− Vicky Bunbury was our speaker at this Tuesday AM Meeting and introduced herself as been in Whistler since 1976 when her family moved here after a very quick assessment of where they parents wanted to live and raise their family. As a young adult Vicky put together the original Whistler Kids Ski Program and ran it for 14 years. She gave us some history regarding the student exchange program: the 1st student from Whistler was Debbie Bishop daughter of Bob Bishop, the inaugural 1st President of Rotary Club of Whistler.

Vicky's talk was on the Summit Centre in Whistler, the location of which has not been revealed yet, for good reasons. A Basecamp for Peak Learning in Whistler, a hub for community organization and Not For Profit organizations in Whistler ( there are 50 such organization in our Community): the Summit Centre is to be a learning area for our community, campus style with a school core and versatile design that will accommodate

gatherings of all types, including training and workshops for all ages 4 - 85 and on. A 24-7 facility that is aligned with an ordinary school that welcomes all strata for the community. www.whistlersummitcenter.org  It is  is hoped the ground breaking will commence in 2020.

 

 

13  international exchange high school students converged on Whistler this weekend for cross country skiing, a visit to the Tube Park, great food and fellowship.  Students from Brazil, Russia, Bolivia, Italy, Spain, Germany, Norway, Denmark and Sweden, France, Belgium and the Czecha were hosted by Rotarian families, Thank you to all the hosts, the contributors to the Saturday amazing pot luck dinner (and the Malaher's $150 food donation) and organizers for a great weekend.  All the kids really enjoyed themselves, as did the hosts.  (photos by David Oakes).  Click here for many more photos.

 

 

JIm Watts  talking about the coming self-driving vehicles and their impacts at our January 15th morning meeting..

On Sep 11 Chelsea Jordan-Makely made a presentation about fake news to our club. 

 

She condensed several hours of material into a brief thought provoking presentation about a topic that has an increasing impact on us. Chelsea started with some definitions of the terms used when discussing fake news. The she followed with some of the impacts of fake news and some tests that you can use to help determine if news items are useful and trustworthy.

 

During the regular Tuesday morning meeting the Rotary Club of Whistler had two thumping good speakers who really got the blood flowing with or without caffeine.

Peter Chrzanowski, extreme skier and uber adventurer  described  a thrilling event  which he is organizing for  September 1st.  The "Aerothlon" to be held in Pemberton will be the first of this equivalent to Ironman in hang gliding, running and biking. http://www.explorex.net Peter is a producer/director/writer who can be contacted about volunteering for this event in Pemberton or simply check out his web site especially if you need an adrenaline reboot.  

 

At the same meeting Bryce Reynolds, Program Coordinator for Soap for Hope, Vancouver Island gave us an inspiring presentation on the collection, re purposing and distribution of used soap, liquid and bars from hotels and other locations. The bars of soap or single use ampoules of soap may be used only once then discard into trash. Entirely volunteer supported and organized, the soap once prepared, is shrink packaged in small or large amounts with a cloth and distributed to poverty stricken, challenged areas over the globe and in our own needy communities across British Columbia. Bryce was so effective in his delivery that a person wanted to dig right in and help.

 

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On August 4th and 5th the Rotary Club of Whistler served up pancakes outside of Dusty's in Creekside to the salivating masses that lined up for this tasty breakfast treat. Money Man David Oakes, long time dedicated Rotarian is in the background and Pancake Chef Gill Forester is in the white hat concentrating on perfect pancakes after  tirelessly organizing the event and the donations.  Perky pancake flipper Marg Pallot with her endless cheer and smile doled out these yummy cakes to an ever waiting line up. Some youngsters proudly boasted chowing down on as many as 12 cakes, drizzled with Canadian Maple syrup, each of the two mornings!

During the Tuesday July 24th morning meeting of Rotary Club of Whistler Napalese trekking guide Kalu Tamang entranced 25 members and guests at the Whistler Racket Club with facts and stores including breathtaking photos of what life looks like among the world's tallest peaks and the devastation following a major earthquake that ravaged his country. 

The new 2018-2019 Board of Directors for Whistler Rotary Club are  inducted on the sunny evening of June 19th at the monthly dinner  meeting held at The Venue.

 

Observers from the right are Isobel McLaurin and Barbie Walker. President Ken presides over the event where Bridget Daley, Margaret Pallot and Janice Lloyd vow to be loyal to their responsibilities as Board Members.