Executive Director Lori called a halt to the social hour and made only one announcement: please refresh your ClubRunner if you are accessing it on a cell phone.

Tom Strode played “My Country ’tis of Thee”. Shelley MacMillan combined our Inspiration and music. She referenced William James’ reflection that he was done with doing the big things and now is doing the small, personal things that mean so much to people. Shelley then played an archival video of a Wine, Women and Song duo singing “For Good” from Wicked.

President Joanne took it from there, welcoming both new members and members of long standing. She thanked the people who make the meetings run smoothly and announced birthdays.

Todd Kephart gave us an update on very serious food insecurity in our county. Our annual food drive, Rotary Fights Summer Hunger, will extend through the month of March, and the goal is 150,000 meals this year. Harold and Kay Peplau will again match any donation over $25.00. Todd asked us to talk up the drive and share the Food Gatherers link with friends, family and colleagues: https://give.foodgatherers.org/ge/rotary.

Ken Fischer introduced our newest member, Devon Meier.  Devon is the Development Director of Jewish Family Services.  She is a Michigan girl newly returned and a transfer from McLean, Virginia.  She has an arts management background but in the last years has worked with both adults and child advocacy  nonprofits.

President Joanne announced that Al Storey is on the mend, looking forward to his 100th birthday later this year.

We took a quick poll of who in the meeting has had the vaccinations and where others are in the process.  Later polls will ask about comfort levels meeting in person.

President Joanne announced three important dates.  April 17 is the District Assembly.  On May 5 our club will celebrate Paul Harris Fellows. September 13 will see the return of our Golf and Tennis Outing. 

Notes from the Program

Eric Lipson introduced our speaker, Dr. Donna Martsolf.  She is the current President of the Haiti Nursing Foundation, which supports FSIL, the first baccalaureate nursing program in Haiti.  Her topic is titled “How the Rotary Club of Ann Arbor is Improving the Quality of Life in Haiti.” The Foundation is fifteen years old, having been started from scratch by a consortium of partners including governments, foundations, nonprofits, churches and individuals.  Several of our members have been instrumental in the founding and operation of the foundation.

Dr. Martsolf began her talk by introducing us to some statistics on Haiti, one of the poorest countries on the planet.  There are 11 million Haitians, with a median age of 22. Eighty percent of the people live in poverty.  Average age is 63; people die of treatable, preventable disease. Public schools are inadequate and as a result, the literacy rate is 61%.

Dr. Martsolf noted that 2020, and now 2021, is the international year of the nurse.  It is a time to educate the public that nursing is not only caring for patients, but also encompasses

• advocacy and promoting of safe environments and health education
• research on and shaping of health policy and inpatient practices
• development and maintenance of health systems management and education.

Dr. Martsolf emphasized that the FSIL nursing program is university based.  She told us about the benefits our three donations to the foundation have brought to the program.  They have books and publications that other health programs do not have. The laptops we sent allowed the program to continue operating smoothly when covid closed inperson learning.

We were all touched by the videos of the students talking about what the program means to them, both personally and for their country.  All students have to stay in Haiti for two years after graduation, and most of the students settle down in Haiti for good.  It was really uplifting seeing young people so happy and dedicated to helping others.

In response to a question about how the school is weathering covid and the political unrest roiling the country, Dr. Martsolf said the school has to be very resilient, and is marching forward.

The speaker next week is Washtenaw County’s new prosecutor, Eli Savit, talking about reimagining the prosecutor’s role and office.

President Joanne closed the meeting with a quote from Maya Angelou:  “As a nurse, we have the opportunity to heal the mind, soul, heart, and body of our patients, their families, and ourselves. They may forget your name, but they will never forget how you made them feel.”