Rotary International asks us to Imagine Rotary through our Focus Areas
This month Rotary International asks us to Imagine Rotary by developing new members. Explore the possibilities with us at our meeting Wednesday at noon at Wick Park or virtually via Zoom.
Many of us are light users of ClubRunner, the Rotary-endorsed membership management and communication platform. Do you need to update your home address or employer information? Would you like to email the membership about your organization’s upcoming fundraiser? We will learn how to do these things and more.
Last Week's Meeting
Fourth Ward Councilman Mike Ray, our guest speaker on Aug. 9, says the Mahoning Avenue corridor has gained stability because of partnerships. Since taking office in 2012, Councilman Ray has worked with Youngstown Neighborhood Development Corporation, the Economic Action Group, Mahoning County Land Bank and other organizations to plan and implement economic development projects.
A Better Block grant that was awarded to YNDC evolved into the Mahoning Avenue Fall Fest, which will return this year after a pandemic interruption. EAG and MCLB have played roles in acquiring and renovating vacant commercial properties, including the former Clark Bar near Mahoning Plaza, a former auto parts store that soon will reopen as a coffee shop and roastery, and a former florist shop that has been renovated and is being marketed to local businesses. Ray noted that Mahoning Avenue is home to 100 businesses.
Rotarians are asked to contribute to Operation Warm by Sept. 1. Despite inflation, RCY can still purchase warm coats for city school children for $20 each from its supplier. Samantha Turner said volunteers will be needed to assist with coat fittings at Harding Elementary a few weeks after the new school year begins.
RCY was well represented at the Science of Brewing, an annual fundraiser for the Oh Wow! Center for Science and Technology, on Aug. 11. Congratulations to our fellow Rotarians Marvin Logan, executive director of Oh Wow, and Ellie Platt, who assisted with event planning.
RCY ANNUAL CLUB STEAK FRY
For longtime members, the Steak Fry is one of the most beloved annual events. For newer members, it is a great way to become part of one of the club's longest standing traditions and meet fellow members. It is a wonderful night of food, fellowship and friendship. Spouses and guests are welcome. The Steak Fry will be at 6 p.m. Wednesday, Sept. 20, at Pioneer Pavilion on Horseshoe Bend in Mill Creek MetroParks, 870 Old Furnace Road, Youngstown OH 44511.
During its meeting on Aug. 10, the Rotary Club of Youngstown Board of Directors voted to approve the following amendment to the club bylaws:
“A majority vote of the board shall control on all decisions of the management of the board. Only the president and the president-elect shall be authorized to enter into a contract between the club and any other entity only upon prior board authorization. No member shall be authorized to enter into a contract on behalf of the Rotary Club of Youngstown.”
Club members will vote on the amendment during the weekly meeting on Wednesday, Aug. 30. Please make every effort to attend.
FIRESIDE CHAT DATE CHANGE
Attending a Fireside Chat orientation program is required of new members, with participation by veteran members encouraged. The next Fireside Chat will be at 5:30 p.m. Aug. 23 in the Rossi Penthouse at Realty Tower, 47 Central Square, Unit 1201. A registration link has been posted on WhatsApp. Contact President Deanna Rossi or Membership Chairman Justin Froelich for more information.
TREKKING ON WITH TREX RECYCLING
RCY members take filmy plastic recycling very seriously! To date, we have collected more than 1,000 lbs., which qualifies the club to receive two park benches from our partner, the Trex composite decking company.
Plastic collection will continue, but only on the second Wednesday of each month (next collection on Sept. 13). Look for clear collection bags at the registration table during our weekly meetings. Stuff them with plastic shopping bags, Ziploc-style storage and freezer bags, bread bags, print media sleeves, air pillows from shipped packages, and other filmy plastics.
A few volunteers are needed to weigh bags and transport them to a dropoff site. See President Deanna or Mike Latessa if you can help.
RCY Joins WhatsApp
A message from President Deanna:
We are adding WhatsApp to our Rotary communication strategy as a quick way Rotarians can communicate on the go. WhatsApp is a group texting service that allows you to determine your notification settings. This will allow quick updates to the group and an easy reference point for all the reminders.
Committees can post updates on meeting times, flyers, etc for fast distribution to the group.
Out and about and see a Rotarian? Take a selfie and post it to the group.
For information, contact Rotarian Stew Buchanan at 330-607-1442 or stewb1898@aol.com
Young Inventor of Eco-Friendly Bricks Comes Full Circle
Binish Desai began working on an eco-friendly brick made out of recycling and waste, when he was 11. The former Rotary Youth Exchange student, inventor, and entrepreneur credits Rotary with giving him the support to pursue his dreams. Now he’s giving back through a new Rotary club.
Every hero has an origin story. “I was 10 years old when the entire journey started,” explains Binish Desai. It began with a cartoon called Captain Planet, an animated TV series from the 1990s about an environmentalist with superpowers. Desai can still recite the show’s refrain: Captain Planet, he’s our hero / Gonna take pollution down to zero! “That tagline stuck in my mind,” he says. “I wanted to do something to help Captain Planet.”
Growing up in Valsad, a city on the Arabian Sea in west-central India, Desai was also a fan of Dexter’s Laboratory, another animated TV show, this one about a boy scientist. “So I created my own lab in the corner of our living room in a TV cabinet. And I would always carry something called a ‘bag of ideas,’ where I would jot down different innovations of mine.”
For instance, having learned about evaporation and condensation in school, he noticed the steam that escaped from the pressure cooker when his mother prepared dinner. He created a device to capture that steam, which would then return to its liquid state — water that could be used for gardening. “That was my first invention ever,” he says.
“There is nothing that is useless in this world,” Desai insists. “The concept of waste does not exist in nature. It’s human consumption that creates it, so it’s our responsibility to get rid of it. And in the process of converting trash into treasure, we can also generate a lot of employment.”
In the nearly two decades since his Captain Planet days — Desai turns 27 this month — he has come up with more inventions; built and lost a company; founded, with his wife, several women’s empowerment centers; and generally concocted ways to improve the lives of everyone in his very broadly defined community. Central to his success has been his involvement with Rotary, a relationship that was sparked by a family connection and nurtured by a year in the United States as a Rotary Youth Exchange student. Now, as a charter member of the Rotary Club of Vibrant Valsad, his life in Rotary has taken flight.
Somebody hand that young man a cape.
THIS WEEK IN ROTARY HISTORY
August 16, 1990: Youngstown Rotarians organized and led a day for local disabled children at Sea World in Aurora, Ohio.
CAUSE FOR CELEBRATION
Birthdays:
Kader Makanera 8/18
Anniversaries:
Samantha Turner 8/15
Proposed New Member:
Julius Oliver
Business Owner and First Ward City Councilman
Sponsor: Deanna Rossi
As a teenager Oliver volunteered with his church and, upon graduation, joined the United States Army, serving for six years as a member of the Army’s Engineer Corps. In 2008, Oliver started Kingly Hand Wash and Wax, a full-service car wash. He has been the First Ward Councilman since January 2016.
.png)
