Category: Meeting Minutes

Minutes of the Rotary Meeting – October 22, 2015
By: Henry R. Seawell, IV
Invocation, Song, Music and Pledge
Robbie McClure called the meeting to order. Garrett Williamson gave the invocation.
Larry Sindel led the song and pledge. He was accompanied by Bill Oppenheimer on the piano.
Introduction of Guests and Visitors: Tom Martenstein
Student Guest: The student of the week was DeShawn Sewer, a Senior from B.C. Rain High School, introduced by Saty Putcha.
The Touchpoints winner for September 2015 was Cart Blackwell. A donation was made to The Friends of Magnolia Cemetery in his honor.
Program
Speaker: Ashley M. Dukes, presenting on behalf of the “Midtown Mobile Movement”
Ashley M. Dukes was the speaker at our October 22nd meeting. Dukes obtained her undergraduate and masters in accountancy from the University of Mississippi. Her passion for Midtown Mobile began when she and her husband, Whit Dukes, purchased a historic home from Whit’s grandfather on Dauphin Street, between Carlen and Fulton. Dukes gave an account of the unanticipated devastation arising from the Christmas Day Tornado of 2012. After the storm and rebuilding, she became determined for midtown to turn over a new leaf and become a more livable, walkable city.
Dukes observed that, in recent years, the streets of midtown Mobile have become more friendly to automobiles and less so to pedestrians. She was inspired by Jeff Speck’s book, “Walkable City,” and was influential in the establishment of the “Midtown Mobile Movement,” which seeks to mold midtown Mobile in that framework. A walkable community is designed to grow pedestrian friendly infrastructure, promote accessible commercial development, and enhance visual appeal. The benefits of such are significant and include improved health, a safer community, and general corporate well-being.
The first project that has been embraced by the Midtown Movement is the Old Shell Road Project. The objective is to achieve walkability down Old Shell from Interstate 65 to Broad Street. If this goal is accomplished, a walkable environment will have been orchestrated – in conjunction with the Village of Spring Hill – from University Boulevard to Broad. Once this lofty goal is complete, the Midtown Movement aspires to create similar walkable thoroughfares along the remaining midtown corridors.
A charrette will be held from November 18 – 20, 2015, giving midtown residents an opportunity to meet with urban planners and attempt to establish a more comprehensive strategy for midtown Mobile. The location has yet to be determined. However, interested persons can be kept abreast of these and other developments at www.midtownmobile.org, or on Facebook at Midtown Mobile Movement.
The meeting was adjourned.

Minutes of the October 15, 2016
Meeting of
The Rotary Club of Mobile
Call to Order: The meeting was called to order by Les Greer at 12:15 in Robby McClure’s absence. Chip Hale offered the invocation and Gordon Korb led the club in song, accompanied by Bill Oppenheimer on the piano. Tom Martenstein welcomed a visiting Rotarian and several guests of members.
Student Guest: Saty Putcha introduced Tyler Lott, the 2016 valedictorian of Bryant High School who discussed the benefits he has received from serving others.
Announcements: Les said a board meeting will follow the October 22 meeting.
Program: Danny White of Team Focus
Rob Hackbarth introduced Danny White, the Regional Director of Team Focus, a mentoring program seeking to assist young men aged 10-18 who are growing up in homes without a father or any positive male influence.
Mr. White said that the program was started in Mobile by former coach Mike Gottfried who was inspired by memories of his childhood without a father around. The program’s success has led to its duplication in cities stretching to California –although currently only six are in full force. Mentors are drawn from volunteers who go through background checks before being admitted.
One aspect of Team Focus is a summer camp which is conducted at either Spring Hill College or the University of Mobile. The participants stay in dormitories over a three day period and are taught various subjects in classroom settings, meet in groups and exercise. He said that all of the local colleges and universities have been generous about letting the young men meet their athletes.
White said that the young men who go through this program are assisted in making important decisions about their futures with a goal of becoming productive members of our community. He said that it is most successful when there is a strong female who is reinforcing the program in the participant’s home.
After answering a number of questions from the audience, Les thanked Mr. White and presented him a certificate noting that in his honor a contribution had been made to the Girl Scouts of South Alabama. The meeting adjourned at 12:55 PM.
(For further information about Team Focus see www.teamfocususa.org)
Tom McGehee

Meeting date: October 8, 2015
By Monde M Donaldson
Speaker: Dr. Chris Puto
President of Spring Hill College
“Re-Introducing Spring Hill”
Invocation, Song Music and Pledge
Robbie McClure called the meeting to order. Patrick Williams gave the invocation.
Gordon Kolb led the song and pledge. He was accompanied by Bill Oppenheimer.
Program
Dr. Chris Puto, the 37th president of Spring Hill College was the speaker. He holds the distinction of being the College’s first lay president in its history. He took office in June and was officially installed in late September. A 1964 graduate of the College, he first came to Mobile in 1960. He has been here many times over the years, particularly in the last decade when he served on the College’s Board of Trustees. He said
he had been preparing for this job his whole life.
Spring Hill is the oldest college in Alabama and the third oldest Jesuit college in the United States. There are 28 Jesuit colleges in the country.
He explained that Spring Hill is a residential Catholic liberal arts college, although 40 per cent of the student body is non-Catholic. One third of this year’s freshmen class was from the State of Alabama. The College received application from 47/49 contiguous states and enrolled students from 27 states and 9 countries. This fall’s group of students was the second largest in the College’s history at 415 and they had the highest academic credentials.
Dr. Puto said his goal is to gain national recognition for Spring Hill as the crown jewel of the Jesuit universities. His platform will begin by developing a strategic plan for the campus to prepare the College for 2030, the 200th anniversary of the school. There will be 48 planning units comprised of faculty and staff members who will begin by examining the school’s strengths and weaknesses. This plan, once developed, will be sent to the Board of Trustees for their approval. Once in place, a campaign to build the endowment will be adopted. He also wants to make a Spring Hill education affordable for all who are admitted.
One issue facing higher education is salaries for faculty and staff. This is a nationwide issue and one he plans to address with a capital campaign in the years to come.
His focus will be providing the best possible educational experience and value to all students in the Jesuit tradition. Dr. Puto wants Spring Hill to play a greater role in the community. Already, almost half of the student body is volunteering regularly at schools and non-profits as part of the Foley Center.
The meeting was adjourned.

Minutes
September 17, 2015 Meeting
The Rotary Club of Mobile
Call to order: The meeting was called to order by club president Robby McClure at 12:15PM.
Moment of Silence: A moment of silence was held to remember past president John Aduston Rogers, IV who passed away on Monday, September 14, 2015.
Invocation was given by Gordon Korb who also led the club in song accompanied by Les Greer. Tom Martenstein welcomed members’ guests and visiting Rotarians.
New members:
• Jan Endfinger, Director of Human Resources and Advertising at Autry Greer & Sons was introduced by Les Greer.
• George Talbot, Director of Communications and External Affairs for the Stimpson administration was introduced by Cart Blackwell.
Announcements:
• Patrick McWilliams recognized Jeff Zoghby as this month’s Touchpoints winner.
• Robby McClure reminded the group that the new rosters with an “Infirmary blue” cover are here and should be picked up, and asked members to RSVP their attendance for the Gala which will take place on Thursday, October 1 at Gulfquest maritime Museum.
Program: Mobile’s Newest Federal Courthouse
Jeremy Milling introduced Amy Rice who is the Architect-Project Manager for Mobile’s new U.S. District Courthouse to be built on St. Joseph Street, a block north of the 1935 Campbell Courthouse.
Using a power point program, Ms. Rice showed views of the planned exterior of the building which is traditional in scale and complimentary of the older structure to the south. She said that as part of the design process, Cart Blackwell had arranged for the out of town architects and planners to tour historic districts as well as see photographs of area buildings to get an idea of the regional flavor of the city and its architecture.
The site will protect mature existing live oak trees and allow for green space surrounding the building for the planting of more oaks, she said. The four sides of the new structure will be covered in Alabama limestone from the same quarry which provided the stone for the Campbell Courthouse in 1935. The site will also allow for future expansion, if needed she added.
Interior views revealed a handsome two story lobby with large columns which she described as “open and inviting” with necessary security devices placed discreetly out of the main axis. The judges and court personnel will be actively involved in the design of the courtrooms with plywood “mock-ups” built to guarantee the efficiency of the final design.
The historic Campbell Courthouse to the south will be restored with its exterior cleaned, double paned windows replicating the originals, and interior fixtures mimicking the originals. Accessibility issues will be handled as well. When complete, this building will once again house bankruptcy courtrooms and U.S. Marshall offices which have both been housed elsewhere, she said.
Ms. Rice then provided images of other projects she has been involved with, including an Hawaiian federal courthouse, a golf club and numerous beachside developments there. After answering a number of questions, the meeting adjourned at 1:05 P.M.
Tom McGehee

Minutes of the Rotary Meeting
August 27, 2015
By Christopher Jones
The meeting was called to order by Robby McClure. Christopher Jones gave the invocation. Tommy Blankenship led in song with Bill Oppenheimer providing piano accompaniment. Tom Martenstein introduced guests and visitors.
Robby McClure made several announcements and recognized those Rotarians who achieved 100% attendance over the last year – and many over several years. Most notably, the following were recognized with more than 25 years: Robby McClure (26), Beth Stafford (27), Tommy Blankenship (30), and John Moses (32).
Introduced by John Dukes, Will Edmonds spoke to the club as a former Rotary Ambassadorial Scholar and as a French teacher at Davidson High School. Will actually first spoke to the Rotary Club over 20 years ago when he was a sophomore at the University of Mobile. He was only 21 years old and was eager to study abroad. He was directed to apply for the Rotary Ambassadorial Scholarship which would support 6 months of study in Belgium. He as not awarded the scholarship on his first attempt, but he learned much about himself through the application process and the rigorous interviews. He tried again and was selected as a scholar. While in Belgium, he spoke (in French, of course) to several Rotary Clubs and furthered his education and his mastery of the language.
After his time abroad, Will returned to Mobile and began working at a bank in downtown Mobile in the international department. His short tenure in the financial industry was a good learning experience, but he was soon drawn to a teaching career within the Mobile County Public School System. Following his passion for French and sharing it with others, he began teaching all levels of French to high school students. He credits Rotary for providing critical training for his job as a French teacher. He is passionate about sharing his travel experiences and sparking enthusiasm and interests among his students.
After 13 years of teaching, Will needed another spark himself. He applied for a grant through the University of Alabama Huntsville to study the resettling of Acadians from Nova Scotia to St Martinville, LA in 1755. This resettlement is the subject of Longfellow’s poem Evangeline. The project was invigorating and deepened his passion for culture and language. He continues to teach all levels of French at Davidson High School, including a course entitled “French For Travelers” that provides a hook for students new to the language. Again, Will credited his early Rotary experiences for instilling in him an international perspective that he shares with his students.
In closing, Will thanked all Rotarians for creating opportunities to build character, career and community in his life. After his presentation, Will Edmonds answered several questions from across the room. In honor of his speaking, a donation was made to a local charity.
Robby McClure adjourned the meeting.

Minutes of the
September 10, 2015 Meeting
of
The Rotary Club of Mobile
Call to Order: The meeting was called to order by club president Robby McClure at 12:15 P.M. Michael Pierce offered the invocation and Gordon Korb led the group in song accompanied by William Oppenheimer at the piano. Tom Martenstein welcomed visiting Rotarians and a number of guests of members.
Announcements: President McClure made the following announcements:
• A meeting of the board of the Rotary Children’s Foundation will take place following today’s meeting.
• The board of directors will meet on Thursday, September 17, following the meeting.
• New membership rosters are here.
• Please call or email Peggy to RSVP your attendance at the Rotary Gala scheduled for October 1 at GulfQuest Maritime Museum
Program: GulfQuest, From Concept to Reality
Marietta Urquhart introduced Tony Zadrow, Executive Director of GulfQuest. Tony noted that this was his fourth presentation to the club and that his facility is now ready to open to the public later this month. He thanked the many people in the community who have helped make this 21 year project a reality.
Tony said that the $43 million structure was paid for by the City of Mobile which will pay for its upkeep while $23 million in displays and exhibits were paid for by the non-profit which will operate the facility.
Through a power-point presentation he showed views of the exterior and interior of the waterfront building. Text panels have been designed to be informative without being overwhelming to the visitor, he explained. While the exhibits will include maritime memorabilia and murals he said that the main focus is on interactive displays which he described as “addictive.” These include:
• Beneath the Bay which provides information on over 200 shipwrecks in Mobile Bay.
• A realistic container ship honoring trucking executive Malcolm McLean who bought Mobile’s Waterman Steamship Company and pioneered container shipping. He explained that every detail has been studied in its creation which includes sound effects of real cargo vessels. The exhibit is surrounded by a 58,000 gallon pool which replicates the river just outside the windows.
• A Deep Water “Submersible” which takes the viewer through “a mile long underwater tube of water” exploring four areas of the Gulf stretching from the Texas coast to the Florida Keys with buttons which explain various reefs, fish, shipwrecks and plant life.
• The Pilot Simulator realistically allows a ship’s captain to navigate his vessel into the Port of Mobile complete with a 3-D view of Mobile.
• Ship Ahoy consists of miniature tugboats skillfully maneuvering barges in a water-filled exhibit.
Tony noted that the exterior is fitted with colored seasonal lighting to match that of the RSA owned skyscrapers nearby and said that the building’s ground floor adjoins Cooper Riverside Park’s outdoor amphitheater allowing for concerts and other events.
After answering a number of questions from the audience, Robby McClure thanked him for his presentation and adjourned the meeting at 1:00 P.M.
Tom McGehee

Quin Hilyer September 3, 2015 Mobile Rotary Club
“We are living in perilous times”, stated our speaker Quin Hilyer. He was referring to a statement from another era, but applicable to our times today. The founders of our country explicitly believed that our rights were originally provided by God, and therefore could only be affirmed by our new government. The fear from the writers of our Declaration and Constitution has been realized in today’s governing bodies. As Mister Hilyer told the Rotarians, our government now believes that rights come from the government, and don’t exist until the government allows them.
Hilyer said that our founders specifically set apart three freedoms. Those declarations were Freedom of Religion, Freedom of the Press and Freedom of Assembly. All three are under attack, but he believes that the most effective attack we are seeing today is the attack on the Freedom of Religion. Unfortunately, Hilyer believes that one sign of the effectiveness of this attack exhibits itself when defenders of religious freedom are branded as bigots.
One of the examples he used to show how far we’ve gone is portrayed in the unanimous ruling against President Obama’s attempt to limit hiring by church groups to the “ministerial exception.” Even though the churches won the decision, the real lesson was the boldness with which the administration attacked the ruling.
Other examples included the requirement on college campuses that Christian groups not be allowed to limit their membership to Christians. He also talked about the Little Sisters of the Poor, Hobby Lobby and EWTN as entities under unprecedented attack. Even Army chaplains have been disciplined for displaying crucifixes. Second grade students were prohibited from singing “Awesome God” in a talent contest.
According to Hilyer, Justice Elena Kagan disputes that our freedoms are simply recognition of God-given rights, but rather, rights decided by our government. Our speaker finally stated that he does not want sound alarmist, but would definitely like to “sound the alarm.”

Meeting date: August 20, 2015
By Monde M Donaldson
Speaker: Phil Savage
Executive Director of the Senior Bowl
Invocation, Song Music and Pledge
Robbie McClure called the meeting to order. Rob Hackbarth gave the invocation.
Gordon Kolb led the song and pledge..
New Member
Ariel Chavez was introduced by Ken Robinson.
Program
Phil Savage started his presentation by thanking the Mobile community for their support of the Senior Bowl for the past 67 years. He said the game is the ultimate bridge between college and the NFL. Only one player who played in last year’s Senior Bowl is not playing in the pros this season and he is with the Canadian football league.
New to the Senior Bowl this year will be a flag football program at the Hearin-Chandler YMCA. This NFL Flag concept for non-contact football will be offered for 6-12 year olds. In the last three years, there has been a 29 per cent decrease nationally in the number of youth going out for football.
Savage gave his insight on both Alabama and Auburn. He said for Alabama the big question is will be how their quarterbacks will be used. There are three quarterbacks in consideration for the slot and skills of each player will be finely tuned once the season starts. He predicted Kenyan Drake, who was hurt last year, should have a superior season. For Auburn, Jeremy Johnson will be a standout at quarterback. He has played the same offense for four years of high school and two years of college. The addition of Will Muschcamp as defensive coordinator is another big plus for Auburn. The Iron Bowl will be the determining game for both teams.
Teams to watch this year include: Michigan State, Notre Dame, Georgia Tech and Oklahoma, he said. Many of these teams had big losses at the end of last season and are motivated to do better. He predicted players being mentioned for the Heisman would be probably be from Georgia, Ohio State, TCU, Penn State and Michigan State.
The meeting was adjourned.

Minutes of the
August 13, 2015 Meeting
The Rotary Club of Mobile
Call to Order: The meeting was called to order by club president Robby McClure at 12:20 PM. Jeremy Milling offered the invocation followed by Gordon Korb who led the club in song accompanied by Bill Oppenheimer on the piano. Tom Martenstein then welcomed visiting Rotarians and guests of members.
New Member: Rev. Wayne Miller, pastor of Grace Lutheran Church, was introduced as the club’s newest member by Rick Harvey.
Announcements: Robby McClure made the following announcements:
• The board of directors will meet on August 20, following the regular weekly meeting.
• Mobile West has announced they will not meet on August 18.
• Please save the date of October 1, 2015 for the Rotary Gala to be held at the new Maritime Museum.
Touchpoints Recognition: Garrett Williamson recognized Bill Oppenheimer as the Touchpoints winner and announced that a donation in his honor had been made to St. Mary’s Home. Garrett encouraged members to increase their level of participation to win a donation to a charity of their choice.
Program: Future Growth in Mobile – County Commissioner Jerry Carl
Saty Putcha introduced District 3 County Commissioner Jerry Carl who discussed economic growth in Mobile. He noted that much of the new growth is happening in his district which includes the new Airbus facility. He credited the Mobile Area Chamber of Commerce for their diligent work in recruiting new businesses including future arrivals of “sub-companies” doing business with Airbus.
Carl also stressed the importance of Austal and its workforce of 4,000 while noting the exciting plans to turn St. Louis Street into an IT hub. He also praised Mayor Stimpson’s announcement to spend city funds to repair infrastructure and said that in the past the county has been footing the bill for a number of paving projects which fall within the city limits.
After a series of questions and answers, Robby McClure thanked him for speaking to our club and told him that in his honor a donation had been made to the Augusta Evans School.
Adjournment: The meeting adjourned at 12:55 PM.
Tom McGehee

Mr. Lichtenfeld began his talk with a tribute to the “Greatest Generation”, which is widely recognized as those who lived through the trying times of World War II. More than 16 million served the country during that war, 458,000 of whom gave their life. He then proceeded to ask whether the “Greatest Generation” should also include the 35,500 of our military and supporters who died in Korea, or the 58,000 who perished in Vietnam. Even further, he said, don’t those who served our country during the Cold War, Granada, Lebanon and throughout the Middle East be honored in the same manner.
As a rifleman in WWII, who was captured during the heroic stand known as the “Battle of the Bulge”, Mr. Lichtenfeld saw the greatest struggle against tyranny of all time. He is also a member of only 7,000 of the 144,000 POW’s still living today. In one of the coldest winters in the previous 50 years, he and his fellow soldiers survived unbelievable challenges with a lack of food, lack of proper clothing and coping with constant bombardment. Lack of sleep became one of the real challenges.
It became even worse after his capture by the Germans. His first emotions included great humiliation and shock. Among the worst feelings he described was the fear that your family would never know if you were alive or not, and that you may never see each other again. As a Jew, the likelihood of survival was even more tenuous.
The prisoners were separated in the camp according to their nationality. At one point, the American contingent was lined up and anyone who was Jewish was asked to step forward. In keeping with orders from their commanders, none of the soldiers stepped forward. This infuriated the Germans. The next time the order was given for the Jews to step forward, the order changed. This time “all” of the prisoners stepped forward.
Once they were eventually liberated by the Russians, they were subjected to a total lack of cooperation in reuniting with the Americans. Several weeks later, Mr. Lichenfeld and five others traversed more than 100 miles through German and Russian lines to find the American troops. By that point, he had lost 65 pounds, now only 100 pounds.
Finally, Mr. Lichtenfeld stated that one of the lessons they will never forget in the real difference between good and evil, and the true value of friendship. He closed with the “POW” Pledge of Allegiance.