Coley Cassidy, Wells Fargo Private Bank (Steve Seyffert)
Virginia Baker (Roger Nicholson)
Bobbie Nicholson (Roger’s wife)
Thought for the Day: "A sound mind in a sound body is a short but full description of a happy state in this world." John Locke
Tesla Trivia from President Scott Russell:
Elon Musk didn’t found Tesla
The company was named after Nikola Tesla – a physicist and electrical engineer born in 1876
The Model X (SUV) has an average battery charge of 250 miles
Model S (sedan) goes from 0-60 mph in 2.5 seconds
The Giga Factory will be the 2nd largest building in the world – 13M sq ft, powered by 100% renewable energy – and will employ 6500 workers
Speaker:Mike Serio, Regional Chief Investment Strategist at Wells Fargo Private Bank. In his role, he serves as the investment thought leader in the region by providing insight and interpretation of the economy and financial markets at client events and through written commentary
Topic: Focus 2017: Seeing Things Differently
Mike had four topics: 1) The diametrical state of the economy and Markets; 2) Why people are so unhappy; 3) Investment Themes; 4) Actionable Ideas
Mike predicted we'll avoid a recession for a while longer. He thinks we’re in the 7th or 8th inning of this expansion. Here are a few highlights of his talk:
Consumer business optimism is on the rise. Headwinds are 1) global populism – people want change; and 2) anti trade/anti immigration. There's a housing shortage. The Fed is raising rates faster than anticipated. There are rising geopolitical risks.
We have had this irrational exuberance before all three of the past bear markets, he said. Think of the 73 new record highs in a year as a barometer rather than a thermometer. Confidence is building despite uncertainty, and business confidence is rising, which is a big move. It’s the debt service ratio that concerns him.
The longevity of bull market is the 2nd longest on record – since March 2009.
International markets are two to three years behind the US. Inflation is picking up and may prevail over deflation. It will be 2.2% at the end of the year.
The best thing to do now? He suggests that borrowing money at fixed rates is the best deal now because there will be rise in rates when the Feds add money to the economy. He also suggests focusing investments on themes - robotics, automation, artificial intelligence funds. "That’s a 10-20 year theme that can probably triple," he said.
A Christmas Wish Update from Steve Wickes:
Rotarians help out once again! A local woman with Stage 4 breast cancer needed a plane ticket to Boston for her treatment. A Rotarian put a check in Steve’s pocket on Thursday to pay for it. Also, Deborah Breen offered a ticket from the Hospital Foundation's Quality of Life Fund. Steve will take her up on that offer for the next request.
Thanks to the generosity of Rotarians, Christmas Wish has given out about $3 million in gifts over the past 30 yrs, which has radically changed people’s lives.
Board member, Ashton Hewitt, called it "a hand up, not a hand out" as she thanked Rotarians and asked for anyone who'd like to get involved to talk to her.
Aspen's Big Bang
"How the big bang happened in Aspen in 1949.” That was the topic Tuesday night at the Black Box Theater as the Aspen Education Foundation hosted an historic story telling event for the public. Steve Wickes was the warm-up act, offering the presentation, "Why Goethe? Why 1949? Why Aspen?" Sher Coleman impersonated Elizabeth Paepcke.
Our breakfast meeting will be held Thursday, November 16 at Mountain Chalet in the 5th Floor Mountain View meeting room. Doors open at 7 a.m. with breakfast starting at 7:20 a.m.
This week our speaker will be Sheryl Barto, who has combined her experience as an autism mom, horsewoman and PR professional to start Smiling Goat Ranch in Carbondale with her husband, Karl Hanlon, in 2015. They use horses, movement and the natural environment to help children with neuro-psychiatric conditions like autism, ADD, ADHD, anxiety, and depression and veterans with PTSD. She will give a preview of Movement Method and how it works by engaging the group in a Movement Method exercise.
Weekend of Dec 1-3: Grand Junction
Youth Exchange Committee Chair, Mike Hoffman, and the RYE Committee will be interviewing highly-qualified youth exchange candidates. "It's highly rewarding," says Mike.
If you are interested in helping out, please sign up using the this link. Questions? (970) 544-3442.
December 14: Aspen Rotary Holiday Party - Rob Ittner's Cooking School of Aspen
December 8: Rotary Board meeting (See Board Meeting section for November 10 meeting notes.)
Happy Bucks
Roger Nicholson: $1 for school board candidates who were elected, $1 for his wife getting up early to join him for breakfast, and $1 for Virginia Baker joining them for breakfast.
Someone congratulated Charles Cunniffe for being re-elected to the CMC Board and Dwayne Romero for his election to the Aspen School Board.
Clarence Blackwell: Just happy.
Steve Wickes: He learned the hard way that Google doesn't like the word, "treasure" in the subject line, so most of last week's newsletters went into people's spam or promotions folder. Don Wrigley was the prize winner, but unfortunately, he didn't open the newsletter, so he couldn't claim his commemorative silver dollar.
November 10 highlights:
Ducky Derby:
A 2018 Deputy Duck is still needed to work with Head Duck Mike Connelly! Please volunteer your services. Questions? Ask past Head Ducks Chris Bendon or Mike Kosdrosky.
There's a discrepancy between the online Duck sales and the Ducky Derby database that is keeping Rotary from determining the final net profits from the fundraiser. But the Club's financial power brokers are working together to resolve the problem. Stay tuned!
The Board authorized downvalley youth groups to again sell duck adoption papers and receive a 90/10 split.
The concept of a 50/50 split is still being pursued that would allow the Carbondale and two of the Glenwood Rotary Clubs to sell ducks.
Membership Report & Discussion:
New committee chair, Deborah Breen, reported on a new, streamlined membership process. Look for that in next week's newsletter, along with a weekly membership section on the new process.
A corporate membership is being pursued that would allow two or three top people in a company to share one membership and the attendance requirements.
The committee will begin meeting monthly after the Thursday Rotary meetings to allow potential members in the pipeline to ask questions before their required three meetings are up.
The board goals for membership are "quality over quantity". If you're a business person, being a member of Rotary should be a top priority.
Membership Survey:
The Top Two Things You Value in your Rotary Membership?
#1 - Meeting key people in the community
#2 - Being of value to the community
Watch for more survey results in next week's Newsletter!
Marketing
Following a discussion of the dire need for an accurate and up-to-date Club website, the board approved an expenditure not to exceed $500 to correct and update the information on the Rotary website and to review the site architecture for potential changes.
Youth Exchange presentation at the Nov 9 meeting:
Michael Hoffmann is the new chair of Youth Exchange Committee. Committee members include Doug Peckham, Sam Johnston, Ashton Hewitt, and others. Mike talked about the amazing opportunity of being a host family. "We bring something really good to these young people, who are being good stewards of their countries," says Mike. "It allows young people to be siblings who never had brothers and sisters, or couples to be parents for the first time."
See the Calendar section for the Dec 1-3 youth exchange interview details.
Membership Committee
Chair John Moore says applications are now available. Contact him if your favorite non-profit organization needs one. The committee will be meeting soon to review applications and select recipients who will be be granted anywhere from $250 to $4,000 each. The priorities for giving, set by the Club several years ago, are for organizations that provide: #1 education, 2. wellness 3. health and human services
Doug Peckham, the counselor for Nikko, says our exchange student from Denmark is fitting into the community well. We also have great host families this year starting with the Fox family.
The Weekly Newsletter of the Rotary Club of Aspen.
