It
was Shoshannah Siefken's turn to
share her story in her vocational. To
inspire her, as she was on her way to
work this morning her son gave her some
good advice about her presentation:
“Don't wet your pants.”
Shoshannah is a Customer
Service representative at Copy Cats in
McMinnville. She grew up in the
countryside between McMinnville and
Sheridan. As a child she lived amongst
lots of animals, including sheep,
horses, dogs, cats, cows, and even some
rats. For fifteen years she and her
family also raised a pack of
timberwolves, which grew to as many as
thirty. They are remarkable animals,
with a fascinating and very complex
society.
Shoshannah's father was
extremely influential. His motto was:
innovate, adapt, overcome. That
philosophy has helped her face some
challenges in what has been a mostly
wonderful life. One challenge occurred
when she was fifteen, and her father,
who had been divorced from her mother,
began dating a woman with younger
children. Shoshannah has a
step-brother who is in Iraq right now.
Her family has a long history of
military service, as her grandfather was
in the service and her father served in
Vietnam.
Shoshannah has a 12-year-old
son who is very inventive. She worries
at times about the
kind
of trouble he might get into as a
teenager! As for her work history, a few
years ago she went to work for Wendy's,
which was not a good career move. She
finally escaped and found Copy Cats
about 2.5 years ago, and is very happy
with her job now. She had the
opportunity to work with Cory Graham,
who died a year ago last week. Cory was
a wonderful person and mentor, and she
is greatly missed. Shoshannah
also lost an older brother last
September, which has been difficult.
Cory introduced Shoshannah to
Rotary, and she is grateful for that
opportunity. Her life has been an
interesting journey!
Prez Chuck asked Shoshannah
to sign a book for the young reader
program and receive her club pen.
Prez Chuck followed with his
presentation of the State of the Club.
He drew groans and pleas for mercy by
showing a video clip of the appearance
last week by Brent(da) Adams,
cheerleader for the Oregon Ducks.
Prez Chuck proposed a motion to
institute an ungodly fine for any member
being caught on video. The motion passed
with one opposed (Brent).
There
were many wonderful accomplishments by
the Rotary Club of McMinnville in 2008.
Prez Chuck reviewed the club
officers and directors, thanking them
for their dedicated service. There is
also a steering committee, which
provides valuable support and guidance
to the club president.
He
summarized the results of our fund
raising efforts, emphasizing the
remarkable success of the Wine and Art
Auction and Rose Sale. Last year the
Wine and Art Auction donated $60,000
each to Virginia Garcia Memorial Clinic
and the Willamette Valley Cancer
Foundation, and also contributed $24,000
back into the McMinnville Rotary
Foundation. The Rose Sale generated
another $16,000 for the club to fund
additional programs. When Prez Chuck
was at a Rotary president's meeting
in Los Angeles last year, other clubs
were astounded that in a community of
30,000 people, we have a club of 100
members that conducts a fundraiser which
grosses over $200,000. It is a testament
to our club's dedication and generosity.
Prez Chuck then summarized the
many unique programs which our club
supports. They include Concerts in the
Park, the Early Reader Program, the
Dictionary Project, Rotary Youth
Leadership Association, Youth Exchange,
Rotaract and Interact, the Four-Way
Speech Contest, and teacher and public
safety recognition programs. Thanks went
out to many members for their time and
efforts on behalf of these programs.
Highlights
of other club accomplishments included:
the purchase of animals (and then
donating them back) to support the local
youth 4-H program at the county fair,
helping send over 250,000 pounds of new
books to Uganda with the Rotary Club of
Beaverton and a matching grant from
Linfield, support of the Thugs off Drugs
program, the Past President's Luncheon
and the flag pole project, which will
soon install a new flag pole at the
intersection of Adams and Baker Streets
in north McMinnville. Many others have
given their time and talents for these
projects, and were acknowledged.
Our
roster stands at 97 active and two
honorary members, for a total of 99. Our
budget is sound, as we are in the black
and have contributed over $30,000 to
community programs thus far this fiscal
year (July 1 – June 30). We are not
quite half way to our goals of $10,000
donated to each of the local club
foundation and Rotary International
Foundations for this fiscal year, but
we're getting there. In summary, we are
strong, in great shape, and have done
lots of good work.
