lad ASAP.
Our next step will be to refine the equipment list
and plans for the project, and prepare an updated
cost estimate to show to potential donors and
Town officials.

~NEXT WEEKS PROGRAM~

personally mail the flyer to friends, with a friendly

note of encouragement to attend. Ask Frank
about it.
All members are called on to solicit or invent
worthwhile auction items, and personally invite
guests to the party. In the past, some members
have offered a special theme dinner in their
home, and these usually receive spirited bidding.
We need good partiers who are also well-qualified
bidders, with great items to be auctioned. Once a
donation is secured, a Donation Form should be
filled out fully and given to Cliff for inclusion in the
program.

Debbie Roessler encourages us to bring

spouses and guests to hear the program of Justin
Clarke, who is a nephew of the pilot whose plane
was hijacked on 9-11 and flown into the World
Trade Center. She has heard his program, and
says it definitely should not be missed.

The next A Nite at the Races committee

meeting (all are welcome) will be Monday
January 9 at Moraga Royale at 5:30. Bring food,
drink, and ideas.

~A NITE AT THE RACES~

Debbie Roessler introduced Damon Casatico,

our auctioneer. Damon is the founder of Charity
Benefit Auctioneers, the leader in the field, whose
firm has provided guidance, ideas, and support to
Moraga Rotary and many other charitable groups.

The bossman of our biggest fundraiser, Frank

May, told us of the progress to date: The Save
the Date cards and the business solicitation
letters have been mailed, thanks to a skilled
bunch of Rotarians sorting, stamping, and stuffing
them: Dick Vance, Bob Fritzky, John Erickson,
Evie Michon, Debbie Koo, Barbara Bruner,
Gary Irwin, Frank May, & Linda May.

The registration forms (flyer) will be mailed out

a couple weeks later. For best results, you can

Damon Casatico encourages the club.

Damon encouraged us to sell the party first.

Emphasize to potential guests and donors that its
a fun function they should want to attend. For
donors, ask them to join us and be a part of our
auction. For auction items, we should sell
opportunities, such as a trip to the top of a
bridge, a ride in a race car, a trip through the
forest primeval gathering mushrooms, etc.
Theme dinners in a restaurant, private home, or
other unusual venue or twist can bring lots of
bidding. Work your friends to attend with you, and
have a great time!
The winning raffle ticket was held by Tony
Schoemehl, but chose poorly and the lucky
green marble eluded him, but still won $10.

There is a new GoFundMe link that can be

used by friends and family to make direct
contributions to the All-Access Playground:
https://www.gofundme.com/lamorindaallaccess-playground-2vagv4fc
Nite at the Races Committee meetings are
scheduled for January 9th, January 23rd, February
6th and February 27th at Moraga Royale at 5:30
pm.

CALENDAR OF FUTURE EVENTS

Feb. 15 -- Five Club Joint Meeting at Rossmoor
Mar 11, 2017 A Nite at the Races dinner/auction
Mar 24-26, 2017 District Conference in Berkeley
June 10 -14, 2017 Rotary International Convention,
Atlanta, GA

MORAGA ROTARY BOARD OF DIRECTORS

Highly skilled envelope stuffers

PresidentKevin Reneau
President-elect Dianne Wilson
Past President.....Roger Gregory
Secretary .Vickie Devlin
Treasurer..Lad Lynch
Community Service ChairBarbara Bruner
Youth Service Chair....Rich Render
International Service Chair..Tony Schoemehl
Public Relations..Gary Irwin
Membership Frank May
Director at Large ....John Erickson
Director at Large ...Marv Ellenberg
Director at Large ....Cliff Dochterman
Director at Large .Debbie Roessler
Director at Large ....Linda May
Director at Large ..Mike McCluer

~~~
President, Rotary International .John Germ
District Governor ...Fred Collignon
January Newsletter Editor Gary Irwin

Less skilled postcard labelers

Greeter/Invocator schedule:
1/17 = Linda May
1/31= Debbie Roessler
2/07= Dianne Wilson
2/14= Joint Club Mtg.
2/21= Michele Robbins
2/28 = Angelo Costanza