Meeting Report from March 20, 2002

Meeting

Rotary Wheel

Report

March 20, 2002
By RANDALL GROVES

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     So many Rotarians from so many Rotary clubs celebrated "Service above Self" at the 25th Annual Rotary Joint Luncheon. The meeting got under way on time when Clayton Payne, the CARA President, introduced the presidents at the head table and their respective clubs: Jim Woodward—Charlotte, Faithful Dubois — Charlotte East, Kai Schnaidt — Charlotte North, Carl Roger — Charlotte South, Thomas Crosby — Top of the Week, Mike Hunter — University, Roger Carpenter — Charlotte West, Ed Key — Dilworth, Paul Barnhill — Matthews/ Mint Hill, Jim Hayes — Mecklenburg South, Paul Baumgardner — North Mecklenburg, Jerry Helms — SouthPark, and Marcos Bomfen — Independence.
     After Bobby Smith gave the invocation and led the hundreds of Rotarians in the Pledge of Allegiance, Rotarian Bill Beck introduced Sandra Baldwin. The beginning of Ms. Baldwin's presentation was a delightful series of video clips highlighting the glorious young Americans who experienced the heady joy of victory and the painful moments of defeat. A special delight was seeing the respect and appreciation of our country and our flag. The video carried the Rotarians from the spectacular opening ceremony to the faces of the American Olympians, from the stunning exhilaration of skating by Sara Hughes to the rush of the successes by the American bobsled teams. Ms. Baldwin observed that the Rotarians seemed better suited for curling than competing on bogie boards or speed skating with Yoho Ohno.
     Ms. Baldwin informed us of the boys-club character of the International Olympic Committee when she first became involved in the Olympic program as a swimmer. Since she is now both the President of the United States Olympic Committee and a member of the IOC, it is obvious she has been involved in the changing character of the Olympic program. She is a graduate of the University of Colorado and she now resides in Phoenix with her family.
     The main points of her presentation focused on early involvement in competitive sports and fund raising for supporting the Olympic contenders. The fund raising seems more difficult, since there are fewer "old guys in blue blazers." The economics of the program are severe; few of the medal winners will convert their medals into great monetary rewards. Actually, only the figure skaters have a strong expectation of $1,000,000 incomes. The US Olympic Committee receives no federal subsidy. A city that sponsors an event may expect to receive government benefits in the way of infrastructure, i.e., roads, dormitories and event centers. The Federal government received great security training at the Winter Olympics, especially in communications and coordination.
     Ms. Baldwin pointed to the need for children to have a more organized school athletic program. It seems that only Illinois has a mandatory physical education requirement. From her experience, she pointed to the need to dream, but that is not planning, because the planning must include funding for training. This includes scholarships for athletes, facilities and coaches.
     In the Q & A time, she talked of the USA assuming responsibility for developing and training athletes from 42 under developed nations. Surprisingly, she forecast a brief skating career for Sara Hughes due to her height. She had not previously mentioned the bribes and scandals of the IOC, but in response to a question, she stated that changes had been made. In the past,'the members of the IOC were appointed. Now they will be elected by member nations. As to the role of NBA players in the Olympic games, she felt it was a bad situation. If the pros do not win by 30, they are loafing; if they win by 80, they are seen as bullies. This is not a problem in ice hockey because the pros are from so many countries, that when they play for their native land, the amateurs get more opportunity. She suggested a maximum age for the pros appearing in the Olympic games. The time of testing for drug abuse is the essential item in future enforcement, so the testing must occur when the athlete is training and not just before or just after the competition.
     The meeting adjourned on time, and the traffic jam began because the hotel had only one exit open.

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Rotarians at a Glance

267 Rotarians are men
32 Rotarians are women
15 Honorary members

71 Rotarians have more than 25 years membership
66 Rotarians have between 10-25 years membership
42 Rotarians have between 5-10 years membership
30 Rotarians have between 3-5 years membership
60 Rotarians have between 1-3 years membership
30 Rotarians have less than 1 year membership

56 new members in the past 2 years
25 resignations since beginning of this Rotary year

33 Rotarians are 40 years old and under
70 Rotarians are over 70 years old

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DID YOU KNOW?

What happens when you file a NEW MEMBER PROPOSAL (Do not FAX. Signatures on original blue form necessary):

• Rotary office prepares a JACKET with Route Sheet and forwards PROPOSAL to CLASSIFICATION Committee which awards a classification if available;

then forwards it to Rotary Office for processing; then to MEMBERSHIP COMMITTEE.

• Approval or rejection by membership committee.

• Board Approval of recommendation.

• Rotary office sends RELEASE form granting permission to admit to ballot [if approval not given on back of PROPOSAL].

• If approved by membership [10 days in ballot] proposer is advised by letter to arrange for Rotary Information session.

• When Rotary Office receives 4 documents explained at Information meeting Sponsor is ADVISED to introduce the new member at next available Rotary Luncheon.

• New Member is introduced.

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DID YOU KNOW?

The 2001 Council on Legislation approved changes providing more flexibility in attendance and membership. Five (5) persons per classification are now allowed in the Club. With this in mind, it is strongly encouraged for each member to sponsor someone for membership. Contact Doug Bean, Classification Chair, if you have questions about a classification. Also refer to the Classification Index beginning on page 172 in the new 2001-2002 Roster.

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