Sean Miles - Binners Project (Apr 13, 2022)

Miscellaneous

Repeat from last week or until no longer relevant or until I delete it:

The external Paul Harris Dinner is now scheduled for June 15th and tickets will be $75 each.

Joint board meeting May 31 – present and incoming board at Richmond Country Club

April 10 Gala/Auction Basket making at Life Centre

Flower baskets pickup date April 30/22, 11:00 a.m. to 12:30 p.m;

Zoom Meeting Rules

THE LINK TO OUR THURSDAY MEETINGS WILL NO LONGER BE EMAILED BUT ACCESSED THROUGH THE LINK BELOW.

Join Zoom Meeting
https://us02web.zoom.us/j/86855229058?pwd=c1pxUklLeDMwWGpCdjIrOS9Oak4wUT09

Meeting ID: 868 5522 9058
Passcode: 473892

1) Mute your microphone if you aren't already muted. Background noise is distracting.
2) If you are not engaged in the presentation, turn off your camera.
3) Chat function should only be used to address the speaker, not for Club member remarks during the presentation

4) Unmute when harassing the Sergeant at Arms or taking your turn during Sergeant at Arms.

Presidents Report and Announcements, committee and board news and other stuff.

Condolences for Kal and Dick for their losses.

Basket making and thanks to Larry, Amanda, Olivia, Christine and Eleanore.

Foundation dinner is April 23^rd

Act of kindness week is April 17^th – 23^rd. Rotary wants to record over 1 million acts of kindness. Report you act of kindness next week during Sgt At Arms.

Rotary International President Jennifer Jones is visiting in Richmond July 10^th. Our club has been asked if we are interested in organizing an event for her possibly in coordination with the other Richmond Clubs.

Peter reports that we are at 27 tables sold with 285 committed guests. There are 224 silent auction items submitted and 9 live auction items. Also please let Peter know if you are aware of any dignitaries coming so they can be introduced.

The AGM is May 5^th for RWHN

Please direct any questions to the President or a board member of your choosing and we will discuss any and all questions or concerns during our board meeting. Also please refer anyone who may be interested in attending a meeting or joining the club.

Be kind and be calm and safe...

Visitors

Oscar's Dad(aka Sean Miles) and Oh Oscar.

sergeant At Arms Tidbits

Mary Lou welcomed Oscar’s dad who had the best day of his life, Oscar that is, as he got to drive a digger thanks to Debbie and Miles. Mary Lou found it very therapeutic to make the baskets on Sunday with Marg amongst the rest of us worker bees.

Bill ran a half marathon with Oscar's dad(aka Sean Miles) while Bill was injured. Our exchange student is Max Isemann from Germany. So start making plans.

Susan was ready, set, go to work and had to leave early. But not before reporting that she enjoyed the basket making and that she was involved in another peace and reconciliation conversation on March 31 that went well. Will enter her silent auction items Friday morning.

Gordon unfortunately was not able to join us with his audio but it was nice to see him.

Larry reported that Steve was in Vegas for 10 days and that he(Larry that is) was leaving for Birch Bay with beamer. Apparently to keep his pastor's license he has to officiate an event and so this Sunday is it. Does the invocation at the auction count?

Amanda woke up after O'Canada (it did not sound that bad to me) and thanked everyone for helping with the baskets. Apparently is now heading to Saskatchewan next week for a hair class. She will learn a new style called "The Frozen Snow Coiffe"

(Think Christopher Lloyd in Back to the Future). Dick was not here to report the weather but it is -5 in Saskatchewan.

Bobby took a trip to Kelowna and coming back faced an embarrassing moment while randomly checked. Apparently his fly was undone(a dozen male Rotarians immediately checked their zippers). It is super busy at work and brother Micheal is super busy with daughter's birthday Friday.

Sandra went to Seattle to the Kraken game and was led to her seats through a dark tunnel and past the Calgary team dressing room and took pictures of Markstrom. Also past the Kraken players. Lobster, shrimp, and open bar in the luxury box on the third row from the ice was on TV the whole game from behind the Calgary goal.

Peter's granddaughter went to whitecaps game on Christine Sinclair night and everyone was wearing number 12. Which of course is the granddaughters number.

Marg saw the play Made in Italy which was sold out Wednesday afternoon and earned a spontaneous standing ovation. Sister has sold her house in Kamloops and moving into the lower mainland - not with Marg.

Judy looked after some sick grand kids, had a good time at basket making and is going to Birch Bay for the weekend.

Debbie M said Miles is going to keep Oscars contact information because of his driving skills apparently he would have hired Oscar if he had the correct class of drivers license. Some retired friends were visiting and went on a beautiful harbour cruise with Harbour Air. Grand daughter just started crawling. Blood test every three weeks and has not changed.

Kal wishes everyone a happy Vaisakhi, Passover and Easter. Also happy to point out that Don Dixon was spotted on the jumbotron at a Canuck game reading a book.

Bob is back from Palm Springs and 38 degree weather. His mom had surgery yesterday for a clogged artery made even more exciting because the machines went down. She is home and recovering. Bob's Arrive Can app is set up so he has booked a a bunch of trips to the US.

Along with Christine Sinclair and Michael J. Fox I am a graduate of Burnaby South High School. Breaking news, Sandy tested positive for Covid the day after her birthday. Has a moderate case and so far no symptoms for me. New granddaughter last week Lara Kate.

Dalbir had nine relatives arrive in town with a bunch of them staying with him. Gave them a tour of Cypress, Lynn Valley and Deep Cove. Also Dalbir is one of the lead peace facilitators in the district and exploring how to expand the citizens assembly process and are looking for more people to train. An effective peace conversation can make change quickly.

Christine M. has a long time friend from Rotterdam who has lived in many places throughout the world and is coming to spend a week with her. He lived in Italy so she has bought tickets for Made in Italy. She, Eleanore and Olivia entered 40+ baskets last weekend. Chris ensured that every item now has a photo and feels better and on top of the on line auction. Saturday will be working all day with Eleanore to clean up and finalize the auction site. We all thankyou.

Peachey is getting ready for her trip to the Philippines and her mother is looking forward to seeing her. Mom is already cooking for Peachey's arrival.

Elena spent time at the District 5060 Rotary Assembly with 1000 in attendance. Elena spoke to the assembly and met a lot of Rotarians from Washington which included a sing along. The basket making was fun and thanks to Larry for food and wine. In Seattle next week for grandson’s third birthday.

Debbie S'. brother was in Victoria so she went to visit with brother and family and unfortunately missed basket making.

Carolyn is back from California and the Olympic level horse show. The first show since covid that was smaller than usual because of the virus. Her friend won two of the events entered and the playing of the Canadian national anthem brought some tears. In California it was like covid never happened.

Pat on Tuesday was driving out to Chilliwack to see her accountant and drove through snow on the perimeter road, spray from other vehicles and a bit of sunshine.

speaKER

According to Mom(aka Mary Lou) Sean became interested in addictions through volunteer work with Pathfinders.
According to Sean he was strong armed into the volunteer program but certainly does not regret it.
The Binners project is part of Makeway's charitable platform that supports social issue projects across the country. It offers fundraising and PR so the members can focus on staff and projects. A Binner is someone who collects redeemable containers from garbage bins to recycle and divert waste from landfills and raise funds. Binners are experts at what they do and play a valuable role in a circular economy. The goals of the project are to reduce stigma from binning, improve economic opportunities through compensated work, and help support waste diversion through charitable programs, advocacy and social enterprise. They engage with the Binners every Tuesday night at Main and Cardova regardless of holidays. The Binners who attend are provided with $5 for transportation. The meeting allows them to engage with Binners in conversations facilitated by peers with some input from Sean. The
Tuesday meetings provide information about economic opportunities for the social enterprises and information about events. The social enterprises are fee for service with teams of Binners at events hired to help individuals make sure the waste is going into the correct bins and will help with sorting after wards. The Binners love doing events like the PNE, Union Gospel Mission, the Vancouver Mural Festival, and Downtown eastside events. The Binners wear uniforms that de-stigmatize binning and gives the Binners a sense of pride. The events provide only summer opportunities so the Binners got into waste sorting in large sites downtown such as the convention centre and the Bentall centre. The Binners will sort waste and divert as much as possible from landfills. The Project provides options for how they are going to be paid by cash honorarium or a regular pay cheque. There are about 45 opportunities per week for different sorting sites and 8 – 12 people in a day for up to four hour shifts. Clients include the Bentall towers, media organizations and Sean is hoping to get the aquarium. The Binners will take ownership of spaces keeping them clean when given the opportunity and will show what they are capable of. The Binners find the work meaningful for the environmental impact. One infrastructure project is the universal cart sharing program that allows the use of a cart for a day by a Binner. They have been working on the project for the last three years and it will launch this year. It will build capacity and also allow the Binners to travel further. The cart was designed with the Binners input to make it as versatile as possible. The access to the cart is by a voice operated pass phrase. The second infrastructure project is a Binners hook to be installed by a bin and all the recyclables are put into a bag and hung on the hook. Sean also is active in advocacy work in consultation with the province or city to facilitate the Binners access to work and tours lead by Binners. Binners will speak about their experiences and show key landmarks. The ways you can help leaving cans and bottles on a hook by your garbage and follow the Binners on social media. Here is the web site Binners' Project - Binners' Project Home (binnersproject.org) The is newsletter you can subscribe to and you can donate and get a tax receipt. The event season is coming and the Binners get a fresh set of uniforms so they are looking for donations for event season and through out the year. To join the Binners a new member must come to three meetings and there is a referral bonus if they bring in a new member. Funding comes 45% fee for service, 15% donations the rest is from private foundations and grants and no government funding directly. The Binners have about 150 members, 30 of whom are staff. They are focused on the downtown east side where most of them live but there have been occasional further projects and some discussions to increase the range. The Binners are about 40/60 women/men and 45% indigenous. Definition from the web site:

binner \`bin-ner\ – noun
1. A person who collects redeemable containers and other things from bins to sustain their livelihood and to divert waste from landfills; a dumpster diver

Meanderings

So the news is that Ramadan, Easter, Passover and Vasaikhi are all occurring at the same time. Well here is the mini Coles notes about each of these celebrations.

Ramadan is remembered as the month in which the prophet Muhammad received the first of the revelations that make up the Quran. It is a month of fasting, prayer, giving and self-evaluation observed by Muslims. The month lasts 29-30 days depending on the sightings of the crescent moon.

Easter, also called Resurrection Sunday or Pascha commemorates the resurrection of Jesus Christ. It is also the culmination of the Passion of Jesus before which the Great Lent or a 40 day period of prayer fasting and penance are served. According to Bede writing back in the 8th century Easter is named for the anglo-saxon goddess Eostre the goddess of spring and dawn.

The eight-day Jewish holiday of Passover is celebrated in the early spring, from the 15th through the 22nd of the Hebrew month of Nissan, April 15 - 23, 2022. Passover (Pesach) commemorates the emancipation of the Israelites from slavery in ancient Egypt. Pesach is observed by avoiding leaven, and highlighted by the Seder meals that include four cups of wine, eating matzah and bitter herbs, and retelling the story of the Exodus. In Hebrew it is known as Pesach (which means “to pass over”), because God passed over the Jewish homes when killing the Egyptian firstborn on the very first Passover eve.

Vaisakhi, also pronounced Baisakhi, marks the first day of the month of Vaisakha and is usually celebrated annually on 13 or 14 April as the Hindu and Sikh solar new year. It is additionally a spring harvest festival for many Indians. For Sikhs, in addition to its significance as the harvest festival, during which Sikhs hold kirtans, visit local Gurdwaras, community fairs, hold nagar kirtan processions, raise the Nishan Sahib flag, and gather to socialize and share festive foods, Vaisakhi observes major events in the history of Sikhism that happened in the Punjab region. Vaisakhi as a major Sikh festival marks the birth of the Khals order by Guru Gobind Singh, the tenth Guru of Sikhism, on 13 April, 1699. Later, Ranjit Singh was proclaimed as Maharaja of the Sikh Empire on 12 April 1801 (to coincide with Vaisakhi), creating a unified political state.

Okay so hugs do really make us feel better. According to National Geographic:

"Hugs, a casualty of the pandemic, have measurable effects, judging from two research studies. In Japan, researchers monitoring infants found their hearts beat less rapidly during hugs from parents, but not from other people. And in London an experiment with blindfolded subjects found that longer hugs are considered more pleasant. Ranking hugs by strangers, subjects liked 5 or 10 second embraces better than one-second squeezes."

Upcoming Events

May 31 Joint Board Meeting

External Paul Harris June 15th, 2022.

Please note the date for the Auction

Friday May 6th 2022 Live and in Person.

TODAYS CHUCKLEs

😁

Turtles can breathe out of their butt. That’s no big deal I know people who can talk out of theirs.

Due to a huge misunderstanding about the concept of adulthood I will be hiding under the covers until further notice. Please send snacks.

The guy who fell onto an upholstery machine last week is now fully recovered.