Weekly Bulletin - January 8, 2015 Meeting

 

Carol Reed, Bolton

Marie Beam, Discovery Museums

Roy Balfour, District Foundation chair

Dana Grey, Littleton

 

 

 

Steps are being taken to form an Interact club at Nashoba Regional. The principal is behind it. We’re going to have a recruitment pitch to high schoolers at the meal packaging event—the announcement every thousand meals will be a 15-second “ad”; we’ll have someone at the sign-up table; afterward, students will be asked to attend a short meeting, at which we’ll pitch Interact. We need to find an event in March or April that these students can participate in.

 

January 22, we and the Concord club are cooperating in a forum to discuss how organizations can change cultural norms to improve the lives of women. Awards will be given to the participants. Help is wanted.

 

This will be on January 24. Help is wanted to distribute flyers beforehand, and on the day of the event to sign people up, guide them, etc.

 

This is a free, district-level event, January 14. Everyone is urged to attend who wants to know how to use social media to promote events and projects, reach out to high school and college students, etc.

 

 

 

Foundation minute (Chris Spear): Our club is committed to the Every Rotarian Every Year program. A form for making donations to the Foundation was given to members, by which contributions can be withdrawn directly from a debit or credit card. He then introduced Roy Balfour. Rotary is the only organization where donors influence where their money goes. There are 38 Foundation-funded projects in central Massachusetts. This club contributes $114/member; our goal is $125. “Because of you, the world is a better place.” Bob Johnson was awarded  a Paul Harris +2; Ron Bott a Paul Harris + 7.

 

 

The purpose of the museums is to teach children the value of curiosity, discovery and scientific investigation. These qualities are taught out of us, not into us; children are naturally curious, and constantly discovering. The museum was founded 30 years ago, and now serves 171,000 people a year, with 29,000 being science workshop students, the second largest workshop program in the country. Visitors would do well to call ahead; they experience 45-60 minute waits 100 days a year.

 

Children who do well on academic tests have little opportunity for play; but a compressed childhood leads to 10 points lower scores on a creativity test. They’re missing out on the physical, emotional, and cognitive benefits that come from outside play. Programs at the Discovery Museum encourage creative thinking: they sponsor a cardboard box day (box and duct tape), and play in a large pile of dirt (to the horror of parents).

 

40% have never visited a museum. 25% are brought in at little or no cost. 16/year suffer  from autism; 8/year are deaf or hard of hearing. The museum is now considering how to add programs for the visually impaired.  

 

They have a pre-K STEAM program (Science/Technology/Engineering/Arts/Math), the only one in the country. They have a speaker series that’s free and open to public. Speakers are well-known and respected academics and thinkers,

 

 

The Hudson Brewfest, our biggest fundraiser, is coming up sooner than we think. Nanci isn’t able to give as much time to it this year as she has in the past, so help is needed in planning and putting it on. More information is coming.

 

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