Kirkland Rotary Minutes, Nov. 19, 2012                    

The Kirkland Rotary meeting was called to order at 6:30 pm by President Patti Smith, who also led us in the Pledge.  Patti thanked Makaylaa Powers for greeting and Pat Dye for scribing.

Guests:

·         Bob Cohen, a local attorney, was introduced as a 3rd time visitor to our club

·         Thomas Lewis, Juanita High School, was introduced by Ann Hamilton as our Student of the Month

Announcements:

·         Books purchased from Barnes & Noble during the Holidays – a percentage of profits will go to John Muir Elementary

·         We have sign-ups for gift wrapping at Barnes & Noble as part of fundraising efforts for John Muir Elementary

·         Neil Johnson announced that slots are available for Salvation Army Bell Ringers

·         Dan Bartel announced that Rotary First Harvest Holiday Party will be Dec. 15th.  You can register online at the district website

·         Also, Holiday Cards are available from RFH with a donation of $5 – nice alternative gift to clients, etc.

·         We will have a movie night social in January – more details later

·         Don Dicks announced that we are at 37% of our goal with more than $4,000 raised so far for Rotary Foundation International.  The club will match Paul Harris points for all donations of $100 or more given during the month of November.

·         Patti Smith mentioned that information regarding donating to restore the historic Ferry clock is available through the Kirkland Heritage Society.

·         Jerry Campo announced the Holiday Party will be at Lucia’s Restaurant on Dec. 2nd at 6:00 pm.  Please RSVP to Jerry.

·         Jerry also announced that the Apple Cup pool is open and costs $5 per square.

·         Scott Rethke announced the next Rotary “After Hours” will be on Nov. 29 from 4 to 7pm at Hectors.  No cover charge.  This is a good way to introduce prospective members to our club at a social setting.

·         Ann Hamilton thanked everyone for donating baskets to John Muir Elementary.  She said she felt “gob-smacked” by the generosity of Kirkland Rotary who donated 27 out of the 64 boxes delivered by the Nourishing Network.

A very large check for a very large amount ($4,500) was presented to John Pruitt who won the Joker Pool.  He said he calculated that with his raffle ticket purchase, he only had a 3% chance to win.  Looks like he beat the odds!

Rick Walter then collected Happy Dollars from club members.

Chris Morgan introduced our speaker, Jenn Mueller, from “Talk Sporty to Me”.  Jenn’s topic was “How to leverage sports conversations in business”.

Jenn began by defining productive conversation as: 1. make a connection; 2.  build rapport;  3.  create follow up opportunities.  She said that the perfect length conversation varies greatly between  men and women.  For men it is about 15 seconds, and for women about 2 to 3 hours.  Men prefer information and women prefer intimacy.  She suggested that we can deliver 3 sentences in 15 seconds.  The topic of sports creates opportunity and we should avoid talking about politics, religion, and sex.  She said about 50% of Americans follow sports to some degree.  All you have to do is read the headlines on the Sports Pages of the paper to have enough information to begin a conversation.  She suggested 5 leverage points: 1. Sports is the only DVR proof subject.  2.  It allows you to get on the radar and establish connection and rapport.  3.  Allows you to stay in the radar over time.  4.  Value added conversations – according to the American Psychiatric Association, you feel valued and work harder.  5.  Personal branding – separating yourself from the rest of the pack.  3 important points:  Be seen, be polite, and be direct.

A book will be presented to John Muir Elementary in Jenn Mueller’s name.  She was asked to sign it with our thanks.

The meeting was adjourned at 7:40 pm.

Submitted:  Pat Dye