Meeting Opening: David Dix played God Bless America; President Elect Dave Myers led the Pledge of Allegiance; Carol Crimi offered the invocation, and the song was Sidewalks of New York.
Up Next: Dr. Marcela Castana, senior material analyst for Bridgestone Americas, Inc. Lunch will be served by the United Methodist Church Women starting next week.
There were no visiting Rotarians or guests. AV assistance by Mark Pennell.
Announcements:
- Carol Crimi asked Rotarians to include members of our Rotary Family as their guests for the 100th Anniversary Dinner October 23 at the Kent State University Hotel & Conference Center.
- Amanda Senn asked members to RSVP for the Happy Hour, September 22 from 4-6 p.m. at The River Merchant.
- Rachel Kerns announced the Beer Pairing event September 20 to benefit Habitat for Humanity. Cost is $50 and tickets are going fast.
- John Flynn announced a friend has four tickets available for the Ohio State vs University of Akron football game September 25. Tickets are $57 each. Contact John if interested.
- President Elect Dave Myers was filling in for President Kathy. He reminded people to look at the Rotary t-shirts and shirts on display. The shirts will have the Rotary emblem embroidered. He also thanked Amanda Senn for organizing the August luncheons.
100th Anniversary Moment: Jim Myers reviewed the highlights of the 1948-49 Rotary year which are included elsewhere in the newsletter.
Speaker: In Program Chair Asad Khan’s absence, President Elect Dave introduced the speaker, new Rotary member and Kent Fire Chief William Myers. Bill has worked for the Kent Fire Department for over 31 years. The first 10 years as a firefighter/paramedic; the next 16 as Lieutenant, and the past six as Captain in charge of a shift. He recently completed the 2 ½ year Ohio Fire Executive Officer Program. He and his wife Mary have three grown children, three grandchildren and two more on the way.
Bill started his talk by thanking Tom Hall for donating the 1906 fire chief badge to the department. Chief Myers said the badge is cherished by the department.
He talked about how proud he was of the 35 fire fighters/paramedics during the pandemic. He said they donned their protective gear at the station and went out on calls without hesitation. He also described a difficult house fire on Willow St. that his department had to handle. He said the attending firefighters acted valiantly and courageously.
As the new Fire Chief, he plans to focus on three areas:
- Preparedness—which includes training and the desire for a training facility.
- Resource Deployment—to improve response times and improve dispatch.
- Risk Reduction—the department covers 26 square miles with two stations 8/10s of a mile apart. The department is also working with the Kent Health Department on a grant for a paramedicine program to address situations of health risks.
He also plans to start a strategic planning process and to look into accreditation for the department.
From a healthy questioning session from members, we learned the department has 16 wheeled vehicles; annually responds to about 1,000 fire calls; first alarms include 5,000 gallons of water; mutual aid arrangements with neighboring communities is reciprocal and very important, and the upgrade of the west side fire station. Kent is a career department without volunteers.
Response was by Curt Stumpf who praised the Chief for his good vision, willingness to take risk when there’s a great risk, and teaching us about the breadth of the Fire Department.
Respectfully submitted by Anita Herington
