Posted by G. Stowe Talbot on Dec 13, 2017
Flag Salute & Invocation by Brad Cornwell
 
Visiting Rotarians: Mauri Ingram
 
Guests: Rachel Myers (Whatcom Community Foundation), Chris Vasquez (Boy Scouts), and Dannon’s WHOLE FAMILY!
 
Announcements
 
President Curtis with birthdays and Rotary anniversaries.
 
Next week musical guests the Bellingham High School “Showstoppers”, please bring family and guests (but let Brad or staff at Northwood Hall know so they get a fell for the head count)
 
Business Promo minute: Dr Curtis Smith announced he is retiring from Delta Dental, and Steve Swan with kudos for Whatcom Community Foundation - amplifying philanthropy to help the entire community.
 
BBRC Board meeting will take place THIS Thursday Dec. 14th 4:30pm at Tradewinds board room (2211 Rimland Drive, 4th floor).
Bucks in the Bay
  • Curtis Dye had a nice low-key weekend at home, binge-watching The Crown;
  • Steve White update on home (still standing unattached by the fires thankfully) in Ojai, CA, and some “fire coverage” insurance tips;
  • Mark Turner got to spend time with granddaughter last weekend (his son was in town researching breweries in Bellingham for a brewery he plans to open soon in Yakima to be called “Single Hill Brewing” http://singlehillbrewing.com);
  • Mike Hammes update on Food Bank turkey drive $22K raised!
  • Andy Clay happy bucks last few weeks redecorating some of her nursing homes;
  • Tresha Dutton taking off for the holidays;
  • Eddie Hansen for successful toy drive, their Ferndale office is almost complete. New project starting next summer.
  • Chuck Walter unfortunately attended funeral (Byron Elmendorf) but saw a lot of fellow Rotarians;
  • Stowe Talbot update on current projects at Barkley, and kudos to Mike Hammes and the Ram Construction team for their outstanding business acumen;
  • Tim Krell kudos to Dannon’s family;
Sergeant at Arms by Flo
Misc. fines
 
Program
Brad Cornwell welcomed Mauri Ingram (president and CEO), and Rachel Myers (Philanthropic Advisor & Program Manager) for the Whatcom Community Foundation (http://www.whatcomcf.org).  Steve Swan is chairman of their board of directors; Mike Bates and Flo Simon also serve on their board.  Mauri Prior to her role at WCF, Mauri was a restaurant owner, and later worked at Trillium and as a consultant.  She was one of the founders of the Bellingham Downtown Partnership, has an MBA from UW, and is a member of the Monday Rotary Club. 
 
About Community Foundations:  WCF is one of 700+ community foundations across the U.S., building permanent and short-term assets to meet ever changing community needs and opportunities.  Community foundations are charitable organizations created through gifts from people who care about a particular place. Anyone can contribute any amount of money to a community foundation. The community foundation uses those gifts or a portion of the investment income from permanent funds to make grants that strengthen their community. Community foundations operate in perpetuity, meaning that the communities we serve will always have people in their corner.
 
WCF’s Mission - amplify the force of philanthropy by connecting people, ideas and resources so that communities flourish.
 
The WCF was established in 1996, has assets of $41M, gives away about $4M/year in grants, and has 9 employees.
 
Strategies
Community Partnerships:  (Depot market Sq Ferndale Public Library, Fairhaven Green)
Putting Dollars to Work:  grantmaking, youth philanthropy, scholarships, “Project Neighborly”, the “Threshold Fund”, impact investing ).
Strengthen nonprofits:  they organize “executive director roundtables” for training non-profit directors and staff, as well as coaching.
Helping donors make a difference
 
Carlye wins the raffle!
 
Respectfully submitted,
Stowe Talbot