Sixteen bright-eyed member amble through the door of the Back Street Tavern, to be greeted by Gary Miller (also cashier) and Phil Perington (also a good guy).  The continental breakfast consisted of bagels, cream cheese, fruit, juice and coffee.

President Dan Rodriguez rang the bell at 7:03 (getting closer) and read the invocation and led the pledge. After Steve Kady introduced his guest, Gary Amelon (who has been here once before),  Dan announced that the Board of Directors had a Zoom meeting last night and decided, among other things, that the in person meeting would continue at least until the end of the year, minus Christmas and New Year’s Day, which both occur on Friday.

 

 

Tom Mauro distributed club directories to everyone present. As per usual the directories were put together by Tom and Craig Eley.  Another great job, another million dollars for some lucky advertiser!

 

Frank Middleton (via Zoom) inquired as to whether any of MSOC members had been impacted by the Coronavirus.  Someone mentioned that our long-time member, Neil Alderson had gone through a fairly severe case but was currently recovering.  Jack Kleinheksel noted that his wife, Georgia’s mother had passed on April 4 due to the pandemic.

 

DON’T THROW AWAY YOUR PRINTER CARTRIDGES!

Greg Young is collecting used/empty printer/ink cartridges.  He will recycle these for credit that can be used for supplies and printing at Staples for Optimist Club purposes.  Please let Greg know if you have 3 or more saved up and he can pick them up, or you can drop off on his porch at 3983 S. Olive St.  Please put them in a baggie so they don’t leak ink.

 

Tom Glazier said there will be another “meet up” at the Café du France on Wednesday , November 21.  This one will be held inside, as the last time this group met, it was a little chilly.  Everyone is welcome, starting at 9:00 am.  Address is 4155 E Jewell Ave.

Steve Kady submitted the following reports regarding 2 of the 7 Respect for Law award presentation which will be given to recognize officers in each of seven districts:

District 4 winner:  Today's Respect for Law award took Prez Dan to DPD Dist 4 in Southwest Denver.  Officer Raul Silvas is a school resource officer in Southwest Denver. When schools shut down in early 2020 due to COVID19 concerns, Officer Silvas partnered with DPS to begin delivering meals to underserved families throughout SW Denver. He continued providing meals to families in need through the summer and has delivered over 15,000 meals to date. Denver Police Division Chief Ron Thomas was also present for the presentation.

District 3 Winner:  This morning Club President Dan Rodriguez along with Steve Kady traveled to Denver Police District 3 to present the first of seven Law Enforcement awards. Dan presented Officer Sean Lewis with a plaque.  Officer Lewis is described by his by his peers as spreading optimism to everyone around him. Recently Officer Lewis engaged a potentially violent rioter bent on causing disorder.  He was able to convince him to voluntarily leave the area without causing any property damage. Sean was also presented a Club coffee cup and a year membership to the Club.

Ron Gustas announced that he is participating in a November 1^st, JDRF (Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation) “Virtual Walk” fundraiser to finance continuing research seeking improved treatment options and eventual cure for those with Type 1 Diabetes (T1D). A number of Monaco South  members have families impacted by T1D.

Support is more important than ever this year because of the adverse effect the COVID pandemic has had on fundraising for ongoing T1D research. Please consider either donating to or joining either of the two Walk Teams Ron is supporting:

Thanks for helping those impacted by this lifelong disease. Ron also said that the DTC club was having an on-line auction as a fund raiser this year and part of the profits with go to support the JDRF.  If you have any items you would like to donate to the auction please call Ron or Jeff Gartz of the DTC club.  Jeffs number is 303-842-6680.

 

Our Speaker today was Mitch Jelniker.  Freelance Journalist, Media Consultant. Former Denver7 Morning Anchor. Husband. Father. Cowbell player. Broncos fan. Always looking for positive stories.  After many years in the TV business, Mitch joined the Food Bank of the Rockies in November of 2018 as Corporate Relations Manager. According to Mitch the mission of Food Bank of the Rockies is to help families thrive by efficiently procuring and distributing food and essentials to the hungry through our programs and partner agencies. The organization serves northern Colorado and all of Wyoming serves 400,000 people per year with (about 230,000 meals per day, with only 130 paid employees and 22,000 volunteers. Food Bank of the Rockies has been fighting hunger and feeding hope since our founding in 1978 as the "Colorado Food Clearing House. Our vision of feeding those in need began with the collection of bread from nearby groceries to share with a few partners in hunger relief.

According to the website https://www.coloradogives.org/FoodBankRockies/overview#profile-details “Food Bank of the Rockies is now the 14th largest food bank in the United States. COVID-19 forced us to change our distribution model and nearly double the amount of food we share, providing about 300,000 meals each day to people facing hunger during this difficult time. We added a night shift, new drivers, an additional warehouse, and raised more funds to purchase extra food to meet the increased demand. We expect the need to continue and depend on the community's generosity to help us continue to feed our neighbors facing hunger.

Food Bank of the Rockies distributes food and other essential items to those in need through about 700 partner agencies in hunger relief. They rely on us for some or all of the food they share with clients in their local communities. Together with our partners, we also distribute food through our Grocery Rescue program, picking up nutritious food grocers and retailers no longer want to sell. Our direct service programs include Totes of Hope (weekend backpacks for kids), Kids Cafe meals, food boxes for older adults and Food Bank of the Rockies' Mobile Pantry.”

Dan Rodriguez is inviting you to a scheduled Zoom meeting.

Topic: OCMS Friday 7:00 AM Meeting

Time: Oct 23 , 2020 06:30 AM Mountain Time