This Week...
DECONSTRUCTION & ITS BENEFITS, at WVRC on August 6th
OK, I confess – I tried to put one over on you last week! I’m sure most of you know what hirsute means anyway, but I’ve wanted to use it for a long time, and this was my first chance, really. For those still in doubt, it more or less translates to hairy…But, moving right along, DWIGHT HEIKKILA led the Pledge. We had two Invocations, the first by Prexy ED, and the later – and better – one by Rev SUSAN KLEIN. ED’s was from spontaneity, and SUSAN’S was from Ghana. Both were worthwhile, but the combination was too long for me to downsize. LENNY FRIEDMAN overcame his fear of what Prexy ED would spring on him THIS week, which turned out to be an email from Gustavo Duhamel, whom I’m sure you all know is the new Conductor of the LA Philharmonic. Mr. Dudamel was nicely asking if he could meet LENNY and maybe get some conducting tips from him. With this intro, LENNY led us through My Country Tis of Thee, which we did good.
Our Visiting Rotarian turned out to be PP GEORGE DEA, who really is an Honorary Member, and Janice was with him – they are here for the Saturday night party at the MORE’S. Although questionable, PP DAVE WHITEHEAD was also introduced as a VR, but he’s actually on Leave of Absence. ANN SAMSON brought Interact Incoming President Diana Cruz, who is a Junior this year at University High. PP PETER MORE brought Shirley, and Sunny was of course with LENNY.
The Head Table held LORIN RUTTENBERG, MARK BLOCK and MARCIA BROUS, with
PP DAVE WHITEHEAD on the other side. Before the ‘interviews” started, Prexy ED wanted to know what the three on the left had in common. Some wag offered the fact that they were all at the Head Table, and I was able to control my initial impulse to suggest they were all Rotarians! PP STEVE SCHERER saved the day by opining that all three inhabitants were from New Jersey, for which he was rewarded with a bottle of Chianti Rufina by Frescobaldi, which ED picked up in Italy in 1996. Taking full advantage of the on-again, off-again no fine rule, LORIN gamely said, “Hello”. MARK nicely thanked Shirley and Peter for hosting the August Moon Festival at their home this coming Saturday. MARCIA reported that she and RICK were at a family wedding in N.J. but they prefer the weather here to there.
Prexy ED announced that STEVE PETTISE’S Mother has died in Chicago. STEVE is back there, and notes to him would be nice. PP PETER MORE was asked to come forward, and ED presented him with the same gift he gave to all the Board Members, for his exceptional work and care for our WVRC Website this past year. ED also announced that we are actively seeking a Club Photographer, since AL BELLANCA has stepped down. I announced that Reading for Kids was on this Saturday from 9 until 12, and we are adding PDG ANDY ANDERSON to our group of ED JACKSON, MARCIA BROUS and YOE. MARSHA HUNT is in Uganda, and SCOTT FITCH is letting a little thing like getting married keep him away, but I repeat, c’mon in, the water’s fine! Everyone is welcome to join us – and you’ll enjoy it.
While it may be early to judge where this is going, Prexy ED has now shifted two Quotes, instead of Jokes (note, that rhymes…) “History will be kind to me and I intend to write it.” Winston Churchill. “Why don’t you write books people can read?”. Ora Joyce to her husband, James Joyce. “A team should be an extension of the coach’s personality. My teams were arrogant and obnoxious” Al McGuire. “I’m no different from anybody else with two arms, two legs and 4,200 hits” Pete Rose “There is a new awareness of style in the Soviet Union. The Premier’s wife recently appeared on the cover of House and Tractor” Johnnie Carson. And ending the present listing, “I feel sorry for people who don’t drink, because when they get up in the morning, they’re not going to feel any better all day” Frank Sinatra.
The August Moon Festival this weekend is fully sold. It starts at 6 pm
The weekend in San Francisco is definitely on, starting on Thursday afternoon October 8th, returning to LA on Sunday the 11th. There will be a joint meeting on Friday the 9th with the new Chinatown Rotary Club, plus many other activities. Contact the LYSTERS for details.
Prexy ED will be having dinner shortly with Mark Leeka, the President of LA 5 – they will be discussing projects we might do together.
After lunch, PP DAVE WHITEHEAD introduced his friend, Lorenz Shilling, who is our Speaker. Lorenz is the CEO of Deconstruction & Building Materials ReUse Network, Inc, which is a non-profit 501 C3 organization. They bring together the architect, property owner, builder or general contractor plus the various outfits that work with them to provide guidelines and estimates of whether their Deconstruction process will work for the client. Their organization is thus both useful and humanitarian, in that it recycles otherwise thrown-away building materials, thereby reducing what goes into the dump plus providing some return to the property owner.
They were founded just 2 (?) years ago, and their main final ‘clients’ are Habitat for Humanity and Corazon. That’s who they donate the recycled materials to. I’m sure some of you will remember our previous work with Corazon, which provides affordable housing in Mexico – and of course, many of us have worked with Habitat for Humanity in the past. A quick review of Corazon: When a group of volunteers arrive at the building site, they find a poured slab, usually 20 x 20, with all the needed building materials stacked alongside. In one very full day, we have found we can build a house. Install windows and a sound roof, with a lockable front door. This last is quite important, since if where you live cannot be safely locked, someone in the family must be there AT ALL TIMES. This is obviously a major concession, even with the large families that prevail in Mexico, since if the house cannot be locked it will be subject to almost instant vandalism! The way a family earns the right to have their new house built is by community work – they get points for the many tasks that can be performed for the community, including maintenance of the site, staffing the child care center, carting off waste – it’s a long list of necessary labors. And when you hand the keys to the front (and only) door to the new owners, their expression makes it all most worthwhile.
When I did this, the building site was in Tecate – and I’ve liked their beer ever since!
So what Lorenz and his company do is to provide recycled building materials to both Corazon and Habitat for Humanity. This process starts with the decision to tear down the house. Once that is decided, their Company, Deconstruction etc, can provide guidance as to whether or not it is practical for your particular structure – that is, considering the costs that you have, will it pay off with a profit in the form of a major tax credit, or even actual cash? In general, they have found that houses of 2000 square feet and over make it worthwhile. Your choices, really, include reuse, recycling, or simply taking the whole thing to the dump. If you choose to consider their services, they will provide a detailed exam of your structure, and then give you what it will cost to have it torn down by hand, rather than simply knocking it down with a tractor. Their work is performed by licensed contractors, and for this examination and report they charge a fee. Since they already have a known buyer for your recycled material, you can depend upon their report.
The steps you would take to put this into operation are simple. First, Is it for you? Second, what are the estimates of extra cost vs. the value of recycled materials? And, third, you need to choose a team to get you the figures. Beyond that, Deconstruction etc has many more resources and ideas for you to consider. Their web site is www.reusenetwork.org, and you can reach Lorenz Shilling at (888) 545-8333x103, or cell, (562) 307-6065, and fax, (800) 587-7630. They are located at 412 N. Coast Hwy, #B351, Laguna Beach, CA 92651
Prexy ED’s final comments:
Rotary’s program of promoting better understanding between different racial groups and between devotees of different religious faiths has met with greater success thus far than the negotiations of diplomats. It has been the way of Rotary to focus thought upon matters in which members are in agreement rather than upon matters in which they are in disagreement. Rotary has satisfactorily demonstrated the fact that friendship can easily hurtle national and religious
boundaries.
