Thank you to all of the RCSE members who at the last meeting gave extra Fine money for Haven Elementary. Many students at Haven Elementary live in Westlake Apartments (and the surrounding areas) which sustained heavy damage and flooding during Hurricane Matthew. The extra supplies that RCSE was able to purchase through your donations will be greatly appreciated!
It sure was great to see so many RCSE members at our meeting this past Friday after Hurricane Matthew. Thankfully, all members are safe but there was some damage to a few homes.
Shawn Kachmar, a member of the Savannah-Chatham County Public School Board, spoke to us about ESPLOST 3 which will be on the ballot in November.
ESPLOST is a one percent sales tax that was first approved in 2006 and then again in 2011. The tax goes towards improving the facilities and equipment at area public schools. A perk of the tax is that tourist contribute to about 40% of the income generated. The vast majority of the money goes to building new schools, then debt reduction (bond debt), and finally to technology and security. Since ESPLOST inception, there has been significant gains in literary and math in those schools who have benefited from the tax as well as an increase in enrollment. The new schools that are built utilize LEED architecture which has saved the district around $1.6 miliion in utility costs. A lot of good things are happening in the SCCPSS starting with some recognition of Blue Ribbon Schools, Bartlett Middle School being name the #1 STEM Middle School in the Nation, and a teacher from Windsor Forest receiving the State of Georgia Teacher of the Year award. Additionally, SCCPSS schools perform well in comparison to other counties that our similar to ours all while trying to keep our taxes low. To learn more about ESPLOST 3, please visit the following website: http://internet.savannah.chatham.k12.ga.us/district/fm/ESPLOST/default.aspx
The September 30th meeting started with a special visitor from Oslo, Norway - Sverre Stubbs. Sverre was a GRSP student 50 years ago and was sponsored by the Tifton, Waycross, and Brunswick clubs. He believes every dollar invested in GRSP is well spent. It provided him with a great opportunity to learn about service above self which helped him throughout his 40 years of diplomatic service to Norway. Sverre is currently Club President of his Rotary Club in Oslo.
After Sverre was introduced, it was time to hear from our speaker, fellow Rotarian and Paul Harris Fellow - Craig Harney. For more about Craig and his talk, follow the story title link.
Craig works for WTOC-TV here in Savannah as their Director of Programming and Special Projects. He has been producing, marketing, shooting, and editing film for the past 37 years. Craig's presentation was a montage of videos that had been shot throughout Savannah over the years. His first short clip was of people we all know - members of RCSE! Craig said that video matters because it gives us images and voices to remember people by. He is most proud of two documentaries that he produced. One of Mr. W.W. Law (civil rights) and the other of Monsignor Bourke (Irish immigrants in Savannah). Craig concluded his talk with a quote from William Faulkner "Life is Motion."
Our newest member, Laura Lane McKinnon, gave a "Member Minute" at our September 30th meeting. Laura Lane moved to Savannah in the late 1980's to attend SCAD. She fell in love with Savannah and has lived here ever since. She has three children, who are all in college, but stays busy keeping care of her 4 cats and 2 dogs. Before moving to her current position as Director of Development at Union Mission, Laura Lane was the Director of Corporate Relations at SCAD. In her downtime, Laura Lane can be found reading books about history.
A message from Ginger Duncan, RCSE's liaison to the Savannah Early Childhood Foundation:
The Foundation will be holding its first annual golf fundraiser, sponsored by Rotary Club South, on October 26, 2017 at Southbridge Golf Club.
Rotary South has agreed to apply 100% of the net proceeds contributed by Rotary directly to SECF.
It would be great if Savannah East could sponsor a team or two (4 players @ $125 each) and/or hole sponsors ($100 each). What a great way to support the club's dedication to education.
We Missed You on October 14th - Belford, Donoghue, Friday, Heeder, Herring, Hissam, Kelley, Lester, Meyerhoff, Mrochinski, Paddison, Silbermann, Taylor, Turner and White. 52% Attendance
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