Granite Chips (Feb 13, 2019)

Granite Chips Stories Courtesy of Caroline Earle

February 13, 2019

Happy $ 5.00 total

$3 from Caroline - $1 for Nancy/Loren and all the goods of our local library; $1 for Eddie for taking such initiative and raising the final $1,500 for the budget for the mural panels; $1 for President Liane and

all her leadership/stewardship of our Club and her birthday on 02/15

$2 from Eddie - $1 for his daughter’s 16^th birthday and $1 for the funds he was able to raise for the mural wall

Fine $ 1.00 total

$1 – I think it was against Tony – cannot recall!

Aldrich Public Library receives $15,117.23 donation from Library Breakfast

Check received by Nancy Wolfe, Chair of the Board, and Loren Polk, Director of the Library

The library brought chocolates to thank us and Nancy and Loren both said kind words about the critical and ongoing role that Barre Rotary plays in the Library’s funding and success.

Lt. Governor David Zuckerman – Presenter

Talked about his work as an organic farmer
He farms 15-18 acres and sells as part of a CSA, local retailers too,
He was a House Representative for 14 years, spent 4 years in the Senate and is in his 3^rd year as Lt. Governor
He has a regular newsletter than he invites all to sign up to receive
He noted that Vermont’s cost of living is only 1.6 % higher than the national average
Our average income is 82% of the national average
The disparity between these is the affordability gap that people talk about in Vermont.
The Lt. Governor has a unique role that is not quite part of the administration but has only a partial role in the Legislature (presides over Senate but can only break tie vote).
He has spent a great deal of time getting out and talking about Democracy
- Students should understand that they are counted as part of the census and so they have a real part in our democracy
- Students also have access to legislators through email and legislators do not know the age of those emailing them, so students should be encouraged to contact their legislators and be heard. Legislators do not know where email contact comes from unless sender notes their place of residence.
- Vermont citizens of all ages have extraordinary access to their legislators, which is one of the huge benefits of living in our small state.
Lt. Gov. Zuckerman supports a four-year first term for Governors, and then two year terms, so that Governors can tackle very complex problems but still be responsive to the electorate. He does not support term limits, as he believes that institutional knowledge if important and can only be preserved through senior members of the legislature/Congress. He also believes that term limits would increase the influence of lobbyists.
His business cards include Braille, which is something that he felt was important to be truly accessible to all.
He is often best remembered for his business cards and his habit of giving out carrots from his farm at parades, instead of candy.

DONATION MEETING MINUTES – 01/23/19

Present: Liane, Joe S., Bruce, Ted, Karl, Eddie, Tony, Caroline

Motions:

Tony, Seconded by Ted: Approved by unanimous vote

$5,000 to distribute/allocate tonight including funds already distributed to date ($2,968)

Tony, seconded by Caroline: Approved by unanimous vote

$300 donation to Opera House Camp

Ed, seconded by Tony: Approved by unanimous vote

Up to $1,025 for 3 students to attend RYLA 2019 (likely will expend only $375)
$100 Speech Contest
Expenditure up to $500 for materials for projects for Our House

Caroline, seconded by Tony: Approved by unanimous vote

Expenditure up to $612.21 to SHS Interact projects

Caroline, seconded by Tony: Approved by unanimous vote

Expenditure up to $612 for sponsorships of individuals/families for Barre Pool memberships or for expenditures as requested by the Barre City Director of Recreation

Note: Despite first motion, we approved expenditures of $5,467.21 (presuming only $375 expended for RYLA)

General discussion about allocation of funds and general financial stability of club.
We have not brought in as much as we have donated/distribute the past two years.
Our current reserve funds (those funds not already committed or distributed) is about $17,000.

Until next time....That's all folks