Charlotte Shelburne Rotary

Wednesday, July 8, 2015, 7:30 a.m.

Trinity Episcopal Church Community Room

 

President Trafton Crandall opened the meeting with the Pledge and called on Kris Engstrom for the devotional.

 

Guests were introduced:

Katherine Jaffray from Oakville

Guest speaker Alex Bornstein, Vermont Food Bank

 

Upcoming meetings:

July 15 -           Cyrus Patten – Campaign for Vermont

July 16 -           Board Meeting

July 22 -           Club Assembly – with Louisa Tripp, District Governor

July 29 -           Clark Hinsdale – Vermont Farm Bureau - President

            August 5           Alan Hathaway – Classification Talk

 

Business:

Charlotte Senior Center BBQ 8/18

Frog Bit eradication at Town Beach in Charlotte

Camp Takumpta (Dinner 8/21)

Shelburne Farms Draft Horse Day July 25 (parking help needed)

Thank you for Bowlathon -- Thanks to Ric Flood

 

Sergeant At Arms

Evan Webster  announced that there is $330 in the pot and encouraged everyone to make a happy fine in honor of the fireworks they watched on Saturday evening.

n  Evan had watched fireworks in four towns; suggested we implore the weatherman to stop the rain

n  Doris Sage – enough rain

n  Linda Gilbert – ready for sunny weather

n  Howard Seaver -- visit to Shelburne Farms for the concert – got thunder and lightning

n  Trafton Crandall – fireworks on Friday

n  Richard Fox – smoke bombs for his daughter

n  Rosalyn Graham – Watched Burlington fireworks from the  Shipyard long pier – and welcoming her visiting friend, Katherine Jaffray from Oakville, Ontario, to Rotary

n  Bob Sanders – happy to sit at the Table of Elders

n  John Dupee – celebrating his 50th anniversary

n  Gary Marcotte – happy

n  Denny Bowen – enjoyed the fireworks – and a nap while sitting in line at the VSO concert that wasn’t

n  Dennis Delaney – buying senior tickets for a movie

n  Tod Whitaker – dry Saturdays for the Farmers Market

n  Sam Feitelberg – fireworks

n  Eric Hanley – his 22nd Anniversary

n  Kate Jaffray – the 1st of July fireworks (in Ontario)

n  Barbara Comeau – enjoyed the fireworks

n  Debbie Hanley – also celebrating her 22nd Anniversary – and enjoying a gathering of family in South Hero

n  Jim Donovan – back from trip to St. Petersburg, Russia – working on a Project in Mad River

n  Ric Flood – a 2-week bike trip along the Moselle River in France – prayers for Terrell and Steve

n  Linda Barker – Celebrating her 41st Anniversary

n  Judy Christensen – going on a trip to Alaska

 

Lucky draw:

Doris Sage’s ticket was drawn but she didn’t win the pot.

 

Guest speaker:

Alex Bornstein, Chief Operating Officer for the Vermont Food Bank, presented an amazing Power Point entitled State of Hunger in Vermont detailing a much bigger problem than we usually are aware of.

Alex, who moved to Shelburne three weeks ago, joined the Vermont Food Bank bringing experience in managing food supply chain projects on a national and international level.

The Vermont Food Bank has 225 partner food shelves throughout the state including the Charlotte Food Shelf. They distribute 10 million pounds of food, an 18% increase over last year. This amazing volume of food is distributed through four distribution facilities. It represents an 81% increase in Vermont-grown products and a 51% increase in fresh produce.

They also do 134 direct distributions to senior housing sites.

Typically, Alex said, “Food shelves are lightly staffed and not always open, so distribution direct to senior housing is important. It becomes a social event that combats loneliness.”

“What makes Vermont a good place to live, makes it a horrible place to run food shelves,” he said … lack of public transportation, de-centralized housing, hidden proverty.

Diabetes is a big problem with 23% of households getting healthy food and produce from the food shelves having a member with diabetes. “We say that we are diabetes prescription program,” Alex said.   

In Winooski where 80% of the kids are on free lunch program, the Vermont Food Bank distributes free food to the kids to take home twice a month.

Alex addressed the situation confronting the local food shelf which was managed for years by Val Martel who died recently. This has precipitated a broad-based community endeavor to design and implement a food shelf program that provides more frequent service, a broader range of food, and is more engaged in the community. Alex has been attending the planning meetings, sharing his state-wide (and beyond) experience and hopes that Shelburne will plan to become a member of the Vermont Food Bank.

He also reminded Rotary that Food Shelves always need donations and advocates.

 

Recorded by Rosalyn Graham