The Rotary Club of Kirkland held a meeting online on March 22, 2021.
Attending were James Nevers, Dave Aubry, Dave DeBois, Ken Hollingsworth, Joanne Primavera, John Pruitt, Rick Ostrander, Rick Walter, Mike Hunter, Scott Becker, Jim Meniketti, John Woodbery, Brandon Honcoop, George Anderson, Kristin Olson, Don Dicks, Monica Fratita, Gary Cohn, Steve Shinstrom, Ernie Norehad, Margie Glenn, and Rich Bergdahl.
President James Nevers rang the bell at 6:15 p.m. Ken Hollingsworth recited the Pledge.
Guests:
Potential member Beatriz Soriano was back for the 3rd or 4th time!
Long-time members Ken Hollingsworth and Ernie Norehad are back!
Announcements:
Gary Cohn said we have 30 applicants for our scholarships, from local high schools and colleges. He is extending the close date for completion of applications. The qualifications are the same, including looking for some indication of need. We’ll start evaluating applications next Tuesday or Wednesday. School counsellors will start the process. Still need a few more interviewers.
The City of Kirkland has requested our monetary contribution [$32K] for our Cross Kirkland Corridor Pavilion, History, and Native Plants Project. Many thanks to all the Rotarians who gave of their time and effort over the past four years to make the project a reality.
Happy Dollars:
Thank you to Dave Aubry, Mike Hunter, James Nevers, Ernie Norehad, Kristin Olson, and John Pruitt for contributing this evening.
Program:
Joanne Primavera introduced our speaker Jim Moore, a fellow Rotarian. He has been involved in a number of International Projects, including water supply and distribution, and now – malaria eradication in Africa. This evening he spoke about Rotary’s Zambian anti-malaria campaign. Rotary has committed significant dollars to malaria control in Zambia, in partnership with other organizations such as the Zambian government, the Gates Foundation, and many other Rotary clubs and districts.
Malaria causes 400,000 deaths a year, 90% of them in sub-Saharan Africa, mostly young children. We have made significant progress, but more money and energy are needed. The disease is spread from infected people to other people by mosquitos. Most people are asymptomatic, so it is important to identify such people so we can break the connection between people-mosquitos-people.
Rotary’s Polio Campaign has given us great credibility around the world – we are seen as apolitical and effective.
The goal is to “get to zero”. They are working on training local health workers as frontline people to attack and sustain the effort. Obviously, local, effective partnerships are critical to the effort’s effectiveness. He detailed the role of Rotarians in the U.S. and Africa, and the roles of different groups of people in the effort to eliminate the disease. Rotary International announced an effort to expand the impact of these projects – a $6 million program called Partners for a Maria-Free Zambia. It is a three-year program. The hope is that no more children will die of malaria in Zambia’s copper belt area.
There were a lot of questions from Rotarians. It was noted that some areas of South America are now considered malaria-free. Several other areas are getting close.
We adjourned at about 7:16 p.m.
Respectfully Submitted
David Aubry - Acting Scribe