James Thornett (Guest of Rollie and Future Speaker: James Thornett is the founder and CEO of BUCKSHEE bourbon and rye. A former member of the British special forces in the first Iraq war, James returned to Baghdad in 2004 as a contracted civilian security consultant at the US Embassy in Baghdad. During his assignment there, he realized that the 30,000 residents in the secure "Green zone", mostly Westerners and Americans, had no access to liquor, so James created a secret distribution network and became the largest smuggler of alcohol into Baghdad. Also, with fellow "investors", James renovated an abandoned building in the "green zone" into a first-class bar called the Baghdad Country Club which is the topic of James's presentation to the club on June 5. James and his BUCKSHEE BOURBON will have a tasting table at our TOV event. James's father is president of a Rotary club in England. James lives with his family in Avon.)
Happy Dollars: $20.00
Raffle Winner: Jennifer Gonzalez
Fines
None.
Birthdays
Don Bonner (Feb 5) noted that his kids have been encouraging him after years of commercial design work to return to painting. He hadn’t picked up a brush in over 40 years till last year. He displayed, around the room, the paintings that he has been doing. Editor’s Note: To my untutored eye, his work is excellent, and I am glad he has taken it up again.
Also having birthdays but not present:
Sullivan Larry Feb. 5th
Harris Steve Feb. 7th
Wright Lisa Feb. 3rd
Happy Dollars
Gary Miller had 10 happy dollars. First, on the subject of birthday’s, his little girl turned 45 today, making him feel very old. He also announced that his rental property in Canton has gone on the market today, if he one is interested in a multi-family let him know.
Sue Budde noted that Jolly Lux will be speaking at West Avon Congregational church mission moment on the work of Guiding Light Orphans.
Joanne Santiago was happy for the beautiful artwork that Don has done. She also reported that she was going to be going in for surgery on her right foot and that her designated driver was our guest speaker today, her daughter Joelle.
Scott Nardozzi reported that he had spoken to Paul and that Paul’s newborn grandson, Tommy, is still in the ICU. He also informed us that her stepdad passed away yesterday. He was 71.
Sue Mitchell, who has come to know Michelle Troconis, and developed a friendship with her through her volunteer work at the farm, is asking us to withhold judgement and treat Michelle with kindness. She says that there is a lot more information to come out and that she believes that Michelle is innocent and so will we, when the facts come out.
President Heather invited everyone to her new house for the June pub night.
Yvonne Gardner had a cancer scare but says all is well.
Peter Vignati reported that his brother John had his bone marrow transplant at Dana Farber and is doing well. He also had a happy dollar for the UConn men’s basketball team who seem to be finally winning a game.
Salin Low a happy dollar because she went to Philadelphia and saw a number of old friends. She gave a 2nd happy dollar because she got back.
Luke Violette, who is in the financial field, has been taking coursework through Yale for a designation that he just passed the board exam on Tuesday. He is now a Certified Investment Management Analyst. He is now looking forward to a weekend where he is not in the library.
Jennifer Gonzalez was the only women, out of 30,000 employees nominated for a special volunteer position at her company.
Announcements
Josh Gillooly reminded members that flyers for TOTV are available to be posted in officers, various businesses, or other places which would attract attendees. Restaurants and beverage vendors have been lined up. Now it is up to members to sell tickets. The goal is to sell 300+ tickets and to net $20k.
Calendar of Upcoming Events
2/12: Interact open mic event at the Maple Tree Cafe.
2/19: Rotary Pub Night
3/7 Rotary Pub Night at FAVARH's Rotary Building
3/28: Tastes of the Valley tickets available now. $50.00 / regular ticket. $75.00 / VIP ticket, which includes the VIP function 90 minutes ahead of the main event.
5/29 President's Installation Dinner. Details to follow.
6/? Rotary Pub Night will be held at President Heather's new home
9/14: 37th Annual Charity Golf Tournament at the Golf Club of Avon
Induction of New Members
None Today
Awards
None Today
Community and International Service Grants
None Today
Presentations
Joelle Santiago, DC
Avon Chiropractic Health Center
Opiods and Chiropractic Alternatives
Joelle Santiago is a Chiropractic Physician here In Avon. She received her undergraduate degree at Assumption College in Wooster in Human services along with her pre med sciences. She then entered the University of Bridgeport College of Chiropractic where she received her Doctorate of Chiropractic after another 4 years. Following her board examination, she received her license to practice chiropractic medicine. In practice, she cares for patients from pediatrics to geriatrics and has a keen interest in rehabilitation for people of all ability levels.
According to Joelle, when people think of Chiropractic care, they tend to think of back pain, because that is what we often see on tv. However, it is a whole person healing art. When a patient comes in, we perform a thorough history, orthopedic exam, neurologic exam, and when indicated a physical exam. If we feel further testing Is needed, we may order imaging or lab studies.
Joelle pointed out that in 2014 the opioid death rate was 2X the death rate from heroin overdose. There were 42,249 opioid deaths in 2016. Opioids are highly addictive and addiction can occur within a short period of time. Joelle's main message was that patients can get relief through other means than the use of opioids. ln a randomized control trial of 7925 participants with low back pain, the short term effects of opioids on chronic low back pain was evaluated. From those cases over half of the participants withdrew because the drug either did not work, or adverse health effects occurred. This trial did not look at acute cases. which certainly is important as there is evidence of alternative care being very helpful even in acute settings. In Joelle's training and career so far, she has witnessed patients having unbearable pain, and with spinal manipulation, in the acute setting have found pain relief. Especially when the condition is stemming from a biomechanical issue, an opioid would not address that cause, by looking at the root of the problem, she was able to offer continued and individualized care to best address the issue, and prevent future discomfort. There has been significant research in deciding what is the best protocol for chronic pain. The FDA and CDC recommend that non opioid or pharmacological approaches be the first recommendation for chronic pain, as it is the best treatment or benefit for the individual. There is a movement to educate providers of other alternatives besides just physical therapy. After reviewing the opioid epidemic and patient satisfaction the FDA has recommended chiropractic care. Additionally, the American college of physicians has recommended nonsurgical approach such as chiropractic care to be the first option in low back pain. Our diagnostic tools are what helps us to figure out what Is generating the pain. and how to best pick a treatment. Many chiropractic doctors teach exercise rehabilitation. In addition utilizing physical therapy, acupuncture, and muscular modalities has been proven to be very effective.
So, what happens when chiropractic care is utilized? A big part of what is done is patient education. They We want patients to understand what is causing their discomfort and what treatment would be best for it. They also talk with them about lifestyle modifications to prevent the condition from exacerbating. The treatments have resulted in reduced need for surgery, hospital costs, loss of work time, and medication. In a 2016 New Hampshire study, 61% of individuals with low back pain also had an opioid prescription vs only 38% had a prescription when seeing a chiropractor. This is a huge difference. Additionally, studies have found that there is a 74% reduction in opioid prescriptions for individuals who seek chiropractic care. Of course there are times when surgical intervention is needed, however, in the musculoskeletal system, when there is a biomechanical issue that's non-surgical, an opioid is not going to address whats actually creating the problem.
According to Joelle, like in many thing, money holds lots of power. When looking at Medicare costs and chiropractic, we find that patients who have received chiropractic care had lower payments to treat their conditions.
One of the last things that Joelle wanted to bring to our intention is some information on our opiate receptors. Our body's natural receptors were discovered in the 1970's, and are non-addictive. From this we were able to determine that raising endorphin levels in addition to mechanical care is important. Spinal manipulation is able to increase the natural endorphins in our body. This is why the adjustment feels so good to us. By mechanically addressing what is structurally incorrect and adding in endorphin relief, we are able to offer patients well research and well evidence based treatments.
Lastly, Joelle concluded her presentation by emphasizing that when treating a patient, the 3 most important things are a proper diagnosis, selecting the safest treatment, and selecting the most beneficial treatment. In many cases. alternatives to care such as chiropractic have effectively demonstrated a reduction in opioid abuse, surgical need, and time lost from work. She feels very excited to be beginning my career in such a valuable area of healthcare.
Special Announcements
Josh Gillooly announced that each Rotarian was handed 4 tickets to Tastes of the Valley to sell at $50.00 a piece. If anyone is interested in VIP tickets or a sponsorship please him or Colleen Grasso. Vendors are also needed.
Mail Bag
None
Photo Credits
Photographs courtesy of Phil Worley & Michael Mezheritskiy.
Editor's Notes
Submission Deadline: Members are kindly encouraged to submit all materials for each week's Early Riser as early as possible. Please note that some editions may be published and distributed as early as the Saturday following our meetings, and during those weeks further contributions to the Early Riser will be included in the subsequent week's edition.
“The FOUR-WAY TEST of the things we think, say or do”:
1. Is it the TRUTH?
2. Is it FAIR to all Concerned?
3. Will it build GOODWILL and BETTER FRIENDSHIPS?
4. Will it be BENEFICIAL to all concerned?
