Today was an In-Person meeting at Cedar Crest College starting at 7:30 A.M. There were 19 of us present plus 2 more on line.
Our Greeter was Marlene Heller. Mitch Huston handled registration, prizes and Happy Dollars.
GUESTS:
Nick Millward, Peace Scholar, calling in from Australia.
OPENING:
Pres. Gail Micca opened the meeting at 7:41 A.M.
Ralph Witcher gave a nice invocation.
Ron Coleman led us in the Pledge of Allegiance to the U.S. Flag.
Marlene Heller led us in reciting the Four Way Test, and added “Is it Fun?”
CELEBRATIONS:
The member celebrations for MAY are listed below.
PRIZES:
The door prize donated by Marlene Heller was won by Helen Papathanasiou.
The $18 of the 50:50 was won by Ron Colman.
HAPPY DOLLARS:
Bill Palmer is happy that his Grandson Andrew is getting married on May 20th, and at Bear Creek Resort.
Herb Klotz said their 3 days at the Eastern Shore were great.
Gail Micca is happy that her Dad is feeling better. She just returned from North Dakota.
Gail also is happy that she attended the annual D7430 Conference in Atlantic City. It was great and included the finals of our annual Four Way Test Speech Contest.
Gail also noted that the 2024 Conference is set for the last week in April and in Bethlehem, PA.
Gail also is happy to be 60 years old tomorrow.
Ralph Witcher was $5 happy that our speaker Jaime was here.
Sharon Goldner is happy that her friend’s health is now stable.
Mitch Huston is happy that he took 2 trips and was in eight states. The second one was to plan the annual Drum & Bugle event in Allentown on August 4 & 5.
Pres. Gail showed photos of the D7430 Conference. Sue & Bill Weber also were there.
BUDGET REQUESTS:
Please get any new requests for financing of projects in 2023-24 to Gary Englehardt or Herb Klotz A.S.A.P. NO LATER THAN MAY 16th.
AWRC GREEN THUMB GARDEN:
Pres. Gail has cuts on her hands and really can use some help at the garden.
The Library Garden needs volunteers for next Wednesday.
The Garden Clean up and Planting project with both Interact Clubs has been moved to Saturday, May 13th.
DINING OUT – JUNE:
TBD.
SCHOLARSHIP AWARDS BREAKFAST:
Wednesday May 17th In-person AT Madeline’s restaurant starting at 7:30 A.M. Chair Laurie Grube will present the awards for this year.
MONGOLIAN 21 / 21 NIGHT-- JUNE 10:
Please join us for Mongolia 21|21 Night at Gary and Gwenn’s home in Kutztown. The event begins at 5:30. This is an evening of fellowship, fun, and opportunity. You will learn more about the Mongolia 21|21 Project (www.mongolia 2121.org) as well as enjoy the fellowship of Rotarians and other folks who want to do good in the world.
See separate article.
SNACK PACKING:
The next Snack Packing event at Parkland is on May 17th.
The NWL Snack Packing date is Wednesday, May 17th.
ROTARY DAY OF SERVICE:
April 29th was the planned district-wide event, but it has been postponed due to rain.
It was a roadside cleanup project in conjunction with the Parkland Interact Club.
KINGDOM LIFE FOOD DISTRIBUTION:
Come and help next time.
The upcoming date for Kingdom Life Food Pantry Giveaway is
May 13.
Each time we start at 7:30 A.M. and usually are finished by 9:30 A.M. Volunteers are needed.
PARKLAND C.A.R.E.S. PRODUCE DELIVERY:
The Pantry will hold its food distributions on the first Saturday of each month for all of 2023.
Three volunteers are needed each time.
Food collections for Parkland C.A.R.E.S. will be held the third Wednesday of each month at the Pantry on Kernsville Road.
MEALS ON WHEELS:
Meal delivery by AW Rotarians takes place twice each week. Helen Papathanasiou needs substitute volunteers.
INTERACT BREAKFAST:
We will hold an Interact breakfast on May 31 at the Parkland H.S. Library. Start time is 7:30 A.M.
SPONSORS ARE NEEDED TO PAY FOR THE STUDENTS’ MEALS.
YOUTH EXCHANGE ISSUES:
Please work with Chris Blechschmidt to take our Y.E. student, Sam, to complete his “bucket list.”
MEETING SCHEDULE:
The second and fourth Wednesday of each month are In-Person meetings at Cedar Crest College.
The first Wednesday of each month will be a Dining Out meeting, or equal. It might not be on a Wednesday.
The third Wednesday of each month will be a ZOOM ONLY meeting with a program, unless we have a better idea. The Scholarship awards meeting at Madeline’s is on May 17th.
FUTURE TOURS, ETC.:
All members are asked to make suggestions to Gail Micca about other tours, Dining Out events, etc. for future meetings.
NEXT MORNING MEETING IN-PERSON:
May 17 IN-PERSON at MADELINE’S starting at 7:30 A.M.
The program will be AWRC Annual Scholarship awards.
PROGRAM:
Program Chair, Ralph Witcher, introduced Jaime Hill, Director LifeSmart-Lehigh Valley to explain about Experiencing LifeSmart. Jaime has held this position for three years. She is married and has three children.
LifeSMART is an educational program dedicated to teaching and empowering students to have healthy relationships and avoid risk so they can experience optimal health for a lifetime.
They partner with teachers and other youth-serving adults to educate middle and high school students using the REAL Essentials curriculum. It is age-appropriate, medically accurate, evidence-based, and inclusive.
This life-changing education is offered by LifeSMART staff who are certified SRAE Specialists to youth in schools, and community organizations throughout the Lehigh Valley.
Jaime provided an overview of LifeSmart, i.e. What the "Smart" in LifeSmart stands for
Jaime is one of nine Trained presenters right now. Their current year has 3,900 students hearing via 1,095 training meetings. Their training of Elementary students just started last year. They also hold separate training sessions for Teachers.
The Teachers in the classrooms that hear the programs end up recommending subjects to add. Each student usually attends 6 to 8 sessions. And each has a workbook.
They even hold Spanish Speaking classes that include Robert, a great translator.
Jaime referred to a Harvard University study to determine what makes people happy. Their conclusion was that it is your relationships.
Jaime noted that it is hard to find Presenters that can work so many hours thru the school year.
Jaime emphasized that “Words have power.” She gave examples of words that hurt, and then words that help. Being able to apologize is essential.
She asked Ralph Witcher to balance a broom on his hand. He did his best but it fell over every few seconds.
Then Jaime told him to look up at the broom top and Ralph kept it going a lot. The message is to focus on the future not the immediate. Create a recipe for your life.
The following are notes from Jaime’s PowerPoint presentation.
LifeSmart
Our Mission:
To empower youth with skills and tools to choose healthy relationships and avoid risky behaviors.
Who do you serve?
Elementary, Middle and High Schools & Youth Serving Organizations
ELEMENTARY SCHOOLS
5th Grade Program
• Central • Dodd
• Jefferson • Lehigh Parkway
• Mosse • Muhlenberg
• Ritter • Muhlenberg
• Roosevelt • Sheridan
Elementary, Middle and High Schools & Youth Serving Organizations
HIGH SCHOOLS
Dieruff William Allen
William Penn Alternative
Building 21 Freedom High School
Liberty High School MIDDLE SCHOOLS
Harrison Morton South Mountain
William Penn Alternative
Broughal East Hills
Nitschmann Northeast
COMMUNITY YOUTH SERVING ORGANIZATIONS
The Boys & Girls Clubs of Bethlehem
The Boys & Girls Clubs of Easton
The Children’s Home of Easton
The Juvenile Justice Center
Why social & emotional learning?
Why relationship education?
Harvard Study of Adult Development 85-Year study shows the key to success: strong relationships.
What curriculum do you u
What curriculum do you use?
Student Workbooks!
▪ Age Appropriate
▪ Medically Accurate
▪ Research and Evidence Based
▪ Relevant
What lessons do you teach?
• Healthy Decision Making
• Toxic Friendships
• Setting Boundaries
• Effective Communication
• Relationship Red Flags
• Social Skills
• Friendship, Dating, and Love
• Resolving Conflict
• Success Sequence
• Whole Person Health
• Basic Needs of the Heart
• Words Have Power
• Goal Setting
• Refusal Skills
Who are your presenters?
How are they trained?
©The Center for Relationship EducationREAL Essentials Starting Point ©The Center for Relationship Education
Words that make us feel appreciated
Words that make us feel hurt
Words Have Power
When we use words that hurt, they leave a permanent hole in our hearts.”
What can people do to help repair the holes that hurtful words crea
Future Orientation
Success Sequencing
My Whole Self
Physical Intellectual Emotional
Social Spiritual Finan
How are you funded?
Health & Human Services Federal Grant Award
Foundation Grants
Individual Donors
Business Partners
How many students do you talk to?
Impacting Students in the Lehigh Valley in the 2022-2023 School Year
3,900 Students
1,095 Presentations
Our current numbers for this school year:
What do students have to say about LifeSMART?
How can we partner with LifeSMART?
Can you come to my kids’ / grandkids school?
• Donate!
Financial Support
Be a Classroom Sponsor: $50 provides tudent workbooks for one class
Student Donations: Hard candy that is individually wrapped like Jolly Ranchers & Life avers
Teacher Donations: $5 Dunkin Donuts gift cards, individually wrapped chocolate
• Connect!
Who do you know that might be interested in being a LifeSMART presenter?
Do you know someone who speaks Spanish and an translate for some of our classes?
Do you know local business owners who would be interested in partnering with LifeSMART?
• Contact!
This is on a school-by-school basis, please contact us for the status of your school The more program funding we have, the more presenters e can hire, the more schools we can serve, and the more students we can impact.
CLOSING:
Pres. Gail led us in reciting our motto “One profits most who serves best.” Then she adjourned the meeting