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Pat’s photos from her trip

Click this link to see photos from Pat’s trip. She traveled to Gozo, part of Malta in the Mediterranean, from Oct. 24-Nov.8.  Here is what she says about Gozo:

“It is a Maltese island located in the Mediterranean south of Sicily and north of Libya. Several movies (The Gladiator for one) have been filmed there.  The scenery is stark, but beautiful.  I was visiting a friend who bought an anciend Roman ruin and she and her husband renovated it.  It was once a mill where flour was ground.  She lives there alone now and has a circle of friends most of whom are European, but I also met her Gozitan friends who are charming.  One brought over fresh goat cheese that she had made and she gave me two big bags of sea salt that her son had gathered from the family’s salt pan.  Fennel, capers, and arugula grow wild over the island.  It was a very interesting experience.  The people are friendly  and there is much history to be experienced.  I enjoyed it very much and would recommend it as a travel destination!”

This link is from her trip to Japan.

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to BRANCH or not to BRANCH

Please read the guide (below) to learn more about a BRANCH opportunity. We will be discussing this at the February meeting.

Branch-Guide

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2012 Bookfair photos

Did you miss the bookfair last Saturday? Here’s a peak at what you missed (hopefully you remembered to shop online). Thanks to Pat for snapping these photos!

Thank you to the Cool Cats (to their teachers and their parents) who came by and did an outstanding job performing and showcasing their talents.

They sang “Stand Up”, they danced and even performed a small part of their play.

We had plenty of activities to keep the shoppers busy. Wendy Docter helped out at the bookmark table.

We had story time with college students. The two ladies are from Baker Community College, the Interpreter Program. Mike Atwood is a student at Gallaudet University. They taught the listeners sign language.

We had a Scavenger Hunt with the Cool Cats…

Quoc Viet was the first to finish! He won a B & N gift card!

Thank you to Paws with a Cause. Several Assistance Dogs were in attendance and were on their best behavior.

Thanks to all who came out to volunteer!

A big thank you to Kim for her wonderful leadership in another successful fundraiser.

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Quota on WGVU

In case you missed Kim’s live interview on WGVU, click here to check it out.

Kim did a fantastic job sharing who we are! Share this with your friends and family before tomorrow for more book fair coverage!

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Protected: General Fund Reimbursment Form

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January 2012 President’s Message

January President’s Message

               Today is January 1, 2012.  Following tradition, I have been reviewing the year behind us to recall and reflect before looking forward to new beginnings.  I will dare to opine that 2011 was a very good year for our club.  The DREAM we had has sustained us and will move us into 2012.

We Donated.  Debbie and the Service Committee have been busy helping us disperse funds to answer requests from a variety of hearing impaired people in our community.  Among the help we have given are hearing aids for those in need, ski lessons for Cool Cats, a scholarship for Indian Trails Camp, a scholarship for GRCC, and, of course,  our DHHS Christmas party.

We Resonated.  Our Communications Committee under Maureen’s capable direction relayed our purpose with pre- and post-event news to all.  Thanks to Emily and Maureen for the world class blog we can call our own.  It is a source of great pride.  Oh, and this year’s Quota participation in the Santa Claus Parade made the local news!!

We Educated.  In February, we welcomed International President Gwenn Jackson to Grand Rapids for her Listen to Future Leaders program.  Kath Slagal hosted a marvelous Cool Cats cooking class and Sue Scharf contacted local high schools to speak to classes about prevention of hearing loss and healthy life style.  Pam G. and her program committee have done a wonderful job of obtaining informative speakers for our business meetings.

We Activated.  Pam H. and her Finance/Fundraising committee have paved the way for successful fun events such as the Walk for Hearing, the Shopping Extravaganza, and the Barnes and Noble Book Fair.  The Koeze partnership is alive and strong.  Our raffle event is imminent and, after several brainstorming sessions,  we are closing in on choosing a new fundraiser for the coming year.

We Motivated.  Elaine has worked to head the Membership Committee and we are proud to have welcomed three new members to our group.  Last year’s was a creatively presented Oscar night with Tom Rademacher as our speaker.  Kim and her committee led us to host our district conference in May that exceeded expectations with its well-planned theme, choice of venue, and inspirational programming.  It was amazing and we had a great attendance with several first-time members from our group.  The Junior Quota committee was formed there and is making contacts that look promising.

Each and every one of our members worked hard on each and every project of which we can all be very proud.  Thanks to all for our ‘very good year’.  Now, on to January and our two big events to start 2012!  I hope to see you at Barnes & Noble on Saturday, January 7.  It will be a wonderful way to start the year.  Then, we look forward with great anticipation to the January 19, ‘membership meeting’. I will see you and your guests at Centennial Country Club.  Remember, dreams are free and it is the activating of our dreams that makes us who we are.  Happy New Year!

Pat

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