President Todd opened the meeting at 12:30. The 4-way test recited by Matt Morris. There was no invocation as the file was locked in the "vault" (aka our podium). Rumour has it that a fire occurred in our usual room at the GCC this past week (we musta had a smokin' meeting last Thurs!) so we were put in another room today, sans our usual tech supplies and club files.

 

SAA Jim Johnston said there were 24 Rotarians present, creating a notable 60% attendance. Add to that Zoomers Randy Cole and Larry Brokenshire who wanted, but could not attend due to lack of tech stuff, and we were beyond the 60% attendance rate. Woo Hoo!

 

Honourary member Harry Edgar was also in attendance, as we three other guests: Paul Crick (who works with member Graham Williams at Cambridge Engravers) as well as guest speaker Syd Vanderpool (former middle weight Boxing Champion, owner of SydFIT Health Centre in Kitchener and fellow Rotarian) and his friend, Mehrzad (Merz) Salkhordeh (owner of dB Noise Reduction, Cambridge).

Birthdays and Anniversaries: This week's birthday celebrants are Vanessa Stevenson (June 16) and John Raposa (June 20). Happy Birthday!!

 

New Member Inducted Today!:Wayne Paddick was inducted today and is our newest member. You may remember Wayne as he spoke to our club a few months ago.  Wayne is the Executive Director at Cambridge Shelter Corporation and is sponsored by Erica Tennenbaum. Please welcome Wayne to our club when you next see him!

 

Paul Harris Fellow (PHF) Recipient / Tacos Y Tequila Event Follow Up: Past President Rajbir Mann followed up on the success of May's Tacos Y Tequila event (Y is not a typo, it means 'and' in Spanish). The proceeds of the event, combined with an amount earmarked from our International budget will provide 45 days of food for students attending the schools involved in this project. It will also provide 120 pairs of shoes to new students (many have never had a pair of shoes!).  Raj extended a special thanks to members Steve Bélanger and Ann-Marie Athavale-Bélanger who stepped in to organize the event. As a special thanks, Raj and wife Kash, have given Steve a special gift that starts with S-C-O-T-C-H. Ann-Marie was awarded a PHF. Well-deserved, Ann-Marie, and very thoughtful, Raj and Kash!

 

Progressive Dinner - Progessively Enjoyed!P: Remember the BIG GIVE Auction we had in 2020? It was COVID times and Past President Linda Breault, along with then new member Ivana Schibona, organized a fantastic fundraiser Well, a Progressive Dinner was purchased back then, and Paul McMenemy updated us on the success of that purchase that was FINALLY able to be fulfilled ast weekend. Kudos to Jim McPherson and partner, Jocelyn, for hosting the event at their home on Puslinch Lake. Vodka was poured mid-aft. Dinner was provided some hours later, followed by dessert for the group of 6 at the home of former Regional Councillor, Helen Jowett, and her husband. It was a fun and progressive 6 hours for the folks and I believe our own Paul McMenemy made sure they found their way home!

 

NEW POLICY re: Weekly Lunch Ordering: President Todd has mentioned the new policy being put into place that involves having your order for food in by 12:15pm, 12:20 at the latest. Meal choices will eventually be emailed out to all members on Monday or Tuesday so that you can pre-order online. This is still being figured out and it would be helpful, until the system is fully up and running, that you arrive by 12:15pm to place your order. Arriving early is also a nice to have some time for fellowship before the meeting starts.

KidsAbility Fun Fair - Saturday, June 17th: Held this year in Waterloo, this event takes place of the  annual Superhero Run we were accustomed to pre-Covid. Info is available here atKidsAbility Superhero Day - Explore Waterloo Region. We could still use a few helping hands for the day and President Todd has sent an email earlier than this one to seek out some volunteers. As a friendly reminder, our very own Toddler, is rising up to the Superhero Challenge would appreciate any donation to his cause. Donations can be made at  

 

President's Ball - Thursday June 22 at the Cambridge Mill (100 Water St North): Mark your calendar for a fun time at the President's Ball. Note there is no regular meeting that day and there is no cost to members to attend but you do need to register in advance. If you want to join us, visit President's Ball - ROTARY (rotarycambridgeph.com) to pay and to indicate your meal preference. Otherwise, you can contact President Todd at toddlyons47@gmail.com. Again he's not 47 and mentioning his email twice does not make him 94.  As President, Todd has had a great year worth celebrating together. There is the opportunity to bring a guest and the cost for their meal and fun fellowship is $75 which can be prepaid or paid on the evening if you register at the above link. 

 

As a reminder, Allan Stevenson, Vanessa's husband, passed away and his Celebration of Life is on June 24th.  Info on the service can be found at: Allan Stevenson | Obituary | Waterloo Region Record (therecord.com). Let's do a Rotary Rally and attend this celebration for Al, Vanessa and their family! 

Want to flex your Rotary muscles and involvement with our club? We are always in need of help with our fund-raising committees. It's a good way to feel good, do good and get to know your fellow members.

 

We are also looking for another bulletin editor. Aspiring writers looking to do light-hearted character assassinations (optional, but encouraged) are most welcome!

 

Contact President Todd or incoming President Rena at an upcoming meeting for more info.

Keith Peers reported, on behalf of Erica Tennenbaum, that they both had a terrific time at the RBC Canadian Open last weekend. Keith mentioned something about Canadian musician, Alanis Morrisette. All that came to my mind was a Jagged Little Pill. I maintain my reference is to her Album Cover only. 

 

President Elect Rena Hawkins reported on having a lovely weekend with Past President Linda Breault and hubby, Guy, at their home in Lambton Shores.

Unfortunately, today's speaker, Scarlett Delgado, was not able to attend today's meeting. Ranked Top 5 in the World in Olympic style boxing, Scarlett is an athlete on fire but a reaction to a recent trip to Paris, France, prevented her from being with us today. Instead, we were treated, by a very personable and powerful presentation by her coach, Syd Vanderpool.

 

Syd is the owner of SydFit and a recent inductee of the Rotary Club of Kitchener Westmount. Syd's father hails from Trinidad and came to Canada to work on tobacco farms. Eventually he and his wife immigrated and had 5 sons. Raising their boys in the Jackson Five era, Syd's parents were keen to get their boys involved in music, form a band and keep them out of trouble. It didn't work. Trouble prevailed and musical talent derailed. And so, Syd's dad  decided to take another approach. Not only did he get his boys involved in boxing, he also became their coach. Sports, Fitness and Boxing became the family lifestyle and Syd was entered into his first boxing match at the age of 6. His opponent was 9. Syd won and still has the trophy his father made for him. This was the start of Syd's amateur boxing career.

 

Even though he is right-handed, Syd took on the stance of a 'south paw' which he accounts to having watched his older brother's stance. Environment was a big part of his training and, as far as Syd is concerned, he grew up in "an Environment of Champions."

After a brief departure to playing hockey, Syd returned into the ring with a new coach, Arnie Boehm, from K-W Area. Arnie trained many champions and Syd was one who truly excelled, travelling around the world to further train and compete. For him, it was always the journey and comradery, instead of the fights, that thrilled and shaped him.

 

At the age of 19, Syd finished 2nd in the 1994 Olypmic trials and decided to go for 'Pro' rather then 'Olympic Gold.' His training them took him to Massachusetts and Pennsylvania, eventually training with veterans, established athletes, etc. Not only was Syd the only Canadian to train with this group, he was the only one to compete world wide. He eventually ranked 4th world wide in the Super Middle Weight category (168lbs). Slimming down to 160lbs, Syd qualified to fight Bernard Hopkins. He lost and decided to take some time off . A marriage and the start of a family were a great digression before before re-emerging in the boxing world.

 

Syd retired as a boxer in 2005 and eventually opened SydFIT Health and Wellness where he has trained many amateur boxers. This is were Scarlett comes in. Amateur boxer Mandy Bujold of Coburg, was his trainee and she was in need of a sparring partner. Hailing from Brampton, Syd took Scarlett under his wing to enable her to be a comparable sparring partner for Mandy in her test matches. Lo and behold Scarlett beat Mandy in those test matches and, within 16 months, Scarlett moved from not even being recognized nationally to being the Top 5th boxer in her league.

 

Keeping Scarlett under his wing, Syd has encouraged her to seek out sponsorships and partnerships to help further her career rather than work 3 jobs to pay for her training and competitions. To find our more about Syd, visit Our Trainers | SydFIT Health Center. To find out more about Scarlett, visit Scarlett Delgado.

 

It was a great presentation and we wish both Syd and Scarlett well! We also wish Syd and his wife a very happy 21st wedding anniversary today and hope they spend some quality time together with their 3 sons.

 

Chris Wood thanked Syd for speaking to us today and Todd stepped forward with his lunge joke (you had to be there for that one!).

 

Hope to see you all at next week's Ball!