President BOB opened our meeting with a resounding bell ringing (where’d he get the big hammer?) followed by the Pledge and Song led by JIM ENGEL accompanied by GARY HIRSCH (“The Star Spangled Banner”.) President BOB then introduced a great video inspiration – Steve Hartman’s “Smiles” video featuring a recently orphaned boy in Savannah who gives toys to random strangers to make them smile.
New Member JEANNE FLOWER introduced our guests and visiting Rotarians, and we had three – no, wait, four Birthday Rotarians:
DIANA CANNON is the Fundraising Director for the Humane Society of Southern Arizona, and no surprise, she has five dogs! DIANA appreciates the mission driven nature of our Rotary and gave a donation to sponsor STEVE PICKERING in the ride to end polio.
Past President JIM RONSTADT is the owner of Ronstadt Insurance and a former director of the Tucson Parks and Recreation Department. JIM gave a donation to finish his cousin’s Paul Harris and another to start one for his granddaughter.
TOM WILLIS proved once and for all that CPA’s do have a sense of humor by telling a joke (“Life is not a fairy tale… if you lose your shoe at midnight, it’s probably because you are drunk.”) TOM made donations to the Ride to End Polio and the Foundations Scholarship Fund.
And finally, ALAN ROGERS followed TOM’S lead by noting that he has a patient who suffered a terrible accident, losing the left side of his body… but assured us he is “all right now”.
RALPH PHILLIPS, owner of Fair Wheel Bicycles introduced new member JIM ENGEL who was a member of the San Mateo Rotary for 22 years, enjoys Scrabble, fitness, and has fond memories of the one year he spent at the University of Arizona. JIM’S father in law was Swede Johnson and his wife is a 7
th generation Tucsonan.
Taking over for President BOB as Master of Ceremonies for Paul Harris Presentations, Past President JONI CONDIT joined Past President CHAR HARRIS to award Paul Harris pins to the following members:
Past President BOB SHAFF received his Paul Harris plus 4 and appreciates the awareness of culture and need across the world that Rotary International brings.
PAT ZUMBUSCH received his Paul Harris plus 7(!) PAT likes the fact that Rotary International focuses on basic human needs without bringing polarization to the process of helping.
RALPH PHILLIPS received his Paul Harris plus one. RALPH likes Rotary International’s ability to provide service and improve good will in the world.
JEANNE ZETAH is a Past President of a rotary club in Minnesota who committed to giving at least $1,000 each year. She received her Paul Harris plus 4 and continues to wonder at the impact RI international grants can have.
Sergeant at Arms BOBBY LARSON led us through the following announcements:
President BOB reminded us all the August 7th meeting is at the Sheraton.
President BOB asked each table to provide questions on index cards and noted that everyone needs to sign up for the Mayoral Debate through Eventbrite.com.
VIC JACOBS gave a Happy Jackson in honor of her son’s first job at Pellstar Computers. Pellstar and member MIKE PELLER take on several interns each year and refurbishes older CPU’s to donate to nonprofits – well done Pellstar!
DOT KRET gave an excellent summary of President BOB’s goals for his “Reign of Terror” – entirely in rap form. President BOB’S goals are:
- Have fun.
- Be inspired.
- Make an impact.
- Connect the world through Rotary International.
- Lose 25 pounds (ok that’s a personal goal…)
)
President BOB reported some very interesting facts from the large club conference (the Rotary Club of Tucson is tied for 29
th in members in the country, 64
th in the world… but we are #1 in attendance percentage at 59%!!!) Our dues are lower than average by $200, and our budget is about average for a large club. He then spoke about some minor adjustments to meeting structure with the goal of preserving enough time for the presentation since that is one of the most features most appreciated by members. Another innovation is meetings will now be available on Facebook Live to allow us to make up by watching the meeting electronically if we’re unable to make it.
President BOB closed our meeting with a toast and a quote to inspire our negotiations with the Doubletree: "End Pollo Now."
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Moderator - Lorraine Rivera is a veteran broadcaster having worked in the Yuma and Tucson television markets for the last decade. She is a graduate of the University of Arizona, School of Journalism with minors in English and Mexican-American Studies, and enjoys cheering on her beloved Wildcats. Rivera is product of Cochise County, born and bred along the U.S./Mexico border in Douglas. She is thrilled to have the opportunity to continue serving as a journalist in her home state. “It is a privilege to work with such a well-respected group of diverse journalists. I believe in the mission of Arizona Public Media to provide Arizonans with in-depth journalism.”
Dr. Ed Ackerley was born in Tucson. In 1968 his family opened Ackerley Advertising, a full-service advertising agency now owned by Ed and Bill Ackerley. Ed’s wife Susan is a native Tucsonan and first grade teacher and they have three sons, Kyle, Kevin and Kasey and two grandsons, Nolan and Patrick. Since 1976, Dr. Ackerley has been an account executive at Ackerley Advertising and teaches at the University of Arizona and Northern Arizona University. His affiliation with the American Advertising Federation includes leadership roles in Tucson as President, and nationally as Chairman of the Council of Governors, a Governor, and member of the National Board of Directors. Awards include Advertising Professional of the Year, Hall of Fame and AAF Silver Medal. CreatingMAGIC is his book and seminar he presents nationally. Dr. Ackerley has a doctorate from Northern Arizona University and an undergraduate degree from the University of Arizona. He is a 1976 graduate of Palo Verde High School. He is a member of Tucson and Hispanic Chambers, National Football Foundation, Rillito Park Foundation and is President of Coaches for Charity, an organization he founded to raise scholarships for student athletes. On January 11, 2019, he filed as a candidate for Mayor of the City of Tucson (No Party Affiliation - Independent), his first foray into elected public office.
Randi Dorman is a business and community leader, mom, and proud Tucsonan. Randi has been a businesswoman for 30 years and an infill real estate developer downtown for 20 years. After a successful career in global branding, Randi moved from NYC to downtown Tucson in 2001 where she and her husband purchased an old Ice Factory on the edge of downtown with partners and turned it into the Ice House Lofts, the first residential loft conversion in all of Arizona. Randi was President of the Museum of Contemporary Art and Chairwoman of the Downtown Tucson Partnership. She has been voted the Most Influential Woman in Tucson three years in a row in AZ Foothills magazine. 
Steve Farley, father of two, is an artist and entrepreneur. Elected to the state Legislature in 2006, he rose to become House Assistant Minority Leader. Farley brings deep experience in infrastructure, water, transportation, education and economic development to the Mayor’s race. He was instrumental in gaining approval for a comprehensive regional transportation system (RTA) of roads, buses, bikeways and sidewalks, and the modern streetcar light rail line, which opened in Tucson in 2014 and has created hundreds and hundreds of jobs and more than $1 billion in private construction projects within three blocks of its route — all in the middle of the worst recession Arizona has seen. Farley is also a well-known artist and graphic designer who invented a new way of converting photographs to glazed ceramic tile. In addition to creating the tile mural that graces the Broadway underpass leading to Downtown Tucson, Farley has completed numerous mural projects around the U.S. He has run his own public art and graphic design business since 1991.
Regina Romero epitomizes the American Dream in the Southwest. Raised by immigrant farm workers in Somerton, Arizona, Regina is the youngest of six children and began breaking barriers early on as the first member of her family to vote and the first to graduate from college. She is a proud graduate of the University of Arizona and holds a post-graduate certificate from the Harvard Kennedy School of Government. In 2007, Regina became the first Latina elected to the Tucson City Council and the first woman to represent Tucson’s Ward 1. While on the Council, she has helped lift Tucson out of the Great Recession to its most prosperous decade in recent history, writing the City’s Primary Jobs Incentive program and calling for the Creation of an Economic Initiatives Office – both of which have resulted in thousands of long-term, good-paying jobs. She has championed issues such as equal pay for equal work and spearheaded the effort to pass universal earned sick and parental leave for City of Tucson families. Regina is a pro-child, pro-family and pro-choice mother of two bi-lingual, bi-cultural and bi-adorable children, Emiliano and Luciana, and has been married to Ruben Reyes for 15 years.
