Back to the Park

Our May 6 meeting with Congressman Tonko went well. The larger-than-usual crowd, at Panera or on Zoom, included Assemblywoman Carrie Woerner and four out of the five current members of the Malta Town Board.

This week, on Thursday May 20, our temporary location will move back to Shenantaha Creek Park, where you can find us at 7:15 a.m. -- or on Zoom.

Tonko to Talk

US Rep. Paul Tonko, D-Amsterdam, will be our speaker via Zoom on Thursday, May 6. Members and guests -- the public is invited -- will gather at Panera at 7:15 a.m., or can participate from anywhere with the Zoom link.

Tonko has represented Malta (part of his much larger district) in Congress since 2009. Before that, he headed the New York State Energy Research and Development Authority, which had a large presence in Malta and still owns facilities here. 

From 1983 to 2007, Tonko was a member of the New York State Assembly, and before that was on the Montgomery County Board of Supervisors. He has a degree from Clarkson University in mechanical and industrial engineering. 

The congressman is expected to discuss mostly local issues.

Meeting and Donating

 

Standing by the Panera restaurant window was Bob Bonney, our tech guru overseeing the Zoom connection from this morning's hybrid meeting.

 Several members participated via Zoom, as did speaker Elena Alvarez from the Schenectady Rotary Club. She and our president, Larry Levine, have been discussing a possible joint "disc golf" fund-raiser, and a committee of our members will look into it.

In other business, we voted to donate $200 to Gift of Life International, with which our Rotary district is closely associated. Gift of Life's CEO, Rob Raylman, was our Zoom speaker on March 25. A connection made at that meeting with Paul Phillips (seen this morning at center of photo below) has identified a Ugandan child with a serious heart problem who may be helped by the program.

Cleaning Up Ain't Hard to Do

 

We do a cleanup on Dunning Street (and a bit of Plains Road) twice a year, and this was Saturday's crew, left to right: Kristen Stanley, Miles Cornthwaite, Paul Phillips, Barbara Conner, Mike Williams, Travis Fealy, Larry Levine, Bob Conner. Mike's wife Jackie was behind the camera.

On Thursday, we had our first in-person meeting this year at Panera, east of Exit 12, with some Zoomers participating from home. We'll do it again this Thursday morning at 7:15.

Life, Work and other Gifts

Shown is a Rotary Gift of Life donation box for used clothing, shoes and textiles. It is on Farm to Market Road (Route 109) just northeast of the intersection with Route 9 in Saratoga County, a little south of the Town of Malta. (You can also send donations of money to Gift of Life, or otherwise get involved, through our Rotary District 7190.) 

Our Zoom speaker last Thursday was Rob Raylman, chief executive officer of Gift of Life International,  himself an active Rotarian in New York state who noted the organization's Rotarian roots. Gift of Life provides essential help to children with congenital heart defects and other heart health problems in more than 80 countries. Discussion after the presentation included one member getting contact information for a Ugandan program which our club has helped.   

In other business, we are planning to meet in person this Thursday morning at 7:15 at Panera, east of Exit 12. A Zoom link also should be available for those who will not be attending in person.

This Saturday, at 8:30 a.m., we will meet at Forest Cleaners for our semiannual Dunning Street cleanup. And we are tentatively scheduled to again assist the Red Cross with a blood drive at the end of August.

Last Saturday, three of our members, Mike Williams, Cynthia Young and Barbara Conner (indirectly assisted by Tom Disinger), helped out at a work project for the Malta Veterans Appreciation Program. 

 

Still Vigilant on Virus

 

Even while we hope the coronavirus pandemic is winding down, our club remains committed to a Stop the Virus campaign.

The latest initiative, spearheaded by Rotarian Paul Sausville and funded by the GlobalFoundries-Town of Malta Foundation, has our members distributing high-quality reusable face masks. Most are going to retail businesses in Malta, along with some to town facilities.

In other business at this morning's meeting, we discussed getting back to actual not virtual gatherings on Thursday mornings. Next week, when the guest speaker will be a Gift of Life International leader, we are sticking to Zoom. But on April 1 we plan to try meeting at Panera restaurant, with a Zoom option for those who cannot attend. Future possibilities include a return to the Malta Diner, if and when it reopens, or to Shenantaha Park, where we went last summer.

Update on Seniors, Scholarships

 Malta Seniors President Kathy Eitzmann was our speaker at this morning's Zoom meeting. Most of her members have now been vaccinated against Covid, she said, and none so far appears to have died from it. The recent opening up of local pharmacies to give vaccinations has been a big plus. Several Rotarians offered help on tasks such as providing transportation.

In other business, our scholarship committee will be interviewing applicants on Saturday.