Reporter:Ron Cooley
President Heather opened the meeting but had technical
difficulties so we started in a non traditional manner.
Heather told us that the RI President was inspired (quote from Rotarian March 2015):
"We in Rotary aspire to great deeds. We look up
to and admire the towering figures of history who gave such great gifts to
humanity. Abraham Lincoln, who gave the gift of human dignity to so many. Mother Teresa, who gave the gift of compassion
to the forgotten. Mahatma Gandhi, who gave the gift of peaceful change to the
oppressed. All of them gave their lives to others – and their very lives became
gifts to the world. Cannot we in Rotary be, in our own way, a small gift to the
world?"
We skipped
O'Canada
John Edgell gave the
invocation
Sandy Currie
introduced the Visiting Rotarian's and Guests.
Visiting Rotarians:
Allen Lin: Vancouver Centennial; Creole
Carmichael: Victoria; Bruce Willets: Laguna Beach, CA;Elizabeth May:
Sidney by the Sea
Guests:
Helga
Jacobsen; Eileen Lavigne - guest of Steve Sharlow; Lloyd Hildebrant; Jenny
Hildebrant ; Colleen Force – guest of Jim Force; Jessica Van Der Veen; Lynne
Murray; Mandi Pui; Laura Mali
President
Heather and Wendy Townsend presented Jim Force with his Past President pin and
a plaque.
Bill
Burns was recognized for receiving the Citizen of the Century from Courtney.
Well done. He did try to protest he was not that old.
President
Heather inducted 2 new members. Jenny Hildebrant and Mandi Pui where
pinned by their respective sponsors Anne McIntrye and Jim Force.
Announcements:
Mary
Canty informed us that John Snively and Tricia Timmerman were battling smoke in
Nelson. They will have to wait for the snow to put the fires out. Ted Chambers
has rejoined us. International service committee will meet after the next
meeting on July 21,15
Lori
McLeod was our Celebrations Master and 1st of 2 speakers. She did fine herself
for her "shameless plug of Elder Care."
Lori
stated that 22 million in funding is available to help prevent isolation of
sebiors. On Vancouver Island alone, we have 40,000 seniors (above 55) and
Southern Vancouver Island has 19,000 seniors of which 14% have no one to turn
to which leaves them feeling disconnected and undervalued. This leads to a
60% increase in Alzheimer disease in this group.
Lori
stated that they would be 100% connected if they were Rotarians and fined
us all.
We
were fined if we did not get out and enjoy our lovely inner harbor; we did
not meet with family or friends this summer; Bill Burns was fined for his
Century of age; Rod Sim was fined for over aggressive collections (the EU could
use his help);Heather was fined (she offered herself up) for not being a
good example and wearing her Rotary Pins
We
sang Happy Birthday to Heather (it was last week) Lorna Curtis' is on the 18th
Happy
& Sad $:
Jim
Force had a happy $1.10 (all he had left) for the return of 1 flag after the
Oak Bay news article. Ryan Gisler had a happy $2 for his sister getting married;
John Edgell $2 for surviving 2 weeks of grandchildrens visit;Dallas
thanked everyone for her card and Joan Firkins for all of her help; Anne
McIntyre for her Red eye trip to Toronto (happy or sad?); Heather Aked gave $69
to the Rotary Foundation for a combination of her birthday and anniversary but
did not break it down. How old is Alexander?; Heather suggest Lori should be
fined for her long intro. Joan
Peggs won the draw but not the big prize.
Guest
Speaker: Naida Hyde introduced our Speaker Elizabeth May OC, the Leader of the
Green Party and Member of Parliament for Saanich-Gulf Islands. Naida covered
the following about Elizabeth May, in her introduction: Elizabeth was born in
Connecticut but when she was 18 after a holiday to Cape Breton, her family
upped sticks and moved there. Travel can have a profound effect on your life. Naida and Elizabeth have a couple of things
in common. The both are long time supporters of girls education in Lesotho.
They both have an aunt Mary. Elizabeth's aunt Mary said "Life has much
more imagination than you or I." Elizabeth has chosen Life with a capital
"L" She quotes Norton Juster in The Phantom Tollbooth who says
"So many things are possible just as long as you don't know they are impossible."
She embraces the Ghandian principle "having more can never replace
being more." As a lawyer, she could have embraced the corporate world but
instead took on the directorship of the Sierra Club of Canada.
She
is the proud mother of Cate as well as 3 step-children and grandmother to 7.
Elizabeth
is an officer of the Order of Canada, received for her decades of environmental
work.
She
is an author and has a new book (8th) Who We Are. Farley Mowat says
"Elizabeth is a storyteller in the Grand tradition."
Joe
Clarke, former Prime Minister calls Elizabeth May "Canada's most effective
Parliamentarian." She was 2012 Parliamentarian of the Year; 2013 Hardest
working MP;
2014
Best Orator.
“Join
me in welcoming the woman who danced barefoot in the sand with Bella Abzug”.
Elizabeth May:
Elizabeth
suggested that she should quit while she was ahead. That was the most lovely
and generous introduction she had ever had. Rotary is non partisan, she said,
and non political but with only 97 days to the next election she would be
cautious. She said that it is like a protracted job interview. She said it is
the single greatest honor to be elected to represent her constituents.
She
suggested she could have had a number of vocational classes in Rotary: Author; Chef ;
Waiter; Chimney Sweep.
Growing
up, Elizabeth's family was well off; her father was VP of Aetna insurance. She
said her parents had an inadequate concept of financial planning. They started
a restaurant in a town of 42. Her mom
said they were "nouveau poor"
Elizabeth
started her career as a policy analyst in Ottawa. At that time, the Westminster Parliamentary conventions
followed by Parliament in Canada government was different to procedures today. All
members were equal.
The
Prime Minister’s job was not considered full time and often they held a
portfolio. The PM's office consisted of a few file clerks and assistants.
Since
the early 1970's she has seen a steady increase in the PM office as everyone
consolidates power and adds to it. The last 4 decades has changed a lot. Prior
to that, the PM did not interfere in proposed legislation. Debates were
very open and non partisan with sincere evaluation about what the best
choice was. It was also open to new ideas which could be introduced.
Elizabeth
referenced Irresponsible Government: The
Decline of Parliamentary Democracy in Canada: Brent Rathgeber, Andrew Coyne
and said that basic respect is no longer observed. Parliamentarians no
longer hold government to account and we need to restore the traditional
conventions of the Westminster system.
Americans
brought a deep distrust of the excess of power to their constitution with
a system of checks and balances. An interesting fact she quoted was that the
entire graduating class of 1776 at Harvard moved to Canada. Elizabeth May is
hoping to restore respect across all party lines.
She questioned how we might control an excess of power? "Take away their money." The PM's office has 10 million dollars per year of funding that they are unaccountable for. The #1 goal is to improve the chance of getting re elected. 1980 was not that long ago and we could work together like Rotary for the good of the country.
John
Edgell had a question re Nestle using ground water. Because of B.C.’s
lack of groundwater regulation, Nestlé Waters Canada — a division of the
multi-billion-dollar Switzerland-based Nestlé Group, the world’s largest food
company — is not required to measure, report, or pay a penny for the millions
of litres of water it draws from Hope and then sells across Western Canada. Elizabeth
said this is a hot issue and water pricing is important. Canadians and
Americans are the biggest water wasters on the planet and we should not allow such
corporations to use ground water for resale
at any price.
She
spoke about the drawback of NAFTA allowing foreign corporations to sue the
government if a decision interferes with their expectation of
profit. The current agreement is in place until 2045.
Renata
Gibbs thanked Elizabeth and presented her with a unique Rotary mug.
President
Heather closed the meeting with the Sri Lanka National Anthem.
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