Past President extraordinaire, Jon Snyder ably filled in for vacationing President Diane Woodruff. Lev Kaganovich (energy consulting) provided a timely and heartfelt thought for the day. Recognizing his family’s 40 years in the USA, Lev spoke of his early years living in Russia and the lack of personal freedoms and free press. In light of his experiences there and current events, he offered a toast to our free press – “Live Long and Prosper!”

Meeting sponsor Judy Kjelstrom donated her time to Tina Reynolds (Uptown Studios), who introduced many of us to the organization WomenUp. WomenUp is a women’s organization focused on mentoring and relationship building. Tina invited us to an upcoming WomenUp lunch on March 14th at 11am at the Arden Hills Country Club.

Norm Marshall (Headwaters Construction) reported on the successful Sweethearts Dinner, complete with photos as evidence that a good time was had by all. Thank you to Norm and Dave Higdon (CA Moving Systems) and others for organizing the outing.

Let’s Educate Someone was truly enlightening.

Past President Dan McVeigh (Downey Brand, LLP) celebrated the arrival of his granddaughter Clara Ann with a donation.

Jim Phillips informed us that a previous club speaker, Alex Honnold, won an Oscar on Sunday for the documentary Free Solo, which recounts Alex’s solo ascent of El Capitan in Jim’s beloved Yosemite National Park.

Meeting Announcements

  • Mystery Trip – Past President Wes Yee (Yee Dental Care) provided clues to the Mystery destination on April 6th (“Go back in time for a proven find…”) and encouraged all to sign up for the $75 excursion

. Ski Trip – Past President Frank Poelman (Poelman Company) promoted the club ski trip on March 28th to Squaw Valley, featuring a private coach and a midweek day of non-crowded skiing. Frank even personally guaranteed lots of snow!

  • World Service – Heidi Hershenhouse (Apercen Partners, LLC) invited us to join in a humanitarian trip to Guatemala from June 23rd to June 26th, 2019.
  • Sacramento Century – Foundation President Steve Heath reminded us that the Sacramento Century registration opens Friday, and he needs volunteers to promote the event across the community by distributing posters.
  • Host homes for Up with People – Rita Gibson (Rita Gibson Insurance & Investment Services) called for host families for the Up With People cast. The show is March 25th. She needs host families with 1) open hearts; 2) a place for a young person to sleep; 3) some breakfasts and dinners to be provided and 4) morning/evening transportation.

Chair of the Day Past President Dan Cole introduced guest speaker Ken Morton, Sr. Ken is a Sacramento golf legend and the CEO of Morton Golf, as well as a faculty member of the PGA’s Education Facility. Ken is also known as club member Jeanne Reaves’ brother!

Ken has dedicated his professional life to golf and is highly accomplished, but feels his biggest contribution was the creation of three charities: Sacramento Area Youth Golf Association; First Tee of Greater Sacramento; and the Morton Golf Foundation.

Ken spoke on the past and future of golf in Sacramento and the nation. After enjoying a boom from 1990 through about 2006, interest in playing golf has fallen. More courses began to close than open. The sport of golf also suffered from lifestyle changes along with other sports due in part to new choices for leisure activities. Despite these concerns, golf is evolving with rule changes for simplicity and other actions to keep the game relevant today and for future generations. Spectator interest in pro golf is at record highs.

Past President Jon thanked several club members who contributed to the day’s success. Rotarians were greeted by James Raney (Raney Real Estate), Steve Brandenburger, and Craig Brown (CB Property Inspections). They enjoyed Dr. Dick Wertz on the piano, with the wine reception sponsored by Lev Kaganovich. John Swentowsky (Swentowsky Photography) handled the camera.

That’s the Pulse for this week. For an alternate version of events by Past President Jon Snyder, click here.