Member Stories

 

The destroyer USS Lowry was home to one of our members, Paul Phillips, who served aboard as a junior officer for four years in the mid-1960s. The ship was built in World War II, and served in the Pacific Theater and later in the Korean War. His service was peaceful, although the ship was later sent to Vietnam. It was named after Commodore Reigart Bolivar Lowry, whose US Navy record included service in the Civil War.

Paul married his wife Jean, a nurse, during this period. At sea, he didn't see his daughter Laura until she was two months old. But Laura attended our meeting on Thursday along with her English daughter Sara and son-in-law Daniel Fettel, and their young daughter -- Paul's great-granddaughter -- Isabella.

A newer member of our club is Nancy DeLeonardis Fodera, who is running unopposed this year for receiver of taxes. Her many years of community service include being a school board member, town employee and day care operator.

LifeWorks

 

Our speaker on Thursday was Charlie Lucia, an Air Force retiree who is a board member and volunteer for Saratoga County LifeWorks Community Action, which is headquartered in Ballston Spa.

LifeWorks accepts donations and is concerned about potential federal cuts to its Head Start program. It is also reliant on volunteers, for example at its food pantry and "mobile units" that deliver food to the homebound.

"Thank you for listening to me," Lucia said. "Thank you for all you do." 

Report from the ICU

 

Reagan Delaney, a nurse on the intensive care unit at Schenectady's Ellis Hospital, was our speaker on Thursday. (Her mother, Melanie, and grandmother, Donna Gizzi, are members of our Rotary club.)

"It's very rewarding," she said, especially when you think someone "may not survive your shift, and they end up getting better."

While a lot of the work involves machines and technology, you also "get to know patients really well."

Things can get hectic, and breaks are not always possible. "It's a big team effort all the time. ... I love my job."

Reagan suggested potential patients designate a health care proxy, and consider filling in a state Health Department form called medical orders for life-sustaining treatment (MOLST). 

How to Give Away Money

 

Michael Brandt, a wealth management advisor with the Albany Financial Group, was our speaker on Thursday. His main focus was charitable donations, how to maximize their impact while taking into account tax law and other factors.

Uganda Update

We have long supported the educational, medical and child welfare charity AOET Uganda. One of our members, Paul Phillips, has spent his retirement building support for AOET in the Saratoga area, through his Presbyterian United Church of Christ in Saratoga Springs, and other means such as this Facebook page. Another of our Rotary club members, Barbara Conner, went on two mission trips to Uganda with Paul and other local supporters.

Our new president, Murray Eitzmann, wrote to members after last week's meeting:

"I want to give you a brief update on the Uganda Health Clinic computer and Starlink project that we discussed at yesterday's meeting.

"Since Thursday we have been moving the project forward. I sent detailed recommendations on equipment specifications and estimated costs to Paul [Phillips] and Brian [Farrell], who are leading this effort. We are now asking for their feedback on those specs and have requested that our partners on the Uganda side obtain current local quotes for both the desktop computer and the Starlink terminal. Once we have that information, we will be in a much better position to finalize a clear fundraising target and bring a specific proposal back to the club.

"This project is important in its own right — it will give the clinic reliable computing power and internet access. At the same time, it is also helping us prepare for larger opportunities. Next year we plan to pursue a Rotary District or Global Grant to expand support for health clinics in Uganda. By managing this contribution carefully and documenting it well, we are already aligning our work with Rotary’s Areas of Focus (especially Disease Prevention and Treatment and Maternal & Child Health) and building the practical experience and partnership record that strengthen a future grant application."

Paul noted in reply that Dr. Manny Cirenza, who recently spoke to our club about his work with AOET, "left for Uganda today and will meet with the President of the local Rotary Club next week, attempting to get them to agree to partner on our Rotary Grant application, which should increase our likelihood of getting funding."

 

Murray Eitzmann To Be Rotary President

 

Left to right: Jim Frey, Lisa Elam, Paul Phillips, Murray Eitzmann, Rick Handley, Dwight Havens and Barbara Conner were some of the local Rotary leaders gathering at Larry Levine's house on the south shore of Saratoga Lake Thursday (June 25), to mark the changeover on July 1 to a new Rotary year. That means Dwight's presidency of Malta Sunrise Rotary is coming to an end, with Murray taking over as president and Lisa as president-elect. (Lisa, who chairs our scholarship committee, recently returned from Rotary International's annual convention, held this year in Taiwan.)

Abner Doubleday

Ballston Spa native Abner Doubleday was the subject of Robert C. Conner's talk on Thursday. Doubleday moved away to Auburn as an infant and later went from there to Cooperstown. But his 28 Washington Street birthplace, with a historical marker out front, still stands on the west side of downtown Ballston Spa.

Best known for his now disputed contributions to the development of baseball, Doubleday's most solid claim to fame is his Civil War service. As a captain in 1861 and second-in-command at Fort Sumter, he passed on the order to fire the first Union shots of the war, responding to a Confederate artillery barrage.

Promoted to general in 1862, in August and September of that year he fought at the battles of Second Bull Run, South Mountain and Antietam.

After General John Reynolds was killed on the morning of July 1, 1863, at Gettysburg, Doubleday took command of the First Corps for most of the day, during which time it was heavily engaged in combat. He reverted to command of his division for the second and third days of the battle.

Robert C. (Bob) Conner is a former journalist, current Rotarian and author. His first three books -- two biographies and a novel -- were focused on the Civil War. His fourth book, published earlier this year, is a historical novel set in 1975 called The Detective and Dorothy Day.