The virtual meeting was called to order by President Chris Joyce at 7:30 a.m. on the dot with the ringing of his bell followed by reciting Why We Are Rotarians. 

 

The thought for the day was from Harold Bauer. He read Alan Jameson’s  letter-to-the-editor that appeared in the May 2020 Rotarian Magazine.  It urged caution regarding the consumption of news from social media sources which can be false news.

 

 

Ann Searles needs seven more club shirt orders to place the bulk order with the shirt provider.  Also, Miguel Hernandez has tested positive for COVID-19.

 

Mike Merdinger  reminded us that there is a window for returning withdrawn 401K funds to your 401K account without penalty until August 1.  This will allow the avoidance of paying taxes on the money.  Contact him for further information.

 

Treasurer Barb Miles  said that quarterly dues are increasing to $80, including $41.50 for RI and District dues and $38.50 to cover club operating costs.  We are moving to ClubRunner for quarterly member invoicing going forward.  Current invoices will be sent out shortly through ClubRunner.  Payment can be made directly in ClubRunner.  To pay any outstanding invoices from earlier quarters, please mail a check directly to Barb Miles, 2306 Colfax St., Evanston, IL 60201.

 

Bill Glader  gave an update on the Virtual Taste of Evanston.He asked members to send an email to your friends, family, colleagues, and neighbors to encourage them to support our efforts to raise money to fight housing insecurity at VirtualTasteOfEvanston.com. You can use the template he sent out last week and modify it as you like. Many people will be facing eviction at the end of the month, so it's more important than ever to help prevent homelessness.

 

Also please find the Taste of Evanston page on Facebook by typing Taste of Evanston into the Facebook search box. Check out the many interesting posts and click "share" on some of them so your friends will see it on your personal Facebook page. You can also find the "Virtual Taste of Evanston" Facebook event page and click "invite" to invite your friends to check it out.  

 

We are thrilled to have our first corporate sponsor: Steve Steiber's company, Creative Care Management, which signed on at our top level, "Executive Chef." Steve also sent out more than 800 emails to promote the effort. Thanks, Steve!

 

Linda Gerber announced that the Strengthen Rotary's Service Through Equity and Inclusion Workshop is going virtual on Tuesday, Aug. 25, from 4-6:00 p.m. In this two-hour workshop, we will explore key concepts of racial equity and inclusion and how they intersect with Rotary's core values. Join us virtually for this work with the YWCA Equity Institute.

 

Linda also announced that our Rotary Club is a member of Joining Forces for Affordable Housing, a local advocacy coalition created by Connections for the Homeless. We have been discussing actions related to housing affordability that could be most useful to the community. There are some 30 organizations that are part of this initiative, but we are missing the voices of Latinos, and of other grassroots advocacy groups, in the conversation. Four meetings are scheduled: July 21, 3-4:30 p.m.; July 23, 6- 7:30 p.m.; July 24, noon to 1:30 p.m., and July 25, noon to 1:30 p.m. If interested, check with Linda for links and access codes.

 

Holly Halliday let us know that a long-time community activist, Peggy Robinson, has passed away. 

 

 

 

Steve Steiber boasted his email “read” tally for the recent ToE donor letter which was 45% vs. the usual 25%.

 

Paul Brown boasted he and his wife, Margo, for their 46^th wedding anniversary.  Congratulations!

 

 

 

 

We welcomed Evanston Chief of Police Demitrous Cook to speak about policing in a new era.

 

Chief Cook has been back in Evanston for a year and 7 months, during what could be described as the most stressful time in his professional life. He has been in the hot seat for the past eight weeks during nationwide anti-police demonstrations and relentless demands to defund the police following George Floyd’s murder in Minneapolis.  

 

Chief Cook has braved the hostility and participated in the discussions that challenge his department's very existence. He is participating in a series of live-streamed Q&A sessions with Mayor Steve Hagerty on Policing in Evanston. Through it all, Chief Cook has listened and has openly examined the budget of the police department in full view of a sometimes critical audience. 

 

He understands the premise for defunding the police and the push for reform. But when the attempts to effect change come with hate and calls for abolishing the police altogether, it takes its toll. And yet, he was here to visit with us to answer any of the questions we may have. He brings positive energy to a turbulent moment.

 

Chief Cook has been deeply involved with reviewing all of the activities and budgets for the Evanston Police force since the advent of COVID-19.  This time has put great stress on his officers and his budgets.  With the support of Mayor Hagerty, of whom he was very complimentary because of the Mayor’s deep experience in crisis management, he has made several changes to his organization, including going to 12-hour shifts and giving officers time to decompress.  He is following the FEMA mitigation guidelines and partnering with other area law enforcement agencies.  He also collaborates with the International Association of Chiefs of Police (IACP), Police Executive Research Forum (PERF), and the National Black Police Association.

    

The police department gets its legitimacy from the people of Evanston.  Chief Cook has very high, impartial standards for his department and will not tolerate any bad behavior.  This is recognized by many others outside Evanston.  The recent protesting about defunding the police is a culmination of years of incidents of police brutality coupled with the resistance to change policing culture.  Despite several national reports since the Rodney King case in 1991 recommending changes to police culture,  nothing has been adopted.   This must change, he asserted.

 

Defunding does no good without understanding what that actually means.  He used the evolution of gradually being responsible for mental health calls and reflected on the evolution of homelessness in Evanston.  The homelessness population was shocked by the closure of Acorn in the late 1980s.  This pushed the homeless onto the streets where aggressive panhandling and other problems accompanying homelessness took place.  He feels the city, in general, has done a credible job with homelessness even now by providing personal protective equipment to them and making portable toilets available around the city.

 

His current budget is $41 million with $11 million going to pensions.  As for police in schools, he looks at this as hazard management.  This is part of his budget.  He is looking at all budget line items to determine the real need and will adjust to accommodate the current City budget environment.  He has written a letter to his officers asking them not to take personally the talk of defunding and calling out what is wrong in law enforcement.  Their job is to implement what the people want. 

 

 

 

Adam Howard – City of Evanston Police Department and Chessmen

 

 

Viviane Forsberg- July 18

 

Eric Schmelling- July 25

 

 

Linda Gerber 5 years