The Rotary Club of Kirkland held a meeting online on February 8, 2021.
Attending were James Nevers, Dave Aubry, Dave DeBois, George Anderson, Joanne Primavera, Gary Cohn, Bill Taylor, Margie Glenn, Steve Shinstrom, John Pruitt, Rich Bergdahl, Rick Ostrander, John Woodbery, Scott Becker, Jim Meniketti, Rick Walter, Terry Cole, Amy and Dave Mutal, Bella Chaffey, Don Dicks, Dan Bartel, Mike Hunter, Kristin Olson, and Bob and Gail Auslander. Let me know if I missed anyone.
We joined break-out rooms to start so we can all catch up with how everyone is doing.
President James Nevers rang the bell at 6:20 p.m.
Rich Bergdahl recited the Pledge of Allegiance.
Guests:
Guests of the Club this evening were Juanita High School Student of the Month Isabel Grizzard and her mother Jackie Grizzard.
Announcements:
Bella Chaffey announced we will have a Valentine’s Sweetheart virtual get-together for our Feb. 22 meeting. Send photos and/or stories to Bella.
Bella also announced that the Alexander’s Hope virtual walk/Valentine’s Day Dash is next weekend – to combat hidden heart problems in youths.
James Nevers announced there will be a blood drive in Kirkland Feb. 25-26 that includes a free COVID-19 test. Evergreen needs volunteers to support the medical staff who need to give shots, etc. Watch for email.
Amy Mutal announced that there will be a Duck Dash this year! Not sure about the format – probably the last weekend of September. We will have an alternative fund-raiser if needed.
Student of the Month:
Our Student of the Month, a senior at Juanita HS, told us about herself and a bit about her hopes and aspirations. She was born in Tampa and moved to Kirkland when she was eight. She described herself as innovative – one who solves problems using art. She lost her father to colon cancer; grieving was difficult for her and for her mother. She found that helping others helped with moving on from tragedy.
She is passionate about art and business. She will attend Catholic University of Washington, D.C. as a marketing major. Her mom will move to D.C. after her first year in school there.
There were many questions from Rotarians – her favorite art right now is cartoon art, specifically U.S.-style Anime. She doodles a lot. She overcame nervousness in public speaking, in part through drama classes.
Program:
Amy Mutal introduced our speaker, local art gallery owner Ryan James. His gallery specializes in Modern/Conceptualized Art. They have closed the Totem Lake location and are moving into Kirkland Urban. The gallery has a program that allows three-month rentals of art works. This helps people get more comfortable with new pieces of art, and allows experimentation.
Ryan noted that the Seattle area is prominent nation-wide in the art world. However, the number of galleries in Kirkland has declined; there are now NO galleries in Bellevue. The primary reason is rising rents. Local [Kirkland] landlords have historically been willing to rent to art galleries.
The non-profit art scene is not doing well. There have been heavy losses both in money and in staff. The Bellevue Arts Museum is doing well, however. There is a grass-roots movement in the area to bolster support for the arts.
There were several art- and business-related questions from Rotarians.
Gary Cohn noted that the scholarships are all current on our Club’s website, and the scholarship management platform for potential applicants has been launched. The interview calendar will be there soon.
James Nevers noted that there is no meeting next week, Feb. 15, President’s Day. Remember the Valentine’s Day ‘Gala’ the following week, Feb. 22.
We adjourned at about 7:14 p.m.
Respectfully Submitted
David Aubry - Acting Scribe