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OTHER ITEMS OF INTEREST: Sri Lanka Relief Efforts Click here to read Rob Rose’s Foundation article in the March 2005 monthly newsletter of The Rotary Foundation. Check out the list of the best books of 2004! |
WEEKLY BULLETIN FEATURED APRIL 19, 2005 Bob Ernst, Men's Crew Coach
Now in his 30th season of coaching at Washington, including his 17th year as the Husky men's coach, Ernst's resume includes a myriad of rowing highlights, including directing the varsity eight crew to its first Pac-10 championship since 1997, a silver medal at the IRA Championships, a runner-up performance in the junior varsity event and winning the varsity four title. Ernst, who hails from southern California and graduated from the University of California at Irvine with a BS in biology, was a 27-year-old coach at his alma mater when he first caught the eye of former Husky men's coach Dick Erickson. Ernst's upstart team from UC Irvine nearly upset the Huskies and Erickson wasted little time offering him an assistant's position coaching the Huskies. From 1974 to 1980 Ernst coached the UW freshman before taking over as the women's head coach in 1980. When Erickson retired, Ernst became the men's coach in 1987. Under Ernst, the varsity men have won a variety of events. He has been honored by his peers as Pac-10 Conference Coach of the Year nine times and was recognized locally for his coaching achievements when he was a finalist for the Seattle Post Intelligencer Sports Star of the Year award in 1982. While keeping Washington rowing among the collegiate elite, Ernst has also brought international recognition to the program. Four times in his span as head men's coach, he has taken Husky crews to the Henley Royal Regatta in England. He has helped build the internationally recognized Windermere Cup Regatta at home; an Opening Day festival that has included such powers as the Italian, Australian and New Zealand national teams, among many others. Ernst's work with the Huskies has not gone unnoticed as he has had the opportunity to represent Washington in several prestigious positions outside the college ranks, including serving as the coach for the U.S. National Team from 1976 to 1988 and coaching on four Olympic Teams, in 1976, 1980, 1984 and 1988. His Olympic accolades extend beyond the water as well. In 1996, Ernst worked with NBC Television providing color commentary for the rowing events at the Atlanta Games and for the 2000 Games, he was the course announcer at the rowing venue in Sydney. Ernst, who has a master's degree in sports administration from the University of Washington, now resides in Edmonds with his family.
This item did not attain minimum bid requirements during our April 2, 2005, Auction. It is now available for sale via sealed bid. Please refer to the 2005 Auction Catalog for specific details and restrictions on this offering. If you would like a printer-friendly version of this information (PDF), please click here. Terms are as follows:
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Don't miss out on this one! Deeded timeshare unit in Orlando, Florida, includes two bedrooms and two baths, sleeps eight, lockout unit at the new Vacation Village at Parkway, Kissimmee, Florida. Enjoy two weeks a year at this desirable central Orlando location close to theme parks and golf. Or use as exchange stock for anywhere in the world. Includes two bonus weeks/year with RCI membership. Donor(s): Patrick & Margaret Siemion
The opening of Rob Rose's Nepal & India photography exhibit will be Sunday, April 17, at Pogacha Restaurant, in Bellevue. Also, Pogacha will be donating two lunches for this week's drawing. Please click here for a PDF file with a sample photo and invitation to this event, and RSVP to Rob Rose (Ph 425-881-6231).
The Bellevue Rotary Club is making available tuition scholarships for graduating Bellevue area high school students. Applications must be mailed by the Click here for more information on this program.
A special ceremony was held at the April 12th meeting, with President Katherine Thompson and Foundation Chairman David Laub presenting Paul Harris awards to three BRC members. Bob Bishop received his Paul Harris Five Sapphire Award. This award is given to those individuals whose contributions to the Rotary International Foundation total over $6,000. Kathy Korth and Rob McKenna both received their Paul Harris Fellow Awards, signifying that they have both given over $1,000 to the Rotary International Foundation. Stu Vander Hoek was presented with his Paul Harris Two Sapphire Award, signifying his contributions of over $3,000 to the Rotary International Foundation. Congratulations to these three Paul Harris Fellows! Life In Kathmandu & A Trip To The Zoo
Namrata and Sharda have three brothers, two of whom are also blind. We took a taxi out to their apartment which is located in Old Kirtipur, about a thirty minute drive from downtown Kathmandu. As I mentioned in a previous e-mail, I don’t fit into many cars here and I feel a bit like a sardine in a can riding in our little Maruti taxi. Compounding my size issue, the roads are small, dusty and appear to be one big pothole! Now, I’m told that how they live isn’t unusual for Nepal, but it’s somewhat unsettling to find that their entire apartment consists of a one room, about eight by ten feet. Within this room are a two-burner gas stove, several small woven stools, a table with a myriad of items stored underneath, and the bed, again with many things underneath. Clothes hang on the walls, and a few pictures and posters dress up their abode. They are very proud to be having me visit and, as is customary, tea is quickly boiled up and the biscuits brought out. Although they are currently employed as receptionists, Namrata is a classically trained singer who has had some of her songs played on Nepali Radio and Sharda is qualified to be a teacher. Sharda had wanted to teach sighted children and when asked why not just blind children, she replied, “Because it is my right!” These are indeed very strong-willed women, but you have to remember how difficult it is to have a disability and survive here — I think the experience must give them strength. There are no disabled accommodations here. Sometimes the sidewalks exist, and sometimes they don’t. When sidewalks are there, they are usually uneven, potholed and of varying heights. There are rarely crosswalks and traffic lights, and sometimes people will help them cross the street and sometimes they won’t. Many office buildings don’t have elevators or handicap ramps. To me, it seems like a nightmare, but for those disabled that need to traverse the confusing, crowded, noisy streets and sidewalks, they somehow manage to survive the commotion. This was my last visit with Namrata and her family, so we said our fond farewells and then I headed back into town. Next, it was off to the zoo to take the disabled kids from the Disabled Newlife Center (DNC) on an outing! In Nepal “Z” is pronounced “J,” so “Zoo” becomes “Joo”! It was a surprise at first — as I’m Jewish — to hear, “How would you like to go see the Jew?” That certainly made me do a double-take! The zoo has really been upgraded and is now quite a nice facility. On this day, many families, couples and children were lining up to get in. My host, Rabendra, who owns a travel and tour company, had sent a bus to pick up the children and bring them to the zoo. The zoo director had prepared a special program for the children, including a short video explaining what they’d be seeing and an animal-filled coloring page for the kids to take back to the center and finish. One of the kids, named Indra, quickly volunteered to carry one of my camera bags with one hand and held tight to my hand with the other. Other kids took turns holding my other hand as we wandered around visiting a nice assortment of animals from lions, tigers and bears, to rhinos, elephants and birds. After a nice tour through the animals, we sat in a central area and played soccer and frisbee. As Terry Posner I’m sure remembers, one of the children with one leg, Puste, is pretty proficient at soccer, stopping the ball with his crutch and kicking it with only one leg! Several of the older boys asked if they could take some photos with my digital camera, and I agreed. They took some excellent photos! I think that there may be some future portrait competitors for me here in Nepal. I’d better watch out! After the games, we had some noodle soup at the little zoo cafe. This was kind of a Top Ramen type of soup, but it definitely had some extra bite to it (green chilis!!!). Hot stuff for me, but maybe not hot enough for the locals, as the kid sitting next to me added some more chili powder to it! My only sadness on this day is that it will end all too soon. After finally reconnecting with the children, I will be homeward bound, returning to my friends, family and life in Bellevue. It’s very difficult to sum up my day; there were so many emotions at play. I enjoyed being with Namrata and her sister, and I loved taking the kids out on their zoo excursion. One part of me is just "in the moment," taking in the hugs, sights, sounds, joys — the total experience. The other part of me wonders about what the future holds for these children. My own personal goal for them is that they have the same opportunities that other children here have — maybe even more — as I think they’ll need an edge to overcome the societal stigma that comes with having a disability. Many in Nepali society consider a disability to be a curse from God. However, through Rotary and other organizations and volunteers I intend to turn this backward thinking around to instill the belief that those with disabilities can do most any job that the abled can, any job that their disability allows. My hope is that we’ll be able to identify the individual talents of each of these children, whether it’s music, dance, math or science. Then we can provide tutors and mentors to give them the edge they will need to survive and thrive. These kids will be the examples of what the disabled are capable of if only they are given a chance, and our program at this disabled center will be the template that other organizations in Nepal can use to create success in their programs. The positive news for this organization is that all interested parties are now all working together toward a common goal. Just prior to my departure, we had a meeting of Rotarians, Disabled Center board members, business leaders and volunteers that are supporting the disabled center. We set goals and divided responsibility so that we’ll all be on the same page and won’t be duplicating our efforts. All the groups here are struggling with the political situation, the outcome of which is uncertain. However, our goals are now clear: we must provide what assistance we can for this center and its children. The Disabled Newlife Center (DNC) is one of three major projects that my wife Gina and I have been working on in Nepal the past few years. The other two are the Nandu Maya Self-Sustaining Orphan Home and the Kathmandu School for the Deaf. When you give to the Rotary Foundation through your yearly contribution and to our own Bellevue Rotary Foundation through our yearly auction efforts you are making an investment in humanity’s future, which with the help of Rotary is a future that looks bright! To the Disabled Children of Nepal
If I could gather together all of the disabled children of Nepal, from those in the most remote villages to those in Kathmandu’s slums and inner city, I would want to give them these words of encouragement: I look into all of your eyes and see love, joy and hope. I see promise and possibilities, but most of all, I see potential. You must be allowed to achieve your potential, to see that the possibilities are endless. Our promise must be to help you in any way that we are able. We must provide comfort, compassion and a chance for a better life. You can achieve, you can succeed. Do not set your sights low. Look high to see not what you can do, but what you might do. You deserve the right to that chance, the right for opportunity. You have much to give and your country can use your incredible tenacity and dedication. Just because you have a disability doesn’t mean that you can’t, or that you shouldn’t, or that you aren’t allowed to. Work hard, Remarkable Children of Nepal. There is a future for you here in a society that needs to understand that your disability is not a curse from God, but a gift from God. You have something that sets you apart, gives you empathy for others, makes you work harder to do what comes easy to the rest of us. Yours is a special gift. If we encourage and cultivate it, you will bloom. Oh, how you will bloom, into a vast garden of many colors, sizes and varieties. It is in our infinite variety that we have strength. Please dream, Extraordinary Children of Nepal. Dream of a future where everyone will be treated equal (dreams have a way of becoming reality). Dream of the day when you are not segregated, sorted and labeled as “disabled”, but simply looked on as a human being, unique in your own way. I can see to a day when there will always be a willing person to help you cross the street. And as they hold your hand or touch your arm to help you they will realize the gift you give them. By coming in contact with your physical imperfections, they will come to realize their own inner imperfections and to see that it is our imperfections that make us who we are as humans in an imperfect world. You will teach us, and we will grow. You will succeed, and your country will benefit from your accomplishments. In the future, your accomplishment will be measured by your contribution to others- what you give to others, your society and your country. You will join other leaders in the fields of medicine, engineering, politics and the arts. You will have no societal boundries, no constraints, no obstacles to hold you back...and you will fly! Right now there are many in Nepal who are honored to be your guides. We are honored to be your eyes, to assist you as needed. We are honored to push your wheelchairs, to help you onto the bus, give you a ride, give you a job. We are honored to give you a chance for a better life. In helping you, by giving of ourselves in service, we gain personal satisfaction, joy and inner peace in return. These are sentiments that money can’t buy. If you can visualize it, Exceptional Children of Nepal, it can happen. If you can dream it, it will come true.
Come to Camp Goodtimes this year on Wednesday, June 22. Plan to spend the day on Vashon Island. Bellevue Rotary members will once again put on a rip roaring, way cool, action packed carnival garnished at the end with lots of whipped cream. Sign up anytime with Charlotte Ellis, or check out the table flyers in late May/early June. Spouses and teens can help too. Help us out! |
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Next Meeting * * * GREETERS * * * Newest
* * * APRIL BIRTHDAYS Chris Porter, 04/01 Rob Petersen, 04/04 Gary Neumann, 04/09 Lisa Carroll, 04/12 Gregg Jordshaugen, 04/13 JerryVandenberg, 04/13 Mike Evered, 04/16 Rob Rose, 04/17 DickForeman, 04/20 Lee Graeve, 04/20 Kim Wold, 04/20 Cy Oskoui, 04/21 Stan Winter, 04/21 Joe Kaiser, 04/26
* * * * Award Winning! * * * * Are you receiving The Rotarian Magazine? If not, contact Laurie Larson or email The Rotarian Magazine. * * * * The permanent mailing address for Bellevue Rotary is: Laurie Larson |
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