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Russell Hampton
ClubRunner
ClubRunner Mobile
Speakers
Apr 28, 2020
Open Forum with Tavia Cavett
Mental health and coping during COVID-19 with Q&A to follow.
May 05, 2020
Star Students
May 12, 2020
LaKeysha Greer Isaac, Pres. Junior League of JXN
Junior League of Jackson
May 19, 2020
John Gipson, Director of TV, MS Pub.Broadcasting
MPB
May 26, 2020
Jane Alexander, CEO, Community Foundation for MS
Community Foundation for MS
View entire list
Bulletin Editor
Bill Osborne
(If you have any comments or questions, please contact the editor)
Executives & Directors
President
Greg Campbell
 
Vice President
Lee Carney
 
Treasurer
Uriel Pineda
 
Secretary
Suman Das
 
Director - Foundation
Judy Lyons
 
Director - Membership
Matt Monsour
 
Director - Public Relations
Bill Osborne
 
Director - Club Administration
Larry Anderson
 
Director - Club Service
Lori Greer
 
Executive Secretary
Don Roberts
 
All club meetings until further notice will be via Zoom online. The Zoom meeting invite with the link and password, will be sent to all club members on Mondays. The Zoom meetings will start at noon on Tuesdays with club member fellowship with the meeting starting at 12:15p.m. If you have any issues connecting to the Zoom meeting or would like the link sent to you, please email me at gregcampbell2@comcast.net.
 

Here are links to recordings of the Zoom meetings

If you have difficulty getting the video to open. Just type the address into your browser's address bar and it should work. I plan to work on the issue with the host (Club Runner) tomorrow. Bill O.
 
April 28, Tavia Cavett, Director of MBHS's Employee Assistance Program:
 
April 21, David Mars, Pilot & Adventurer
 
April 14 - Haley Fisackerly, Pres. & CEO, Entergy MS
 
 
April 7: Bob Miller City of Jackson Public Works director
 
 
March 31: Nelson Atehortua, MD, PhD
 
Note from the Editor: If you are infected by the Coronavirus or if you know of other Rotarians who are infected by it, please let me know at wgoii2@gmail.com. They will be in our prayers!
 
Please look for service opportunities keeping with our Motto of "Service above self." Remember from our March 31 meeting that President Greg asked for suggestions as to nonprofits needing donations. Email, text or phone call to Greg will all work. 
 

Prayer. Loving God, we pray for those adversely affected by the Coronavirus and for those working to manage the disease it causes.

True and living God, Lord of city streets and country roads, of urban congestion, and rural openness, you are the Lord of life in every type of community. But at the outset of this month with its focus on Rural Life, we offer a grateful and special prayer for those who till the soil and reap the harvest, who provide the products we consume.

 

We thank you for the gift of food and the experience of fellowship. We are grateful also for the assurance that as we leave this place today, we will be accompanied by your Spirit. Amen

Club Announcements:

We acknowledge with regret the death of our former member Rodger Running on April 16. We extend our sympathies to his wife Sara, his brother-in-law, club member Bob Ridgway, and to the entire family.

We send our best wishes for a full and complete recovery to Club member Seymour Pooley who is recovering from leg surgery.

 

Upcoming Events:
 
All planned events are either canceled or postponed. The Club Assembly, originally planned for May 19 has been postponed until June 30 when it will include the "changing of the guard."
 

Birthdays

  • Suman Das                          May 6
  • John Sewell                         May 7
Wedding Anniversaries:
  • None
Membership Anniversaries
  • Stephen  Stenmark            10 years, May 11
 
Stories
St. D. Emergency Department and Billy Brumfield Donations
Posted by Bill Osborne

 

 

The Rotary Club of North Jackson provided 30 meals from Aplos to the Emergency Department at St. Dominic Hospital Friday, April 24, 2020. The club wanted to thank the "front line" health care workers for their tireless effort during the pandemic. Shown from left, Malisa Walters, an ED nurse at St. Dominic; Greg Campbell, President of the Rotary Club of North Jackson and Jo McKeithen, administrative assistant, Patient Care Services Administration at St. Dominic.

 

 

Aplos Meals for St. D. Emergency Department

 

The Rotary Club of North Jackson donated 70 cases of water through Brown Bottling Group to the Billy Brumfield House on Monday, April 20, 2020. The Billy Brumfield House, a shelter for homeless men in Jackson, is a continuing project of the club. Shown from left, Walter Wilson, Brown Bottling Group and Christopher Heidelberg, dorm manager at the Billy Brumfield House.

 
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Baptist Health System's Director of Employee Assistance  Speaks to Rotary Club of North Jackson
Posted by Bill Osborne

Tavia McNair Cavett, M.S.W., L.C.S.W., CEAP, Director of Mississippi Baptist Health System's Employee Assistance Program, spoke to the Rotary Club of North Jackson at the club's April 28, 2020 meeting. The subject of her presentation was the impact of the current COVID-19 on people's mental state and how to lessen its impact on them.

She started by saying that the pandemic is causing Stress on people. Why? They have grief, fear, financial uncertainty, they are required to shelter in place, and they have excessive fatigue. This stress can cause vicarious trauma; i.e, taking on someone else's stress. 

Her bottom line was some tips for coping with the current situation:  that people need to remain active, get plenty of rest, exercise reasonably, maintain a consistent routine, eat healthily, avoid overdependence on their electronic devices, avoid excessive alcohol consumption, and excessive smoking. They should cry when they feel like crying, laugh (laughter is the best medicine), watch and movies.

We sincerely appreciate Ms. Cavett's time, the points raised in her presentation, and her service to her Baptist Health System Colleagues.
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David Mars, Pilot & Adventurer Speaks to Rotary Club of North Jackson
David Mars, a pilot, adventurer, and aviation historian, spoke to the Rotary Club of North Jackson at the club's April 21, 2020 meeting. He discussed his initial experience flying when he inadvertently accelerated an airplane at an early age causing it to go off the runway, his further experience as a barnstorming pilot when he took and still takes passengers for rides in his single engine planes, and his collection of early 20th century airplanes. He also discussed and showed photos of his experience hiking the full length of the Appalachian Trail, Georgia to Maine, about 2,189 miles.
 
We thank Mr. Mars for his presentation and for his contributions to aviation and to "thru hiking." A video of his complete presentation can be viewed on the club's website.
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Entergy MS President & CEO Speaks to Rotary Club of North Jackson
Posted by Bill Osborne

Haley Fisackerly, President & CEO Entergy Mississippi spoke to the Rotary Club of North Jackson at its April 14, 2020 meeting. The subjects in his presentation were: how COVID 19 & the most recent storms have affected Entergy Mississippi and how the company is preparing itself for the future.

Fisackerly has said that COVID-19 has greatly affected how the company works. Anyone who can perform their function from home is doing so. Field employees are adhering to the social distancing rules and where three field employees would have shared a truck to go to a work location, the three employees are using three trucks to get to the site.

COVID-19 could not have come at a worse time. The GrandGulf Nuclear facility is down for major work including refueling and a turbine control system upgrade.  The plant was recently re-licensed by the NRC for 20 years extending its plant life to 2044. During the pandemic, Entergy is providing extensive customer assistance, including suspending disconnects for nonpayment of bills.

With respect to the recent storms, he said that outages in their service area were not as bad as they could have been. The damage was much worse north and east of their service area. Most of Entergy’s damage was in the northwest quarter and the Delta. Damage to their Arkansas sister company was much worse with over 110,000 customers without power.

Fisackerly said that Entergy is nearly complete with a project to replace all of the meters in their system in a project called  Advanced Metering Infrastructure (AMI). The new meters permit automatic billing, better outage reporting, and anticipation of system problems. They are also able to measure and report both the consumption and production of electricity by customers.

Entergy recently received regulatory approval to build a multi-acre solar farm in the Mississippi Delta and is looking at ways to reduce the cost of electrical energy. For example, he discussed the installation of high-efficiency gas turbines which use 50% less energy than the ones they are replacing.

We thank Fisackerly for his presentation and for his leadership of Entergy Mississippi.

 
 
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City of Jackson Public Works Director Speaks to Rotary Club of North Jackson
Robert "Bob" Miller, the Public Works Director for The City of Jackson, spoke to the Rotary Club of North Jackson at the club's April 7, 2020 Zoom meeting. The first part of Miller's presentation was devoted to Crisis Communication. He has had a full career in which he has had to deal with a number of crises ranging from the current Coronavirus Pandemic to hurricanes in  New Orleans and crises in previous incarnations with the City of Louisville, KY. The bottom line of his crisis communication plan is to adhere to the Rotarians 4-way Test; i.e., "is it the truth, is it fair to all concerned, is it beneficial to all concerned, will it build goodwill and better friendships." His complete presentation is available on the club's website.
 
In addition to crisis communication, Miller described his primary responsibility as Director of Public Works is dealing with the metering, billing, and collection systems. Those systems have been under increased scrutiny for several years and he is spending a significant portion of his time trying to get them operating accurately and effectively. The water/sewer business administration has undergone significant changes since he arrived in an attempt to correct the billing and collection issues. He noted that changes range from the arrest of citizens for stealing water by bypassing the meters, to corruption in the department that led to retirements, resignations, and terminations
 
He also noted that the City is under a consent decree with the U.S. EPA and that he is in the process of trying to renegotiate the terms of the consent decree to conditions that the city can reasonably afford to meet. We thank Miller for his service to our city and for his presentation to our club. As a final point, he said that he expects to retire in about 15 months or June 2021.
 
 
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School of Public Health Professor speaks to Rotary Club of North Jackson
Posted by Bill Osborne
Dr. Nelson Atehortua, The Rotary Club of North Jackson's newest member and a professor in the Jackson State University School of Public Health spoke to the club at its March 31 Zoom meeting. Dr. A., as he is called by his students, discussed the facts and myths surrounding the coronavirus. He covered the origin of the virus in China, its mutation from an animal virus to one that can infect humans, its spread globally, its impact on the United States and Mississippi plus myths and facts that are circulating about the virus.
 
As of April 1, 2020, the US is experiencing more than 200,000 cases with over 4,000 deaths. Globally the number of cases is close to 1 million with over 45,000 deaths. It is clearly a global pandemic. Dr. A. cited that the US can expect 100,000 to 200,000 deaths from the disease even with the current level of mitigation in place. That mitigation includes in excess of 80 million Americans being under "Shelter In Place" orders.
 
We thank Dr. A. for his presentation, for joining our club, and for his work to educate students and all Mississippians about Public Health, in particular, the coronavirus and its impact on us.
 
 
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March 25 Rotary Club of North Jackson Board Meeting
Posted by Bill Osborne
The Board and Officers of the Rotary Club of North Jackson held a Zoom Board Meeting on Wednesday, March 25 to discuss the path forward on meetings. The Board decided to conduct meetings on the normal day, but to begin the meetings at 12:15 pm via the club's Zoom account.  The meetings will follow the traditional agenda. This process will be in place until the work from home orders are lifted. It includes the Star Student Recognition meeting on Tuesday, April 21. 
Here is the view of this zoom meeting on Club President Greg Campbell's laptop.
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Posted on 
 

This Week's Rotary Thought is about Strategic Planning: "Do more than ever through strategic planning"

George Ritcheske and an assistant lead a strategic planning session back in February.

By George Ritcheske, a member of the Rotary Club of Coppell, Texas, USA

The power of strategic planning was on display, and I could not have been more excited. It was a Saturday morning in February, before the pandemic forced us all into stay-at-home mode. I was facilitating the ninth-annual planning event for the Rotary Club of Park Cities, Texas, with 39 members in attendance for the half day session. They had signed up to craft strategic action plans for 2020-21, the third year of a three-year strategic plan. This was a quarter of their membership!

Now, admittedly, social distancing has created some new challenges for all of us in planning. But as we have all seen and heard, there are some pretty awesome tools available to stay connected virtually. And as Rotary has much to give the world in these unprecedented times, the value of strategic planning is as critical as ever. It is in that spirit that I look back and share what we were able to accomplish, hoping to encourage other clubs to enhance their impact by doing the same.

How did we start?

The club volunteered to pilot a process offered by our district. As facilitation is one of my professional skills, I stepped up to help. Just three days before the first meeting, a colleague of mine offered to help co-facilitate (and she later joined the club)!

Building a team

The first team was selected in 2012 based on the following principles, which have been applied to each annual team since:

  • Past leaders still active in the club (Wisdom)
  • Current leaders on the incoming Board (Responsibility)
  • Newer members showing club service leadership potential (Possibilities)

Additionally, event planning included the president-elect (PE) and the next two in the presidential succession, and all three attended the events. This provides for continuity and success throughout the three-year plan.

Vision, Mission & Slogan

In the first year, the team crafted:

  • A vision statement: “Be a vibrant visionary model of service above self”
  • A mission statement: “Building a legacy of good works and fellowship, we strive to reach those in need in partnership with others, inspire tomorrow’s leaders with high ethical standards, and foster lives of service above self.”
  • A club slogan: “Serving to Make a Difference”

Priorities

We established three strategic priorities:

  1. Engage current members and attract new members through meaningful service projects and opportunities
  2. Enhance club awareness through community partnerships
  3. Address hunger at home and abroad

First Years & Collaborative Partners

As the club sought to align its projects and events with the strategic priorities, the leaders embraced the focus to leverage their resources to have the greatest impact on their community. One key outcome was defining collaborative partners. The club increased visibility in the community by building deeper relationships which enhanced their impact.

The club partnered with the North Texas Food Bank.

By the fourth year, these efforts paid off with the North Texas Food Bank (NTFB). The club raised $253,000 to buy and equip NTFB’s first food pantry truck for South Dallas, an area known as a food desert. The club also provided volunteers to develop and staff the delivery processes. The project was covered by local media, with tons of publicity. The CEO of the food bank has since joined the club.

In year five, there were many changes made to the club’s committee structure and enhancements to other club projects to better align with the strategic priorities. Also, core values were developed, which added to the Vision, Mission, Slogan, and Priorities to complete the Strategic Plan framework:

  • Commitment to great service and initiatives
  • Integrity—Acting with honesty and honor
  • Relationships—Meet and make valuable friendship with other Rotarians
  • Supporting the good of the greater community
  • Personal & professional growth

The club leadership purposefully aligned club initiatives and efforts to the strategic priorities of meaningful service opportunities, club awareness, and addressing hunger.

In recent years, more impactful projects and programs have emerged as leadership embraced these annual strategic planning sessions. The club has seen great success with increased opportunities, more collaborative partnerships, and bigger impact due to this program.

We are in historic times. The pandemic has shattered our economy and presented huge challenges. But as People of Action, we Rotarians have the means and the methods to step in and make a difference. Strategic planning, such as that outlined above, focuses your efforts and ensures maximum impact. And it can be done virtually, with just a bit of ingenuity and creativity.

Feel free to reach out to us if you have questions about how this might work for your club.