Kiwanis of the Valleys
Holiday spirit was very much alive within the club as shown during recent events! Members once again helped set up the ScottsValley Educational Foundation Christmas tree lot on Scotts Valley Dr.
On December 5th, club president Dr. John A. Stevens assumed his Santa Claus identity and passed out dozens of gifts the club had purchased for the Big Brothers and Big Sisters annual holiday lunch at Shadowbrook Restaurant. The “littles” were overcome with joy. Kiwanis affiliated youth members happily acted as Santa’s trusty elves.
On December 12th, several members pitched in at a work day for the new ScottsValley performing arts theater that is under construction at the site of the old roller rink.
The club is taking the rest of December off to recuperate from our recently held highly successful Christmas party. Regular meetings will resume on Jan 6th. Kiwanis meets at 7:00 a.m. every Wednesday morning at Bruno’s BBQ. The second Wednesday of each month is an evening meeting at Bruno’s at 6:30 p.m. We invite you to join us. Visit our website: www.kiwanisofthevalleys.org/
Exchange Club of ScottsValley
The Exchange Club of Scotts Wishes Everyone a Healthy and Happy New Year.
We are happy to be working with GatewayBibleChurch this year for our Christmas Giving Project. We will be putting together a Gift package with 100’s of dollars of gift certificates for a local Family of five.
Please join us at our next regular meeting Wednesday
January 27th, 5:30 p.m., at Bruno Barbeque Restaurant.
Councilman Dene Bustichi will be speaking about the state of ScottsValley.
ScottsValley Rotary
Scotts Valley Rotary had a busy December.
We heard from Jackie Nunez at The Last Plastic Straw. Their mission is to educate the public about the absurdity of single use plastic, its effects on our health, our environment, and our oceans. They aim to eliminate from the source, the use of single use plastic.
Check out their website to find out about one simple act that you can do to help- http://thelastplasticstraw.org
Carol Childers spoke to us about Meals on Wheels for Santa CruzCounty which is part of the Community Bridges family of programs. Their mission is to enhance lives through healthy meals and friendly human contact. Nurturing elders at one of five dining sites, or meals delivered to the home is part of the goal. Our club is looking at getting more involved with Meals on Wheels, and hopefully another club or two. Stay tuned for more info.
We were honored to have Rotary District 5170 Governor, Susan Valenta, speak to our club this month. She received a warm welcome from Scotts Valley Club President Tony Giannotti, Assistant Governor, Cheryl Rebottaro, Rotaract past President Jessie Case, and club members.
Our Club was recognized by the Rotary Foundation for our financial support of the End Polio Now: Make History Today Campagin.
Rotary Club of the San LorenzoValley
The Rotary Club of San Lorenzo Valley is pleased to announce the induction of two new members, Brenda Holmes and Bill Jurgens. Brenda is the Executive Director of Mountain Parks Foundation and Bill has recently retired from Intel. Both members were honored during a visit from Rotary District Governor, Susan Valenta, and Club President, Mike Holton.
In preparation for the holidays, SLV Rotarians spearheaded a food drive to benefit local families, sponsored five local students on a holiday shopping trip, collected dozens of new socks for Mountain Community Resource clients, and donated funds to support a special Rotary friend struggling with a serious illness.
Ralph Waldo Emerson once said, “The purpose of life is not to be happy. It is to be useful, to be honorable, to be compassionate, and to have it make some difference that you have lived and lived well.” If you would like to make a difference in our community and work on international projects as well, we encourage you to be our guest for breakfast at the Mt.HermonConferenceCenter any Wednesday morning from 7:15 a.m. – 8:30 a.m. Additional membership information and a list of upcoming speakers can be found on our website http://slvrotaryclub.org/.
The Valley Women’s Club
Only a few weeks ago, the Valley Women’s Club held the Hammer-Marcum Award honoring Jim Rapoza and Hallie Greene for their many contributions to the well-being of our community. Both honorees underscore the interests and concerns that epitomize the San LorenzoValley community.
Then the tragic death on December 14th of Tai (Talitha) Stills, a past recipient of the Hammer-Marcum Award, reminded us all to cherish our family and friends and those who do so much for our community. Tai provided so much to our community through her activism in environmental issues, her work with non-profit organizations and her love of music. We will miss her joy in the beauty of the world and in friends and family. We honor her memory and are grateful to have known her.
Earlier this month, the 16th AnnualEnvironmentalTown Hall, where our local Assembly Member comes to discuss State legislation and actions that affect us locally, was held at Felton Community Hall. Assembly Member Mark Stone spoke in a forthright manner about how things work in Sacramento and of the accomplishments and disappointments of the past year.
The audience asked interesting questions for Mark to discuss, and there were fascinating exhibits from the County Environmental Health Department, the Resource Conservation District, the Loch Lomond Reservoir, the Regional Transportation District, the Coastal Watershed Conservancy, and our Environmental Committee for the SLV.
Check out the website for the Redwood Mountain Faire! Applications are available for local bands who want to perform, for artists and crafters, for non-profits who want booths or want to be considered as a grant recipient.
Best wishes for a meaningful and wonderful holiday season and New Year.
