Category: Meeting Minutes

Todd Greer holds the title as the Chief Catalyst for The Exchange 202 facility in downtown Mobile. Mobile’s first true “co-working” shared space developed with the impetus from John Peebles and Allan Cameron. The facility at 202 Government Street opened officially on October 5, 2015.
Todd explained, “Because of today’s technology, more and more workplaces have evolved into sharing centers.” Since, in many cases, we can work from virtually anywhere, we’ve lost the ability to converse on a personal level with others. Innovative ideas come often from bouncing ideas off of other people.
According to Mr. Greer, by 2020 nearly 60 million people will be freelancers, consultants and other “contingent workers.” Even though technology has made us the most connected society ever, we remain the most disconnected because of the lack of real community. In what may be one of the most intriguing aspects of this new system, community takes place among what may seem to be totally different businesses.
What makes this so interesting is that Exchange 202 can accommodate all types of needs, from the one-person entrepreneur, to the not-so-small business requiring meeting space and individual offices. There is a price level that fits most any need for today’s entrepreneur. As Todd mentioned, the world of coffee and community now exists alongside the world of technology.

Minutes of the Rotary Club of Mobile
Meeting of January 7, 2016
Call to order: The meeting was called to order at 12:15 by club president Robby McClure. Jan Endfinger offered the invocation and Gordon Korb led the overflow crowd in song accompanied by Bill Oppenheimer on the piano. Tom Martenstein welcomed member’s guests and a visiting Rotarian.
Student Guest: Branna Hokanson, a senior at Mary G. Montgomery High School, was introduced by her school’s principal. She plans to attend the University of South Alabama and major in physical therapy. She was awarded the club’s Youth Merit Award after discussing her experience in serving others.
New Member: Helene Hassell introduced Mimi Lyons Bell, Executive Director of the Providence Hospital Foundation, as our newest Rotarian.
Club Elections: Robby announced that elections will take place during next week’s meeting.
Cart Fund: Rob Hackbarth reminded members to donate to CART (Coins for Alzheimer’s Research Trust) using the blue tubs found at each table.
Program: Master Chief Jon Port, U.S.N.
Patrick McWilliams introduced Master Chief Jon Port who has served in the United States Navy for three decades. He gave a brief history outlining the importance of the Navy to this nation starting with the War of 1812 and bringing the subject up to the present day.
Port told his audience that the Navy protects the seas which carry some 98% of international trade for this country which he termed “a maritime nation.” Currently though, the Navy has shrunk to the size it was during World War I. While improvements to ships have resulted in their needing smaller crews he said that many of the ships are in need of repairs and that newer ships are needed.
He stressed a pressing need for more modern submarines to offset those being produced in China and North Korea which could hold nuclear missiles. Port thanked his audience for their support of the U.S. military personnel and its future.
After answering a number of questions, Master Chief Port received a standing ovation. Robby McClure thanked him and said that in his honor a donation has been made to the Dumas Wesley Center. The meeting adjourned at 1:00 PM.
Tom McGehee

Minutes of the December 17, 2015 Meeting
The Rotary Club of Mobile
Call to Order: The meeting was called to order by club president, Robby McClure at 12:15 PM. Stephanie Alexander offered the invocation and then Gordon Korb led the group in song accompanied by Les Greer on the piano. Tom Martenstein welcomed club guests.
Youth Merit Award: John Dukes introduced Alexandria Eubanks of Leflore High School who spoke on service noting the strong influence in her life by her mother and grandmother who were in attendance. Miss Eubanks plans on attending UAB.
Announcements: Robby McClure said that club elections are scheduled for January 14, 2016.
Rotary Children’s Foundation Distribution: Bo Mattei presented a check to Terri Baldwin who represents GoodWill – Easter Seals. The money will be used for their Child Development Center as well as their Medical Assistance Program.
Program: Little Sisters of the Poor
Tommy Fulton introduced Sister Marie Cecilia who described her journey from the business world to this Catholic order charged with caring for the elderly poor. She said that she has found her life with the Little Sisters of the Poor to be very rewarding explaining that while she may not be able to make water into wine she can strive to turn sorrow into joy for those in her care.
Robby thanked her for speaking to the club and said that in her honor a donation has been made to the Providence Hospital Foundation. He then reminded club members that our next meeting will take place on January 7, 2016.
Tom McGehee

Minutes of the December 10, 2015 Meeting of
The Rotary Club of Mobile
Call to Order: The meeting was called to order at 12:15 PM by club president, Robby McClure. Les Greer offered the invocation followed by Larry Sindel leading in song accompanied by Bill Oppenheimer on the piano. Tom Martenstein welcomed members’ guests and visiting Rotarians.
Announcements: Robby McClure made the following announcements:
• Thanked Laura O’Connor, Douglas Kearley, Barney March and Tom McGehee for their assistance with yesterday’s Children’s Christmas Party.
• Reminded members of the Old Spanish Trail Rotary Smoker taking place tomorrow here at the Battle House in the Oakleigh Room.
• Recognized Tommy Zoghby as a Paul Harris Fellow.
Ken Niemeyer reminded the group that he is collecting books for school children from Kindergarten to the third grade for the lending libraries Rotary is sponsoring.
Bo Mattei made distributions from the Rotary Children’s Foundation to representatives of the Mobile Infirmary, United Cerebral Palsy and MARC.
Program: Hidden Gems in our Neighborhood: Murphy and McGill
Cart Blackwell introduced two of our club members: Nick Holmes, III and Bry Shields.
Nick Holmes began the program with a power point showing the renovation of Barton Academy, the adjoining Yerby School as well as the repairs and renovations to Murphy High School following a tornado.
Barton Academy, he explained, had last been painted in 1970 and was in terrible condition. Photos showed the repairs made to the dome and replacement of missing columns and capitals. When the new windows were seen in the Yerby School behind Barton, members of the school board agreed to a change order to replace those in Barton as well. The new windows are all impact resistant he said.
Nick explained that the work at Murphy High School is about 70% complete and includes a completely remodeled kitchen and new air-conditioning throughout. Dropped ceilings were eliminated with the new air-conditioning and all wood trim has been refinished. The auditorium’s roof was replaced and its interior is now being restored to its late 1920’s appearance.
Bry Shields then discussed the many physical improvements being made to the campus of McGill-Toolen where he said the school motto is “Knowledge for the Love of God,” and where his students are expected to achieve the highest level possible. He said that McGill has invested $30 million in improvements over the last 20 years.
His power point program showed the school’s new science building, the Moorer Technology Center, the Banks Harris Track facility, the Lipscomb Stadium Complex, as well as the Crow Fitness Center. When the band hall doubled in size he said that the size of the band doubled as well.
In July of 2016 the new student center and dining hall will be completed. He said that the architectural style of the Spanish Colonial is being used to blend in with the surrounding buildings which include St. Mary’s Catholic Church and the original Toolen High School which was completed in 1928. That same style of architecture had been employed by Murphy High School just two years earlier, he added.
Robby McClure thanked Bry and Nick for talking to the club and said that in their honor a donation has been made to the Fuse Project of Mobile. The meeting adjourned at 1:00 PM.
Tom McGehee

Minutes of the 11.19.15 Meeting of the Rotary Club of Mobile
The meeting was called to order by President Robby McClure with Henry Seawell giving the invocation accompanied by Les Greer on the piano and Gordon Korb leading the song.
Our student of the week was Paige Reach from Citronelle High School who was introduced by Lena Llindsey, CHS Counselor. Ms. Phillips, grandmother to Paige was in attendance.
Cart Blackwell introduced our speaker, John Sledge, a notable local author and journalist who discussed his new book The Mobile River”.
Sledge began by telling the origin of the terms ‘stevedore’ and ‘longshoreman’. The former comes from the Spanish meaning ‘to pack your stuff’ while the latter is a nineteenth century Canadian term.
He told that the Mobile River began about fifty miles above the city near the present location of the formerly named TK plant where the Alabama and the Tombigbee join. The Mobile River drains about 45,000 square miles of the southeast.
He was inspired to write this by another series “The Rivers of America” which unfortunately, did not include Alabama rivers.
He described the river traveling through upland bluffs, marshy land and the bluffs.
Regarding local lore, the word Mobile is reportedly a Choctaw word meaning to paddle. When the French arrived c. 33 Mobile Indians were left due to disease brought by the Spanish. About 90% of the Mobile Indians died due to disease.
He went on to show pictures of local personages and scenes from the river noting the river was used in the 19th Century for commerce, industry and recreation and later shipbuilding came to be done on the river.
In the 1920s, the State Docks were developed ushering in a new and critical feature on the river. Next came the Bankhead and Wallace Tunnels. He mentioned that when the Bankhead was opened, local citizens were invited to walk through the tunnel for a period of days to get acquainted. One young boy eagerly came into the tunnel on roller skates, enjoying half the ride until he discovered the tunnel was build with an angle meaning the lowest point was in the middle. Sad for this child to reach the center to his surprise.
President Robby adjourned the meeting at 1 pm announcing a board meeting.
Submitted,
Rose Johnson
11.20.15

Dr. Michael Finan is the Cancer Center Director for the University of South Alabama’s Mitchell Cancer Institute. He spoke of the Center’s 5-year plan for expansion and why it is so important for our area. The Mitchell Cancer Institute is the referral facility for an area that includes East Louisiana, South Mississippi, South Alabama and West Florida. Not only does the Center work toward the cure of existing cancer cases, they have a huge emphasis on cancer prevention.
One of the examples of prevention includes a partnership with the Culinary Medicine center at Tulane University. South Alabama’s center has researchers working 24/7 to find cures and effective means of prevention. Many drugs are being developed to fight all kinds of cancer. In fact, they currently have a 50,000 lb. compound library for work on drug development. DNA is the source for all cancers, which is why the research is so focused on DNA.
In 2014, there were almost 3,000 new cases of cancer referred to USA’s Mitchell Cancer Institute. The “referral zone” mentioned by Dr. Finan includes more than 16,000 new cancer cases each year. Many of the patients in this zone are poverty stricken.
One of the major goals for Mitchell Cancer Institute is to become NCI-qualified by forming a Consortium with UAB. Dr. Finan mentioned that Mitchell has created 5 spin-off Bio-Tech companies for our area. Also, while minorities average ten percent of the patients nationally, MCI treats approximately thirty-nine percent minority patients.
In the next five years, USA expects to build a 20,000 square-foot facility at USA Health, a 12,000 square-foot facility in Fairhope, and a 48,000 square foot facility on campus.
Invocation was Laureen Lynn, Gordon Korb led us in the Song and Pledge, and Les Greer played the piano.

Minutes of the November 12, 2015 Meeting
The Rotary Club of Mobile
Call to Order: The meeting was called to order by Robby McClure, club president at 12:15 P.M. Chip Hale offered the invocation and afterwards Gordon Korb led the club in song accompanied by Bill Oppenheimer on the piano. Tom Martenstein welcomed visiting Rotarians and guests of members.
Student Guest: Linda Mayson introduced Jeon DaYoung, a student at the Alabama School of Math and Science as this week’s award winner.
Announcements :
• Robby announced that the board will meet on November 19 following the club meeting.
• In Helen Hassell’s absence Robby announced that the Membership Committee reports that 17 new members have joined our club since July.
• Robert Greer gave a brief presentation on the history of the Rotary Foundation and the $3 billion spent on causes since its modest start in 1917. He reminded the club that our $25 donation each quarter assists in these projects.
Program: Michael Chambers – Five Important Business Lessons
District Governor and Mobile Rotarian Michael Chambers was introduced by John Dukes. Michael discussed five important business lessons he has learned and shared them with an appreciative audience. The five are:
1. Evolve with change or perish. He gave the example of Eastman-Kodak which ignored the seismic change of digital imaging and stuck to film.
2. Recognize what could disrupt your business or someone else will. Michael gave the example of Wikipedia’s rise and the collapse of the encyclopedia.
3. Find good people and invest in them. He noted the wave of millennials born after 1985 who simply “do not think like us.” They are motivated differently and demand meaningful work and flexible work arrangements. There is a large competition for this age group, Michael added.
4. Set goals, establish deadlines and do not fear failure. Success he said can be incidental and noted the discovery of penicillin was by accident.
5. Remember that the way we communicate has changed drastically. Successful people learn how to reply quickly without losing that critical personal touch.
Michael applied these lessons to Rotary explaining that clubs must adapt to attract and keep younger and diverse members. He said it is vital to show prospective members that in addition to building personal relationships, the Rotary club accomplishes relevant and meaningful work.
After receiving a standing ovation, Robby thanked Michael for his talk and presented him with a certificate noting that in his honor a donation had been made to the Big Brothers/Big Sisters Program.
The meeting adjourned at 1:00 P.M.
Tom McGehee

Kerri Renee Coumanis presented a program titled “By Brick, By Bateau, By Block: Land Banking.” She described it as a stepping stone toward neighborhood revitalization. Currently, Alabama is ranked #9 in America in protection of private property rights.
One of the biggest challenges to our community is the increase in tax delinquent and vacated parcels in our inner city. Since post World War II, urban renewal has been managed by the Mobile Housing Board. Much has changed since the Revised Alabama Land Bank Authority Act, which was passed in 2013.
In cooperation with the National Redevelopment Project, our local authorities, such as the Mobile Historical Development Commission, are working to put abandoned properties back into the free market. Ms. Coumanis gave several examples of success stories, which have helped regenerate entire blocks, because of removal and repair of blighted properties.
Her examples included 458 Chatham, which was originally built in 1876, 450 Charles Street and 906-908 Delaware Street. These were also good examples of public/private cooperation in obtaining funding. Restore Mobile, Inc., is working in partnership with the City of Mobile to encourage revitalization.
Interestingly, Ms. Coumanis spends a substantial amount of time on Amazon.com. She related several stories about the hunt for ownership, and the challenges related to that search.
As of now, at least 46 properties have been positively affected by these programs in the last 2-3 years. A vivid example is the Old Shell Road corridor in midtown.

Minutes
October 29, 2015 Meeting
The Rotary Club of Mobile
Call to order: After a series of equipment malfunctions the meeting was called to order by club president Robby McClure at 12:15 P.M. Mike Brown offered the invocation and then Gordon Korb led the club in song accompanied by Les Greer on the piano. Tom Martenstein welcomed visiting Rotarians and guests of members.
Youth Merit Award: Abigail Denton, who is ranked first in the senior class of Baker High School, was presented this week’s award.
New Members: Laura O’Connor of the Mobile Area Chamber of Commerce was introduced by Les Greer. Clint McFerrin General manager of Cintas Uniform Services was then introduced by Bill Sisson.
Paul Harris Recipient: Bill Kinnaird was recognized as the newest Paul Harris Fellow.
Program: Downtown Parks Conservancy
Cart Blackwell introduced William Hanes and Kellie Hope who work with the Downtown Parks Conservancy which they explained, seeks to improve parks in the downtown area. A power point program highlighted local citizens’ thoughts on what makes a park successful.
Hanes termed Mobile’s Bienville Square as the city’s “Signature Park.” He said that through an alliance and support from the city and the Downtown Alliance, Hearin-Chandler Foundation, and the Sybil Smith Foundation, the organization has raised $100,000 with $29,000 set aside for the installation of tree lighting in the square. Ms. Hope said that the installation should begin shortly and be finished in six to eight weeks.
The rest of the money raised, Hanes explained, will be used to implement a master plan for the square for its continued improvement. His organization is in the process of receiving its 501C# status to allow donations to be tax deductible he added.
After a series of questions and answers, Robby McClure thanked the speakers and said that a donation in their honor has been made to the Child Advocacy Center.
The meeting adjourned at 12:55 PM.
Tom McGehee

Minutes
October 29, 2015 Meeting
The Rotary Club of Mobile
Call to order: After a series of equipment malfunctions the meeting was called to order by club president Robby McClure at 12:15 P.M. Mike Brown offered the invocation and then Gordon Korb led the club in song accompanied by Les Greer on the piano. Tom Martenstein welcomed visiting Rotarians and guests of members.
Youth Merit Award: Abigail Denton, who is ranked first in the senior class of Baker High School, was presented this week’s award.
New Members: Laura O’Connor of the Mobile Area Chamber of Commerce was introduced by Les Greer. Clint McFerrin General manager of Cintas Uniform Services was then introduced by Bill Sisson.
Paul Harris Recipient: Bill Kinnaird was recognized as the newest Paul Harris Fellow.
Program: Downtown Parks Conservancy
Cart Blackwell introduced William Hanes and Kellie Hope who work with the Downtown Parks Conservancy which they explained, seeks to improve parks in the downtown area. A power point program highlighted local citizens’ thoughts on what makes a park successful.
Hanes termed Mobile’s Bienville Square as the city’s “Signature Park.” He said that through an alliance and support from the city and the Downtown Alliance, Hearin-Chandler Foundation, and the Sybil Smith Foundation, the organization has raised $100,000 with $29,000 set aside for the installation of tree lighting in the square. Ms. Hope said that the installation should begin shortly and be finished in six to eight weeks.
The rest of the money raised, Hanes explained, will be used to implement a master plan for the square for its continued improvement. His organization is in the process of receiving its 501C# status to allow donations to be tax deductible he added.
After a series of questions and answers, Robby McClure thanked the speakers and said that a donation in their honor has been made to the Child Advocacy Center.
The meeting adjourned at 12:55 PM.
Tom McGehee