Today marks our second virtual meeting led by President Kelly Ricker with 30 members in attendance. Kelly is most adept at technology and thus, effectively smooths out many of the technical challenges associated with virtual meetings. In spite of these challenges, and I believe most will agree, virtual meetings are better than no meetings at all. We still get the opportunity to socialize somewhat, stay connected and, we still carry out the business part of Rotary. Thank you Kelly.
Ed Harris, president elect, shared a Rotary Moment with us that included a perfect example of what Rotary is all about. Our Nipomo Rotary Club is part of District 5240 that is comprised of 72 clubs throughout Santa Barbara, Ventura, San Luis Obispo and Kern counties. Our district is led by Governor Savi Bhim. Through her leadership of her district team, District 5240 donated $9,000 to a foodbank in each of the counties mentioned above for a total donation of $36,000. This comes at a time when there is greater need than ever. THIS IS WHAT ROTARY IS ALL ABOUT! I’m humbled to be a small part it.
Roger Ridley presented our Moment in History where he described several events that have taken place on this day. Here is a sample of events he shared with us: a) in 1789 the US Representatives held their first meeting, b) in 1864 the 13th amendment to the constitution that outlawed slavery was adopted ,c) in 1974 Hank Aaron hit is 715th homerun surpassing Babe Ruth’s record of 714 and, d) in 1986 Clint Eastwood was elected as mayor of Carmel, Ca.
Our speaker today was Dr. Wen Chen. Dr. Chen is Wen was born in China at the end of the Great Cultural Revolution and she personally experienced the brainwashing that is prevalent in China. In 1994, Wen came to the U.S. for graduate school and received a doctorate in Biology at the California Institute of Technology. Because of her personal experience of being brainwashed in China, she decided to be a voice for the voiceless. Since 2012, she has given over 200 presentations to community organizations about Chinese culture, history, and human rights. Dr. Chen has been working as a scientific staff member for Caltech since 2000. She is an active member of the Amnesty International Chapter at Pasadena and a board member for Caltech Women in Biology and Bioengineer. She lives in Pasadena with her husband and two teenage daughters.
Her topic today was Coronavirus & China’s Censorship and was both pertinent and enlightening. Thank you Dr. Chen for joining us today.