Weekly Rotary Minute update

Ville Platte Rotary President Wayne Vidrine advised the club he wants to bring something different to the table at each meeting such as sharing Rotary trivia.
In this week’s Rotary Minute, Vidrine shared with the club about where the bell to celebrate the 100th anniversary of Rotary was made. “It was made in a family owned business that has been in business for 1,000 years,” he said. “Forty generations of people have been making the specialty bells. They make about 50 bells a year by hand. It is located in Agnone, Italy, and the family is the Marinellis. I thought that was pretty impressive. It’s the second oldest continuous business in the world.”
Vidrine then reiterated his plan for the club going forward. “I definitely want to keep all the projects that we have going on as they are today,” Vidrine said. “I want to continue with the fundraisers as they are today and continue with Paul Harris Fellows as they are today.”
“I want to definitely continue with the Choices Program because I think that’s one of the most beneficial programs that Rotary has put on in a long time,” he continued. “It touches a lot of lives and mentors a lot of young children. I do believe that is one way that this club can live the service-above-self motto because they are out there not only promoting Rotary but promoting goodwill and fellowship with these young students who are probably at the most vulnerable age of their lives.”
Vidrine also reiterated measures that he wants to do differently going forward. One way is to propose a change in the by-laws to allow for corporate memberships. “That way a company like the hospital here in Ville Platte whose single member may not be able to attend, but they can send someone on a weekly basis to attend our meeting,” he said. “They will have a presence and we’ll have a warm body to participate in our meeting.”
As he fielded questions from the floor, Vidrine explained more about these corporate memberships. “It is absolutely something that Rotary International has adopted, and it’s something that is being offered just recently in other clubs,” he answered. “I don’t think we want to get away from the idea of having an individual membership, but opening that door is something that I would like to put on the table for us.”
The other measure that Vidrine discussed with the club is its renewed involvement with Chicot State Park. “We tried to have Rotary Youth Leadership Awards Camp (RYLA) there last year, but they were unable to book it because of some maintenance issues at Chicot,” he said. “We’ve been in contact with our Lieutenant Governor Nungessor who has helped us resolve some of the issues, but there are still some issues and some challenges.”
“We need to figure a path forward so that we can continue to enjoy the benefits of Chicot Park because it has been a huge economic benefit on our community,” he continued. “It’s been something that this Rotary Club has been responsible for. Prof LaFleur when he was president of the Rotary Club was responsible for developing that complex. I think having RYLA there will be a big honor for our club because it’s in our home town.”
Vidrine also announced the date of the annual Christmas Party which will be December 12. “We’re looking forward to having a great Christmas Party,” he said. “I’ve tentatively booked a surprise location for everyone. I think with the venue and the entertainment we will have a real good time.”
In other business, Ville Platte Mayor Jennifer Vidrine introduced as her guest Casie McMurray, who is a Single Family Marketing Representative for Louisiana Housing Corporation. Vidrine announced, “We will eventually be building single-family homes on the lots that the city owns. These lots are where we are tearing down abandoned properties. We’re going to have single-family homes for either rent or purchase.”
Rotarian Larry Lachney advised the club on an event happening at the main branch of the Evangeline Parish Library on Saturday, July 29, at 10:00 a.m. “There’s going to be a 16-year-old girl from Baton Rouge that will be visiting Ville Platte, and her name is Alyssa Carson,” he said. “What’s special about her is she is interested in becoming an astronaut, and she’s expected to be the first woman on Mars in 2033. I’m going see her. It’ll be 16 years from now. Hopefully I’ll still be around, and I’ll be able to say that I met that little girl.”