Pledge: President Gary McCauley
Prayer: Rev. Ed Cornell
Happy Bucks: CN: happy we are all together and safe, PZ: happy for his son winning 2 Emmy awards, AS: happy to see everyone, CR: got to use his generator for the first time and met 3 the Eversource linemen from 3 states, JA: going on his boat later, PS: our guest who is a Rotarian, JP: glad to see everyone, MD: getting power back and later internet and phones, EC: was online with missionary kids who have been without power for months and years, PattiD: thankful for what we have, PD: as the storm and subsequent power outage showed we are dependent on electricity, Brendan: being here and power back, BM: visiting Rotarian Adm. Kelly, JM: all here and people are ok, Adm Kelly: happy to be with us, GM: folks weathered the storm ok, no one missed a meal, our guest.
Program
Bill McLaughlin introduced our guest speaker, RADM Bill Kelly, Superintendent of the Coast Guard Academy. Click on the above link for his bio.
RADM Bill Kelly assumed command on May 30, 2019. He has had over 10 years of service at sea. He has received numerous awards of merit and after serving as a Commander and Captain, now has his "dream job" of superintendent of the Coast Guard Academy. He has 2 sons and has been married for 34 years.
No one saw the pandemic coming but on very short notice, Bill feels they are ready for the academic year with seniors having arrived on June 12. Cadets will arrive from Hawaii tomorrow, all students get tested. The staff consists of 271 men and women. Some students tested positive and will quarantine. The Coast Guard will do their own pool testing on a daily basis to stay out front of any outbreak. While they can do online classes, its important that the cadets get together - this builds character. They will have a robust intramural sports program. After the fall semester, the class will get together on Jan. 3 - this makes the CG better and more resilient.
In response to questions, Bill Kelly said there are 1060 cadets - 60%/40% men to women. The first woman was admitted in 1980. Minorities comprise 36% of the cadets but Bill would like to do a better job of recruiting minorities particularly African Americans. There have been some cultural challenges but it's getting better. There are 187 courses and the academy offers 5 majors in the sciences. Bill Kelly holds a BS in government. Charlie Norz mentioned that he is a Kings Point graduate, class of '59 who said he has had great experiences when it came to interacting with the Coast Guard. Bill concurred. The campus occupies 103 acres, have operations in the South China Sea and they operate ice breakers (they can use more). The Coast Guard does drug interdiction, 800 kilograms were seized in the last few weeks. Search and rescue operations have skyrocketed especially in Long Island Sound.
The academy is open for tours and they are always looking for good recruits. The band has been doing virtual concerts but are eager to go live again.
If you'd like to learn more about the Coast Guard Academy, go to: https://www.uscga.edu/
Other business:
Next meeting is live at Johnny Ads restaurant! Please let Gary know if you plan to attend so enough seating is arranged.
A committee is being formed to go over our website and explore enhancements and cost to upgrade.
Gary is working on a collage to be used as a club marketing piece.
John Aforismo has been hard at work on fundraising. To date he has organized a Macaroni Dinner (1st annual). Tickets will be distributed to club members soon. Charlie is working on alternative golf tournament venues, and Omaha Steaks is set up for their charitable giving program that sends $$ to the club when people purchase from them. Pete pointed out that Omaha Steaks sells wine as well and that may also be a source of income.
Pete Zucco talked about recruitment of new members. He will work on a new brochure. Pete will accept your cards with potential member information for mailings he plans on doing.
Jan Perruccio, superintendant of schools, talked about whats ahead in our education system given the present state of the pandemic. She characterized the situation as challenging ("shifting sands") and exciting at the same time.There is plenty of anxiety in many of the people involved from students, to teachers, to parents and administrators. Jan is leading a great team and they will come through with a system that works. Fall sports are an issue as well. Masks, handwashing and other mandates will be put in place and enforced.
Meals on Wheels was on hold but is now up and running again.
Joan Michaud spoke to Sue Consoli of Social Services. Funding is starting to become an issue. Donations for school supplies have dried up. Items needed include clothing, shoes, backpacks. Sue requested $1500 for school needs.
Basic needs like food and rent are issues for more and more people who have lost their jobs or have low paying jobs. Sue has 1,000 clients who need assistance for basic things and relies on donations. The town focuses on the unemployed but they have a small budget ($6,000). Rev Ed mentioned that the pantry is seeing more people from out of our immediate area which is putting pressure on that resource.
