Category Archives: Rotary Club of Madison Guest Speaker

New Partnership to Serve Homeless Individuals in our Community

Posted on November 10, 2016 by | 1 comment

–submitted by Rich Leffler; photo by Loretta Himmelsbach

fonder-thom-11-9-16Fellow Rotarian Jackson Fonder—president and CEO of Catholic Charities of Madison—and Bev Thom—chair of the Bethel Lutheran Church homeless ministry board—were our speakers on Wednesday. Jackson led off. He recalled a Christmas Eve in 2015. Scot Sorensen, senior pastor at Bethel Lutheran, was going to have to close the homeless day center at Bethel because funding was ending. The Wisconsin State Journal ran a headline that read “Downtown Shelter to Close.” Somehow, private funding kept the shelter going during the winter. At the same time, Catholic Charities was thinking about what it could do for the homeless. Jackson and Scot, both Downtown Rotarians, met together and entered into a gentleman’s agreement: they would work together to provide day shelter for the homeless. In Madison in January 2016, there were 663 homeless people. Most of them are unseen to the public. Five percent of Madison Public School students are homeless at one time; 40 percent are homeless at some time. It’s a story of people rather than statistics — people who suffer from domestic violence, mental illness or substance abuse. A day shelter can provide a sense of belonging, of trust, of family.

Bev Thom offered the stories of three people who affected her:  three vignettes to explain how people become homeless. All suffered from abuse during childhood that profoundly influenced the course of their lives. Bethel gives people shelter and a chance to recover.

Jackson explained that a new day shelter, which he will lead, is scheduled to open in 2017 at 615 E. Washington Avenue, the former Chamber of Commerce building. The building is being completely remodeled and will become the “Homeless Day Resource Center.” He asked for help from people willing to volunteer their time and to serve on an advisory committee. The intention of the new center is to serve the homeless population and to be a great neighbor.

The partnership between Lutherans and Catholics is an historic coming together to serve the Madison community and was facilitated by the fellowship of Downtown Rotary. Jackson asked, “Isn’t that what Rotary is all about?” And he wondered whether this would have happened if Scot and Jackson had not been Downtown Rotarians.

Did you miss our meeting this week?  Watch the video here.

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The Nature of Autumnal Storms in the Great Lakes States

Posted on November 3, 2016 by | Leave a comment

–submitted by Larry Larrabee; photo by Loretta Himmelsbach

martin-jon-11-2-16With the enthusiasm of Jim Cantore of The Weather Channel, Professor Jonathan Martin informed and entertained us regarding the unusually severe nature of November storms in the Great Lake States region.  He is a member of the faculty of the Department of Atmospheric and Oceanic Sciences at the University of Wisconsin and nationally recognized for his studies of mid-latitude atmospheric dynamics.

As Professor Martin informed us, UW is the birthplace of satellite meteorology and he was able to share with us numerous satellite images of past storms as they progressed through the Midwestern States.

He began his presentation by providing the physics behind hurricanes and cyclones as they travel across the world, divided north and south by the tropical weather pattern that flows in the opposite direction, east to west.

In his individual description of five specific November storms between 1911 and 2010 he illustrated the uniqueness of these weather phenomena and how the extremes of temperature differences and low barometric pressures contribute most significantly to the relatively high winds associated with these particular inland storms.

For instance, the November 11, 1911 storm contributed that day to Janesville, WI experiencing a daytime high of 70 followed with an overnight low of 20 with a 35-degree drop in just one-hour.  The community also experienced that day an F4 tornado and six inches of snow that evening.

The other storms described had their extremes as well.  In 1975, the Edmund Fitzgerald was sunk in Lake Superior as it succumbed to 80-foot waves and on October 26, 2010 the lowest barometric pressure ever recorded on Earth was recorded in Northern Wisconsin.

Professor Martin’s enthusiastic delivery and our in-born fascination with weather and it’s extremes made for an informative and enjoyable program.

If you missed our meeting this week, click to watch the video.

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Stories Abound From the Grave

Posted on October 27, 2016 by | Leave a comment

–submitted by Moses Altsech; photo by Jeff Burkhart

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Dennis McCann pictured here with Club President Michelle McGrath

Whatever you thought you’d do after retirement, chances are it didn’t involve looking up graves. And yet that’s exactly what Dennis McCann did after leaving the Milwaukee State Journal. The stories he told us were not of ghosts, but rather of fascinating historical events—like the Peshtigo Fire or the Bayfield Flood—that he got to know more intimately by visiting cemeteries.

More importantly, through his cemetery visits, McCann got to know the people buried there—sometimes ordinary and sometimes extraordinary: Their story is sometimes captured by unique gravestone inscriptions (“In 1958 a contest was held to find the meanest woman in the world. Alas, I married both the winner and the runner-up… But if either are buried in this lot beside me there is going to be a resurrection”) and sometimes left unsaid—as in the case of John Heisman, whose tombstone doesn’t mention his Heisman Trophy fame.

Here in Madison we have the graves of 140 confederate prisoners of war held at Camp Randall, alongside the grave of the woman who once took care of their gravestones.

“Cemeteries are full of stories,” said McCann, obviously relishing the quest for discovering and telling those truly captivating stories.  In one instance, McCann interviewed a grave digger who took great pride in taking care of his cemetery much like he kept his yard at home.  “You got to be a cemetery man,” the man told him. “You got to be dedicated.” In Dennis McCann’s case, it takes one to know one.

If you missed our meeting this week, you can watch the video here.

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Reducing Madison’s Recidivism Rate

Posted on October 20, 2016 by | Leave a comment

–submitted by Stan Inhorn; photo by Jeff Burkhart

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Linda Ketcham, Executive Director of Madison-area Urban Ministry (MUM), told Rotarians about the many ways that her organization, in conjunction with many other agencies and non-profits, is working to increase prisoners successful return to community life. MUM has a long history of promoting social justice and studying issues such as transitional housing that bring partners to the table.

Incarceration is a major problem in the U.S. and in Wisconsin and Madison. More than 90% of prisoners return home after serving their terms, and they face daunting problems that often lead to serving additional time. Furthermore, the system is flawed so that people of color represent a large segment of the jail population. Children and other family members experience collateral damage from the incarceration of a mother or father.

MUM has a long history of helping returning prisoners. Circles of Support is a program that links volunteers with persons released from jail. Extensive research has produced a body of literature that identified 8 principles that lead to effective strategies. These include the need to assess the risk of a person committing new crimes. It is more productive to focus on the medium to high risk individuals rather than on the low risk ones. Create a needs assessment on each individual to determine if specific issues, such as addiction, should be addressed first. Target interventions to their learning styles. Provide skill training and provide positive interactions and ongoing support.

With all their efforts, in conjunction with United Way, MUM has helped to reduce the recidivism rate from 66% to 12% in Madison. MUM continues to work with other nonprofits to provide mental health programs, housing, building of credit scores, and employment. Even though these programs are expensive, they are far cheaper than keeping people in jail at a cost of $29,000 each year.

If you missed our meeting this week, you can watch the video here.

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One of 63 Talks: District Governor Dean McHugh

Posted on October 13, 2016 by | Leave a comment

–submitted by Valerie Johnson; photo by Jeff Burkhart

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District Governor Dean McHugh pictured here with Club President Michelle McGrath

Dean McHugh, District Rotary Governor, addressed the October 12 meeting of the downtown Rotary as one of his 63 talks of the year.  Dean is from Holmen, a club of 38 members and ten years old, where he runs an excavation business with his father. Dean shared three stories, powerful to him, that illustrated why Rotary is important.

Dean’s first story was that he was asked to Rotary meetings twice before he attended, because he didn’t see the value proposition immediately.  They didn’t give him the complete story, so he declined.  Having been a foreign exchange while at UW-LaCrosse, he was in Colombia for 7 months.  He came home with a greater understanding of the world, with a love for a second country and with a second family.   “Holmen Rotary tapped that interest, asking me to help with our exchanges, so I joined,” he said.

Second, Dean told the story of a signature Rotary project that caught his attention.  Holmen Rotary raised $7,000 for a project in Lima, Peru.  This was turned into a $25,000 through Rotary matching funds.  They used bio sand water filters to give 15,000 people clean water.  They have now done five clean water projects impacting up to 50,000 people.  “It’s powerful to go see what one small club can do in the world,” McHugh said.

For his third story, McHugh told of trying to recruit Scott Ryan, a friend of 40 years, to join Rotary.  Ryan attended eight meetings before joining, thinking he wasn’t qualified.  Scott joined, but didn’t really become a Rotarian until he went on a Peru trip.  His daughter sent him hair clips to take to people he met. When distributing them, the girls hugged him; he saw they appreciated his caring and he wept.  It was a real Rotary moment.  Scott went on to become youth exchange officer and then club president.  He started four new clubs and is now a district officer.  McHugh says, “I’m proud I gave him the gift of Rotary.”

Dean warned 10% of members drop out each year and challenged the club to bring in at least 50 members.  He closed with, “May Rotary friends and Rotary ways continue to help you serve.”

If you missed our meeting this week, watch the video here.

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Living with Epilepsy

Posted on October 6, 2016 by | Leave a comment

–submitted by Donna Hurd; photo by John Bonsett-Veal

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Dr. Kristin Seaborg (left) with Club President Michelle McGrath

If asked, “What illness affects 1 in 26 people, 50 million people worldwide; greater than 100,000 soldiers coming from Iraq and Afghanistan; attributed to 1/3 of all sudden deaths in children?” Would your answer be: cancer, heart disease or diabetes? What if you were told that this illness contributes to $15.5 in indirect medical costs per year; more than 7 times higher than any other chronic disease, including diabetes and heart disease? The mystery is not in the disease, but in what is known about the disease and the number of individuals affected by it.

With 200,000 new diagnoses per year, Epilepsy is a neurological disease that affects individuals more than muscular dystrophy, multiple sclerosis, cerebral palsy and Parkinson’s Disease combined. It accounts for 50,000 deaths per year, but only accounts for one-fourth of research funding of all other neurological disorders.

So why don’t we talk about? The stigmas associated with this disorder would make the most confident person keep the secret to themselves. While the discussion has advanced beyond medieval thoughts of divine punishment for sinners and identification as witches, vexed with evil spirits (I hope), many continue to remain silent about this malady as a sense of shame continues to be invoked.

Our guest, Dr. Kristin Seaborg, presented a compelling argument for disclosure and discussion about this condition as it will encourage an open dialogue, dispel the sense of shame, and create a climate of discovery, not disdain.  Dr. Seaborg decided that she would not let Epilepsy rob her of her dreams and through her book: The Sacred Disease: My Life with Epilepsy, discloses her experiences with the disease and why this is a conversation we must have.

For more information about Epilepsy go to www.efa.org.

If you missed our meeting this week, watch the video here.

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