to this week's meeting ofThe Rotary E-Club of Canada One
For the week beginning July 20, 2026
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Complete the form for a make-up!
Please leave a donation to assist our club to do Rotary's good works!
to this week's meeting of
The Rotary E-Club of Canada One
For the week beginning
July 20, 2026
Scroll down to enjoy the content!
Complete the form for a make-up!
The Rotary theme for 2025-26 -
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Greeter this week
Rotarian Kitty
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Inspirational moment
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Canadiana
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Input from our guests and members
Members and guests attending our weekly meetings are very important to us. Based on your comments we are able to produce many more educational, inspiring, and entertaining weekly meetings.
Would you please send us your comments?
*** The world's most famous sheep |
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A Musical Interlude (that may surprise!)
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ROTARIAN CODE OF CONDUCT
As a Rotarian, I will:
***1. Act with integrity and high ethical standards in my personal and professional life
2. Deal fairly with others and treat them and their occupations with respect
3. Use my professional skills through Rotary to mentor young people, help those with special needs, and improve people’s quality of life in my community and in the world
4. Avoid behaviour that reflects adversely on Rotary or other Rotarians
5. Help maintain a harassment-free environment in Rotary meetings, events, and activities; report any suspected harassment; and help ensure non-retaliation to those individuals that report harassment
Rotary’s Code of Conduct provides a simple but powerful guide for ethical behaviour, emphasizing honesty, accountability, and respect for others. Along with the Four-Way Test, it encourages thoughtful reflection on how we live and interact, helping us become better citizens and better human beings.
The Iron Lung
Two narratives of interest in the 21st Century.
Paul Alexander died in March 2024, aged 78. He contracted polio in 1952 when he was just six years old and spent more than 70 years in an iron lung—believed to be the longest time anyone had ever lived in one.
Despite being paralysed from the neck down, Paul
• earned a university degree
• became a practising lawyer for decades
• wrote a memoir, and
• inspired millions with his determination.
When Paul died, many headlines described him as "the last man in an iron lung." That wording caused some confusion because Martha Ann Lillard was still alive.
Now, with Martha Lillard's death on June 26, 2026, it appears that there are no known Americans still relying on an iron lung.
Martha contracted polio in 1953 at age five and, unlike most survivors who later transitioned to modern positive-pressure ventilators, she continued using her iron lung because she found it worked better for her.
She was intensely creative.
• She wrote poetry.
• Composed songs.
• Painted.
• Loved old Hollywood films.
• Devoted herself to rescuing Beagles and volunteering with the Humane
Society.
In her later years, post-polio syndrome and long COVID reduced her lung function so severely that she required the machine almost continuously.
It's remarkable to think about the timeline:
• 1952: Paul Alexander contracts polio.
• 1953: Martha Lillard contracts polio.
• 1955: The Jonas Salk vaccine is declared safe and effective, and mass vaccination begins.
• 2024: Paul Alexander dies.
• 2026: Martha Lillard dies, marking the apparent end of the iron lung era in the United States.
Paul Alexander showed the world what determination could accomplish despite polio.
Martha Lillard showed the world that kindness, creativity, and love could flourish despite it.
Together, they became living reminders of why no child should ever again have to depend on an iron lung.
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Material Suggestions and Greeter Messages Always Needed!
Please feel free to forward an approx. 150 - 200 word message or any material suggestions in an e-mail, or in a Word document, along with a JPeg picture or two, to E-Club Administration Chair, Kitty Bucsko.
We'd love to hear from you!
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From Rotarian Gill – a Pod Get-together
AnnLisa and daughter, Kira
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Photos from our boat Winterlude yesterday, July 13.
It was a glorious day! There was enough wind for us to sail to and back from Glenthorne Passage on Prevost Island where we anchored and had lunch.
We were joined by AnnLisa’s lovely and interesting daughter Kira who lives in Vancouver. Lots of fun!
Chris, Gill, AnnLisa
Chris, Gill, AnnLisa
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Just so you're aware -
Our Club's Ongoing Projects -
We provide ongoing support for the following projects:
Click the links below to find out more about each project!
And we're doing great!
Ask for more information if you'd like to be involved!
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Real-time meetings
Once a month - Fellowship Assembly. Each 3rd Thursday of the month is our Fellowship Assembly, and we often invite interesting speakers or Rotary Leaders for this entertaining, educational fun event. Plan to join us.
The time is 9:00 a.m. (Mountain Time) in lieu of the weekly Coffee Chat except for July and August when there are no FA’s. Here is the zoom link:
Everyone is welcome to attend and we encourage your participation.
Please click our Event Calendar for details and access Link.
For further inquiries or suggestions please contact: info@rotaryeclubcanada.ca
All our videos can be viewed on our YouTube channel.
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How do you support our club?
- The Paypal button on our ClubRunner Home Page
- The donation button on the attendance form, or
- Make an Interac transfer to rotaryeclubcanada1@gmail.com
- Send a cheque to:
The Rotary E-Club of Canada One
14008 101 Avenue NW
Edmonton, AB
Canada T5N 0K3
(780) 267 4547
Environment
July Green Challenge
Refuse one single-use plastic item every day this month.
And a short environmental video -
Humour
When we take our dog on a car journey, we carry his drinking water in a gin bottle. On one occasion we stopped at a pub for lunch and let him out of the car.
Pouring some water from the bottle into his bowl, I noticed a man watching with fascination. He came over to me and whispered, "I hope that you're not going to let him drive!"
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I was sitting behind an enthusiastic mom at my son's Little League game. Her boy was pitching for the opposing team and she cheered as he threw wild pitch after wild pitch. The poor kid walked every batter. It was only the first inning and the score was 14-0. Then one batter finally smacked the ball.
"Oh no," the mom wailed. "There goes his no-hitter."
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When my wife and I showed up at a very popular restaurant, it was crowded. She went up to the hostess and asked, "Will it be long?"
The hostess, ignoring her, kept writing in her book. My wife again asked, "How much of a wait?"
The woman looked up. "About ten minutes."
A short time later we heard an announcement over the loud-speaker: "Willette B. Long, your table is ready."
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One day, my housework-challenged husband decided to wash his sweatshirt. Seconds after he stepped into the laundry room, he shouted, "What setting do I use on the washing machine?"
"It depends," I replied. "What does it say on your shirt?"
"Southern Alberta Institute of Technology," he yelled back.
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Rotary minute
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Rotary Members
The Beginning of Everything
Every one of us began life as a child dependent upon the care of others. Before we became Rotarians, teachers, business owners, parents, grandparents, or community leaders, we were simply children whose futures depended upon someone keeping us healthy, safe, and nurtured.
When Rotary invests in maternal and child health, we are not merely providing medical care. We are protecting possibilities. We are helping ensure that children have the opportunity to grow, learn, dream, and one day contribute their own gifts to the world.
A Powerful Investment
There are few investments with a greater return than helping a mother and her child.
A healthy mother strengthens a family. A healthy child strengthens a community. And healthy communities strengthen nations.
The work Rotary supports in maternal and child health may begin with vaccinations, prenatal care, nutrition, or access to clean water, but its impact extends far beyond those immediate benefits. It helps create brighter futures for generations to come.
A Historical Perspective
Source - Anonymous
The comfortable decades many Canadians, Americans, Britons, Australians, and others have enjoyed are not really the norm when viewed across centuries. They are, in many ways, the exception.
Most people who have ever lived have worried about war, disease, hunger, oppression, political instability, or simply surviving another year. Even today, while we worry about elections, inflation, and general public concerns, millions of people are worrying about whether they will have clean water, whether their children will be safe, or whether they will be forced to flee their homes.
Much of our lives, there has been the assumption that society is gradually moving forward. There have been setbacks, certainly, but there has been a broad belief that democracy would expand, that human rights would improve, that science would advance, and that each generation would inherit a somewhat better world.
When that assumption begins to feel uncertain, it can be profoundly disorienting.
And yet, there is another side to the story.
The people who built better societies in the past were not people who lived in peaceful times. They were people who lived through difficult times and chose to keep building anyway.
• They founded hospitals during epidemics.
• They created schools during poverty.
• They fought for voting rights when they had none.
• They worked for peace while wars raged around them.
In a curious way, Rotary itself is an example of that. Rotary began in a world that was far rougher and less secure than ours. Paul Harris and the others who created Rotary did not wait for society to become perfect before they served. They served because society was imperfect.
History is not just the story of kings, presidents, dictators, and wars.
It is also the story of teachers, volunteers, writers, neighbours, grandparents, and ordinary citizens – ordinary Rotarians – who refused to surrender the idea that people could - and should - treat one another decently and try to leave the world a better place than they have found it.
Rotary Jukebox
For a small donation, your favorite musician will be featured on one of our next e-meetings for everyone to enjoy.
Click Here to send your request.
THIS WEEK - Sir Elton John
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The Four-way Test
To close the meeting, Rotarian Gillian recites the Four-Way Test of the things that Rotarians think, say, or do.
Thank you for joining us. We appreciate your feedback and hope you will return and invite a guest.
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Scroll down for Program Donations and Attendance links.
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Our Facebook page. Please remember to check out our posts on the Rotary E-Club’s Facebook page. We work hard to post something every second day, sometimes more often.
Invite friends to Like our page and enjoy our posts. Also, please take the time to Share our posts on your Facebook Page.
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Archived Meetings
All meetings are archived. Click here to see a list and choose what you wish to view.
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Attendance Links
Complete the attendance/donation form to have your attendance recognized.
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- Members of Rotary E-Club of Canada One - Click HERE.
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Please support our club!
Donate For the Meeting You Have Attended.
Please consider making a small donation in lieu of a meal
to help us help those in need.
As you have not had to buy lunch or travel to attend this program, please consider a donation of a minimum of $10.00 in appreciation for the experience you have enjoyed.
We thank you very much!
Program Donations
Our E-Club is a dynamic club comprised of ordinary working and retired people who acknowledge that Rotarians are people who are generous with their time and their resources.
Our club and the program you have just enjoyed, either as a member or a visitor, is funded only by donations.
We are developing ideas for fundraising with our members who are scattered across Canada, USA, Central America, and Europe, but we do need your help.
As you have not had to buy lunch or travel to attend this program, please make a donation of a minimum of $10.00, considering you're saving in time and cost in appreciation for the experience you have enjoyed.
Interested in providing Rotary Service? Unable to attend terra club meetings?
Contact our membership chair for information or
or HERE to learn about Associate Membership
