Today's meeting was Zoom-only due to yet another snowstorm moving into town!  We were fortunate that Lt. Col. Mary Albright with the Anoka County Civil Air Patrol was able to join us to discuss the mission and activities of CAP.  Civil Air Patrol is the official auxiliary to the United States Air Force.  The organization is a non-profit 501(c)3 corporation with chartered missions of aerospace education, emergency services and cadet programs.  Lt. Col. Albright, daughter of member Joe Ziskovsky, has been responsible for Cadet development since her daughter joined the group 12 years ago.  Cadets can join between ages 12 and 18.   The cadet program is designed to develop young people into leaders of tomorrow. As cadets progress through the program, they build on skills learned and move from being a follower and learning the skills of self-leadership, to becoming a leader and developing the skills of direct, indirect and executive leadership.  The Anoka County CAP is based at the Anoka County Airport and is the 5th largest unit in the U.S.  It ranks nationally in several areas including Cyber Patriot and High Altitude Balloon programs.  CAP units receive no government funding and are on their own to raise money to support their activities.  

Anna Zaros from the Non-Violent Peaceforce was our speaker today.  This group is a nonpartisan organization which provides direct protection, advocacy, and training to civilians in areas of the world experiencing prolonged violence.  Founded in 2002, their motto is:  "Conflict is inevitable, violence is not".  They rely on local experts and succeed by building relationships and trust.  Headquartered in Geneva Switzerland, their primary U.S. office is in St. Paul.  Much of their work has occurred in Sudan, Philippines, Thailand, and most recently Ukraine, as well as within the U.S.  They provide unarmed protection of civilians and work to train others to seek nonviolent approaches.  Their annual budget of $26 million is supported by government grants and individual donations.  

We heard very interesting tales from two of our members this morning.  Kent Peterson provided a "Member Minute" which asks the individual to speak to first job/best job/worst job.  As with most of us, Kent's first job and worst job occurred during high school.  He first worked at a local dairy store in his home town of Quincy Illinois where he learned about customer service and taking responsibility.  Worst job occurred the next summer when employed as an assistant for the local dog pound, picking up deceased animals found on the streets.  His best jobs occurred during his career as a pharmacist.  He spent time with the Iowa Pharmacy Association and later for the MN Department of Health where he was able to write the first rules for Minnesota's Clean Indoor Air.  

 

Next we heard from our newest member, Jim DeMay.  Jim provided what we used to call a "Classification Talk" in Rotary-speak, meaning a chance to tell us more about himself both from a career and personal standpoint.  Jim is a "local kid" in terms of graduating from Mounds View High School but his career has spanned the globe.  After earning bachelors and masters degrees in public policy from UW Madison and Hamline University, Jim launched his professional career by working on Bill Clinton's presidential campaign.  This led to a stint with the Department of Commerce in Washington, D.C.  From there he jumped across the ocean and began working to further democratization and voting rights in places like Ukraine, newly separated from Russia.  He was able to observe the rise of Vladimir Putin and could see from the start that this was not going to lead to positive outcomes.  Ultimately he and his family came back to the U.S. where he began a new career doing policy work for Citibank.  The financial crisis of 2008 led to a lay-off and ultimately a move to Pfizer where he continued to leverage his public policy expertise.  He ended up leading their Covid vaccination efforts in the midwest and is currently focusing on deployment policy for the anti-viral Paxlovid.  Whew!  Somehow during all this he found time to volunteer in local government, serving first under former Shoreview Mayor Dick Wadell and most recently as an elected member of the Board of the Mounds View School District.  We are so fortunate that Jim has decided to join Rotary and bring his wealth of experience to our club as we go forward, finding ways to do good in the world through this organization!