President Liz Quinn opened our meeting with the Pledge, and My Country 'Tis of Thee and John Walker gave the prayer.  Great to see Chuck Carlsen,  recently out of the hospital and back from California. Also Brian Nason from the Bethesda YMCA who will be inducted into our club next week.  We were also glad to see Gary Boswell who as been away for several weeks (tax season).  Guests introduced were Dave Merrick, from Merrick Design & Build, Susan Hawfield, Executive Director, Lee-Berkeley Shaw, Director of Development and our speaker Gary Officer- all with Rebuilding Together.

HAPPY DOLLARS:

Dick Ruprecht HD for Chuck Carlsen and for Bob Gradle (Chuck has a home in the San Francisco area and Bob has a home in Boynton Beach, Florida.).  Bob Gradle HD for Bill Hague and Brian Nason. Scott Brewer had a HD guest Dave Merrick.  Scott knew his father.  Sue Kirk  HD for Scott Brewer and Pat Tiede who are single handedly canvassing the downtown Bethesda area with flyers for our May 1 and May 8 meeting which will feature author William Offutt who will give a historical background on the Bethesda Triangle and other parts of the ever-growing downtown area.  Pat will follow up with phone calls and emails to the people whose cards Scott has collected.  This is our big membership drive, so all Kiwanians should support these meetings and bring interested guests to Tragara Restaurant.   Pat Norry HD for the efforts of  Rebuilding Together. Chuck Carlsen gave 20 HD as he is glad to be back but will be going back to San Francisco area next week (to avoid the long hot Washington summers). Eleanor Stoler HD for our visitors from Rebuilding Together. Jim Aylor  HD for Pat Tiede and Chuck Carlson. Pat Tiede HD for her 24 year old grand daughter, Sgt. Cyndi Tiede, who will be re-enlisting for another tour of duty (6 years)  in the U.S. Army at an event held at the White House.  George Spicer  HD for the perfect spring weather today

SPEAKER:

Bob Quinn introduced our speaker Gary Officer, President and CEO of the National office of Rebuilding Together (RT). He is a native of England and moved to the US in 1991. Formerly known as Christmas in April, RT has 225 chapters in 40 states and the Montgomery County chapter is the largest.  RT's mission is to rehabilitate houses for low income homeowners without charge.  RT now gets most of their income from corporations but they are trying to diversify the income source so that they will not be hurt during economic slow downs. Montgomery County has a median family income of $93,000 but the average income of an RT client is $18,000.  They recently helped two Montgomery County residents 89 years old whose homes did not have indoor plumbing.   Saturday April 26 is National Rebuilding Day for the organization.  Using both skilled and unskilled volunteers, RT will repair 35 houses in Montgomery County. RT is often confused with Habitat for Humanity which acquires lands and builds new homes for families. These families have to contribute by helping with construction and also paying off the loan. The service is free for Rebuilding Together. Gary thanked our Kiwanis Club for being such avid supporters of their program.

Pat Norry won the 50/50.