Join in the Jubilee

June McAfee and Lee Warren welcomed Rotarians and visitors to the 3719th meeting of St. George Rotary held Monday, November 24, 2008 at the Dixie Center in celebration of the 28th Annual Jubilee of Trees hospital fundraiser. Ray Robinson lead the SGR Choir in the first and fourth verses of "My Country, Tis of Thee." Lee Warren ("the flag man") invited members to follow him in the Pledge of Allegiance and Reed Noble asked for the blessings of heaven on the meeting and the meal. Nick Lang conducted a lucrative Horseplay while Kris Neal collected fines in support of the Childrens Justice Center.

Richard Brown’s name was read for a second time as a prospective new member. Richard is being sponsored by Ken Seefeld and will come into the club with a classification of Attorney. Comments relating to Richard's upcoming induction should be directed to any board member.

Richard Isom displayed the new DRB t-shirts and sweatshirts - all done up in festive red and navy blue. He also announced Rod Zundel will serve as the emcee for the DRB Banquet and SGR's own Steve Radmall - longtime secretary to the DRB Foundation board - has been named Parade Grand Marshall.

PROGRAM: Chris Coons, IHC's Southwest Region Vice President, introduced the program, thanking Kerry Hepworth and the hundreds of volunteers who take part in many ways in the success of the Jubilee of Trees, now in its 28th year. Chris expressed the need for funds from the Jubilee and other sources to purchase a much-needed Life Flight helicopter. Gary Stone, Southwest Region Vice President, reiterated the need, noting the hospital has been using its fixed wing aircraft since 1989 which “can’t land on I-15 or in a remote location in Zion National Park. In this challenging geographic region, we need this new technology with a crew of trained critical care nurses."

Julie Gerth, Emergency Department Manager, noted a Life Flight helicopter will shave off 16 minutes in emergency situations. "Sixteen minutes may not sound like much, but minutes matter to heart muscle. This equipment will save lives! DRMC is already one of the top 100 hospitals in the United States with a 99.6% response time within 90 minutes, but we can still improve the quality of life for the citizens of Washington County.”

Kerry noted, “the goal is to raise $2.3 million by 2010. The machine actually costs $7.2 million, but IHC will cover the cost of $5.6 million. We’ve already raised $1 million through events such as the Jubilee of Trees and the Jubilee Cup. With this helicopter, we can save the lives of pre-mature babies, accident victims, heart attack victims. We always need more volunteers and more donors.”

Meet Chad Michaeli

Born and bred in St. George, Chad Michaeli is a homeboy to his core. A graduate of Dixie High School (where he was a Flyers linebacker), Dixie State College and Southern Utah University with a Masters in Accounting, Chad is now an auditor with the accounting firm of Hafen, Buckner, Everett and Graff. While in high school, his career goal was to be a chef, but after an LDS mission to Australia, Chad decided to study accounting instead while also serving in the National Guard as a medic for more than a dozen years. After returning from his two years in Australia, he married the girl "who followed me home," but she passed away not long after they were married. He later married the former Debra Larson. When he’s not pouring over someone’s financial data, Chad particularly enjoys any and all time spent with his wife Debra and the couple’s four children - reading, camping, fishing or just being outdoors.

What attracted him to St. George Rotary Club? "Gerry talked me into it. He had nothing but good to say about the club and its members, and I wanted to get to know people and have a chance to hang out with someone other than a bunch of boring accountants!" Sponsored by Gerry Buckner, Chad’s classification is Auditor.

Teams Announced for 2008 Dixie Rotary Bowl

At the Holiday Inn on Monday, November 10, Reed Noble and June McAfee greeted Rotarians and visitors to the 3718th meeting of St. George Rotary. In commemoration of the 233rd anniversary of the U. S. Marine Corps, Ray Robinson conducted the SGR Choir in a resounding "Marine Corps Hymn." Lee Warren ("the flag man") invited members to follow him in the Pledge of Allegiance and Lee Sheets asked for the blessings of heaven on the meeting and the meal. Due to the meeting topic, President Jeff pronounced a 1040 for $3 per member present in lieu of Horseplay. Funds raised will be donated to the Children’s Justice Center.

Announcements: President Jeff announced Kimberley Johnson has been given a new assignment with the state of Utah and as such, will be leaving the area and St. George Rotary.

The SGR board meeting will be held Wednesday, November 12 at the Five County Association of Governments office.

The November 24th meeting of SGR will be held in the Entrada Room at the Dixie Center which will be hosting the Jubilee of Trees.

Dean Nixon needs 3 - 4 band judges for the Dixie Rotary Bowl parade.

Program: Gary Benson, chairman of the 23rd annual Dixie Rotary Bowl, expressed his thanks for the outstanding work done by assistant chairman Richard Isom and to all members of the DRB planning committee, including Steve Johnson, Ed Rogers, Ro Wilkinson, Phil Tuckett, Dian and Bunk Robinson, Ray Robinson, Jeannine and Stan Holt, Lee Pratt, Don Pendleton, Dean Nixon, Kris Neal, Ken Isom, Jeff Morby, Eldon McArthur, Kyle Case, Eric Cook, Lisa Hayes, Brock Bybee, Lil Barron, Linda Baker and Bill Fowler.

Richard Isom shared TV spots soon to be showing across the state. He also introduced representatives from the Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference (RMAC) and the Great Northwest Athletic Conference. Mike McGary from Cherry Creek Radio stations announced the "Orediggers" from the Colorado School of Mines in Golden, CO and the "Vikings" from Western Washington University as the teams to face off in the Dixie Rotary Bowl on Saturday, December 6.

The Colorado School of Mines in Golden, is a public research university devoted to engineering and applied science. It has the highest admissions standards of any public state university in Colorado and has distinguished itself by developing a curriculum and research program geared toward responsible stewardship of the earth and its resources. In addition to strong education and research programs in traditional fields of science and engineering, Mines is one of a very few institutions in the world having broad expertise in resource exploration, extraction, production and utilization.

Western Washington University in Bellingham is one of six state-funded, four-year universities of higher education in the U.S. state of Washington. The university is located in Bellingham and offers bachelor's and master's degrees. In 2007, US News ranked Western Washington University number two in the public, master's universities (west) category, while placing 18th overall in the west (both public and private).

Both teams are enthusiastic about participating in the nation’s first bowl game of 2008 being held in St. George, including a national TV broadcast.

Meet the House Candidates

On Monday, Nov. 3 at the Holiday Inn, Jack Petersen and June McAfee greeted Rotarians and visitors to the 3717th meeting of St. George Rotary. On the eve of an historic national election, Ray Robinson lead the SGR Choir in a thoughtful rendition of "The Star Spangled Banner." Lee Warren ("the flag man") invited members to follow him in the Pledge of Allegiance and Nick Lang asked for the blessings of heaven on the meeting and the meal. Steve Johnson conducted an energetic Horseplay while Jerry Rasmussen collected fines in support of the Children’s Justice Center.

Announcements: Ray Robinson introduced Laura Schroeder, a student with YouthLINC preparing for an adventure in Thailand.

Richard Isom invited SGR members to sign up for the DRB golf tourney. He also introduced the first collectible DRB made-in-America souvenir pin. Team announcement will take place next week.

Thanks to Linda Sappington for the article in the Neigborhoods section of the Spectrum about the recent dictionary project. June McAfee expressed her appreciation to all who participated. The last two schools will receive their dictionaries this week.

Ken Sizemore, reporting on the recent membership training in Provo, noted SGR remains constant in the club’s efforts to increase membership by 12.

Program: Jeannine Holt introduced David Clark ( R) incumbent and Terence Moore (D) opponents in the race for the District 74 seat in the House of Representatives. Moore expressed his appreciation for the opportunity to challenge Representative Clark noting he believes no candidate should run unopposed. He encouraged members of SGR to "vote your conscience . . . to let your voice be heard." Clark expressed his appreciation for the opportunity to represent this area for the past eight years and thanked his understanding employer (Zions Bank) for their support. "I wouldn’t trade a single day in the Legislature, although there are some days I certainly would not want to relive." Noting 5-6% of the total population of the state live in southwestern Utah. This year, Dixie State College received more funding than the University of Utah. He also noted Utah is the #2 state in the nation for doing business, the best fiscally managed state in America with a AAA credit rating. Moore noted "everyone should get into politics, then get out!" On the questions of ethics in government, Clark noted "there is not one of the 104 members of the house I have any questions about." Jeannine Holt reminded members to "don’t forget to vote!"