Rotary
Club of Santa Monica
"2001/2002 - A Rotary
Odyssey"
Rota-Monica
ISSUE NO.
10 SEPTEMBER 14, 2001 OUR 80th
YEAR
www.RotaryClubofSantaMonica.org
ALL-AROUND SHOWMAN
We’re not sure whether
he’ll dance for us or not. We hope he will. Because our guest this Friday,
John Cassese, is a big-name dancer in all kinds of show business – film,
stage, television, nightclubs, video and high-powered private parties.
On the other hand, he
can be entertaining in various other ways. He’s a professional singer, actor,
bandleader, master of ceremonies, and stand-up monologist. And the film rights
to his life story have sold to Twentieth Century-Fox. Whether he chooses to
perform or to tell inside tales of his experiences with show people, he knows
how to keep audiences fascinated.
Cassese has been
dancing since his teens. He broke in by winning dance contests in Manhattan
nightclubs. Then he sang and danced in off-Broadway productions, and organized
his own band.
Undaunted by the
show-biz handicap that his name could be pronounced various ways, he refused
to change it. Instead he kept making it better known on both coasts. For the
last decade he and his band have provided music for Jerry Lewis’ muscular
dystrophy telethon. He has performed for parties given by such famed hosts as
Wolfgang Puck and Billy Crystal. He has sung and danced at such hotels as New
York’s Plaza and Drake, and Los Angeles’ Beverly Hillcrest and Four Seasons.
He has been guest star on a half-dozen TV shows.
So this will be a good
meeting to bring guests who like to be entertained.
THIS SATURDAY: THE DAY TO CLEAN THE BEACHES
School and community
groups, corporations, families, divers, kayakers and all other
environment-minded folks turn out by the thousands to pick up trash from 22
beaches. September 15 is the day! Come with your family. Special parking rates
are available at most beaches. For more details call Tim Shannon –
310-395-5778.
FOR YOUR
CALENDAR
WILL YOU
GIVE BLOOD?
Red Cross of Santa Monica, which handles blood donations
in the community, is facing a shortage of all blood types, especially type O.
Every two seconds someone in America needs blood, and 95 percent of all
Americans will need blood at some time in their lives.
In Southern California, more than 1,000 units of blood
are needed each day, yet the number of donors has dwindled to only 3 percent of
eligible people. Volunteer donors need to be 17 or older, weighing at least 110
pounds, and in good health.
Our Red Cross organization will hold a blood drive on
Monday, September 24 and another on Monday, October 8. Phone 1-800-GIVE-LIFE.
A WAY TO
SHOW YOU’RE HELPING ROTARY
Have you noticed that auto license plates may proclaim
almost any kind of sentiment nowadays? If you’re a cat-lover, the state
Department of Motor Vehicles will sell you a plate announcing that fact.
Likewise if you want to tell all passers-by that you’re a bowler, or a Laker fan
or a podiatrist. Part of the money you pay to license your car is routed to the
organization you specify, if it’s on the DMV list.
Florida got this trend going in 1987 with its hugely
popular tag commemorating the space shuttle disaster. Since then Florida has
issued more than 50 kinds of specialty plates, and New York offers more than
250, including some for hypnotherapists. Maybe there’s a public safety reason
for that last one. When people see a hypnotherapist signaling a turn, they may
know not to look too long at his blinking signal.
Among the specialty plates offered in California,
there’s one for Rotarians, and more than 7500 members now display it. Their
purchases have put about $300,000 a year into district clubs, who pass it along
to local clubs to help their service projects.
You can apply for a personalized plate with any
combination of six letters and numbers that doesn’t already exist on some other
license plate. Your personalized plate costs $115 the first year, and $65 a year
thereafter. These are almost entirely tax-deductible. For details contact
rlicenseplates@aol.com and apply for your plates.
BRING US YOUR EXTRA CELL PHONE
Don’t forget to donate
your old or unused cell phones. The phones will be reprogrammed and given to
Sojourn Services of Santa Monica, which will distribute them to battered or
at-risk women. Bring your phone to our Rotary lunch, any Friday through October
13, or drop it at the Santa Monica Red Cross, 1450 Eleventh Street. Our contact
member is Harris Levey, 310-822-9067.
PLAN NOW FOR 2008
Did you know that about
forty thousand Rotarians and their families from 100 different nations will be
in the Los Angeles area from June 7 through June 11, 2008?
They’re coming because
Los Angeles will be the host of Rotary International’s 2008 conclave. Last
February 13 the board of directors of Rotary International voted unanimously to
make Los Angeles the site of the convention.
Los Angeles was chosen
after an elaborate presentation by about 200 local Rotarians, partners and
friends. Part of the presentation was a reminder of the meticulously staged RI
conventions here in 1922 and again in 1962. Of the 57 RI conventions held in
this country, Los Angeles still ranks topmost with the biggest total
registration – 22,302 in 1962. This city also ranks tenth in the all-time best
attendance for an RI convention.
Statistics show that
this convention infuses about $15-$20 million into the local economy. And it
gives local enterprises a special opportunity to showcase themselves to
potential customers from all over the world.
Rotary’s annual world
gathering is one of the most important operations in its underlying goal of
spreading world understanding and friendship. Paul Harris, the founder, pointed
out near the end of the second World War: “In the promotion of international
understanding and good will, one must remember it’s important to reach as large
numbers as possible – non-Rotarians as well as Rotarians – and one cannot reach
large numbers privately.”
Planning and carrying
out this huge convention is a task that involves months of preparation, and
on-the-spot support for every minute of the gathering and all its ramifications.
Paul Nitzel, chairman of the Host Organizing Committee, has already been at work
on plans for the past six months, and he’s barely getting started. He sends this
message to our members:
“How can you help? By
faxing me at 310-471-5566 or online at
pnitzel@aol.com to indicate where your skills and interests might be best
suited. Second, attend as many of the upcoming RI conventions as you can
(Barcelona 2002; Brisbane 2003; Osaka 2004; Chicago 2005). Observe, take notes
about what you like as well as ideas for L.A. to consider, and share your
comments with us.”
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