We will enjoy a presentation by Dr. Wendy Lucas Wood. Her topic is: Cultivating Compassion - Placerville Friends of Tibet and the Monks of Gaden Shartse Monastic University." Wendy belongs to Placerville Friends of Tibet, a community organization comprising of volunteers who have been hosting annual local tours with Tibetan monks for 23 years. Their mission is to share the culture, arts, philosophy, and science of Tibetan Buddhism with the community. They partner with Sierra Friends of Tibet in Grass Valley and Auburn each year (typically January through February for 9 weeks) as the monks bring their message of compassion, harmony, and peace to our communities.
Wendy is a conflict engagement professional, mediator, social scientist, consultant, trainer, and author, works globally to collaborate on critical areas, including health and social welfare, environmental justice, and disaster relief. Specializing in resolving complex disputes, Wendy focuses on dialogue, facilitation, strategic systems design, and trauma-informed conflict engagement. As the co-founder of a network of conflict engagement practitioners, she dedicates herself to enhancing the capacity of social and environmental movements, political organizations, and communities for constructive conflict engagement. Wendy's mediation extends globally, including work with indigenous communities, and her engagements span diverse organizations worldwide. An international speaker and co-author of "Do No Harm: Mindful Engagement for a World in Crisis" (2021), Wendy holds a Doctorate in Human Science, a Master’s in Public Health, and is a certified mediator. Based in Northern California, she brings a unique perspective rooted in her indigenous upbringing.
Tom Elken talked about his, and wife Sandy's, experience on the "Mediterranean Odyssey" cruise on the Viking ocean cruises nearly brand-new Neptune ship. The 12-night cruise started in Barcelona, Spain and ended in Venice, Italy with stops at ports in France, Italy, Greece and Croatia. They took a 2-night pre-cruise extension in Barcelona, so the whole trip was just over 2 weeks long. Tom had a lot of pictures in his PowerPoint presentation and provided some information on cruising with Viking.
The cruise itinerary was: Barcelona, Marseilles, Monaco, Livorno (near Florence & Pisa), Civitavecchia (near Rome), Naples, the Greek island of Corfu, Croatian cities of Dubrovnik and Split, and back to Italy for the port of Chioggia near Venice. Some facts about Viking: Viking’s Ocean ships are “small” at 900 passenger capacity. Some of the Viking “No’s” are: No Kids under 18; No Casinos; No smoking; No charge for specialty restaurants; No photography sales; No charge for room service; and No formal nights. They found there were lots of things to do on board the ship: gym, spa, swimming pools, restaurants, coffee bars, lectures, entertainment, libraries, trivia contests, and many comfortable places to watch the sea & shore pass by.
Tom's best memories were of the La Sagrada Familia (The Holy Family) basilica in Barcelona. Designed by Antonio Gaudi, the basilica has been under construction since 1882, and Gaudi died in 1926. It is expected to be completed somewhere between 2026 and 2030. Both the exterior and the interior boasted fabulous art and design elements. To look up at the columns that branched like trees and seemed to hold up the sky was delightful. Shades of similar colored stain glass gave various of the interior spaces very different moods -- for example the blues in the photo to the right.
Sandy's favorite place was Venice. The canals, bridges and gondolas were charming, and the Piazza San Marco (St. Mark's Square) seemed almost like an outdoor art museum with the spectacular works of the Doge's Palace, St. Mark's Campanile and St. Mark's Basilica surrounding us. Stopping at a fabulous (but expensive) sidewalk cafe that had its own orchestra was a great way to rest their feet. The service was impeccable, and we could enjoy the music, cappuccino, and gelato from the Grancaffe Quadri. They recommend Viking ocean cruises as a way to explore the world in comfort.
Cathy Dugan: Need assistance selling raffle tickets at our area foundation dinner.
Laurie Edwards: Reminded us of the March 14th Area 6 Foundation Dinner at the Country Club at 5:30 pm. Area 6 Governor, Kurt Raffetto will be the MC and Rotarian and Humorist Jim Pelley will be the speaker. Sign up list going around.
Tom Elken: Sign up list being distributed for ordering club polo shirts.
Guests:
Sala Tunrdau, guest of the Ulla's from Fiji.
Robert Wahl, guest of club.
Happy (or Not) Bucks
Prez Cathy: $10 Happy that hubby and past president, Mike, is walking following his successful surgery.
Gary Gall: $25 total, $20 Happy for his Hawaii vacation and $5 Sad for having to leave today's meeting early.
Tom Elken: $85 Happy for the number of members who signed up for club polo shirts resulting in a price discount. Happy bucks to be used to cover shipping costs.
Birthdays in February
Dave Sargent
Kim Strand
David Tavernetti
Janet Yarbrough
-----Spouses-----
Geoff Brooks
Ali Foulk
Janis Scott
Anniversaries in February
Vickie Christensen-McLain and Perry McLain
Upcoming Words of Wisdom/Greeter/Front Desk Assignments
Tom Elken talked about his, and wife Sandy's, experience on 
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