Meeting Notes: 8/8/2024 by John Leatherwood
President Terry Heck called the meeting to order. We then stood and recited the 4-Way Test followed by the Pledge of Allegiance.
Terry thanked today’s meeting volunteers, Pat Chaffee, Joel Doss (Front Desk), Paul Courtright (Greeter), Bill Brehm (Photography), Sgt. At Arms Joel Doss, John Leatherwood (Scribe), Susan Lewallen (Book Presenter) and Dave Brooks (Audio Visual).
Today’s sole guest was our speaker.
Mike Fuqua introduced our speaker, Austin Varco founder of “Race for Autism” non-profit.
Austin told the story of his upbringing in Chula Vista. From a young age he was passionate about movies & film making. His focus as a kid was to attend USC’s film school and sacrificed whatever it took to pursue it. After fighting to get in, it wasn’t what he expected, switched to business and learned a lot about himself. He knew he had a hyper-focus trait and wanted to understand why so four years ago he entered a neurological brain study. He was diagnosed with an autism spectrum disorder and ADHD. It helped explain a lot and gave him a renewed sense of purpose. He had begun racing competitively and decided to use it as a vehicle to create awareness and help others on the spectrum. He began his own non-profit “Race For Autism” and travels to large races around the country to speak with and help others w/Autism experience the sport. You can learn more at www.austinvarco.com
Sandie Dewane reported on the Family of Rotary. John O’Neill is on the slow road to recovery and just passed his cognitive test at the DMV on his way to getting his drivers license again. Pete Griffith is not doing well. Jan Goldsmith, Mark Alberts, and Sonny Googins all have Covid right now.
Bob Vaughn rallied a short session of Happy Bucks while members touched on separate reasons for giving.
President Terry Heck made a few announcements:
* Operation Gratitude is coming up on Monday August 19th from 1-4 pm. See Mike Fuqua for information about attending w/ our RB Rotary group.
* Day at the Del Mar Races is coming up Sept 7th. There are 10 spots remaining, tickets are $25, contact Diane Remick for more info.
* Rotary Night at the Padres is August 20th. Tickets can be purchased online here: Rotary Night at the Padres | District 5340 (rotary5340.org)
* Sept 5th will be our Picnic at Lake Poway in place of our meeting at the Heights. It will begin at 12 noon, Cost is $10, bring a dish or dessert, email to come with more information.
We ended the meeting watching a couple videos selected by President Terry Heck. The first was a Rotary International production with an emphasis on peace building, one of our areas of focus for the year. The second was the “We Are The World” music video to help reinforce our connection to the world and the message that still remains true today.
