Events

Dr. Andrew Reddie, Assistant Professor of Cybersecurity at UC Berkeley, will present National Security in the Era of Artificial Intelligence. Does the future of the human race depend on an algorithm? This question will readily come to mind as Dr. Reddie describes the incorporation of artificial intelligence (AI) into the modernization of nuclear weapons and command and control architecture, and outlines the steps superpowers must take to mitigate the risks posed by autonomous technologies used in war.

Rotary Club Menlo Park strongly supports St. Anthony's by volunteering, donating money, turkeys etc. We recently donated $5,000 to help with the production of a movie to better tell their story.  Max Garcia and Rickey Ono, two key people from St. Anthony's will present their new Video and update us on what is going on at St.Anthony's.

Blair Giffords and Mimi Gordon will describe the work that Global Health Connections does in rural Kenya. 

Global Health Connections was founded to connect, engage, and empower individuals to improve the health and sustainability of their communities. GHC believes in empowering individuals and strives to improve the sustainability of villages through community-led learning, mentorship, and opportunity. GHC's focus is on building Community Health and Empowerment Clubs (CHECs) throughout communities in Western Kenya.  They are currently active in 8 villages in Kisii County and 2 in Homa Bay County. In early fall of 2024, thanks to a large Rotary International global grant and Adopt-a-Village sponsors, they will be entering into 4 more villages--1 in Kisii County, 2 in Homa Bay County and 1 in Kajiado County--bringing their total to 14 active villages. They also have 5 self-sustaining and self-governing CHECs, bringing our total number to 19 villages.

Women in traditional villages in Kenya spend hours scouring the countryside for wood to use in their indoor cookstoves. The Health consequences of smoke inhalation are high, as is the cost to the environment. Adding injury to illness, the women are often attacked on their way home with this precious commodity.

Amy Boggs has identified a variety of sources, supports, and infrastructure that would help us to adopt a village to which we could bring solar stoves, and she will introduce this possible project to the club. Participants would help with installation and training, and would also be able to enjoy game drives in the Maasai Mara.

Jack Lekishon is a Maasai elder and has identified Kolong Village, Kenya as a receptive community to whom we could bring solar stoves in the summer of 2025. His timely visit will allow him to present the views of an elder in Kolong Village as well as those of the women in the village. 

Mark Soltau served as content editor for Tigerwoods.com for 20+ years, TOUR Correspondent for Golf Digest and covered the SAn Francisco 49ers, golf, Stanford Athletics and other Bay Area Teams for the San Francisco Examiner. He is the author of Right Place, Write Time, which tells fascinating first hand stores of some of the greatest athletes of all time.  From early childhood games spent on the San Francisco 49ers sidelines where his dad was a star, to documenting first hand Tiger's career from Stanford through all of his major vicotires, Mark shares unique insights from the perspective of one of the most trusted journalists in sports.

I will be telling fun and interesting short stories about leasing the first ever office space to Facebook and meeting with Mark Zuckerberg.

Former Rotarian Glen Rojas, David Johnson, and I were all Rotarians who had met Facebook and Meta founder Mark Zuckerberg. Glen Rojas was Menlo Park's City Manager during the process of developing the campus of Facebook. Dave Johnson was the Business Development person for the town of Menlo Park.  Glen and David plan to speak to our Rotary Club next year.

Meet at the Arts in Action warehouse to pack kits.

Founded in 2008, LEMO Foundation is a Bay Area-based nonprofit that exists to close the opportunity gap for student athletes. LEMO ensures that all student athletes, regardless of income, can access the supports, resources, and experiences they need to thrive. We serve as a comprehensive all-in-one destination for students to engage in sports, education, and community programming that models and cultivates the mindsets, habits, and relationships for success. Through a supportive campus and enrichment programs, we enable student athletes to play, learn, and grow to their full potential.

https://www.lemofoundation.org/

Pete Wilson will be interviewing Mike Herzen and Wil Patterson.  We can look forward to finding out about their background, as well as (hopefully) enlightening insights and wisdom.

Born into the carnival life of a Borscht Belt Catskills hotel family, Bart has never let the ordinary constrain him. From professional photography to painting, he has always set his creativity free, now entering into the realm of authorship. His first book, A Catskill Carnival: My Borscht Belt Life Lived, Lost and Loved, is a memoir of his early years in a unique setting, coming to terms with and cherishing its life lessons.

https://bartcharlow.com/about.html

Susan Dean is the President of the Rotary Club of San Francisco Chinatown.  She will be presenting about a Global Grant to eliminate cervical cancer in Guatemala.  Amy Boggs thought her global grant proposal was very thorough and would make an interesting presentation to our Rotary Club.

Rock Star Photographer

https://patjohnsonphotography.com/?page_id=2675

https://www.clevescene.com/music/cleveland-native-pat-johnson-talks-about-his-new-book-of-rock-photos-41667599

Tori Muir is the President of the Beekeeper's Guild of San Mateo County. 

The Beekeepers’ Guild of San Mateo County was founded in 1979. Their members range from people wanting to learn about bees before acquiring them, to “newbee” beekeepers with their first hives, to master beekeepers with many years of experience and education. A few of their hive enthusiasts have over 100 hives. Members range from young children to beekeepers in their 80s. Their master beekeepers are very generous with their time and knowledge, answering questions on their email lists, in their monthly meetings, in their beekeeping classes, and by mentoring new beekeepers.

https://sanmateobeeguild.org/about/

https://scotscoop.com/the-silence-of-the-bees-the-changing-world-endangers-pollinators/

This week, we have Rotary Connects at 5:00 p.m. the Russel Center at Menlo
College. Join us for an evening of networking and meet 10 Bay Area non-profits that
make up the CSC (College Success Collaborative). CSC is a group committed to
help underserve communities access and complete a college education. See how our
club's mentoring program is leveraging and contributing to the collective resources of
the College Success Collaborative for the benefit of our Rotary Scholars.

Chuck’s presentation concentrates on the nearly 250-year heritage of ships named Hornet, the WWII actions of the 2 Hornets, the Apollo Program and the features and programs of the museum.

Lisa Petrides is on the San Mateo Community College District Board of Trustees.  Their district includes Skyline College, College of San Mateo and Canada College, and they have recently opened the College of San Mateo Coastside facility in downtown Half Moon Bay.  In November of 2024 she was reelected to the Board.  The attached article provides details on her goals and positions.

https://www.coastsidenews.com/election/candidates-for-college-board-respond-to-our-questions/article_bab3524a-8d08-11ef-9c0a-9751f63a69b3.html

Lisa Petrides, Ph.D., is also the CEO and founder of the Institute for the Study of Knowledge Management in Education (ISKME).

https://www.iskme.org/about-us/

Today we honor 14 organizations who were selected by the Rotary Gifts Committee as most deserving to receive a grant. Between our Foundation and our club, we awarded $41,000 in Community Gift Grants this year. Each group will give a brief talk about what they do in our community and how they plan to use their grant to further their mission.