Liz Nichols introduced Juliette Genin, Rotary Youth Exchange.  Juliette talked about the history of Verdun, France where she is from.  The population is 23,000.1387-1443 was the 100-year war.  1778-1795 was the French Revolution where they beheaded the King and Queen.  1914-1918 World War1 between France and Germany.  1931-1945 World War 11 where there were Jewish people held at Auschwitz.  Juliette is from Verdun, Franch with a population of 23,000.  She showed a chart with listing:  Liberty=People, Equality=Reality, and Brother=People Her mother is a teacher in French Modern Art, and her dad is teacher in Junior High Physics and Chemistry.  She talked about education in France being very entailed compared to classes in America.  She begins her day at 6:00 am and ends at 6:00 pm.   She said the rooster is a symbol of pride,

 

She showed many photos of France. 

Myrene Hoover introduced the Stanley Museum of Art's Director Lauren Lessing who gave a dynamic presentation! The Stanley Museum works with 200 University of Iowa personnel across the curriculum and saw 4,000 kindergarten through twelfth grade school children. It has had programs three times per week, including a mobile opera. Since it is a new building, the staff is learning what the building can accommodate and what opportunities it can host. There are twelve staff members, including Lauren Lessing and they could use more staff. The building is being considered for an American Art Institute award. The staff can support University of Iowa's researchers, can work to bring the University together, and can teach and serve as a public forum. Director Lessing recommends Palaces for the People. The author argues its important to have shared buildings' spaces and be able to sit in a room with people who disagree with us and have a conversation. Museums have a role to play--we've got to get people out of their shells and have a conversation about art they may not like.

 

The staff learned a lot during COVID about bringing art to where the people are at and about the power of art to comfort us in grief and help us be well. Museums are working on racial justice issues and have a lot to do given their history with colonialism and changing the culture of places they were at. The Stanley is a young museum and is working on justice issues. They want the museum to survive into the 21st century. The Stanley has a print show opening in March. The Stanley also has an exhibition celebrating Keith Haring, a graffiti artist, who visited Iowa City and Horn Elementary [see https://stanleymuseum.uiowa.edu/art/exhibitions/upcoming/keithharing]. The goal for the Stanley is to raise $55 million for the museum and they will ask for money.

Amanda McFadden introduced the speaker, Dr. Liang Chee Wee PhD., who is the Eastern Iowa Community Colleges Chancellor/Director. The most interesting and motivational topic was "We Do Life Together." Dr. Wee came to the United States in 1983. He had previously served in the Singapore Armed Forces and grew up in a rural village. He is the 39th recorded generation of his family with a family history going back 1,000 years, and his family included fisherman, farmers, and scholars. Dr. Wee began his speech with an anecdote about how his wife broke her wrist leaving a shuttle at the airport, they went to Mayo Clinic, and were fortunate to find key people on duty. A lady at Mayo's brought him a chair while he was waiting for his wife and told him to let her know if he needed anything. The lady was a custodian who then started cleaning rooms. This event reminded him of how important everyone is in an organization. In a typical hospital, there are 3 nurses to 1 doctor, which is 40%. Who is the other 60%? Sometimes we don't pay enough attention to the other 60%. He stated "we do life together" and need to be curious about people we don't know. He considers this experience a blessing. When he told the Mayo's doctor about his experience, the doctor said "that's how we roll here."

 

Dr. Wee asks how many understand the mission and values of an organization? Mayo's mission statement included compassion and teamwork, including unsurpassed collaboration. That night, he experienced the "magic of humantiy." He asks himself, am I curious about others? Nowadays, he pays attention to what goes on around him. He articulated the 4 way test of Rotary and highlighted building trust among each other so we can do good work together. Let the 4 way test guide our relationships in life.

 

He said his Mom had to quit school when she was 10 to help support her family who was poor and that she and his father valued education. He had grandparents who couldn't understand each other's language; however, his Mom did. Growing up, he learned four languages. Casey Cook asked Dr. Lee how old he was when he left Singapore--21 years. Mark Patton asked about raising pay for lower paid professions. Dr. Wee stated the Eastern Iowa Community Colleges are trying to work with employers to provide a pathway so a CNA can become an LPN for example. Employers could subsidize employees' child care so an employee can go to school. Consider whether employers can create pool of money to subsidize childcare? Dr. Wee wears a Colin Powell pin--every child every promise and expands it to every person every promise--to remind him of what community college is for. Everyone is admitted. He closed by reciting the four way test.

Pam Ehly introduced speaker Chant Eicke.  Chant has a bachelor's degree in environmental studies, from the University of Oregon.  He has been in Environmental Consulting in Johnson County for 16 years, at Impact 7G and EarthView Environmental.  He leads a team of 11 environmental scientist based out of North Liberty.  They conduct work ranging from Controlled burns to prairie and woodland restoration wetland delineation, habitat surveys and archaeological. investigations. 

Chant talked about the controlled burns that have been done in Hickory Hill Park.  He talked about the importance of safety at all times.  The team embers wear fireproof pants shirts, gloves and helmets. 

Safety Team Cohesion:  Clear objective, clear plan, clear process, clear responsibilities, Contingency planning:  Fire Breaks.  Back up water is the 3rd and 4th recourse.

Let's Burn Process:  1.  Establish Action Plan, 2. Back Burn, 3. Flank Burn 4. Head Fire.  Wind is the captain.

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Assistant Governor, Mark Ruggeburg, introduced District Governor Dennis Drager.  Dennis was raised on a family farm outside of Tipton, Iowa.  He enlists4ed for four years in the US Airforce.  He attended Iowa State University graduating from Venenary School in 1985.  He practiced in Illinois and Wisconsin then moving to Marshalltown.  After 36 years he is semi-retired.  Dennis joined Rotary in 2000.  He has gone to Xicotepec 2 years and participated in a project fair in Africa where he administered polio vaccine.  Dennis and Heidi married in 2006.  Heidi joined Rotary in 2021 when Dennis was nominated to serve as District Governor.  Heidi is a charter representative for Allegiant Airlines.  Mark talked about the value of RLI and Dennis echoed the value to all Rotarians.  RLI will be held October 14 in Mt. Pleasant Iowa. 

The District Celebration will be held in Pella at the Pella Opera House.  There will be a 4-Way test contest.  More information will be coming out on how to proceed with the contest.  This evening 9/26 from 5:30 to 7:00 there will be a Foundation Social at Reunion Brewery downtown.  Dennis and Heidi developed a Rotary Action Group for Mental Health. You can join the RAG for Mental Health for $35.  Dennis told several storied about helping the homeless people.  The mission of Mental Health Initiatives Rotary District 6000 Chapter. 

Transforming Mental Illness to Mental Wellness One Life at a Time.  Mission:  To create and provide opportunities for all Rotarians in our District to improve their mental, emotional and behavior health in order to lead a healthy, happy and productive life.

To provide support for clubs in the implementation of mental health projects and initiatives in our district and beyond. 

To provide a variety of helpful mental health resources in our District that result in a measurable impact on the mental wellness of our club and committees. 

 

 

Mark Patton introduced Emergency Medicine Physician, Dr. Amanda Irish, who spoke about the "Infectious Disease Outlook for Fall/Winter 2023-2024." "The usual suspects so far" are RSV, Influenza, Covid, and the common cold viruses and bacteria.  New data suggests Omicron (Covid) has 4 times the risk of death as influenza. She stated RSV is the leading cause of senior death. Moving indoors for school, holidays, etc. increases the risk of catching an infectious disease. Predictions can be hard to make because SARS-Cov-2 has not yet settled into a predictable seasonal pattern.

 

Last year RSV and the flu came earlier. The United States looks to Australia to select flu strains because flu season comes earlier there. Australia looks better this year. There is a new variant of the flu--BA623.  Masks work and getting the flu vaccine reduces the risk of having a severe infection. Currently, Omicron XBB and the new EG.5 variant (Eris) along with BA.2.86 (pirola) are causing an increase in cases. BA.2.86 is spreading rapidly; however, it is unknown whether it will cause severe disease or be a dud. 

 

Steps people can take to stay healthy and prepare include good diet, exercise, coughing in elbow (not hand), handwashing, doing what is right for you and consider carrying a mask for use in public settings, and getting vaccinations/booster for annual influenza, Covid, and against RSV.  The influenza vaccine is the "best way to prevent infection and/or complications." Everyone > 6 months of age should get one. There will be a new Covid booster coming out in mid to late September. Fall boosters will target XBB.1.5. Health experts recommend everyone receive the Covid vaccine and/or booster. A person can get Covid with the flu. The RSV vaccine is recommended for persons > 60 years and people can catch RSV now. The RSV vaccine "protects against severe illness with 82-86% efficacy." If one does get sick, consider Remdesivir (IV) and Paxlovid should be started within 5 days of an illness if used. Also, having a pulse oximeter can help a person decide when to go to the hospital. In response to a question, Dr. Irish suggested the following can also be helpful--having a humidifier for home, vicks vapo rub, lots of fluids, Tylenol, and Motrin. She does not love Mucinex, which may cause side effects. The club thanked Dr. Irish for attending and speaking about this very important topic.

Deb Dunkhase introduced Lisa Stark, Education and Outreach Coordinator, of Johnson County.  Grow Johnson County is a community focused educational farm located in Iowa City.  Sitting on 5 acres of country-owned lard, Grow produces high-quality organic fruits and vegetables and freely distributes all produce to local social service agencies throughout Johnson County.  Grow's mission is to improve healthy food access through sustainable food production and hands-on education. 

Since 2016, Grow has distributed over 160,000 pounds of good food to our neighbors in need and has educated farm apprentices, youth groups, community members, and volunteers.  A survey was completed to show the most popular vegetables:  cherry tomatoes, basil, lettuce, and radishes.  

She talked to about the Johnson County Poor Farm established in the 19th century. The farm opened in 1855and cared for the indigent, mentally ill, and disabled.  There is a cemetery, fertile farmland pollinator, meadows, wetlands, woodlands, and timbers. 

For more information visit www.growjohnsoncounty.org

Casey Cook introduced Marguerite Oetting, Medical Director and UIHC Pediatrician of Healthy Kids Community Care.  The mission:  When children are ill and cannot get the health care they need, they have more school absences, difficulty learning, and they do not learn how to care for their own health.  The mission is to work collaboratively with local medical partners to provide accessible primary care from birth through high school. The need of the unmet health care needs of children in our community.  An average0 5-7% of ICCSD students lack health insurance.  There are now more than 400 homeless students in our communities.  There are several barriers to health care:  Lack of health insurance, Unaffordable, copay or deductible, Parent does not speak English, Parent cannot take time off of work, Lack of transportation.  Why we have school-based clinics?  Convenient locations, comfortable environment for students and families, minimizes time away from learning.  Early identification of health problems by school personnel.

Phil Peterson introduced Adrianne Korbakes Chief Operation Officer of CommUnity Crisis Services.  CommUnity is located at Pepperwood Place in Iowa Cit.  CommUnisty began in 1978.  The mission of the crisis center is:  To provide weekly grocery and household items to the residence of Johnson County. There is grocery delivery and a mobile pantry.  There are 15 cites for delivery. 

Financial Support:  To help educate and help with employment items, ID and Birth Certificate assistance, provide clothing, household items, gas vouchers, rent and utility assistance, security deposit, help with careers, and provide laptops for students.  

Crisis Helpline Service (CHS) Two Iowa Crisis centers to answer the 988 Suicide crisis line.  The training for crisis hotline volunteers is for a 60-hour time frame.  There has been additional staff for LBGQT individuals. There is now a Mobile Crises Response Unit (MCR) was launched in 2015, dispatches in Iowa and Johnson counties, providing a variety of services for youth mobile crisis, DEI support, counselors on call.  CommUnity has purchased Kinder Farms of 9 acres.   

CommUnity's funding is provided through grants, contracts, and in-kind donations. 

  

Mark Patton introduce Michelle Kenyon, Executive Director of Field to Family.  She served on the Johnson County Food Policy Council from 2013-2019 serving as Chair for 6 of those 8 years.  She serves on three statewide councils:  The Iowa Food Hub Managers Working Group, Iowa Community Foo Distribution Committee and was recently appointed by Iowa's Secretary of Agriculture to the state Local Food and Farm Advisory Council. The mission of Field to Family works sto create a more local, healthy food system.  We envision a region where people ear with the seasons, where farmers make a living, and our ecosystem is diverse, and healthy. 

Field to Family supports Farm to School serving 36 schools within 100 miles, Online Farmers Market, Wholesale Procurement, Local Food Explorer.

They Grow Wholesale, Education, and Connections.  For additional information:  info@fieldtofamily.org.

Karin Franklin introduced today's speaker Brenda Gardner speaking on Electric Vehicles. She spoke about all the advances in electric vehicles.   The city has an electric bus and is looking at Fire Trucks and many other city vehicles.  Charging stations are very important to the infrastructure of electric vehicles.  Level one.  Plug into a standard 120V wall outlet. Connectors are provided with most EVs.  Great for overnight of workplace charging. Ideal for commutes up to 40 miles.

Level 2.   240-volt outlet   Faster charging for longer drives DC fast charge.  Must faster charging at public locations.  There are fully electric and gas and electric known as hybrid vehicles.  500 gallons save is equal to 119 trees planted and growing for 10 years.  

Mark Patton introduced Dr. Lee Alward who has published over 250 articles and books, worked for the National Health Service in Alaska years ago (and built a dog sled there), and is a Professor Emeritus in the Department of Ophthalmology & Visual Sciences at the University of Iowa Carver College of Medicine. Dr. Alward started his talk with "a guy who walks into" and proceeded to describe a patient who had glaucoma and also had many family members who developed glaucoma at a young age. Glaucoma is a disease that damages the optic nerve and is the leading cause of irreversible blindness in the world. Dr. Alward's daughter, Dr. Erin Boese, also studies and operates on glaucoma patients. Because of this gentleman's family and another family, Dr. Alward and others have been able to study the genetics of glaucoma with the end goal of making better treatments. Current treatments may include medical management (e.g., drops) to lower eye pressure and surgical treatment. Dr. Alward's presentation about how "following a family with inherited glaucoma has led to the discovery of an important gene for glaucoma" which has important ramifications going forward, was fascinating.