Posted by Stacey Poole on Jan 21, 2025
President Bob Hermann, Jr. (Information Technology: Administration | Retired) called the meeting to order at 12:13 PM on January 21, 2025 and welcomed everyone attending in person or on Zoom.
 
Thought of the Day
Peter Logan (Law: Insurance | Peter Logan Law Offices) read today's Thought of the Day by Mahatma Gandhi, which was "The best way to find yourself is to lose yourself in the service of others."
 
Today's Guests
Our guests were Julie Guillen, Nahid Khodakarami, Chris Laakso, and Katherine Thompson. Also in attendance were Zenna, Maranda, Sharon, and Lonnita from The Arc SF. Our speaker was Captain Anne McIntyre. Welcome to all!
 
Report on Fun-Raiser
President Bob shared photos from the Stars, Stripes, and Songs Fun-Raiser held on January 11, 2025. There were 66 attendees who enjoyed food, drinks, fellowship, and entertainment. The event raised over $50,000 that will be distributed between the San Francisco Rotary Foundation and The Rotary Foundation. See full story here.
 
Grant Presentation
President Bob introduced Barbara Streett (Nonprofit Administration | The Arc San Francisco), and Barbara introduced her team from The Arc San Francisco. President Bob then presented a check in the amount of $16,000 on behalf of the San Francisco Rotary Foundation. 
 
Barbara described the Entrepreneurship Program of The Arc SF which was created in order to increase career opportunities for people with developmental disabilities by introducing them to self-employment. The Program teaches entrepreneurial skills, communication skills, and stress management to build confidence and resilience in those who complete the training. The participants decided to have a Bake Sale in which they had to make and sell the goods, determine the supplies and equipment needed, and decide on the pricing. So far, they have reaped a net profit of $80.02. Due to their success, the participants will hold a second Bake Sale for Valentine's Day.
 
 
Member Update
Tamour Khan (Website Design | Intel Corporation) was recognized for his service to our Club and his recent marriage to Nona Ehyaei. Congratulations to Tamour and Nona!
 
Update from Family House
Katherine Thompson from Family House spoke about the work that they do to support families who have a child undergoing treatment at UCSF. Family House offers an 80-room home and provides compassion, refuge, and community to the entire family during this difficult time. In 2024, this organization supported about 1,000 families. The San Francisco Rotary Foundation has provided a financial grant of $5,000, and our Club has provided volunteers to help with family dinners, cleaning, and restocking pantries. At our December 2024 Holiday Party, Club Members and guests donated over 70 new toys for the children at Family House. Katherine closed with an invitation to their 2025 Gala
 
PE Frank Yoke, Katherine Thompson, and President Bob Hermann
 
New Paul Harris Fellows
Paul Harris (1868-1947) founded the first Rotary Club in Chicago in 1905, hoping to bring some of what he treasured from his rural Vermont upbringing to the big city. Rotary would not exist without his vision of a group of business professionals who helped each other by helping others. For each $1,000 donated to The Rotary Foundation, a person can become a Paul Harris Fellow. The following were awarded their Paul Harris pins today:
  • Daniel DeSanto (Nonprofit Administration | Rotaplast International) - PHF
  • Christopher Davies (Real Estate: Property Management | Self-employed) - PHF+1
  • Peter de Castro (Financial Services: Advising | RBC) - PHF+1
  • Margaret Miley (Hospitality: Hotels | Retired) - PHF+1
  • Evelyn Abad (Medical Services | Rotaplast International) - PHF+2
  • Maureen O'Shea (Governmental Relations | Retired) - PHF+2
  • Stacey Poole (Law: Family | Lerner Poole & Stewart, LLP) - PHF+7.
Allan Herzog (Financial Services: Advising | Wells Fargo Advisors) was recognized as a Major Donor +3 for having donated more than $50,000.
 
Carlos Francisco Valdes (Real Estate | Aeternum Holdings, Inc.) was acknowledged as a Benefactor as he had made a gift to The Rotary Foundation in his estate plan.
 
Upcoming Events
Check the Club's calendar for upcoming meetings and events. Save April 26, 2025 for the Bike Build.
 
TRF Chair Jim Patrick (Retail: Office Supplies | Patrick & Co.) invited all to attend the Super Bowl Viewing Party and buy Squares. See here for information.
 
President-Elect Frank Yoke III (Development | Serra Residential Center, Inc.) announced the opening of grant season, encouraged members to become familiar with the grant approval process, and apply. He also announced that our Club has acquired ten tickets for the March 10, 2025 Warriors' game. The tickets cost $140 each and are for seats in the Pepsi Club. More information will be posted on www.sfrotary.org soon.
 
Guest Speaker
Robin Azevedo (Retail: Mattresses | Retired, McRoskey Mattress Company) introduced today's speaker — Captain Anne McIntyre. Captain McIntyre is the Business Director from the San Francisco Bar Pilots. She described the work of bar pilots as providing commercial navigation services to cargo ships for all nine Bay Area ports. A bar pilot boards each cargo ship well outside the port at all hours and in all types of weather conditions and navigates the ship in and out of the port since the captain of the ship is not an expert in the local waters and conditions. The waters are environmentally sensitive and shallow in certain locations. This service is critical to California’s supply chain infrastructure and has been in service since 1835. The Bay Area has additional challenges due to swell, current, fog, and winds. There is a wide diversity of vessels that have to be piloted.
 
The San Francisco Bar Pilots has 50 licensed pilots and is located at Pier 9. In order to become a SF Bar Pilot, a person must have 15 years of maritime experience, a BS degree from a Maritime Academy, pass federal testing, and maintain ongoing education. The largest ship to enter the Port of Oakland was the MSC Anna, which was 1,312 feet long, 193 feet wide, and held 19,200 containers. 
 
President Bob thanked Captain Anne McIntyre and announced that 100 children would be inoculated against polio in her name. 
 
 
The meeting was adjourned at 1:30 PM.
 
Meeting Volunteers
President Bob thanked today's meeting volunteers: Cecile Chiquette (Accounting | Retired) for serving as volunteer coordinator; Stacey Poole for serving as scribe; Jim Patrick for serving as photographer; Peter Logan for managing the microphone; Kirt Burdick of the Academy of Art University for managing the audio-visual equipment during our in-person meeting; Robin Azevedo for serving as greeter; Christopher Wiseman (San Francisco Rotary Foundation) for serving as Zoom Host; and PE Frank Yoke and Ann Daugherty (Financial Services: Private Trading | IBN Financial Services) for doing check-in at the Hotel Nikko.