Rotary Club of Marana
 
                                                                            
 
 
     Announcements: The Marana Chamber of Commerce’s 20 for ’20 Guide to Marana is out. We encourage you to give a good look. Our Marana Rotary Board Meeting is moved to Wednesday, March 11, at John Dooling’s office.
     Happy bucks given for: Grateful for family (Carl); a Science Fair-winning daughter (David); attending Peter’s Citizenship Ceremony and trip to Antarctica (Don); feeling like “I really belong here” at our Rotary meetings (Peter) and passing his pilot’s flight physical (Harold, 54 years and counting).
     Javier Avalos of Spectrum Ina Road Auto Collision was our guest speaker and spoke to us about the demand for auto and collision repair technicians. Dramatic changes in the automobile industry, such as electric cars and hi-tech bells and whistles, present challenges to the automotive and collision repair shops. Newer cars have from 32 to 40 computerized components that require technicians to test, not guess, what repairs need addressing, Javier said.
     To keep up with the technological advances, the county needs a robust J-Ted and J-Tech programs to train prospective high school graduates in auto and collision repair. Starting salaries range from $35,000 to $40,000, and five years’ experience could lead to salaries exceeding $75,000. New technology – self-parking cars, self-driving cars – is here and someone needs to be able to fix the technology, Javier explained. The good news is that Pima Community College broke ground in November 2019 on a new J-Tech facility for its Automotive Technology and Innovation Center.
     Thank you, Javier, not only for your longtime support of the Marana Rotary, but also for your 30-plus years of business leadership.
Laura Clymer, Secretary