Burl 7/21/14
You could tell that things were going to be different this year, the year of President Gregg Gardiner, when what appeared to be secret service agents greeted us at the door. Inside, once you got past the table heaped with 101 Things to Do publications, lapel pins and new rosters, all the dining tables had tablecloths and real napkins. On the podium was the great seal of the President of Eureka Rotary. The food hadn’t changed. Fried Chicken, beef tenderloin, scalloped potatoes, mixed vegetables, salad bar and chocolate cake. Steve Allen was standing at the podium. He said he was Gregg Gardiner’s press secretary and proceeded to announce the arrival of the President and his entourage.
“Hail to the Chief” played over the loudspeakers as Gregg entered flanked by ersatz secret service agents played by Rotaract members. We all stood as “God bless America” played and he tried to get the club to sing along. They were awful. He called on Ken Stodder to lead the pledge, and Lisa Slack then gave the invocation, which was preceded by an Ode To Gregg. It went something like this: “I’m the president of Rotary, and my name has not two g’s but three. When they say “It’s spelled Gregg? You are pulling my legg!” I say that it’s gnus to mee.” Then Gregg was sworn into office by PP Will Kay, who used a copy of Alice in Wonderland in lieu of a bible. President Gregg said that due to a tight budget this year’s roster was privately funded by Greg and Hank Pierson, Glenn Goldan, and Lane Strope. PP Kim Bauriedel then commented that the great seal should say “President of the Rotary Club of Eureka” rather than “President of Eureka Rotary”. PP Pat Folkins concurred and fined Gregg 101 dollars.
Gregg reminded us of the District Governor’s visit on August 4th. Also this coming Friday at The Ingomar Club pool there will be an opportunity for fellowship from 5pm until someone falls in the pool. It counts as a make-up. Keith Crossley brought Kathy Cloney Gardiner and her daughter Kate Dimmick to the podium. Kate was presented with a Paul Harris Fellowship by her stepfather Gregg. Finally Gregg asked everyone who had picked up one of his publications at the entrance table to stand. Those who remained seated had to put $5 on the table. Then it was time for the Spengler Howard Science Fair drawing. It’s different this year. The first winner gets a bottle of wine. The second winner gets to draw from a deck of cards. If he draws the joker he gets the pot. If not $10 is added to the pot.
Our speaker was Superintendent of Eureka City Schools Dr. Fred VanVleck. He talked about the need for funds to renovate facilities. There are 10 school sites in the Eureka District and all are over 50 years old. They have leaky roofs, outdated electrical systems and funky restrooms. He stressed the need for up to date classrooms that can help students prepare for and compete in the competitive job market. He would like to bolster our vocational training: Mechanics, culinary arts, welding and woodworking. A bond measure is being proposed for the November ballot. Measure S will provide funds to improve and update facilities and equipment. Anyone with questions can contact him at vanvleckf@eurekacityschools.org. Gregg closed with a quote from Benjamin Franklin and asked us all to bring a guest to Rotary. The meeting ended on time. Submitted by Hank Ingham
Jul 22, 2014
Rotary Burl July 14 2014
July 14, 2014
This was the first meeting of Gregg Gardiner’s year as president, and also the first time we met off-site in at least a year.
The location was Lost Coast’s new brewery, under construction just off Broadway next to Tetrault Tire. Gregg did not attend because he was in Tahiti with his wife on a trip she had planned a year ago. (Happy wife=happy life). No chairs were provided, no toilets and no water. It was like camping indoors.
Jay Bahner was asked to fill in. We met in the soon to be completed meeting room upstairs. It was BYOC – bring your own chair. Lunch was catered sandwiches in black Styrofoam. No drinks. Chuck Ellsworth led the salute to the flag and Dan Price gave the invocation, asking special prayers for Wayne Wilson, who is in ICU.
Our speaker was Barbara Groom, owner of Lost Coast Brewery. She came to the north coast in 1977. 10 years ago she began looking for property to build a new brewery.
Several deals fell through before she found a piece with industrial zoning, and then it took three years to get the plans through the city planning department. She hired an architect from Portland, but he designed a fancy brick palace for her. She fired him and got a designer builder to give her the look that she wanted –that of an old warehouse on the waterfront. She took us on a brief tour.
First stop, the mash tuns, where the mashed grain is steeped in water to extract the sugars. . The tanks were huge, and had to be shipped by truck from Stockton through Richardson’s Grove. Apparently there is a video on Youtube. Then we went to the fermenter where yeast consume the sugars and produce alcohol - making beer.
Finally
beer goes into another tank to be carbonated, and pumped to the bottling line or the keg filling line. In the center is a big cooler where the cases of beer and kegs are stored until they are ready to be shipped out. A lot of the construction was done by O & M industries and Mercer Frasier. The plant is about a month away from completion. When it’s done it will produce 300,000 barrels of beer a year. The old brewery had a capacity of 70,000 barrels. A barrel = 30 gallons. Tragically, no beer samples were available.
Submitted by Hank Ingham
This was the first meeting of Gregg Gardiner’s year as president, and also the first time we met off-site in at least a year.
 |
| No chairs unless you brought one. |
 |
| President Elect Jay Bahner |
 |
| Barbara Groom and Jay |
Several deals fell through before she found a piece with industrial zoning, and then it took three years to get the plans through the city planning department. She hired an architect from Portland, but he designed a fancy brick palace for her. She fired him and got a designer builder to give her the look that she wanted –that of an old warehouse on the waterfront. She took us on a brief tour.
 |
| Fermentation tanks |
Finally
 |
| The club goes off site |
Submitted by Hank Ingham
Jul 7, 2014
Jun 30, 2014
Meeting of the Rotary Club of Eureka
June 30, 2014
The meal: meatloaf, scalloped potatoes, salad bar and dessert.
The pledge went by so fast that I missed who led it. The invocation was given by Dr. O’Brian of St. Joe’s who said he was used to doing it.
Ziggy Ziegenfuss, our outgoing president, had his engineer’s cap and engineer’s outfit on for the debunking.
Gregg Gardiner announced that members wishing to sign up for a committee should make their preferences known, or they would be unilaterally assigned.
Hank Ingham was called on to present his usual power point presentation insulting and belittling the President of the club and calling his tenure a train wreck. No insult was spared. It was the cleverest thing anyone had ever seen.
Next was the ceremonial throwing away of the rosters, followed by Nancy Dean presenting Ziggy with a model train.
Then the crowd was invited outside, where someone had parked a cement truck and garbage truck. An ambulance sat waiting. Dave Dillon talked about admitting Ziggy into the Past Presidents club. He said they took a vote, and 73% abstained.
Carlton Nielsen took the mic and made a comment that everyone wanted a piece of Ziggy, so he was going to put him in handcuffs and attach chains to his wrists, and then have the two trucks put him apart. Cooler heads intervened and the two trucks left, but not before the garbage truck hoisted up a garbage can full of unanswered correspondence from Ziggy’s rotary year. When they left we discovered a trolley parked behind them.
Ziggy posed for pictures and then drove everyone around the parking lot. Let’s all do this again soon.
Submitted by Hank Ingham
June 30, 2014
The meal: meatloaf, scalloped potatoes, salad bar and dessert.
The pledge went by so fast that I missed who led it. The invocation was given by Dr. O’Brian of St. Joe’s who said he was used to doing it.
Ziggy Ziegenfuss, our outgoing president, had his engineer’s cap and engineer’s outfit on for the debunking.
Gregg Gardiner announced that members wishing to sign up for a committee should make their preferences known, or they would be unilaterally assigned.
Hank Ingham was called on to present his usual power point presentation insulting and belittling the President of the club and calling his tenure a train wreck. No insult was spared. It was the cleverest thing anyone had ever seen.
Next was the ceremonial throwing away of the rosters, followed by Nancy Dean presenting Ziggy with a model train.
Then the crowd was invited outside, where someone had parked a cement truck and garbage truck. An ambulance sat waiting. Dave Dillon talked about admitting Ziggy into the Past Presidents club. He said they took a vote, and 73% abstained.
Carlton Nielsen took the mic and made a comment that everyone wanted a piece of Ziggy, so he was going to put him in handcuffs and attach chains to his wrists, and then have the two trucks put him apart. Cooler heads intervened and the two trucks left, but not before the garbage truck hoisted up a garbage can full of unanswered correspondence from Ziggy’s rotary year. When they left we discovered a trolley parked behind them.
Ziggy posed for pictures and then drove everyone around the parking lot. Let’s all do this again soon.
Submitted by Hank Ingham
Jun 23, 2014
Meeting of the Rotary Club of Eureka
June 23, 2014
Today’s menu: beef stew over rice, deep fried cod over
scalloped potatoes, paper over rock, rock over scissors, scissors over
paper. Dessert was chocolate cake.
Greg Bowen led the pledge.
Dan Heinen gave the invocation.
He asked us to include Wayne Wilson and Paula Patton in our
prayers.
Matthew Owen introduced his daughter Molly who had just
returned from a year of Rotary exchange in Thailand. She had lots of fun, learned a little Thai,
and had to leave quickly when the military staged a coup.
Gregg Gardiner introduced new member Jerry Reece, former
owner of McDonalds in Eureka, who is now in the cruise business.
PP Tom Schallert encouraged participation in Rotary
events.
Ziggy then tried to rid himself of his remaining
t-shirts. Sue Bosch got one for her 58th
anniversary. Joan Davies got one for
visiting the Dominican Republic. Ray
Wickel got one for driving up from Arizona.
Gary Todoroff got one for going to Swaziland. Kurt Barthel got one for consulting. He had about 24 shirts left over that will
probably end up in a dumpster, so if you see a homeless person in a blue Rotary
T-shirt, don’t mistake him for a Paul Harris Fellow.
Our speakers were –Sequoia Park
Zoo General Manager Gretchen Ziegler and Foundation President Chuck Dominic who
talked to us about their Watershed Heroes project. It will include their new displays for River
Otters, Salmon and Bald Eagles. The
grand opening is July 26th.
They have some new exhibits: Bush dogs ,a gray parrot, and Yaks. Their future master plans include adding a
redwood canopy walkway. They will also get some additional animals like
wolverines, Tamarinds, and kudzu.
The zoo is now the oldest operating zoo in California. It’s also one of the smallest accredited
zoos. It’s owned by the City of Eureka. The city budget for the zoo is $900,000. Additional revenue comes from the admission
fees, snack bar, gift shop and the Sequoia Park Foundation. They have two fundraisers: Zootini on August 14th, and Brew
at The Zoo. Some money comes from
ransoming small children who wander away from their parents. Unclaimed children are fed to the Bush
dogs. (disclaimer: Bush Dog is not a political statement). Thank you for reading this far. You can go now.
Respectfully submitted,
Hank Ingham
May 19, 2014
May 12, 2014
Meeting of the Rotary Club of Eureka
May 12, 2014
Menu: Slices of beef, slices of ham, mashed potatoes, gravy, mixed vegetables, ciabatta rolls, and a salad bar.
John Bartholomew led the pledge. Dan Heinen gave the invocation.
Announcements
Christian Hill reminded us that the annual Rotary raffle is May 31 at Baywood. This year’s theme is the Great Gatsby, so dress in your zoot suits.
President Ziggy announced that he will be in Santa Cruz next week and President elect Jay Bahner will be at the helm.
We still need $6,300 in donations for Rotary International but the good news is that Rockport Health Services will match up to $3,100 of that sum. Be generous.
The Club photo was on display in the lobby. You can have your own personal copy for $25. For a wallet size that you can trade with Rotarians from other clubs see Don Leonard.
Science Fair coordinator Mel McGuire introduced 10 of the 16 students sent to the big science fair in LA. They won four awards-two 3rd places and two honorable mentions competing against 1000 other students. Projects included Tsunami Wave barriers, immersing vegetables in hot water to make them last longer, dimples on airplane wings, earthquake isolation systems, hand sanitizer tests, and the effects of stream pollution on invertebrates. The students were all very articulate. Support the Science Fair.
Program
Our program was The East West Railroad proposal, narrated by our own David Hull. Co-presenter David Tyson couldn’t make it because he’s in Pt. Arena living out his dream of working as an acting city manager and, Ziggy informed us, living above a bakery. The railroad proposal calls for a line running from the Bay to the Central Sacramento valley. When and if it’s completed, our deepwater port will be connected to the rest of the world.
There are millions of dollars in potential business including transporting automobiles shipping vegetables to China, carrying bales of marijuana to Chico, and freighting coal and iron ore. This would create many jobs. They have formed the Upstate Rail Connect Committee and are looking for $300,000 to fund a feasibility study. Is it feasible? Got money? They have lots of support from the Central Valley, the Wyott tribe, and the cities along the way, but no funding yet. For more information visit www.ci.eureka.ca.gov.
Next week: A proposal for a wagon road between White City and Weaverville.
Submitted by Hank Ingham
May 5, 2014
May 5, 2014
Meeting of the Rotary Club of Eureka
May 5, 2014
Buenos Dias e bien venudo a Rotary. Fue el Cinco de Mayo y Bob Palmose pidió liderar el juramento a la bandera. Steve Justus dio la invocación. We were asked to include Steve Beckman in our prayers. He’s no longer able to attend meetings.
In honor of Cinco de Mayo, we had two Mexican favorites: Chicken Cordon Bleu or Beef in sauce over fettuccini, su elección.
Announcements
Two Interact students came up to announce that they are raising money to go to Rotary Exchange. The club is paying them $1,500 to scan all the old Rotary Burls before they disintegrate. They offered to scan some of our older members for the same reason.
Gregg Gardiner gave a Fireside attendance report. 40% of the club signed up, but only half of those showed up. There are a few more Firesides this week.
President Ziggy had been called this morning at the last minute to drive the St. Joseph shuttle, so he was not organized.
Recognitions
NCAA fundraiser winners, Bruce Emad and Jay Bahner, got Ziggy’s special $150 Rotary t-shirts. Then Ziggy started picking on losers and Don Leonard and John Winzler got t-shirts. Bill McAuley got one for just showing up, as did Jay Reed.
We had the drawing, and I didn’t win.
Speaker
Then it was time for our speaker, Debbie Farber-Bush- her topic: Arcata Main Street’s 24th Annual Arcata Bay Oyster Festival. This popular summer event draws 10,000 to Arcata in the month of June. Oyster lovers come from near and far. This annual event is a Humboldt County tradition.
Over 70% of the fresh oysters consumed in California are grown in 450 acres of Humboldt Bay, where the conditions are ideal. Currently there are five companies raising both Pacific Oysters and Kumomoto oysters for export and the restaurant trade. On average, it takes 18 months from "seed” oyster to harvest. June is a peak month for oyster harvests in Humboldt County. These little gems of the sea are now farmed in bags tethered to posts in the Arcata Bay and no harmful dredging of the bay is necessary for their capture.
Ms. Farber-Bush is from a company called Greenway Partners that supplies temporary managers for such projects as Reggae on the River and Arcata Main Street. She took over the festival after last year’s controversial fence incident. The festival will not be fenced off this year. Otherwise it would be a “fencetival.” It will feature more local vendors. The samba dancers are coming back. Five local bands will play. They are putting a barrier in front of the local bars and limiting the number of exits to control crowds. Popular contests are returning, including “Shuck and Suck” or maybe that’s one of the bands. It’s the 14th of June, just before Father’s Day.
Scrito por Enrique. Yo soy un hombre sincero, de donde crece la palma.
Aka: Respectfully submitted,
Hank Ingham
May 5, 2014
Buenos Dias e bien venudo a Rotary. Fue el Cinco de Mayo y Bob Palmose pidió liderar el juramento a la bandera. Steve Justus dio la invocación. We were asked to include Steve Beckman in our prayers. He’s no longer able to attend meetings.
In honor of Cinco de Mayo, we had two Mexican favorites: Chicken Cordon Bleu or Beef in sauce over fettuccini, su elección.
Announcements
Two Interact students came up to announce that they are raising money to go to Rotary Exchange. The club is paying them $1,500 to scan all the old Rotary Burls before they disintegrate. They offered to scan some of our older members for the same reason.
Gregg Gardiner gave a Fireside attendance report. 40% of the club signed up, but only half of those showed up. There are a few more Firesides this week.
President Ziggy had been called this morning at the last minute to drive the St. Joseph shuttle, so he was not organized.
Recognitions
NCAA fundraiser winners, Bruce Emad and Jay Bahner, got Ziggy’s special $150 Rotary t-shirts. Then Ziggy started picking on losers and Don Leonard and John Winzler got t-shirts. Bill McAuley got one for just showing up, as did Jay Reed.
We had the drawing, and I didn’t win.
Speaker
Then it was time for our speaker, Debbie Farber-Bush- her topic: Arcata Main Street’s 24th Annual Arcata Bay Oyster Festival. This popular summer event draws 10,000 to Arcata in the month of June. Oyster lovers come from near and far. This annual event is a Humboldt County tradition.
Over 70% of the fresh oysters consumed in California are grown in 450 acres of Humboldt Bay, where the conditions are ideal. Currently there are five companies raising both Pacific Oysters and Kumomoto oysters for export and the restaurant trade. On average, it takes 18 months from "seed” oyster to harvest. June is a peak month for oyster harvests in Humboldt County. These little gems of the sea are now farmed in bags tethered to posts in the Arcata Bay and no harmful dredging of the bay is necessary for their capture.
Ms. Farber-Bush is from a company called Greenway Partners that supplies temporary managers for such projects as Reggae on the River and Arcata Main Street. She took over the festival after last year’s controversial fence incident. The festival will not be fenced off this year. Otherwise it would be a “fencetival.” It will feature more local vendors. The samba dancers are coming back. Five local bands will play. They are putting a barrier in front of the local bars and limiting the number of exits to control crowds. Popular contests are returning, including “Shuck and Suck” or maybe that’s one of the bands. It’s the 14th of June, just before Father’s Day.
Scrito por Enrique. Yo soy un hombre sincero, de donde crece la palma.
Aka: Respectfully submitted,
Hank Ingham
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