VP Rotary Club hears from new president, welcomes Faith House representative at recent meetings

June 24, Meeting
Rotarian Kip Manuel invited Marie Guidry, outreach coordinator for Faith House in Ville Platte, to be the guest speaker for the June 24, meeting of the Ville Platte Rotary Club. She began by stating that domestic violence goes a lot deeper than black eyes and bruises. The core issue is control and 95 percent of the batterers are men. She said it is not true that abuse is only physical, it can also be emotional abuse. She noted all socioeconomic groups have abusers. She said a woman is battered every nine seconds, but noted that number only includes reported cases. If more cases were reported, the number would be a lot higher. Worldwide, six million women are beaten and seven out of 10 abusers also hurt children. She noted that one out of 12 abused women is stalked by a previous boyfriend and that the majority of runaways are those who are running away from an abusive situation. Guidry stated 85 percent of prisoners come from violent homes. She also said that the victim is often blamed and does not leave the situation due to fear of shame and guilt and seeing the charming and nice side of the abuser. Faith House is a non-profit organization that gives assistance to those leaving abusive situations and serves as a buffer between the abuser and person being abused in courtroom hearings. She said the Ville Platte location sees about 100 cases each year and she encouraged those who know someone in an abusive situation to seek help with Faith House because they are there to help and support those in trouble.
July 1, Meeting
At the July 1, meeting of the Ville Platte Rotary Club, newly-installed president David Mayeux addressed members detailing his plans for the new Rotary year. He began by thanking the group for nominating and electing him as president and announcing that the Rotary International theme for 2014-2015 is “Light Up Rotary.” He said he is looking forward to the experience and challenge of serving as president this year, noting he has some big shoes to fill following Bill Brunet. A main goal of Mayeux’s is to enhance the Rotary experience for veteran and new members alike, while continuing to grow the membership and community awareness of the organization through signs, various print and radio media, as well as social media outlets such as Facebook. Mayeux plans to continue supporting the Rotary Foundation through Paul Harris fellow members in the Ville Platte club. He said the group will continue utilizing the programs the club has been supporting for many years, including the Choices program, LSUE and vo-tech scholarships, sending students to RYLA camp and supporting the Sacred Heart Rotary Interact Club. He also would like to spread the club parish-wide by forming a communal Interact club for all parish high schools. Mayeux closed by saying he is open to any and all suggestions for club community service projects.