NEWSLETTER FOR OCT 20, 2015
FLASH! FLASH! FLASH! FLASH!
NO LUNCH MEETING TODAY! TONIGHT IS THE "MEMBERS ONLY" VISIONING EVENT LED BY THE DISTRICT TEAM!
Come at 5pm at the Sheraton even if you never turned in the meeting questionaire or even if you doubt you have "vision."
In Other News . . .
• The pancake breakfast is on Sat, November 7th from 7-noon at the Needham High School cafeteria. Now is the time for every Needham Rotarian to sell the 20 tickets they were given, or else buy the tickets as a donation and give them away to clients and friends. Ryan Damaso has yard signs at his office at 105 Chestnut Street that need to get out asap! Every member should plan on being present on the 7th to help! This is our major fund raiser for the year!
• Support Our Returning Troops
Our meeting on October 20th gave us an opportunity to hear about the special counseling
and mental health needs of our returning troops and their families.
Dr. Bob Dingman, Travis Bickford & Molly Brown joined us from William James College in Newton. The college is a specialty graduate school in which 700 students are pursuing graduate degrees in psychology, counseling and mental health professions.
It turns out that most returning veterans who are seeking help for their problems with PTSD and reentry into our civilian society want to be counseled by other vets! They want a mental health professional who actually has lived the life they have lived and seen the combat they have seen.
Travis Bickford is from a family which for five generations has sent its men into military service and he served in Iraq in the Army. He is one of the leaders at William James who is training psychology professionals for this new program. He apprised us of some of the unique problems that returning veterans and their families face as a result of repeated deployments into combat zones. Travis lost four friends in battle and one later to suicide.
Unfortunately, in some cities, a vet contemplating suicide may wait up to 45 minutes before talking to a suicide prevention counselor at the Veteran's Administration. William James wants to provide those counseling professionals who have shared the experiences of vets and who are AVAILABLE when needed by vets.
• Volunteering for Thanksgiving Day Community Dinner?
If you plan on volunteering, you need to call Community Council in Needham immediately. This year Rotary is co-sponsoring the dinner with the Masons, and in order to volunteer, you need to sign up at the Community Council. Needham Rotary helps prepare and deliver up to 250 meals and a whole lot of companionship to those in need in our town.
• Some Happiness Notes
Chuck was proud of his grandson Ben for being a National Merit Scholarship candidate; Louise found a penny on the ground face up and was sure the big pot was hers today (wrong!); Darrell is on his way to Cambodia for two weeks to visit family; Kathy hoped her husband would make it to Ft. Lauderdale with a 55 foot powerboat he was delivering; Tom was delighted to share that his son was playing "The Rite of Spring" at Symphony Hall; Ted shared the successful return of Habi and Amado after Gift of Life heart surgery to their home in Ghana; Karen successfully used the "elevator speech" taught by Andy Winig last week; and Marty congratulated all our members who helped with the delivery of dictionaries, the reality fair and the Needham harvest fair!
• Next Week at Lunch at Needham Rotary
DARE Family Services: Preventing Family Tragedies in our Communities