[Rotary] Fwd: Rotary - Corona Virus

[J Gary Hopper]

---------- Forwarded message ---------
From: Hulsey Valerie L. <mailservice at dacdb.net>
Date: Fri, Mar 13, 2020 at 6:08 AM
Subject: Rotary - Corona Virus
To: <jghopper at gmail.com>


Dear Gary,


We are all wondering how to manage the current Corona Virus
pandemic.  Rotary International has not given a specific course of
action.  And it shouldn’t, as every club has a different set of needs and
issues.  What President Mark Maloney has said is if you feel the need to
postpone or cancel an event, please do so.  Our main focus here is the
health and safety of our members and the general public. Also, we need to
flatten the exposure likelihood of this virus to ourselves and others.

We know we don’t live in a vacuum.  When we have a club meeting, it’s not
JUST the members who are being exposed to a potential health issue.  It’s
the staff that feeds us, the facility that houses our meeting and the
speakers that come to inform us. The bottom line is, if you feel that you
should cancel your club meetings for a couple of weeks, please feel free to
do so.  There are other options.  You can live stream the meeting on Face
Book. You can set up a Go-To-Meeting or Zoom meeting. There are venues that
won’t allow the club members to be 6 feet from each other due to the
tightness of the venue.  Maybe you can have your meeting outside when
possible.

This morning I had a conference call with 20 of the District Governors in
our Zone – Zone 26 and 27 and Director Solari.  These Zones encompasse the
western part of the United States.  There are many states to juggle.  We,
in California, are very fortunate at this point because the cases of the
virus are manageable. But this is a fluid situation.  No one knows where we
will be tomorrow.

If you have club members who are self-quarantined, please keep in contact
with them.  With all of the fear, misinformation and uncertainty that is
going on, we need to be vigilant about our Rotary family so they are cared
for and don’t feel isolated.

One suggestion that was made was to have a risk management team for your
clubs.  This would take the responsibility of managing this pandemic off of
you, the president, and have others focus on the situation.  I'm sure your
club has an appropriate group of members to help you with this. There is A
LOT of information out there.  Not all of it is factual.  We need to focus
on the facts and make smart decisions that aren’t being governed by
emotion.

I’m sure many of you are wondering what’s happening with our Youth Exchange
students.  So far, our outbound ambassadors are fine and well cared
for.  All but 1 student will be staying in their host country.  It would be
far more dangerous for them to get on a plane and fly home right now than
to stay put in the arms of their host communities.  Also – we found out
today the cost to bring the kids home has become extremely expensive.  This
is no reason to deny a flight home.  But if the student is fine where
he/she is, why incur an outrageous expense?  In some cases the increase is
over $2,000.  Our District Youth Exchange Committee has been in touch with
the students, both inbound and outbound. They are communicating with the
parents, as well.  The consensus is to let the students stay where they are.

The last thought, we Rotarians are people of action.  We are the ones who
see a challenge and make it an opportunity.  We will always rise to serve
our communities.  We should ask ourselves what we can do for our
communities right now.  I know there are a couple of urgent needs:

·        * Food banks are short volunteers.  How can we make sure the
backpacks, etc. that we fill for our underserved families are being
processed?  Do we need to help out at the food banks to get the food where
it needs to go?

·        * Blood banks are being depleted.  Can we, as a club, have a blood
drive to help build up the supply?

·         Look at your community and see how we can help.

Thank you all for being so flexible. This has been the year of
opportunities – from the Kincade Fire and PSPS events to the Corona Virus,
we District 5130 Rotarians are creating positive events from what others
might deem negative ones.  Our glass is always half full.  I’m proud to be
able to work with you.

Sincerely,

Kathy


*Kathy Flamson*
Rotary Club of Calistoga
Rotary District 5130
District Governor 2019 - 2020
(707) 481-0840 (Cell phone)

[image: Image result for rotary logo]


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-- 
        GO A's
Gary "Hoop" Hopper
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