At the Dec 12, Noon meeting, Rotary Club President, Gudiel Crosthwaite, called the meeting to order.
Before the speaker, Daniel asked if anyone had attended the Town Hall Meeting, hosted by Sheriff Alex Villanueva, at the Lynwood Worship Center, on Tue, Dec 10, 6:30 pm. He noted that it is good when Rotary members attend Lynwood community meetings.
There was mention of the coming Christmas event on Sat, Dec 21, 3 – 8 pm, at Lynwood City Park, called Snow Days with Snow Play, Jumpers, Santa and Live Entertainment and Food & Craft Vendors.
There was mention again of the successful 2nd Food Festival at the home of Ramon Rodriguez and his wife, Lupe. Daniel mentioned the results of the annual Candy Cane Christmas Parade on Fri evening, Dec 6. While the ground and yards were wet from rain, during the parade there was no rain. Daniel and Raj and Joe Wang, along with four Youthact parents carried the Rotary banner. The Roosevelt ES Youthact members (about 40 kids) marched behind the Rotary banner and carried their own banner.
President Gudiel introduced three guests on the staff of LUSD: Jeff Ballinger, Audrey Casas and Jalo Trujillo. Audrey is a graduate of LUSD schools and now is a college graduate. Lulo Trujillo is interested in becoming a Rotary member. Jeff (a LUSD teacher for 10 years) and Audrey are both involved with Helping Hands, an organization providing food and services for people in need in the community.
Councilmember Marisela Santana invited everyone to a business mixer to be held at a restaurant in the evening ( 6:30 pm), Thur, Dec 12. The restaurant is located at the corner of MLK Blvd. & Imperial Hwy.
Daniel explained the coming meeting schedule that includes a Christmas celebration at the Dec 19 meeting with a gift exchange, along with a presentation by Joe Wang, of his most recent travels with his wife to several places in Mexico and to Cuba. Then there will be no meetings for Dec 26 and Jan 2, with the next meeting being Thur, Jan 9, 2020.
At the end of the meeting, there was a meeting for Rotary Board members. Agreement was reached on candidates to be elected at the next Lynwood Rotary meeting, Dec 19. There was agreement that Maria Viera will be elected as an honorary member of the club. In response to a question from Daniel, it was stated that in the future, Maria will agree to become a regular member. There was agreement that the President –Electfor Year 2020- 2021 will be Larry Esparza.
There was mention that two of the three LUSD guests are involved with high school youth, and according to Gudiel, could convert the youth group to Rotary Interact Groups. It was agreed that Gudiel will contact Rotary District 5280, to confirm the requirements for these LUSD students to become Rotary Interact members.
The presentation by Gudiel Crosthwaite, LUSD Supt (and Club President) focused on the League of Innovative Schools. From the handout provided and on the screen, the League Goals consist of: “Galvanize networks to design, validate, champion, and scale effective innovative learning opportunities to advance equity and excellence for every student.” Districts selected are based on: “Vision and key achievements. Impact on student learning and educational leadership. Commitment to networking and knowledge sharing.”
Among the questions from the audience, included the role bilingual classes plays in the program. Gudiel attended a national conference in the East to receive the recognition, as one of 14 new member school districts, among a total of 114 districts as a part of the League of Innovative Schools.
Daniel Miller Public Relations/ Community Outreach Lynwood Rotary Club