Rotary Club of Eureka, California

Meeting of the Rotary Club of Eureka
February 13, 2012

President-Elect-Elect, Ziggy Ziegenfuss, filled in for President Greg who is currently on vacation in the land of rainbows and leprechauns.  He must be doing research for our March 10^th Mardi-Go-Braugh Celebration!

The Pledge was given by Ken Stodder and the Invocation by Mike Leggins.

Visiting Rotarians

Liana Simpson (Eureka Old Town), Jim Seiler (Fortuna and father of our own Greg Seiler), Laura Morris (Eureka Southwest), Scott Hunt (Arcata Noon) and Susan Diehl McCarthy (Arcata Noon).

Student Guests

Our student guests were Tonje from Norway, as well as Erin Knight and Catherine McGibbon from Eureka High School.

Guest of Rotarians

Dick Storre brought his wife Debbie, Greg Williston brought David Thorwaldson of Ray Morgan Company and Mike Cunningham brought Bruce Smith of Premier Financial Group.

Birthdays and Anniversaries

There were no birthdays or anniversaries this week.

Announcements

President-Elect-Elect Ziegenfuss reminded all the ladies that there will be a ladies picture taken after the meeting on the 27^th.  Please make sure all ladies remember to attend and be part of the photo.

Pat Folkins gave a historical look at the club, and his experiences during his tenure as President in 1987-88.  His gave some funny club highlights, musings of past attendance requirements and make-ups, the introduction of women into the club, and advice for Ziggy when he becomes our President in 2013. 

Susie Smelser came to the podium to receive her Blue badge.  Her arrival was rife with comment about the Scouts ending up in a different council than expected…apparently we are now part of the Crater Lake Council, not the Mount Diablo Council. 

Susan Diehl McCarthy from the Arcata Rotary announced that they will be holding their Spring Wine Festival on Sunday, March 4^th, from 3-6pm in the Kate Buchanan Room at Humboldt State.  The cost is $40 per person for a sample of Humboldt County Wines and hors d’oeuvres.  All proceeds benefit the Rotary Club of Arcata’s Community Service Projects.  Click here for the event flyer.

John Bradley announced Backpacks for Kids needs volunteers.  Bag assembly is every Thursday from 4:45-5pm at Humboldt Moving and Storage.  Enter from the back off of Albee Street, between W 14th and W 15th Streets.  Just a heads up….get there early.  If you get there at 4:45, they will be nearly done!  Click here for a list of the packing dates and the school delivery schedule.  If you haven’t spent an afternoon packing, it’s also a great way to meet or catch up with friends from other clubs.

Ted Loring reminded everyone that March 31^st is the play, Much Ado About Nothing at the North Coast Repertory Theater.  Specially priced tickets are $25 per person or $60 for four people.  What a deal!

John Bartholomew, from the Vocation Services Committee, reviewed a table handout on the mentoring opportunities through the Humboldt County Office of Education’s Decade of Difference Initiative.  Mentoring tomorrow’s business leaders by sharing our professional background and skills is a great way to serve our community’s youth.  Teacher and class information, as well as contact information for this program, can be viewed by clicking here.

Recognitions

Jason Eads was recognized for branching out on January 1, 2012 and starting his own law practice!  Ziggy made sure Jason purchased a nice new Rotary tape measure to keep track of the piles of paper he’s sure to accrue due to not having any help!

Dale Warmuth also purchased the rest of his blue tape measure.  Apparently he appeared recently for one night only in heels and a purple skirt at the Elks Lodge in Eureka.  Ziggy had a picture, but was nice and didn’t scare us with it!  Unfortunately, Dale’s good natured participation in a charity fundraiser found him later that evening in the ER getting stitches.  He mentioned that he did have the foresight to ditch the purple skirt and heels before going to the hospital!

Program 

Paul Brisso, following Pat Folkins’ lead, gave a nice summary of his year as a Red badger during Pat’s tenure as club President, praising his sponsor, Ron Angel.  He then introduced our guest speaker, Humboldt County District Attorney, Paul Gallegos.  Paul earned his undergraduate degree in 1986 from USC where he studied Economics.  He then attended the University of LaVerne College of Law where he earned his Juris Doctorate in 1991.  After practicing law in Southern California for a few years, Paul moved to Humboldt County in 1994.  He was subsequently elected District Attorney in 2003 with re-election wins in 2006 and 2010.  He is married to fellow attorney, Joan, and has three children.  He enjoys spending time outside a, particularly surfing. 

Mr. Gallegos noted that while the DA’s office has a reputation for dealing with multiple marijuana-related issues, that is not the main issue they deal with on a day-to-day basis.  As he summarized, they keep extremely busy dealing with “serious and violent individuals and sex offenders.”  He mentioned that the jail facility in Humboldt stays overbooked due to only having 380 or so beds.  Only those most serious of offenders actually are placed in jail.  Unfortunately, due to overcrowding, many of those convicted misdemeanor offenders who should otherwise be in jail are not, due to the overcrowding issue.  He also explained that many offenders who are found guilty are subject to state-defined sentences and his office is not able to otherwise augment sentences. 

**Mr. Gallegos’ presentation was briefly interrupted by a 5.6 earthquake.

Ahhh, the joys of experiencing an earthquake in a liquefaction zone.

Click here for more information on the latest shaker.**

One member asked about the Occupy Movement and it’s impact on the community.  Mr. Gallegos explained that this wasn’t necessarily an issue of the DA’s office for several reasons.  One of these reasons was that most of the issues with the Occupy individuals are more of an infraction, not misdemeanor or felony offenses.  Therefore, they are basically sited and released.  He also stated the original Occupiers were joined by others who weren’t necessarily there to protest, but rather hang out.  Eureka, being the county seat, enjoys a large presence of folks who are homeless and mentally ill.  Many of these individuals have joined up with the Occupy movement.

After several more questions from the audience, he clarified that the criminal justice system is put in place to deal with criminal issues, not issues of mental health.  However, there is often a blending of these two as those with mental issues frequently end up in the criminal justice system.  It then becomes a circular effect for people in this position.  Due to cuts in mental health services in California over the years, this problem will likely grow in the future.  Ultimately, however, it ends up with the traditional 80/20 rule in effect. 

President-Elect-Elect Ziegenfuss ended the meeting promptly at 1:31pm.

Respectfully submitted,

Stacy Lane