The meeting will be held both in person and via Zoom.
Watch for an email from the Club for Zoom access and
please note we use a recurring ID for your convenience.
Sergeant-at-Arms Report
Rotarians Present: 28 plus 1 on Zoom
Visiting Rotarians: None
Guests: Avery Barlow (Potential Member), John Guillot (Potential Member), Kara LaBella and her husband David (Speaker)
Happy Dollars: $17
Raffle Winner: Ike Eickenhorst ($60)
Fines:None today.
Birthdays
No birthdays this week
Happy Dollars.
Sue Budde and her husband Bill went to I went the tri state district conference this past weekend. It was four districts from Connecticut, Massachusetts, and, Rhode Island. They had a great experience. They went to break out sessions on conflict resolution and anti-human trafficking. On Saturday, Bill went to a presentation on the Peace Center in Turkey and a preview of the movie Brainstorm. It's called Brainstorm from Broken to Blessed on the Bipolar Spectrum. Apparently, Rotary is getting into mental health. I don't know if anybody knows this. There used to be six areas of focus. They're now seven. They've added the environment in the last couple of years.
Salin Low went to Fl and while there they attended a Rotary Meeting. Something that Salin learned at this meeting was that this club did "micro" projects, which they do at the club meeting.
Bill Barnes spoke about two forthcoming concerts of the Farmington Valley Symphony. One a week from tomorrow, the symphony plays at Hoffman Auditorium, St. Joseph's University. And then two weeks after that, the first Saturday of June is our annual pop concert on the lawn behind First Church, Farmington. The lawn opens at five o'clock for picnics and the concert at six o'clock, and it's all music of Rogers and Hammerstein.
Gary Miller was on Zoom last Friday, because he was down visiting friends VA, did some winery touring and tasting and saw folks who he has been friends with since he attended staff college in 1983. He is headed off to Louisville, to go to the PGA championship in Valhalla. He has decided to start following the PGA championship around each year.
Loren Clarke noted that the Lions Club was having their first ever bingo night this evening and she was going to be the numbers caller. She also wanted to wish all of the mothers a happy mother's day.
Peter Vignati let us know that tonight Suzanne and I and my brother and his wife are leaving for Edinburgh, and now we're excited to go over there and play a little bit golf but to do lot of other fun things.
Chris Lamadrid was happy that Ike was here and noted that without his hard work in recruiting speakers we wouldn't have the great meetings that we have.
Announcements
Just a reminder to make sure you RSVP or register for the various events marked in the calendar. In particular, the Yard Goats tickets go quickly.
Calendar
May 18 - Rotary Day of Service (in addition Shop Rite is selling $15 bags of food to be donated to Gifts of Love)
May 22 - Rotary Men's Book Club at Steve Horenstein's home
June 1 - Luke and Katie's Baby Shower at FAVARH 1-3 (Please RSVP $20 per person for gift and light lunch)
June 7 - President's Dinner at the Golf Club of Avon ($60 per person)
June 10 - East Hartford Rotary Golf Tournament at Wethersfield CC
June 18 - Simsbury-Granby Rotary Golf Tournament at Hopmeadow CC
June 18 - Loaves & Fishes (Needs 1 more person)
June 24 - Fore Autism Golf Tournament at Torrington CC
June 26 - Seniors' Luncheon at the Canton Community Center
July 8 - Torrington-Winsted Golf Classic at Torrington CC
July 17 - Loaves & Fishes
July 22 - District 7890 Golf Outing at Twin Hills CC in Longmeadow MA
July 27 - Rotary Day at the Yard Goats
August 21 - Loaves & Fishes - See Bob Cave for additional days
September - Avon/Canton Rotary Golf Tournament
Induction of New Members
None this week.
New Member Profile
Dami Singh
When Dami Singh was received into Rotary membership last Friday, she shared a wonderful quote from the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr: "Everybody can be great, because everybody can serve." What a perfect quote in the spirit of Rotary by our newest member! She was introduced to the Avon-Canton Club by Linda Pendergast, whom she had met while working with the Women's Auxiliary at St. Francis Hospital.
Dami, from a family of nine, grew up in Guyana, South America. Prior to her country's independence in 1966, Guyana was under British rule as part of the British Mainland of the British West Indies. Consequently, her education followed the British curriculum.
"In 1980, I married my high school sweetheart," says Dami, "and we embarked on a journey that took us to Jamaica and later to Barbados as he pursued his medical education. In 1990, we settled in Rochester, NY, where we resided for three years before relocating to Bayside, NY. Finally we made our home in Avon, CT, where we have lived for 26 years."
Dami's professional journey has been diverse. She started her career in banking in Georgetown and Jamaica. Later, she obtained an Associates in Computer Information Management from Tunxis Community College and a degree in Leadership and Management from the University of Hartford. She also pursued HR certification through Ecornell. Subsequently, she worked as a Production Programmer at AMS Ratings in Windsor, CT.
"Then I transitioned to supporting my late husband in managing his successful medical practice, progressing from Bookkeeper to Office Manager," she reports. "After my husband's passing in 2018, I completed the Real Estate License Course and became a Realtor in May 2019 with Berkshire Hathaway in Avon, achieving over 5 million dollars in sales within a short period. Presently, I work part-time as a Bookkeeper with the Women's Auxiliary at St. Francis Hospital and am still a Licensed real Estate Agent."
Outside of work, Dami notes that she has always been dedicated to volunteering, and over the years has been involved with organizations such as the American Cancer Society, Interval House, League of Women Voters of Greater Hartford and FAVARH.
"I have a son named Rish Singh, who was at Rotary with me for my induction last week, and a beloved Wheaten Terrier named Rhea, who brings joy to our household. I also enjoy gardening, cooking, theater, hiking, Broadway and exercising."
We are delighted to welcome Dami Singh as an enthusiastic new member of the Rotary Club of Avon-Canton.
Awards
None this week.
Community and International Service Grants
None this week.
The French Paymaster
by Kara LaBella
Gary Miller introduced the author of the novel The French Paymaster, Kara LaBella who earned her Master's degree in English Literature from Trinity College and went on to teach college-level English for 25 years. Now in retirement, she has written two books, The Symsbury Witchesand The French Paymaster -- each a combination of local legend and intensive historical research, tied together by creative fiction. She has been a member of the Friends of the State Archaeologist, as well as the Connecticut Gravestone Network, she seeks to preserve the stories of our past for our future. Through the CT Library Consortium, Kara now shares her findings with audiences at historical societies, museums and libraries throughout the state.
The French Paymaster explores a local legend about a mysterious disappearance in Canton, Connecticut during the Revolutionary War era. Bella provided historical context and details about the legend, as well as connections to Washington Irving's The Legend of Sleepy Hollow.
According to the Kirkus Review:
"In this ghostly tale set during the Revolutionary War, two officers—one colonial and one French—search for a missing French paymaster.
In 1781, at the height of the Revolutionary War, the Continental Army relies heavily on infusions of gold from their French ally. Consequently, the disappearance of French paymaster Rene Garneau is a grave matter—in his absence, regiments in Albany have gone weeks without pay. George Washington dispatches Gen. Philip Schuyler and Vicomte Charles Dumas to track him and the money he was conveying somewhere between the Connecticut valley and the border of New York. The pair travels to the Hosford Stand in Canton, a tavern, the last place he was known to visit, and encounters a strange cast of characters, each seemingly harboring secrets, and many, including the Stand’s owner, Duncan Case, in desperate need of funds. There are also those who are unabashedly loyal to the crown or bitterly resentful of the involuntary contributions collected for the war effort. In other words, many have reason to murder Garneau. LaBella weaves old legend into a murder mystery, one based on Washington Irving’s The Legend of Sleepy Hollow (1820). Schuyler discovers that some believe Garneau was murdered and now vengefully haunts Canton, riding his horse like a spectral apparition. This is a light, intricate, and unpredictable tale; the mystery is more evocative of Agatha Christie than Irving. The layered characterization adds to the fun, with an especially memorable Dumas. He often behaves in the “manner of a fop,” displaying a lack of gravity that initially troubles Schuyler, but this turns out to be a crafty act that conceals his remarkable intelligence."
Special Announcements
None this week.
Mail Bag
None this week.
Photo Credits
Photos by editor
Technology Credits
Zoom platform management expertise by Mike 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?
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