News from Chilean Group Study Exchange Member

The City Wire in Fort Smith has posted a report received on Saturday, Feb. 27th, from Robinson Esparza who was a member of last year's Rotary Group Study Exchange from Chile. Robinson reports he and his family are shaken but OK. Click on the blue link to read the full report: "Chilean Rotary member reports on earthquake." Please let us know if any of you Van Buren members receive any news from the other team members. They are all in our prayers.

UPDATED 3/1/10 - Last night after I completed the above note that at least Robinson Esparza and his family were OK, I received the following in an email from Club President Shirley with a few more details:

I thought you might want to hear about an article Rotarian Michael Tilley posted on The City Wire today regarding the devastating earthquake in Chile.  As you recall, a Group Study Exchange team from Chile visited our club and the district last fall. Cathy Gifford was able to get in touch with Robinson Esparza, who lives in Santiago and reports that he and his family are OK.  I then forwarded her correspondence to Michael who did the story. Please go to this link to read the entire article. http://www.thecitywire.com/?q=node/8545

Thank you Michael and Cathy.

 ...and Shirley.

Scott Duke, writing for SiliconValley.com, explains how Twitter, Facebook and the Internet became hubs for information about family members and friends immediately after the earthquake. If you're interested in learning more, check out: "Digital connections - Bay Area to Chile - remain open and vital despite quake devastation." The article also includes a slide show with pictures of some of the destruction caused by the earthquake in Chile.

Interact Club Officers installed

The Van Buren High School Interact Club officers - the first officers to serve the new club - were introduced and officially installed at the February 25th meeting of the Van Buren Rotary Club by the Rotary District Governor, A. C. Moncrief, District Interact Chair, Steve Lovick and Club President, Shirley Williams. The following students will serve as Interact officers this year:
    Irving Orellana,  President
    Andrew Russell, Vice President
    Donna Freeman, Secretary
    Alec Justice, Treasurer and Historian

Interact is Rotary International’s service club for young people ages 14 to 18. Interact, sponsoring Rotary Clubs and local schools work together to provide additional opportunities for students to meet and make new friends, improve their community, develop leadership skills and make a difference in the world. The Van Buren Interact Club is already working on a "Purple Pinkie Project" for March 8th to help raise funds to eliminate Polio around the world.

Rotary Clubs sponsor more than 10,700 Interact Clubs in 120 countries with 250,000 members worldwide.

Happy 105th Birthday Rotarians!

The first Rotary Club was founded Feb. 23, 1905 in Chicago, Ill. Present were: Paul Harris, Gustavus Loehr, Hiram Shorey, and Silvester Schiele. At present, Rotary International has over 1.2 million members in more than 33,000 local clubs in 200 countries.

Happy Birthday to all Rotarians around the world. 

Learn more:
How other clubs are celebrating Rotary's 105th birthday
Historic Moments -- Rotary's 105th anniversary

Van Buren Rotarians welcome Coach Norm DeBriyn

Introduced by Clarke Moore, a former University of Arkansas football player, many friends and baseball fans welcomed Coach Norm DeBriyn to the Feb. 10th meeting of the Van Buren Rotary Club. "Coach D" helped shape the education and careers of hundreds of young men and won 1161 baseball games in his 33 years as head coach. While his teams were winning three conference championships, 15 appearances in the NCAA tournaments and four appearances in the College World Series, at least 30 of his players advanced to the major leagues.

Since retiring in 2002, Coach DeBriyn has been Vice President of the Razorback Foundation, Inc. in Fayetteville. The present Razorback Foundation developed from the original Razorback Scholarship Fund started in the 1970's and continues to provide a way for Razorback fans to "support the athletic endeavors of the University of Arkansas Razorbacks." The 11,000 members of the foundation currently provide college scholarships, competitive facilities and support programs for the university's student athletes.

Coach D expects the University of Arkansas to field a good team this year. He noted that all of the boxes at Baum Stadium were already sold out. 

If you would like more information about how you can participate in the Razorback Foundation, visit their website at: http://www.razorbackfoundation.net/index.htm

RYLA makes learning life's lessons fun

RYLA is an abbreviation for Rotary Youth Leadership Awards, but like many acronyms, it doesn't convey what the program is about or the impact that participation can have on developing leadership skills in high school students. Click on the picture or the blue link to see a recent Rotary online newsletter article and multimedia presentation about how RYLA influenced Taylor Mathis, a high school junior from Orland Park, Illinois.

To learn even more about Rotary International's RYLA program, visit:
Rotary Youth Leadership Awards (RYLA) web page.

Nurse Practitioner Jeannie Findley and the importance of staying well

Jeannie Findley (left), Family Medicine Specialist and Nurse Practitioner at Cornerstone Internal Medicine in Van Buren with the Rotarian of the Day, Paula Morton, at the 2/11/10 Rotary Meeting. During her after-lunch presentation, Findley discussed her role as a nurse practitioner and the importance of annual examinations and lab tests to establish "healthy" baselines from which any later changes due to an illness can be evaluated.

And now, her side of the story...

Joyce Rapier, columnist for the Press Argus-Courier, who was the featured speaker at our January 21 meeting tells what it's like to be a first-time visitor and speaker at a Rotary meeting. Her column is not on the web yet, but be sure to check out page 4 of the Feb. 6th edition of the Press Argus (on the news stands today) and read about the "Four-way test." Joyce said she loved to write. We enjoyed reading her story and certainly hope all our speakers feel similarly welcomed.

The American Red Cross - More than just emergency services

Whenever we hear of a national disaster many of us automatically think about the American Red Cross which is usually already working to provide emergency relief. At the February 4th Rotary Club meeting, Susan Krafft, Director of Communications and Fund Development for the Northwest Arkansas Chapter detailed many of the other services provided by the Red Cross. For example, one of the major efforts undertaken by Red Cross chapters is training people in specific skills such as CPR, first aid and other procedures needed to cope with emergencies. The Red Cross is still America's resource for swimming and lifeguard training. The Red Cross continues to be involved in providing support for families with servicemen overseas.

You can learn more about the many programs and services offered, or how to support all of these activities through volunteering and your donations at http://www.redcrossnwa.org/.

Van Buren High School builds an Interact Club

Dear Rotarians,

I wanted the membership of the Van Buren Rotary Club to know the impact they have had on Van Buren High School. The organizational charter meeting of the Van Buren High School Interact Club was held on a snowy morning Friday January 29, 2010. The absentee level at the school was high so our numbers to charter the club could increase. I have pasted below the email that I received from one of our teacher sponsors immediately following our meeting. I have also attached two pictures with some of the students and of the banner and bell that our club purchased for the club. 

Yours in Rotary Service,

Shirley H. Williams

Dear Van Buren Rotary Club,

While Missy Hefner and I counted 90 (give or take), we ended up with 80 signatures, so I suspect the 90 is pretty accurate.  We are continuing to gather signatures from Honor Society members who were unable to attend our meeting but want to be a part of Interact.  Those signatures are not among the 80.

Our janitor J.R. has provided a hook and our banner is now permanently hanging outside Missy’s room.  It should be visible from the street at night when driving west on Pointer Trail.  The bell and gavel are now prominently displayed in my classroom.

I have made copies of the roster and will bring you the original.  Both Missy and I have copies and there will be an official “Interact Club” file with a copy.

Mrs. Guthrie is thrilled with our numbers and is pleased that we are providing an international club membership opportunity to our students free of charge. 

I hope you were able to notice the faces of our members.  We crossed all racial and cultural boundaries. This club is a positive addition to Van Buren High School.

Elizabeth J. Williams 

Lead Teacher, English

Van Buren High School

I'm sure every Rotarian who reads these two notes today will stand a little taller and extend their assistance and best wishes to the new Van Buren Interact Club and its new members.