Grapevine – August 12, 2021
Greeter – Gail Moxley was the greeter and led us in the Pledge of Allegiance, Invocation and the Four-Way Test.
Guests – Eva Long (College Student) & Charles Mason (Former Rotary member)
Club Business/Announcements:
- Tom Tatterson’s wife, Sue, passed away August 7.
- We welcomed our newest member, Jennifer Smith. Finally….;)
- We are working a Wellness Screening at the Wellness Center on Sept 25th. Volunteers should plan to be there by 5:30 AM.
- We are cooking and serving at the Apple Harvest Pancake Breakfast on October 16th and 17th. We are looking for volunteers for that
- The Rotary Foundation dinner is Sept. 25th starting at 4:30PM. This is a great opportunity for you and your spouse to get all dressed up and party!! Black Tie is optional.
- You can pay club dues at our website – https://www.martinsburgrotary.com/pay-dues/.
- Do you know what DACdb is? https://www.dacdb.com It is a portal for Rotarians. You can go to the website and create a username and password. From there you have access to the entire member directory for our club!!! In addition, you can see what’s going on in the District.
Program
Mark Kraham was our speaker today. He is the News Director at WDVM. Mark started with a personal story from when he was 5 years old about deception and misleading advertising. He showed a picture of a box of cereal, Frosted Flakes, and continued to tell us about an advertisement on the back of the box regarding a Tribute to Railroads. To be an owner of the railroad all you had to do was send in a few bucks and 5 box tops. The 5-year-old Mark had very high hopes for the railroad he would become the owner of. When his package arrived, it was about the size of his fist. He thought, there is no way this is it!?!? Next, he showed us a picture of his “beloved” train set. He said it was a joke, a complete mockery. He realized at a very young age that “certain messages can be manipulate”. He discussed how it is very important to him that the news is presented in a “middle of the road” perspective, not taking sides to the right or left. Mark then began the dreaded 2020 story. As for most businesses it was very rocky but he and his team of 42 employees were able to face every challenge with great resilience and resourcefulness. From social distancing to reporting with masks on to Producers working from home, they successfully navigated COVID. They continue to pivot as necessary even now as the Delta Variant rears its ugly head. They were one of few businesses who did not have to lay off any employees. (KUDOS!!) Mark highlighted some current programing to include: WV Tonight which is on nightly, Veterans Voices which can be seen August 28th at 5:30 and is a monthly segment presented by, Ross Simpson, and the Capital Review which is a weekly broadcast shown on Saturdays at 11:30. Lastly, we learned about a fund raising effort that Mark has been involved with for 25 years called the Rumsey Radio Hour. This is a fundraiser for the Shepherdstown Library. Mark demonstrated some of his famous imitations of presidents in history .they were pretty funny!
Upcoming Programs:
- Aug 19 – High school football coaches (This is going to be so good!!)
- Aug 26 – Riley Moore
- Sep 02 – Friends Fur Life
- Sept 07 – Board Meeting
- Sept 09 – Mike Laing, Courthouse Marshalls
- Sept 16 – Alzheimer’s Association
50/50
- Robin sold tickets; Chris Johnson’s ticket was drawn. She did not draw the King of Spades. She is unable to sell tickets next week; she will find a substitute.
Community Announcements:
- September 6th is the War Memorial Park Labor Day breakfast from 7:30-10:30AM
- October 9th is the Walk to End Alzheimer’s, located at War Memorial Park. Registration from 8AM-9AM, walk starts at 9:30. (Come walk with me!)
- October 15th will be the Girl Scouts Women of Distinction banquet, and the club will reserve a table there.
Max keeps telling me, a long time ago we used to get jokes in the Grapevine… I tried to tell him I am not that clever, but here goes… lol
What did the reporter say to the ice cream?
What’s the scoop?
Knock, knock.
Who’s there?
Spell.
Spell who?
Okay, W-H-O!
You ask and you shall receive =)