Rotary Meeting 4/25/2017

ROTARY CLUB OF MARANA

CLUB MEETING 04/25/17

MINUTES

Submitted by Randy Brooks

Pledge and invocation were completed. The song this week, as selected and led by John Dooling was “Old McDonald” he received the support and encouragement of many club members. 

Visitors today: Lori Malagone, Executive Director of Arizona Youth Partnership (AZYP).  She submitted her application for membership today and the board will ask for a vote soon from members. Also there for his last visit was PDG Tom from the Tri-Cities of Washington and a proud member of the Rotary Club of Kennewick.

Also, not at the meeting but mailing an application in for membership today is Richard Benner, Jr. Richard is with the Boy Scouts of America and works as a field director.  Need to introduce him to Don Jorgensen, our own Eagle Scout.  We hope Richard will be invited to a meeting so we can all meet him before voting.

Four of our members are going to the district 5500 conference this weekend: President Mary, Don Jorgensen, President Elect Joe Holt and PDG Randy Brooks.  Don will attend as well as work at the Shelter Box booth.  We will also have a booth for “Tour de Cookie, “and at the booth giving out a limited number of T-shirts and cookies. 

President Mary discussed how the club is running at a deficit at this time.  Our dues, happy bucks and raffle tickets just keep us afloat. This will need to be addressed in Jo Holt’s term as president.

Mary discussed a program the probable next new member may propose.  It consists of mentoring middle school aged children at a local school.  The mentoring may be done individually or in groups.  This notion was just floated as an idea.  Four members said they would be interested.  We will surly need more participation and the issue was tabled until more information is learned about the mentoring, when, where and expectations.

Drawing: Randy won and lost again. It’s become a weekly ritual.  “You can’t win if you don’t play.”

 

The speaker today is LuAnn Gerker, Ph.D., University of Arizona, Psychology Department.  Her specialty is in childhood early language.  You may reach her at gerken@emial.az.edu.

LuAnn spoke of the need for children to read to children during the last three months of pregnancy. She states children can distinguish the tone and vibration of sound waves from the mother and others that are speaking.  She spoke of how children are most pliable and able to comprehend different languages in the after first six month of life.  

She indicated it is hard to recruit mothers to allow studies to be done on babies.  She reminded us of the days when expectant mothers were in the paper and new babies are not announced like they once were.   Some of the tips offered by Dr Gerker were:  Talk to your baby, be a storyteller and repeat the stories often, even if the child is not learning quickly treat them “as if”, they are learning.

She told Don that the children can be taught to “speak” using sign language but they do not develop the nuance of vocabulary as other children might.  She mentioned that baby listen for sound and music.  However they do not appreciate hip-hop.  I made that up so don’t go telling her playing hip-hop for your in utero children has done wonders for the baby.  After 7 years of age it becomes much more difficult to learn language. So start early with those kids.

Thank you Dr. Gerken for a very interesting presentation.

Meeting adjourned.  Thanks to all of you for helping our community.