Tony Cipollone is President and CEO of the John T. Gorman Foundation, a Portland-based private foundation dedicated to improving the lives of disadvantaged people in Maine. He joined the foundation in 2011 and since then has helped advance a range of new investment strategies aimed at improving results for children, youth and families. Prior to that, he was Vice President for Civic Sites and Initiatives at the Annie E. Casey Foundation, where he worked in senior leadership for over 20 years and helped develop and lead numerous initiatives related to education, community redevelopment and policy advocacy, including Casey’s national KIDS COUNT project. Tony received his doctorate in Administration, Planning and Social Policy from the Harvard Graduate School of Education
Katie Fullam Harris serves as Senior Vice President of Government Relations and Accountable Care Strategy for MaineHealth, Maine’s largest health care system. She works with policymakers and employers to shape and respond to public policy and market changes; she leads the System’s efforts to develop new system initiatives that support MaineHealth’s accountable care goals; and she is presently helping to lead a system-wide effort to respond to the opioid epidemic. Prior to joining MaineHealth, Katie was the Director of Government Relations for Anthem Blue Cross and Blue Shield in Maine. She has also served as a program director for the Maine Development Foundation and as Assistant to the Commissioner for the Maine Department of Mental Health, Mental Retardation and Substance Abuse Services.
Katie currently serves on the Boards of the Maine Community Foundation, the Alfond Scholarship Foundation, and the Edward Daveis Benevolent Trust. She also volunteers for the Olympia Snowe Women’s Leadership Institute, the American Heart Association in Maine, and Rippleffect.
A native of Maine, Katie has an MS in Health Care Policy and Management from the Muskie School at the University of Southern Maine and a BA from Columbia University. She is an active runner and outdoor sports enthusiast, and she and her husband live in Cumberland with their 2 dogs.
We were fortunate at our meeting to hear all about Portland Area Villages (PAV) from both the President and Executive Director, Elaine Mullin, and from the Vice President of Operations and Treasurer, Carol Colton. Elaine led the presentation by explaining that PAV supports greater Portland area seniors who want to stay in their homes for as long as possible by providing them with basic services like transportation to appointments, running errands and light household tasks. Elaine noted that Maine is the “oldest” state in the nation and that there were 35 million Americans nationwide over the age of 65 in 2000 -- but that number will balloon to 73 million by 2030.
Elaine told us that the Village movement started in Boston in 2002 as a way to help people live in their own homes longer by providing volunteer help with tasks that elders often find difficult. Villages are membership driven grass-roots organizations that are generally staffed mostly with volunteers and some paid staff. There are currently over 150 Villages in the US and throughout the world.
Carol then took over the presentation and let us now that PAV became a Maine nonprofit and an IRS 501(c)(3) organization in 2016. The pilot program was launched in 2017 with 7 members and 12 volunteers and they have grown to now serve 15 members and 3 households with 22 volunteers. The organization has received donations from AARP of Maine, Maine Medical Center and Mercy Hospital.
Carol stressed that the range of services, all non-medical, is great: transportation to the grocery store, the post office, or to doctor visits, picking up prescriptions, doing light gardening or household chores, socialization (jigsaw puzzles, playing cards), and providing assistance with computer issues. The list goes on and on.
Carol ended her presentation by reading several testimonials from both PAV members and volunteers who extolled the virtues of the organization. She let us know that the current challenges are to educate the community about the organization, expand the services offered and attract more volunteers to offer services as well as be members of the Board of Directors. If helping seniors stay in their own homes for as long as their health and safely allows sounds like a effort you’d like to support, you can contact either of our speakers directly to find out more about how you can volunteer at: portlandareavillages.com
(Photo L-R: President John Curran, Carol Colton, Elaine Mullin and Matt Wolcott.)
President John Curran convened the meeting by welcoming 46 members and 4 guests; then introduced PP Tom Talbott (photo at right), who gave an invocation in recognition of the birthday of George Washington. His tribute to America’s first president focused on quotes from an array of gentlemen named 'George':
George Herman 'Babe' Ruth said, “Never let the fear of striking out get in your way.”
George Orwell said, “Who controls the past controls the future. Who controls the present controls the past.”
George Costanza said, “When you look annoyed, people think you’re busy.”
George Harrison said, “Love one another.”
George Patten said, “All Americans love to fight.”
Curious George did not say anything, but the man with the big yellow hat said, “You don’t give a monkey a ladder.”
George Jetson said, “Jane, stop this crazy thing.”
George Carlin said, “Forecast tonight....dark.”
George Burns said, “Good night Gracie.”
Linda Varrell introduced guests Glendon Zernicke and Katherine Hulit, who are apprentices working with WorkLab, a new company she has started.
(Photo L-R: Glendon Zernicke, Linda Varrell,, and Katherine Hulit.)
President John noted that our meetings have had some very full agendas and we haven't been able to take the time to recognize the February birthdays and anniversaries of our members since the beginning of the month, so he listed them off (published in the Feb. 1st issue of the Windjammer) and we sang 'Happy Birthday' to all.
Talking about birthdays, President John reminded us that the birthday of Rotary is February 23rd and this year is the organization’s 114th birthday!
Continuing to celebrate our dedication to ‘Service Above Self’, the Rotary Foundation Chair, DGN andPP Dick Hall presented Rusty Atwood with a Paul Harris + one sapphire pin for participating in the ‘Circle of Five’ donors. Linda Varrell received her first Paul Harris Fellow with her direct contribution. Acknowledgement was also given to two Portland Rotarian “Rotary Peace Fellowships,” awarded to PP Dick Hall, who supported a student in South America, and PP John Marr, who supported a student in Thailand. Thank you and congratulations to Rusty, Linda and all Paul Harris Fellows.
(Photo L-R: Rusty Atwood, Linda Varrell and Dick Hall.)
Roger Fagan (photo at left) presented an uplifting slide photo update about the volunteer project to provide hearing aids for the children and adults in the Dominican Republic (DR). During their recent trip, the team provided 148 hearing aides to the people who had lined up early and stayed late to have the opportunity to be seen. Children were given priority in the lines of people, regardless of when they arrived. Dominicans expressed their love for Americans and Rotary.
David Small (photo at right) followed by presenting an interesting slide overview about the Rotary volunteer efforts for providing water filter systems to the people who reside in the DR’s Bateys. Nearly all the residents who live in the very poor Bateys are Haitian workers who provide labor for the DR’s sugar cane fields. In the absence of having water filter systems donated by Rotary, all of the available water provided to the Bateys is collected in rain barrels or sometimes delivered in tankers. None of the water is potable. In the most recent visit to install the water filters, the Portland Rotarians partnered with the Rotary Club of Palm Beach, Florida. A “water filter monitor” is the person who determined what residents in the Batey received a filter. A 5-gallon bucket and water filter system, produced by Sawyer, was installed in the designated Batey families’ huts. This particular water system is efficient and does not need frequent replacement of the filters. Also, the Batey occupants greatly appreciated receiving the donated solar lamps.
School supplies were distributed with funds raised largely through our own member, Ben Jackson, Headmaster at NYA, from the “dress down day” fee paid by the school’s students. The supplies were purchased in the Dominican Republic and distributed in the schools by volunteer Rotarians.
Jerry Angier conducted the weekly raffle. Charlie Frair’s name was drawn by one of our speakers for the chance to win $222. Charlie will have to try again next week, because he didn’t draw the Queen of Hearts this time.
Member Birthdays 1 - Jerry Angier 4 - Joel Gratwick 4 - Steve Mortimer 6 - Michelle DiSotto 9 - Dave Small 14 - Mac Collins 16 - Larry Gross 29 - Ellen Niewoehner 29 - Paul Tully 30 - John Thompson 31 - Alan Nye
Date-Joined-Rotary Anniversaries 2 years - Brian McDonough 2 years - Mike Robinson 3 years - Nick Lotfey 4 years - Gracie Johnston 9 years - John Curran 21 years - Tom Ranello 27 years - Howie Herodes 27 years - Queenie Wescott 29 years - Joel Gratwick
Invocation: David Small Program Reporter: John Marr Bits & Pieces Reporter: Jake Bourdeau Registration/Greeter: Ellen Niewoehner Sell Meal Tickets: Jennifer Frederick Raffle: Matt Tassey Collect Meal Tickets: Chris Thomas Sgt-at-Arms: Mike Anderson
The following items are needed on an on-going basis. Please feel free to bring them to a meeting where we will collect and distribute them to the appropriate projects.
Crutches4Africa - Crutches, canes, folding walkers and wheelchairs to be shipped to Africa. Contact: Roger Fagan, drrogerfagan@gmail.com
Toiletries for the Shelters - Collect those tiny bottles of toiletries you are paying for during your next hotel visit and bring them home for members of our society who find themselves staying at a shelter and in need of personal hygiene products.
Tony Cipollone is President and CEO of the John T. Gorman Foundation, a Portland-based private foundation dedicated to improving the lives of disadvantaged people in Maine. He joined the foundation in 2011 and since then has helped advance a range of new investment strategies aimed at improving results for children, youth and families. Prior to that, he was Vice President for Civic Sites and Initiatives at the Annie E. Casey Foundation, where he worked in senior leadership for over 20 years and helped develop and lead numerous initiatives related to education, community redevelopment and policy advocacy, including Casey’s national KIDS COUNT project. Tony received his doctorate in Administration, Planning and Social Policy from the Harvard Graduate School of Education
Katie Fullam Harris serves as Senior Vice President of Government Relations and Accountable Care Strategy for MaineHealth, Maine’s largest health care system. She works with policymakers and employers to shape and respond to public policy and market changes; she leads the System’s efforts to develop new system initiatives that support MaineHealth’s accountable care goals; and she is presently helping to lead a system-wide effort to respond to the opioid epidemic. Prior to joining MaineHealth, Katie was the Director of Government Relations for Anthem Blue Cross and Blue Shield in Maine. She has also served as a program director for the Maine Development Foundation and as Assistant to the Commissioner for the Maine Department of Mental Health, Mental Retardation and Substance Abuse Services..JPG)
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David Small (photo at right) followed by presenting an interesting slide overview about the Rotary volunteer efforts for providing water filter systems to the people who reside in the DR’s Bateys. Nearly all the residents who live in the very poor Bateys are Haitian workers who provide labor for the DR’s sugar cane fields. In the absence of having water filter systems donated by Rotary, all of the available water provided to the Bateys is collected in rain barrels or sometimes delivered in tankers. None of the water is potable. In the most recent visit to install the water filters, the Portland Rotarians partnered with the Rotary Club of Palm Beach, Florida. A “water filter monitor” is the person who determined what residents in the Batey received a filter. A 5-gallon bucket and water filter system, produced by Sawyer, was installed in the designated Batey families’ huts. This particular water system is efficient and does not need frequent replacement of the filters. Also, the Batey occupants greatly appreciated receiving the donated solar lamps.