Tuesday, June 16, 2009

Waste Not, Want Not!

OPENING: Terance White, the new Club Service chair, tried his hand at Sargeant-at-Arms duties including taking attendance and meeting and greeting Rotarians and guests to the 3746th meeting of St. George Rotary while SA’s Bob Bramlage and Jack Petersen looked on and applauded his efforts. Ray Robinson lead the SGR choir in an usually solemn version of "My Country, Tis of Thee." Don Pendleton, finally back among his Rotary friends after open heart surgery, lead the Pledge of Allegiance. Eldon McArthur asked for the blessings of heaven on the meeting and the meal. Greg Basso lead a spirited Horseplay with Shar Heitkotter collecting fines on behalf of the Guatemalan stove project.

ANNOUNCEMENTS: President Jeff Morby announced that Ken Sizemore, president-elect and Gil Trujillo, District Governor-elect are winging their way to Birmingham, England for the Rotary International Convention on June 22-24.

PROGRAM: Lindsey Hirst, a student at Dixie State College who oversees the KidSpace after-school program shared information about her program which sees an average of 30 boys and girls at five school sites around the county. From 3:30 - 5:30 p.m. each day, students get help with math, reading and other homework and do crafts at Coral Cliffs, Red Mountain, Riverside and Sunset Elementary schools.

Jennifer Harris, recycling coordinator for Washington County Solid Waste shared information on the first recycling initiative in the history of southern Utah. Part of the "Don’t Waste Dixie" program, recycling paper, plastics, metal and glass is designed to reduce the county’s 122 million pounds of landfilled materials - an average of 2700 pounds per household - while raising funds for special community programs such as parks and recreation and Hurricane’s Peach Days. Harris reminded Rotarians of the difference between garbage and trash. Garbage is a term for food waste, while trash is a term for all other unwanted items - and is actually a resource which can be recycled and reused. The WCSW has already recycled over a million pounds of trash and raised more than $15,000 in the process. The receptacles - called Binnies - are located at numerous highly visible and easily accessible sites around the county. "We have a good start on getting local residents to recycle. There are many people who have an emotional connection to the process or who have come from other communities where recycling is ‘the norm’," states Harris. "But there are those who think it’s a lot of effort for nothing. We still have lots of work to do to convince everyone of the value of recycling to our community and its future."

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