Award Winning

Malibu Rotary Club Surfwriter

February 25, 2009

Official Newsletter of the Rotary Club of Malibu

Malibu Rotary Club President Bow Bowman

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Edited by Dr. John W. Elman

Pictures by Dr John W. Elman

In This Issue (click underlined topics for weblink when connected to the Internet)

·  Last Malibu Rotary Club Meeting Jim Thorsen, Malibu City Manager, speaking on “Legacy Park”

·  Next Malibu Rotary Meeting March 4th , 7:30 a.m.: is Club Assembly Business meeting

·  Malibu Rotary Starts New Website: www.clubrunner.ca/malibu

·  Other News and Guests from Last Malibu Rotary Club meeting

·  Project TRIUMPH Update

·  Rotary District Convention April 30 - May 3, 2009

·  La Estanzuela, Honduras Water Project

Rotary International Website: www.Rotary.org

Rotary District 5280 Website: www.rotary5280la.org

Rotary District 5280 “Rotarians Doing Business With Rotarians” Website: http://yp5280.org/

RI President (2008-2009) D.K. Lee

Rotary District 5280 Governor (2008-2009): Chuck Anderson

Jim Thorsen, Malibu City Manager, speaking on “Legacy Park”

Jim Thorsen has been Malibu City Manager since May of 2006. He has worked in public service for 23 years, and besides being an administrater, he has a background in civil engineering. The small City of Malibu is fortunate to have three experienced engineers working on the multitude of public works projects in the city: In addition to Jim, there is Public Works Manager Bob Brager who spoke to the Malibu Rotary Club 2 weeks ago, and of course Malibu Rotary Club President Granville “Bow” Bowman, who is the special projects Public Works manager for the city. The city manager has a staff of 60 people to get all the work done.

Since he has been city manager Jim has had to go through many challenges including three major fires. One of the most daunting tasks the City Council has handed him is Malibu Legacy Park Project. One might think what’s so difficult about making a park? But Legacy Park is not just a park. What Jim was asked to do in this project was to take care of area storm water, waste water, create an assessment district, communicate with all the homeowners groups in the area, get LA County permits, and have it all completed in 12 months! There have been many contributors to help the city buy the property including $6 million in private donations.

On March 9 the Legacy Park Project will go before the Malibu City Council for approval and be put out for bidding. Jim says it will be the crown jewel of Malibu and California. Several phases of the park project have been done. The Storm Water Treatment Plant on the corner of Cross Creek and Civic Center Way treats 1400 gallons per minute and is one of the largest water treatment plants in the state. It treats 337 acres of stormwater, including what comes down from the hills and what is pumped to it from the Malibu Colony. Top notch scientists, people from Heal the Bay, have had input. The treatment goes beyond standards for the state and regional water boards. Some of the water goes to Malibu Creek, but the rest is recycled for irrigation of the park and the vegetation of surrounding landscape. Civic Center Way adjacent to the park is going to be made to look more like the recently completed Cross Creek Road area, with a well landscaped narrower street with diagonal parking spaces creating spaces for additional cars. 2.6 million gallons of water will be stored in the park, during the rainy season. Richard Ambrose, Ph.D, biologist from UCLA helped design the 5 distinct habitats in the park, which will be illustrated in outdoor educational areas. Educational elements will show cultural history as well as the natural history, illustrated in tiled columns. There will be no structures in the park—not even rest rooms. The closest public rest rooms will be in the new Lumber Yard shopping center and in the library Civic Center county buildings across the street.

The soil in the park does not percolate well enough to be used for waste water treatment (that is toilet and laundry water), only for storm water. There is a need for wastewater treatment in the Civic Center area and that facility may be either done as part of the La Paz project next to the library, or one of the properties adjacent to Civic Center Way and Webb Way.

Some other projects that the City Manager talked about were Trancas Park, at the top of Trancas Canyon, which will have two areas: an area of ball fields and above that, an upper knoll dog park. The area is being graded, and the upper knoll area made lower, to make it more accessible from the parking area. Jim also talked about the projects that Bob Brager spoke about earlier: the traffic signal at Corral Canyon and PCH, Las Flores Canyon Phase 2, playground improvements at Bluffs Park and another stormwater treatment facility in western Malibu. He also talked about a renovation of the County Library in Malibu. He said that the Malibu branch of the Los Angeles County Library shows a positive of money, and has earned enough for a $3.6 million renovation!

Other News and Guests from Last Malibu Rotary Club meeting

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In addition to City of Malibu Public Works Manager Bob Brager, part of Jim Thorsen’s entourage included Assistant to the City Manager Mike Mathews.

Holmes Osborne III, attended PETS February 20-22nd . Bill Wishard also attended and was able to see video of the presentation by Bill Gates of $255 million to the Rotary Polio Plus program to have polio 100% eradicated by August 12, 2012.

Message from the President-Elect:

President-Elect Holmes Osborne sent us the following:

Hello folks. I have several things I'm working on.

1. Rotary Breakfast Mixer, April 22. This is to pick up new members and is being sent to the Chamber.

2. A Rotary Clock for the new park. I got this idea from Fred. The district has a $2500 grant that we might get if we decide to go through with this. The whole thing, not counting the grant, would probably be $10k or so.

Malibu Rotary Starts New Website: www.clubrunner.ca/malibu

Microsoft pulls plug on Malibu Rotary Club MSN Group Site

In 2002 I had put up a website for the Malibu Rotary Club. It was a MSN Group Site, which made it free, except for a charge of about $20 per year for extra space (30 mb). It was about the same time that we started e-mailing the weekly bulletin rather than postal mailing it--which saved the club a substantial amount of money in the years that followed. Going digital was part of a plan I had when I was club President in 2001-2. The Malibu Rotary website had about 300 pictures when last seen, including picturesand storiesof our weekly speakers since 2002, articles on club activities including all our singing competition winners, a calendar of upcoming events and speakers, our board members, a list of our members (with links to members' websites) and multiple other links to Rotary International and Rotary District websites, and until it ran out of space, back issues of the Malibu Rotary Club Surfwriters. It even had a blog space which was rarely used. At a board meeting we had at the end of 2008, I brought up the fact that Microsoft was doing away with the MSN Group websites in February.They pulled the plug on MSN Group sites February 23, 2009. Microsoftsuggested everyone migrate to Multiply.com, which I checked out, and found it to be not a very good match for a Rotary Club. Most Rotary clubs in the district and a great percentage of clubsin the country use ClubRunner, "the award-winning membership management and communication platform for clubs and districts" sold by a company in Canada. "Better organize your club, improve your communication, and empower your members."I had seen their ads for years, but ignored them becasue I knew what I was doing was much more affordable--it's hard to beat the bargain basement price of $20 per year.

It will cost us a bit more, but I have had several positive e-mails from club members about going with the proven club management system of ClubRunner. The first month is a free trial and you can check it out at www.clubrunner.ca/malibu . Our club roster and future speakers are already up on the new site. Anyone can access the site to see the bulletin, future speakers, and other club activities. To see the membership roster and to get other club secure information you have to log into the site. I have sent all club members information about the log in protocol.

--John W. Elman, Editor Malibu Rotary Club Surfwriter and Webmaster of Malibu Rotary Club website

Project TRIUMPH Update

Editors Note: Most of you know how strongly I feel about the Project TRIUMPH program conceived by Ilan Magdali of the Newbury Park Rotary Club. The program brought 10 teenage Arab and 10 teenage Jewish students from Israel to a leadership camp in Simi Valley where they all learned to work together, develop leaders skills before returning to Israel to use what they learned back home. Most of us feel helpless in trying to find a solution to the constant war in the Mid East, but at least this program is trying to do something. I knew that they weren’t bringing students over this year and thought that the program was in hiatus. I had received several e-mails from Francis Fuji, of the Project TRIUMPH organizing committee. One recent one asked us to use Scrip and eScrip programs of local markets which can be made to donate to Project TRIUMPH (more on this in a future issue of the Malibu Rotary Surfwriter). She said “they are an easy way to help Project TRIUMPH raise funds simply by linking your grocery card purchases to our name — the merchants will donate a modest percentage of your purchases to us! It’s quick,, easy and automatic.” The merchants included Albertsons, Ralph’s, Vons, Pavilions and others. I didn’t know what Project TRIUMPH was doing this year and asked Frances to tell us. Her response is below was sent February 19:

Hi John,
Thank you for asking!
We are in a transition year. Although things are not totally gelled yet, this is the direction we are taking:
In light of the current economic climate and more challenging environment for securing grant monies, instead of hosting students this year, we are taking the opportunity to strengthen infrastructure in Israel and to establish collaborative relationships with aligned organizations.
Upon our request, Shaul, from the Rotary Club of Haifa, provided us with a budget and proposal to hire a part-time facilitator to be responsible for year-round support of both new Project TRIUMPH students and alumni. We are sending money to contribute to the facilitator’s salary, and she has already begun meeting with the kids there.
We are excited about prospects for 2010 and beyond (the plan is to resume bringing kids over in 2010, assuming that we can raise enough funds in 2009) and believe we will emerge from this fallow year with an even stronger, more well-rounded and promising program than ever before.
I’m sorry we haven’t been in communication — we’ve been busy behind the scenes but haven’t felt in a position to make any formal announcements yet.
John, if you would like Ilan or any of us to come out to your club to speak this year, don’t hesitate to ask. We should have confirmation on several fronts within the next 30-60 days and are always happy to provide you and our friends at Malibu Rotary with an update!
Blessings,
Frances
Frances Fujii, M.A.
Project TRIUMPH Organizing Committee
(805) 529-5694
(805) 558-7302 (cell)
www.projecttriumph.org

In a future issue of the Malibu Rotary Club Surfwriter will tell you what some of the alumni of Project TRIUMPH are doing and why are continued support is justified.

Rotary District Convention

On April 30 - May 3, 2009 The Rotary District Conference will be The Westin South Coast Plaza Hotel, 686 Anton Boulevard. Costa Mesa, CA 92626 (see flyer at http://www.clubrunner.ca/Data/5280/html/45459/Conference%2009%20Flyer%201200%20dpi.pdf.).

Online registration by credit card for the upcoming District Conference is now available. Scheduled for April 30 - May 3, 2009 at the Westin Hotel, South Coast Plaza. The conference promises four days of fellowship, education, social events, a golf tournament,plenary sessions and more. In addition to the Rotary activities there will an opportunity to see a production of the musical Grease at the Sergerstrom Performing Art Center located next to the hotel. Click HERE to see a specially created video or copy http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=73x0pP6MGhg into your browser.

Click on theimageimmediately below tothe left to register online, or the image to the rightif you wish to print a copy of the registration form and mail or fax it to the District Office.

* Credit card registration form: / * PDF registration form:

To view the specially created video about the conference, click HERE . It is 3:47 long. (Video created by Gidas Peteris of the Beverly Hills Rotary Club; narration by Brad Robinson, conference chair and member Beverly Hills Rotary Club.)