Friday lunch bunch meetings be on the following dates below, meeting at Liberty Public House at 12pm, please let Cliff McFerren know if you're coming so that food may be ordered.
Feb 16th
Feb 23rd
February Thursday meeting NOW be on Wednesday February 7th, at the West Liberty Highschool Auditorium, as our club will be hosting the screening of "My Ascension" a documentary on mental health. More details below to read on!
Inviting local community members of West Liberty Community School District and surrounding areas to a free screening of the film My Ascension. This free event includes a question and answer session after the screening. You can find more information with the image attached.
Free Screening of My Ascension: a documentary film to spread hope and fight suicide
Wednesday, February7th
6:00pm:
Welcome and Screening of My Ascension
West Liberty High School Auditorium
A series of miracles saved Emma Benoit’s life, but the self-inflicted gunshot shot wound resulted in a spinal cord injury that left her paralyzed. Although extremely tragic, the incident propelled her on a mission to use her painful experience and miraculous recovery to help others find hope and live.
Followed by Q&A with Chris E. Martin, MSW, LMSW, PhD; NAMI and local mental health advocates.
If you or someone you know needs help, call or text the Suicide and Crisis Lifeline at 988 or text the Crisis Text Line — HELLO to 741741.
Join us, Friday, February 9th, from 11:55 AM-2 PM at the West Liberty Community Center for this quarter's West Liberty Business Association Luncheon, presented by West Liberty Foods. All community members are welcome to attend, please RSVP so we have lunch for you. RSVP to weleadexec@gmail.com
Early Childhood Iowa Muscatine County Director Kaitlyn Wintermeyer will be our guest speaker.
As always, hear from other community organizations about what is coming up in West Liberty!
100 Year Project update:
As of last Meeting December 8th, 2023 - Ken Brooks has an update of the following for the 100 year project:
1 year away on dec 21,2024 and new logo to kick it off! There will be time to host several committee events for publicizing rotary and fundraising for rotary. So far we have Fair activities along with the Hot Cocoa at WL Holiday Open House
The Ball Drop fundraiser is to be coordinated with when the Football Field and Athletic Complex is opening up next fall. Ask Ken and Jacob for more details or any questions you have.
Also there will be a Spring Fundraiser towards the 100 year which is a Murder Mystery Progressive Dinner that Allie Paarsmith is heading up. Anyone wanting help more with the Spring Fundraiser please get with Allie Paarsmith.
Other Ideas discussed in the coming months.....
Movie theatre for family night or movie nights at Ron de voo
Musicians sponsored with Ron de voo summer of arts group with lph
Free swimming at the pool for summer
Christmas ball in December - celebration, invite entire community, 1920’s theme, community center or school due to having a video with members to be shown
100 banner on poles work with chamber potentially
100 year shirts
Again, any questions please contact Ken Brooks and Jacob Burroughs.
Rotary Theme for 2024-2025 has been announced!
#Rotary President-elect Stephanie Urchick revealed the 2024-2025 presidential theme, The Magic of Rotary, today: "We are not going to end polio or bring peace to the world by waving a wand. It's up to you. You create the magic with every project completed..."
Welcome to Week ONE of RI’s Month of Peace & Conflict Prevention/Resolution.
Yemen, Syria, South Sudan, Afghanistan, Ethiopia, Ukraine, Israel-Hamas…the list goes on of major conflicts in this century alone. The conflicts have exacted a devastating toll on civilians. Communities are continuously caught in the middle — killed, displaced and pushed into starvation as conflict blocks aid and cuts off communication. The violence has also wreaked havoc on health facilities and other infrastructure, making it that much harder for organizations to reach and help people.
This is the month Rotary International devotes to issues of peace and conflict prevention and resolution all around the globe. TRF’s Trustee Chair, Barry Rassin reminds members that, “…in these times, we need to shift our focus from what we can’t change to what we can do. We can also support what we know works.” Rassin further believes that peacebuilding and conflict prevention is one of RI’s areas of focus because, “…peace is central to everything we do in Rotary.
Even though most of us aren’t diplomats at the negotiating table or peacebuilders working on active conflicts, in Rotary’s regular way, what we do works to promote peace and prevent conflict somewhere, every day…When you support any of the areas of focus of The Rotary Foundation, you are contributing to peace. Foundation grants that address fundamental issues –such as a global grant focused on enhancing basic literacy in a community—will cultivate a better understanding of the world and lead to greater economic stability, laying the groundwork for peace.”
(Barry Rassin, “The groundwork for peace.” Rotary, February 2024: 56).
In Rotary,
Olabisi Gwamna, PhD
Mount Pleasant Rotary
Editor, Foundation Minute
No new Wild Polio cases reported this week. We are now 11 weeks since the Onset of Paralysis of the most recent reported Wild Polio Case - in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Pakistan.
Note - The 2023 Total Case Count numbers will not be final for a couple of months due to discovery and lab testing times.
Consider this: Wild poliovirus once paralyzed 7,000 children a week. In 2023, that number was only 12 children—over the entire year. That progress was possible because of brilliant innovators who discovered breakthroughs and frontline heroes who made sure that solutions reached children, even in the most remote parts of the world. And so much of that was possible because of philanthropy: Rotary International, our foundation, and other organizations dedicated to a future where polio is a thing of the past. From the 2024 Gates Foundation Annual Letter
Total Wild Polio cases
Year-to-date 2024
Total
2023
Total
2022
Total
2021
Total
2020
Globally
0
12
30
6
140
- in endemic countries:
0
12
22
5
140
- in post-endemic countries:
0
0
8
1
0
2024 Wild Polio Case Total - 0
2024 Circulating Variant Polio Case Total - 0
2023 Wild Polio Case Total 12 - Afghanistan 6, Pakistan 6
2022 Circulating Variant Polio Cases – 914 in 26 Countries
2023 Circulating Variant Polio Case Total - 492 Benin - 3, Burkina Faso - 2, Burundi - 1, Central African Republic - 14, Chad - 53, Cote d' Ivoire - 6, DR Congo - 223, Guinea - 42, Indonesia - 6, Israel - 1, Kenya - 8, Madagascar - 24, Mali - 12, Mauritania - 1, Mozambique - 5,Niger - 2, Nigeria - 74, Somalia - 5, South Sudan - 2, Tanzania - 3, Yemen - 4, Zambia - 1, Zimbabwe - 1.
New Polio Cases & Samples reported this week - (all cases 2023)
Angola: one cVDPV2-positive environmental sample
Benin: one cVDPV2-positive environmental sample
Chad: two cVDPV2 cases
Côte d’Ivoire: six cVDPV2-positive environmental samples
DR Congo: three cVDPV1 cases and one cVDPV2 case
Guinea: eight cVDPV2 cases and four positive environmental samples
Niger: one cVDPV2 case and one positive environmental sample
Nigeria: four cVDPV2 cases and two positive environmental samples
Senegal: one cVDPV2-positive environmental sample
Yemen: one cVDPV2 case
Zimbabwe: one cVDPV2-positive environmental sample
Quote of the Day - "How people feel matters more than what they think. As such, we'd be wise to use language that speaks to people's emotions whenever possible." Michael McQueen, Author of Mindstuck - Mastering the Art of Changing Minds
The Final Two Polio Endemic Countries:
Pakistan No new Wild Polio cases reported this week. No Wild Polio cases reported in 2024. Six Wild Polio Cases reported in 2023. Twenty Wild Polio cases reported in 2022. The most recent case had an onset of paralysis on 11/15/23. No WPV1 Samples and no cVDPV2 Positive Environmental Samples were reported this week in Pakistan.
Afghanistan No new Wild Polio cases reported this week. No Wild Polio cases reported in 2024. Six Wild Polio Cases reported in 2023, Two Wild Polio Cases reported in 2022. The most recent case had an onset of paralysis on 9/4/23. No WPV1 Samples and no cVDPV2 Positive Environmental Samples were reported this week in Afghanistan.
Advocate, Donate & Educate to END POLIO NOW & FOREVER!
20,500,000 Children Saved from the Paralysis of Polio
Our Goal is Global Polio Eradication!!
Terry Ziegler, Polio Update Newsletter Editor
Rotary Region 36 END POLIO NOW Coordinator 2024-27
It is February and we are almost out of snow. Attached you will find our February 2024 Chamber Chat full of events for the month.
Thank you to all of our Members that have sent in their membership forms this past month, we greatly appreciate it and it's not too late for anyone that was caught up in the piles of snow to send in their membership.
Our Membership online form is below- we have started our membership drive and can't wait to have all our members join us this year. Great events and gatherings are happening for all! Paper form is in the Chamber chat for this month- attached below.
Secretary of State Sign Proclamation for Slavery and Human Trafficking Prevention Month
Governor and Secretary of State Sign Proclamation for Slavery and Human Trafficking Prevention Month
On January 11th, Governor Kim Reynolds and Secretary of State Paul Pate signed a proclamation declaring January 2024 as Slavery and Human Trafficking Prevention Month in Iowa. This event was held at the Rotunda of the Iowa State Capitol Building and was organized and sponsored by the Iowa Network Against Human Trafficking and Slavery. Despite the snow and low temperatures, 72 concerned Iowans from across the state attended. The photo shows Lieutenant Governor Adam Gregg and Secretary of State Paul Pate holding the proclamation surrounded by Network Board members. Governor Reynolds signed the proclamation but attended the funeral of Ahmir Jolliff, the sixth grader who was murdered at his school in Perry, Iowa.
Following the proclamation board signing, Outstanding Anti-Trafficking Service Awards were presented to five Iowa heroes. This award honors individuals and organizations that have made remarkable contributions to ending trafficking in Iowa. Next month’s blog will pay tribute to these five Iowa heroes.
Also note that if your spouse/partner are both members of our club, you are getting 2 copies of the Rotary Magazine, that will change effective January 1, 2021 to where your household will only receive 1 copy now.
.png)
