Flag Salute & Invocation by Steve White
Visiting Rotarians: Debbie and Brett VanSteenwyk (Paso Robles, CA)
Guests: WC Exec. candidates Satpal Sidhu and Tony Larson, Matt Bees (guest of Sven Gilkey), Scott Douglas (NW Physical Therapy), Paul Bulanov (Keller Williams, and candidate for Ferndale City Council)
Announcements
VFW (Oct 12th): Our Community Service Committee and Anna Williams have organized a great opportunity for us to serve our Bellingham community by painting a room at the VFW Post, 625 North State Street, on October 12th. Six (6) spots need to be filled, if interested contact Tony Freeland.
Bellingham’s three Rotary clubs will gathering for a joint fellowship event on Thursday October 17th, 4:30 - 6:30pm, at Twin Sisters Brewery, with catered food.
Wines by the Water - October 19th at the Hotel Bellwether. Special “Rotary” tickets available for early entry at 4 pm. General admission to the public starts at 5:30. The event runs until 8pm. The special Rotary ticket includes entry into a door prize drawing which will be held at 5:30 before GA admission. Each Rotarian is being asked by the board to purchase two tickets at $95 each. See Christine Palmerton (cpalmerton@msn.com) for tickets now, or via Eventbrite (https://www.eventbrite.com/e/grape-and-gourmet-presents-wines-by-the-water-tickets-66490381521?aff=eac2). Special thanks Jim from Bellwether and Donna
Special Olympics Bowling Event (Oct. 26th): Our Community Service Committee and the Special Olympics Washington Bellingham have organized a great opportunity for us to serve our community by supporting a bowling competition at Park Bowl, on October 26th. We have volunteer shifts available from 8-12pm, 12-4pm, or 8am-4pm, contact Tony if interested: tfreeland@freelandengineering.com.
Another BBRC fellowship event is planned at Thousand Acres Cider House - 4:30pm on October 29th - stay tuned for more details.
Business Bucket by Flo Simon (who is planning to open a catering business called Flo Jo’s after she retires in 2022) invites everyone to come to our BBRC VFW volunteer event at VFW this Saturday where she will be serving up some of her specialty slow-cooked BBQ treats!
Bucks in the Bay
- Brad Cornwell going to Colorado;
- Curtis Dye;
- Donna Edquist;
- Bill Geyer;
- Stowe Talbot for weight gain while in Napa this past weekend;
- John Templeton for fine dining at Bellwether Bistro - it’s amazing;
- Terry Brown mending from shoulder surgery, some weight gain from Texas BBQ;
- Bob Moles fly fishing, and prior to that traveling around in Yukon / WhiteHorse;
- Inga Drechsel had fun catching up with college friends;
- Mimi off to Mexico, and her grandson has another audition for a tv show;
- Wendy Heister went camping on her 36th wedding anniversary!
- Lesa announced the arrival of another grandbaby (named Brooklyn Rose)
SAA by Lesa
Fines for misc. sins, and Whatcom County trivia.
Program
Lance introduced WC Council candidates Satpal Sidhu and Tony Larson.
Satpal has lived in Lynden for 30 years, and their three sons graduated from Meridian schools. He grew up in India before moving to Whatcom County in 1988. He speaks four languages, was a Fulbright Scholar, and has substantial experience as a professional engineer, senior business executive, and Dean of Engineering at Bellingham Technical College. In 2004, he and his wife started Spice Hut. He currently serves as a WC Council member. Over the years he has served on and volunteered for numerous community boards and committees. Satpal first visited the area in 1978 on a Rotary exchange! His message is that despite the partisan divide now, the main issues have consensus. Importance of give and take. Housing affordability, and water access are important issues. Satpal says he brings a wide array of experiences and skills and prides himself on being a voice of reason and common sense. As WC county exec, he promises to work tirelessly. https://votesatpalsidhu.com
Tony was born and raised in Bellingham, and hopes to combine his hometown knowledge with his business experience to the job of Whatcom County Executive. He is currently the President of the Whatcom Business Alliance, which works to improve community prosperity and economic opportunities.He says he supports only those regulations that work with, not against, farmers and employers. Tony thinks now is the time to invest boldly in infrastructure, but focussing the spending on programs with clear objectives that create fair and equitable outcomes for everyone. Tony expects county government to serve the public better, and the county executive can provide leadership to get that done. Most of the challenges we now have (housing, homelessness, water issues, the jail, cherry point’s future) are solvable. Focus on ideas not ideologies; politics often gets in the way. https://votetonylarson.com
Doug Wight wins the raffle.
Respectfully submitted,
Stowe Talbot