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Minutes of the August 19, 2021 Meeting
The Rotary Club of Mobile
Call to Order: The meeting was called to order by Elizabeth Stevens at 12:15 PM.
Beverly Gibson offered the invocation. Tommy Blankenship led the Pledge of Allegiance and Bob Chappelle introduced the meeting guests.
ANNOUNCEMENTS
• Board meeting today
• Reminder that Rotary General Grant Fund applications are on our website
NEW MEMBERS
Brent Baker was introduced by Claire McCarron
Program: Michael Ledger, President and CEO, Feeding the Gulf Coast. He was introduced by Michael Holland.
Michael Ledger joined Feeding the Gulf Coast in June 2019 as the Florida Branch Manager. Under Michael’s leadership, the Florida Facility distributed nearly 15 million pounds of food throughout the Florida Panhandle, equating to over half of the food bank’s distribution. Michael consistently implemented strategies to serve those in need while overcoming challenges presented by limited facility space and ongoing Hurricane Michael and Covid-19 response efforts. Michael was promoted to President & CEO in July 2020. Michael has over 30 years of experience with business development and operational strategy and has brought food bank experience and diverse management leadership to Feeding the Gulf Coast. He enjoys music, athletics, travel, and spending time with his two adopted dogs
Feeding the Gulf Coast is one of 200 members of the Feeding America national program. This regional chapter began in September 1980 and covers 24 counties in southern Mississippi, southern Alabama and the Florida Panhandle. They have some 400 partner agencies across the 24 counties that they assist in providing food. They feed approximately 300,000 people per year and have distributed some 318million pounds of food. They acquire from grocery stores, farmers and of course individual and corporate donations. According to Mr Ledger, there are 132,970 food insecure families in their 24 counties which represents 19.7% of the family population of his geography. One in four children as a subset are also food insecure. Feeding the Gulf Coast is mostly volunteer driven and there were some 225thousand hours volunteered in 2020. Feeding the Gulf Coast provided 39% more meals during the pandemic in the last year than in previous years.
President Stevens thanked Mr Ledger for his presentation and noted that, in his honor, a donation had been made by the club to Dauphin Island Sea Lab.
Adjournment
The meeting adjourned at 12:59 PM.
Rob Diehl

Minutes of the August 12, 2021 meeting of the Rotary Club of Mobile
Call to Order: The meeting was called to order by club president Elizabeth Stevens at 12:15 PM.
Invocation: Bill Clark offered the invocation.
Pledge: Larry Sindel led us in the Pledge of Allegiance and song while Bob Chappelle welcomed guests of members.
Announcements: Elizabeth made the following announcements:
• Invited Claire McCarron to come forward and announce the upcoming birthdays of members.
• Invited Ernest Ladd forward to discuss the Tarpon Tournament which took place on August 7th. Ernest thanked the sponsors, especially Regions Bank. He announced that the overall winner who caught a tarpon was…Ernest Ladd. He mentioned other winners and said plaques will be distributed at an upcoming meeting.
• A board meeting will be held after the luncheon on August 19th.
• Please see our website regarding Rotary General Fund Grants for further information and applications. Deadline is at the end of October.
• An upcoming event at a downtown brewery will benefit the polio program and will be announced at a later date.
Program: Mark Nix – Mobile Infirmary President and CEO
Michael Holland introduced Mark Nix, who first recognized the historic link between the Rotary Club of Mobile and the Infirmary which dates back 90 years. The original ward for crippled children eventually became the Rotary Rehab Center at the Infirmary, he said.
Mr. Nix said that the Mobile Infirmary was created as a non-denominational hospital 110 years ago and is now the largest non-governmental healthcare system in the state, with nearly 1.4 million patient visits a year.
The Infirmary has recognized the growth areas of Saraland and Baldwin County and has built medical clinics and physicians offices in both as well as hospitals in Bay Minette and Fairhope. Another component has been free standing emergency centers.
Nix cited the importance of the Infirmary’s partnership with UAB in the area of specialized cancer treatment. While surgery may take place in Birmingham, follow up care may be handled in Mobile.
The current crisis over Covid 19 was discussed next. Hospitals are full and the emergency rooms are being over-run, he said. The large number of un-vaccinated are falling victim to this new strain which he said developed as the old strain was weakened by the vaccine. He said that a virus will morph into new strains to survive. Hospital care for other emergencies is being impacted he added.
Please keep first responders and health care workers in your prayers, said Mr. Nix. They are working 12 hour shifts and are short- handed. If you have a neighbor in that field offer he or she a helping hand.
After answering questions, Elizabeth thanked him for speaking and said that a donation to the Dauphin Island Sea Lab has been made in his honor.
Before adjourning, Elizabeth said that Barton Academy opened yesterday and that all went well. She hopes that a tour may be arranged so that members may see the facility and the classroom which this club sponsored.
The meeting adjourned at 1:05 PM.
Tom McGehee

Minutes of the July 8, 2021 meeting of the Rotary Club of Mobile
Call to Order: The meeting was called to order by club president Elizabeth Stevens at 12:15 PM.
Invocation: Gravsi Gartman Ethridge offered the invocation.
Pledge: Tommy Blankenship led us in the Pledge of Allegiance and welcomed guests of members, one of whom presented the club with a banner from his club, the Sunrise Rotary Club of Birmingham.
Announcements: Elizabeth made the following announcements:
• Invited Claire McCarron to come forward and announce the upcoming birthdays of members.
• Invited Ernest Ladd forward to discuss the upcoming Tarpon Tournament scheduled for August 7th. Ernest said that there were still spots for anglers and that the boat fee has been reduced and the range of species expanded to include croakers and catfish. He asked that members please consider being a sponsor of this important fundraiser for our club.
• There will be no luncheon meeting on August 5th and instead the Captain’s Reception for the Tarpon tournament will be held at Ruth’s Chris beginning at 5:30 PM.
Program: Electric Vehicles Are Coming
William Latta introduced our speaker, Francisco Codina, a retired executive with Ford Motor Company. Mr. Codina discussed the coming of electric vehicles which he said are being rapidly developed. He explained that the demise of the internal combustion engine is inevitable as nations around the world legislate future deadlines when they can no longer be sold or used in their countries.
Air pollution worries is one reason for the push he said and noted that China now produces 30% of it in the world followed by the U.S. at 15%. China has joined the push for electric vehicles – not because of those worries but to take financial advantage of the changes it will bring. The only nations not participating he said, are Iran, Turkey and Iraq.
Automobile producers are working to improve the range of electric vehicles since that is one of the chief concerns of consumers. He noted that in a traditional car the engine costs 10-20% of the total price where with an electric vehicle that percentage rises to up to 40%.
In an “electric world” gasoline stations will have to be changed over to charging stations and currently it takes up to 40 minutes to fully recharge and that this needs to improve.
Mr. Codina used a power point presentation to share images of concept electric cars, SUV’s and pickup trucks under production in factories stretching from Austin, TX to Detroit. All are silent, have the 0 to 60 acceleration of a Porsche and a price tag to match.
After answering a number of questions from the audience, Elizabeth thanked Mr. Codina for his presentation and said that a donation to the Dauphin Island Sea lab has been made in his honor.
The meeting adjourned at 12:55 PM.
Tom McGehee

Minutes of Rotary Meeting
July 22, 2021
By Kathy Miller
Call to Order: The meeting was called to order by Garrett Williamson, President-Elect of the Rotary Club of Mobile, at 12:00 p.m.
Invocation, Song and Pledge: Buz Wilcoxon gave the invocation and Larry Sindel led the song and Pledge of Allegiance.
Announcements: Ernest Ladd announced that the Tarpon Tournament is scheduled for August 7th. Garrett announced member birthdays this week.
Program: Frank Harkins introduced Julia Starr, Executive Director of The CORE Project, Inc. Ms. Starr explained that CORE stands for Creating Opportunities Reaching Everyone. The program serves children on the autism spectrum as well as those with other developmental and intellectual disabilities. Mrs. Starr, who is from Trussville, Alabama, has four children, two of whom have special needs. She noted at the beginning of the program that children are being diagnosed with autism faster than support for them can be created and that the rate of diagnosis has more than doubled in the last five years. She outlined the economic impacts on families, including the costs of caring for the children, which increases in conjunction with the extent of the intellectual disability and of mothers being less likely to be able to work outside the home or working fewer hours. It is estimated that medical expenses for children with autism are more than four times higher than average.
CORE was founded with the principle that it should “Be The Change.” CORE is purpose-driven, mission-based and vision-focused. CORE’s founders recognize the need to serve all individuals with autism in a way that is specialized for each child and to serve the support system that surrounds each child. CORE seeks to provide help and hope where there is little by creating quality educational opportunities, fostering ongoing critical support networks and optimizing community care. CORE seeks to move from “labeling” to living and to provide a continuum of care with seamless transitions including year-round education, collaborative onsite medical and ancillary therapy services, adult day services, respite care and residential facilities. Projects include the CORE Clinic, the CORE Academy, the CORE Life Program, which includes job skills training, and CORE Respite, which provides support for parents. Ms. Starr also spoke on autism in adulthood and pointed out that over the next decade, an estimated 700,000 to 1,116,000 teens will enter adulthood and age out of school-based autism services, that more than half of young adults with autism remain unemployed and unenrolled in higher education and that nearly half of 25 year olds with autism have never held a paying job. She described the CORE Life Program and examples of training opportunities for potential employees, seeking out what children with autism want to do. After Ms. Starr answered questions from members, Garrett presented her with a Certificate of Appreciation for speaking to the Club.
Closing Remarks and Adjournment: Garrett announced the program for next week and adjourned the meeting at 1:00 p.m.
Kathy Miller
Contributing Editor
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