Posted by Steve Kirkland on Mar 18, 2019

 

 

Rotary Meets and Eats at Minuteman HS

 
 
 
 
The meeting on the 18th was held at the Lexington Minuteman Vocational Technical School in the dining room of the culinary arts department.  The day was sunny and partly cloudy, still cold though we all want spring to hurry up.  A lovely luncheon buffet had been prepared by the students, which featured salmon and a carving station of succulent roast beef, and other treats including cold cuts, salad and veggies.
 
The meeting was called to order at precisely 12:30 by Pres. Michelle.  The Pledge of Allegiance was led by PP Don Martini.  One verse of America was led by PP Dan Olsen.  The invocation was given by PP Don Sherman.
 
There were 18 attending Rotarians and 5 guests.  A potential 19th Rotarian had gone to the Lexington Golf Club by mistake.  He was sorely missed, and shall remain nameless, but his initials are PP J.O.   The 5 guests were Minuteman students from Rotary Interact and their leader, Erin Bordeaux.  Raffle gifts were donated by Arlex Oil, Bob Cunningham, the Rotary Club, and Eagle Bank.  Various Rotary members won the raffle prizes, but all donated them to the student guests.
 
Happy dollars were given by PP Spencer, whose alma mater, Old Dominion, made it into March Madness, but lost in the first round.
 
Announcements:
  •  PP Don M. announced that if anyone is interested in a Rotaplast trip similar to the one he went on last year, there are openings for two non-medical Rotarians; see him if interested.
  • Charlie V. announced that the Lexington Historical Society’s new archive building was having an open house on the 21st from 5-7 P.M..
  • Comedy Night will be May 10th.  Please: Sell tickets and reserve tables and donate to the silent auction.
  • Patriot’s Day plans are on track.  The schedule has been posted and emailed. Please let PP Dominic know of any scheduling conflicts or additional interest.
  • A joint meeting with the Concord Club will be on April 18th in Concord at the Colonial Inn.
The featured guests of today’s meeting were Minuteman Tech students, Interact Club members with their leader, Erin Bordeau.  They will be part of a group of 22 students who will go with Ms. Bordeau on a big charitable work trip to Puerto Rico to help with there construction in St. Bernard’s Parish.  The devastation from Hurricane Maria has barely been touched and the recovery is slow.  There is still a lot of work to do to bring the island back to full function.  They will be helping AmeriCorps volunteers build houses.  Funds for the trip are being raised by selling cutting boards made by the wood shop at Minuteman.  They’ve raised over $5,000.00 so far. 
 
 
More money today was raised as several Rotarians purchased cutting boards.  The culinary arts instructor Anita played auctioneer to auction off a framed, action portrait of Christian Vazquez, Red Sox catcher.  A lively bidding war between PP Dan B and Steve K was finally won by Steve K, only for the two to discover they were both bidding in order to donate it to the Comedy Night Silent Auction collection.
 
 
PP Don M paid $150 for a Hamilton shirt with the Puerto Rican flag on it.
 
It was a great meeting.  We always love coming to Minuteman.  This was even more satisfying because of the Puerto Rican aid trip.
 
- SCK