The Rotary Club of Kirkland held a meeting on May 23, 2022 at the Courtyard by Marriott hotel.
President Dave DeBois rang the bell at 6:17 p.m., calling the club meeting to order.
Joanne Primavera led the membership in the Pledge of Allegiance.
Attending were George Anderson, Pete Anderson, Rich Bergdahl, Gary Cohn, David DeBois, Doug Evanson, Michael Hunter, Isabelle Kalisa, Jim Meniketti, Amy Mutal, Kristin Olson, Rick Ostrander, Joanne Primavera, Steve Shinstrom, John Storbeck, Brian Tucker, and Rick Walter. Due to technical problems, there was no online attendance.
Guests:
Guests this evening included the speaker, Teresa Glidden of the Washington Secretary of State’s office, Lisa Westlund, again a guest of Dave Aubry and attending with interest in joining the club, and prospective member Rashmi Garimella.
Guest Rotarian:
A special guest Rotarian was attending this evening: President-elect for 2023-24 of the Rotary Club Malbar Hill, Mumbai, India, Suresh Dongre. Suresh is in Kirkland visiting his daughter, Manali Dougre, who also was guest this evening. He provided an overview of his club’s work, which includes an emphasis on service to children in need, and services such as cataract surgery, hearing aids, support for hospital wards, and books and food for those in need. Suresh exchanged club flags with President Dave.
Greeter:
Our greeter this evening was Jim Meniketti, who was at the front desk collecting dinner fees.
Announcements & Club Business:
Gary Cohn provided an update on the Duck Dash, the committee meeting occuring before the regular meeting tonight, noting the group decided upon major task leads for the project, and a variety of process elements. The Duck Dash is July 31.
President Dave explained that the Electric Boats NW event was cancelled by the boats’ operator due to warnings of high wind that evening. Out of an abundance of caution, the operator determined it to be in the best interest of club members’ safety to postpone the event until calmer weather is upon us. The fees paid by club members will be credited to the rescheduled event unless a refund is requested of the treasurer.
President Dave asked members to thank the manager at Nothing Bundt Cakes for the wonderful donation of bundt cakes for the Electric Boat event. The unexpected and large donation of cakes was a sweet treat.
President Dave announced that Rob Butcher, the organizer of Oktoberfest and Summerfest, and a great friend of the Rotary Club of Kirkland, is mounting a new event called Kirklandia, a combination wine, cider, and tiki taco throwdown festival. It is scheduled for June 10 – 12, and Rob is in need of volunteers, and would especially enjoy having Rotarians join the fun and support the event. Visit the Kirklandia website (https://kirklandiafest.com) for details.
President Dave announced the board of directors decision to increase the club’s dues primarily to accommodate increased meeting costs and lower attendance rates. There is also a small additional charge from Rotary International for added insurance. Dues statements will be sent to club members and should be paid by the end of July 2022.
President Dave announced that Rotarian Bella Chaffey informed the board of directors last week that she needs to step away from club membership at the end of this year to give adequate attention to her business, the foundation she is leading, and her husband’s business. Dave noted how much we will all miss Bella.
President Dave reminded the members that the Transition Dinner is scheduled for June 27, the final Monday meeting of this Rotary year. It will be in the Evergreen Room of the Courtyard by Marriott, and will sport a much-enhanced menu befitting the gravity (and levity) of the event. Because of the additional attendees expected at the dinner, there will be registration process to include payment of the dinner charge. The registration will be sent soon to club members. Because a large number of guests are also expected at the Scholarship Night and the Outstanding Educator Awards Night, there may also be advanced dinner registration required for those events.
Program:
The program this evening was presented by Teresa Glidden, the outreach and education coordinator for the Corporations and Charities Division of Washington’s Secretary of State. Teresa has been with the Secretary of State’s office since 2007, starting with the Elections Division as the Initiative and Referendum Supervisor. In September 2010, she joined the Corporations and Charities Division as the Charities and Nonprofit Education Coordinator for the brand-new education program. After the education program was well-established, Teresa’s job focus switched to Outreach and Donor Education, in particular to help non-profits in the state. She works closely with Consumer Protection Washington, a consortium of state and federal agencies, as well as the Better Business Bureau; all of whom are dedicated to educating and alerting the public on consumer issues, scams and investigations in Washington State.
Teresa noted that although young people are being hit by scams more than in the past, seniors are the number one target for scammers primarily because they have the funds scammers aim to steal. Her operation includes exceptional partners, such as the United States Postal Service Inspectors, Bureau of Labor and Industries, and the Attorney General of Washington, in a collective called Consumer Protection Washington (https://dfi.wa.gov/consumer-protection-washington).
Her operation is called “GiveSmart” and operates out of the Secretary of State’s office (https://www.sos.wa.gov/charities/givesmart.aspx). She explained that much of their work is absorbed by “commercial fund raisers” who contract with charities to raise money on their behalf. They are required to file with the Secretary of State. The average “take” for the commercial fund raisers is about 50% of the revenue that they raise on behalf of a charity, and taking 90% is not unheard of.
Teresa provided Rotarians several information pieces including a refrigerator magnet that lists a series of questions to ask people who call to solicit donations. She notes that if they are not legitimate philanthropic organizations, they are likely to hang up after two or three of these questions:
- What is the caller's name?
- What is the name and address of the charity?
- Is the caller paid to make the call?
- Who is the caller working for?
- How will my contribution be used?
- How much of my contribution will actually go to the charitable purpose?
- Is my contribution tax-deductible?
- Is the charity and telemarketer registered with the WA Secretary of State as required?
She notes that key signals that you are being scammed include aggressive tactics, no explanation of the use to which the donation will be applied, a claim to be a new charity (and maybe not yet registered with the state), and wanting a check to be made to them rather than the charity. Legitimate charities provide plenty of time to make donation decisions because they want you to be a repeat donor. She also told about the proliferation of fake veterans support charities across the country, and the origination of a number of calling operations outside of the United States (beware out of country or out of area phone numbers).
Rotarians asked a good number of questions, and several shared stories of scams that had touched them, or their clients, or their friends or family members.
Joker Pool:
There was not a Joker Pool this evening.
Adjournment:
President Dave rang the bell at 7:20 p.m. to adjourn the meeting.
Respectfully Submitted
Gary Cohn, Acting Scribe