The Rotary Club of Sebastopol Sunrise

"Service Above Self"

Message from President Michael

Who are we? We are the Rotary Club of Sebastopol Sunrise.

What is Rotary all about? It’s about friendship, giving back to the community, fun and entertainment, business development, and personal growth.

Come visit our club. We meet Wednesday mornings at 7:15 in the Masonic Hall. The address is Masonic Hall, 373 North Main Street, Sebastopol, CA. That is just across the street from Safeway.

Our meeting fee is $20 which includes breakfast (plus $1 if paying by credit card).

president@sebsunriserotary.org

Sebastopol Sunrise Newsletter

February 4, 2026 Meeting

One-way or two-way streets? Drivers vs. bikers vs. walkers? Do “parklets” and “bulge-outs” work to make a downtown more “shopper friendly?” How about a hiking/biking trail vs. more on-street parking spaces for cars? Does punishing drivers with traffic delays really get them to walk or use a bike instead? Urban designers and planners have an interesting bag of tricks to dangle under the noses of modern city dwellers, some of which favor foot traffic (walkers, shoppers, and diners), others favoring bicycles (health and environmental advocates), and still others favoring four-wheelers (commuters, parent-taxis, and delivery truckers) and 16-wheel semi’s. Sebastopol is both blessed and cursed by being at the intersection of two state highways, a confluence of both opportunity and distress, and these uneasy bedfellows are once again on the agenda for both city government and our citizenry to weigh in on. The City and the Sebastopol Times are providing an online survey platform for each of us to “Reimagine the Core” of Sebastopol with four design concepts to choose among. If you have not already done so, I urge each of us ‘concerned citizens’ to take a few minutes to study the options presented, vote for your preferred choice, and then show up at the next opportunity for a public hearing to make your preferences known. Remember: Local government is NOT a spectator sport; we deserve what we get. Club Service

Many thanks to Barnacle Bob who surely must have slept at the Masonic overnight to have had all the tables and chairs in place when the rest of the set-up crew showed up at the regular hour. Titanium Joe, you weren’t missed AT ALL! (except maybe for a somewhat balky wifi / mic interface…). TemPresident Linda led our Pledge, the Chicago Bears led us in God Bless America, and Cardinal Terry reinforced the Thought that, “You never know what you’ll find in your backyard…” with a pic of their neighborhood mountain lion enjoying his nap. Alicia started out with the Mic, but it ended up a collective effort to keep up with Starry Linda’s fast-paced program. Today’s Environmental Moment offered by Johnnie G. recounted his outing last weekend to the Jenner Highlands with 50+ volunteers of “Forests Unlimited” and RYE’er Eden to plant redwood tree saplings. She promised to come back in 50 years to check on progress. Announcements and Recognition

Guests today included visiting Rotarian Greg Reynolds from the RCS, our speaker tag team from the Gold Ridge Fire Protection District, Fire Chief Shepley Schroth-Cary and Dave Bray, Chief of Operations and Training. Also welcomed were “new baby” pics from our very own Corbbin Goldsmith. (Refreshing to note that at least SOMEONE in the RCSS is taking our “future member” campaign seriously…). February is Rotary’s “Peace and Conflict Resolution Month.” DMR recognized member John Balletto for another sizable Rotary Foundation contribution, bringing his total to $7,000! Wow! Thank you, John. Jerry Jerry Jerry wowed us with lots of local owl photos! (Who knew there were so many kinds of owls hooting up the neighborhood?) Cole Reese entertained us with a delightfully clever “Who Am I” monologue describing his days from Sonoma State, SF radio, real estate, wake-boarding, car building, house re-building to Big Brand Tires and RCSS! Welcome, Cole!! Finally, Starry Linda displayed the responses to her latest “caption contest” featuring Buffalo Bill as… all the things we said he was! And lastly, Mia Del Prete from the RCS sent a note announcing that they are now accepting nominations for Sebastopol’s annual “Teacher of the Year” program. If you’ve got a deserving someone in mind to nominate, please contact Mia or the RCS directly. Don’t wait! First Friday at the Rialto around 5:00 this week: Meet up, eat up, and pick your flick! Super Bowl pot luck at the Masonic this coming Sunday. BYOB + food to share and hope to get lucky on the Score Board! ($5/square) Game time @ 3:30 Program

Gold Ridge Fire Protection District now protects (almost) all of us after absorbing Sebastopol Fire Dept. responsibilities in a formal consolidation last year. Fire Chief Shepley Schroth-Cary and Dave Bray, Chief of Operations and Training outlined the why’s and wherefores of this LAFCO-approved consolidation, and they answered lots of questions from our room full of interested residents. The expanded Gold Ridge service area now covers about 300 sq. miles of West County from six staffed stations. Service response times within Sebastopol City have already been cut almost in half through this 24/7 staffing improvement. Of the 1,500 or so calls Seb Fire responded to last year, about 90% are medical in nature. Gold Ridge had about 4,500 calls last year, mostly EMS, as well. Chief Schroth-Cary made the point that the Sebastopol area “ISO rating” for fire insurance for Seb. City dwellers did not change with the consolidation. Several members gave personal testimonials thanking the Gold Ridge team for excellent, even life-saving service.

Next Week’s Program

Next week’s program will be Ruby Steinbrecher, attorney at law, on “Estate Planning.” (This will probably only be of interest to those of us over 65… So, ALL OF US should be there!) Assignments for Feb 11

Cavalcade of Presidents: Analy Interact President

Thought: Cardinal Terrence O’Kelley

Joke: Sir Scott of Hensey

Environmental Moment: Historical John

End Game

Raffle: Bicycle Brian B. had the ticket, but out of fewer marbles than he has fingers on one hand, he STILL couldn’t pull out “El Rojo.” Which means that the game is now well and truly afoot for next week’s drawing. Cash your IRA and BUY Tickets!

Weekly Meeting

We meet Wednesday mornings, 7:15am – 8:30am, at the Masonic Hall - 373 North Main Street Sebastopol, CA 95472

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