Remembering Norm Anderson

Mr. Rotary

Norm Anderson was a dedicated, dynamic Rotarian with perfect attendance for sixty-four years.  In fact, he participated in a Rotary meeting on his 89^th birthday, two days before he died.

Norm was a very successful businessman with vision, imagination and energy which led him into many areas, but Rotary was always at the center of his life.  We think about driving or flying to an international convention. When Norm wanted to attend the Lucerne, Switzerland, convention in 1957, he had to book passage on a transatlantic ship. That was his first of 29 international conventions!

Norm was an outstanding, creative District Governor, with his 1993-4 year highlighted by the great convention he produced in and around Solvang, California – appropriate for Norm’s Danish heritage. I remember much of his year, because I was his District Newsletter Editor.  

And how that happened was typical of Norm’s style. One morning, shortly before his DG term began, as we were leaving a meeting of the Solvang Breakfast Rotary, Norm said “How would you like to be my newsletter editor?”  I had a full life with family and running my business, but I told him I would think about it.  I will never forget his next words, “Don’t think about it too long.” A few days later I understood his instruction when I received my copy of the district handbook, and saw that I was listed as the editor. Obviously, he had made that decision months before, and assumed I would accept.

Norm could assume that people would comply with his requests, because it always seemed to happen. He was a bright, thoughtful guy, and what he was asking for would seem reasonable and beneficial, and there was really no reason to refuse.

And in turn, whenever one needed help with a worthwhile project, there was no better person to ask than Norm. While our daughter was an army officer with the US mission in Kosovo she was appalled by the savagery with which villagers were driven out of their homes into the mountains with nothing more than the clothes they were wearing. The attackers even planted land mines in their schoolyards in case they returned.  Winter was approaching, and our daughter and her unit asked us for help. The Santa Ynez Valley gathered 4000 pounds of clothing, but we had to find a way to ship it, since all military flights from this area were full.

In a situation like that the obvious person to ask for help was Norm. Fortunately, Norm’s large circle of friends included one who owned a transcontinental moving company.  We boxed all of the clothing, hauled the boxes to Carpinteria, California, and were able to get everything into a partially full truck headed for Connecticut. All at no cost. And we knew that, if we could get the boxes to an APO box in New York, they would be shipped free to Kosovo.

But the Connecticut to NYC leg was still a problem. So Norm contacted the District Governor in Connecticut. That DG had a lot of reasons why it couldn’t be done, but we had Norm on our side, so it happened. Don’t waste your time saying no to Norm.

And in an interesting footnote to that adventure, the DG in Connecticut had a project providing goats for people in Haiti, and in the Rotary way he gave us an opportunity to help. So Norm and I spent the next month asking Rotarians and my clients to join us in the goats project. We funded several, and the City of Buellton employees donated enough money for a goat, and had a contest to name it.

Life with Norm was exciting and productive. As Rotarians in our district know, Norm was not shy about looking at Rotary needs and behavior, and offering critiques along with his help.  But as I look back, he was usually right, and we are all so much better for his decades of service. Thank you, Norm.

District Rotary Foundation Year End Message

By PDG Frank Ortiz, District Rotary Foundation Chair

As this Rotary Year winds down; I want to thank every Rotarian in District 5240 for their support by working to make our World a better place through our Rotary Foundation both locally and globally. Our collective efforts truly make a difference.

DG Savi Bhim and many District 5240 Rotarians have done a remarkable job with keeping the spirit of Rotary service alive and well through continued contributions to our Foundation, support for District & Global grant projects, and ongoing support for COVID19 related efforts in our backyard and around the Globe.

Should you desire to make one last contribution to the Foundation for the 2019-2020 Rotary year, you can use this link to get you to the needed forms, understanding that the contribution needs to be made by June 30, 2020.  https://rotarydistrict5240.org/sitepage/fundraising-sub-committee

IMPORTANT: A reminder that District Grant FINAL REPORTS from 2019-2020 must be submitted by June 30, 2020.  Failure to get your final report submitted will result in the loss of your Club matching grant allocation. Nobody wants that to happen!  You can use this link for the proper final report form and information.  https://rotarydistrict5240.org/sitepage/2019-2020-district-grants

The District Rotary Foundation Committee thanks DG Savi for her work and we are looking forward to her Virtual Step Down and Awards celebration on June 27.  We also look forward to soon to be DG Deb Linden who takes the District Governor reigns on July 1. Thanks and congratulations to all!

Frank Ortiz

Rotary District 5240

PDG 2012-2013

District Rotary Foundation Chair 2019-2022

There is no denying that 2019-2020 has been an eventful year.

There were the earthquakes that rocked the city of Ridgecrest and the wild fires of Ventura and Santa Barbara counties.

Yet this year will be defined by the last four months.

When we faced COVID-19 and Rotary faced our greatest challenge, how to observe physical distancing and yet stay connected.

You responded rapidly and with ingenuity. You launched virtual meetings and kept the clubs connected. In our communities there were new and urgent needs and you sprung into action.