President Paige Scott welcomed our members and called the meeting to order. 

Lynn Barnett offered the Invocation and led the Club in the Pledge of Allegiance.

Dan Ruether introduced our visitors. The following members brought guests:

Our team took several prizes in the first Rotary BBQ: Steve Scott, ribs, 2nd; Tony St. Romaine, burgers, 2nd; Margie Meyer, side dish, desert, 2nd place. Congratulations!

Special Requests from Al Tacker:

1) Joeleen, who is our club-sponsored outbound student headed for Belgium, comes from a family of modest means that has recently had some financial setbacks.   At this time, the family is about $850 short of having the nearly $4000 that families have to pay to have their children go on the exchange.  We collected $250 at last week’s meeting.  If you can help out, please consider making a contribution.  The opportunity to participate in a Rotary exchange can make a huge difference in a young person’s future.  It would be a shame if that opportunity was limited to the children of the well off.

You can make checks out of Rotary Club of Columbia (put student exchange on the memo line) or give cash. 

2) We are still looking for two families to host a German exchange student for 3 to 4 months next school year.  This can be a great opportunity for someone who has children of the same age, but childless or “empty nest” families can make (and in this club have made) excellent host parents. Niklas Klein will be 17 in July, is fluent in English, ranks in the top 10 percent of his class, and is athletic.  He lives in a town of 4000.  His father is an engineer, his mother a nurse.  He sees his strongest qualities as “open-mindedness, sociability, reliability and autonomy.”  His biggest dislikes are dishonesty and intolerance.  He has no problem with pets and no strong food dislikes.  It appears that he will be a junior at one of our local high schools.

If you might be interested, please e-mail Al Tacker at altacker@aol.com.

Louie Van Drie honored his parents by naming them Paul Harris Fellows.

May 4-6 is the 2007 District Conference in Sedalia. Sedalia.  Sign up forms are at the registration table or on the District Website.  The District Conference is designed for all the members in the district/not just club leadership.  It’s a lot of fun and a great way to meet other Rotarians from around the state. 

June 17-20 is the 2007 International Convention in Salt Lake City. There is great information about the Convention on the Rotary International website:

If you have an interest in the District Conference or the International Convention, please let Paige Scott know.

 

The Honorable Gene Hamilton, Presiding Judge, 13th Judicial Circuit, discussed jury service and its importantance in assuring justice. Contrary to how television portrays the justice system, most cases don't go to jury trial; most jury trials are completed in two days or less; juries are seldomed sequestered. Potential jurors are only on-call for one week in Boone County, and there is flexibility with timing. Judge Hamilton responded to questions concerning exclusion of potential jurors; taking notes during trial; and observations of how frequently juries "get it right" (about 99% of the time, according to Judge Hamilton).

VOLUNTEERS NEEDED:   We're looking for volunteers who would like to take notes at meetings for this weekly newsletter--no more than 4-5 times a year (preferably for one full month).

If you're interested, please e-mail Toni Messina for additional details.

Lottery :  Steve Jorgenseon had the winning ticket; he drew the Jack of Diamonds.

Today's Contributions = $?
Total Pot = $1572

 Web Editor: Darcy Wells

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