Sergeant at Arms Jon Kelly quoted Gen. Dwight Eisenhower on the eve of D-Day, 73 years ago this week. "This operation is not being planned with any alternatives. This operation is planned as a victory, and that's the way it's going to be. We're going down there, and we're throwing everything we have into it, and we're going to make it a success."
Speaker:Jim DeFrancia It is a special privilege to be an Aspen Rotarian and to know and learn from other members. A great example of this was the highly informative presentation by Jim DeFrancia. He has served on the Western Pacific Strategy Council and, as such, is invited back to the Pentagon on a regular basis to participate in battle strategies for the U.S. Navy and, peripherally, for the other branches of the Armed Services. He just returned from one of these meetings and discussed the initiatives under consideration by our Defense leadership and the many problems that the modern military faces. Freedom of Navigation, Multi-domain battle strategies, the need for the Army to occupy space after a victory, new Tri-Service battle tests, disputable territorial claims, 'Arsenal' ships vs. Carrier strategies, military budgeting, the six biggest threats to our country, etc., etc. If you missed this, you lost!
Guests: Peter Wallison, guest of Frieda Wallison; Mike Clark, Rifle Rotary President, guest of Roger Nicholson; Warren Klug, guest of Kathy Klug; Tom Griffith, guest of Heidi Hoffmann
Frieda Wallison recognized The Mountain Chalet as aPlatinum Ducky Derby sponsor
Thursday June 15--Peter Wallison, Nationally renowned attorney and author of many books including 'Hidden in Plain Sight', which details the 2007-2008 financial crisis and its legacy. Mr Wallison has a storied resume which includes being a U.S. House of Representatives page in his teens, Special Assistant to N.Y. Governor Nelson Rockefeller, General Counsel for the U.S. Dep't of Treasury, White House counsel to President Ronald Reagan and currently co-Director of the Financial Markets Deregulation Project for the American Enterprise Institute. Peter will discuss the current investigation of President Trump, the differences between Pres. Reagan and Trump and why Reagan was a successful President.
Although President Craig Melville announced that the Changeover Dinner will be July 6, this would conflict with the Boogies Bash, and so the date has been changed to Wednesday, July 5!
The Changeover Dinner marks the end of President Melville's reign and begins the the presidency of Scott Russell. The party will be at The Mountain Chalet with cocktails and appetizers at 6 p.m., followed by dinner at 7.
Happy Bucks: Kathy Klug is very happy that her daughter Hillary is returning from Afghanistan, with a Bronze Star, to boot; Justin Barrow is happy that Emily Burr is replacing him as Membership Chairperson and Emily is thankful for the job done by Justin; Norm Bacheldor is happy that Tom Bracewell was back among us at the meeting; Charles Cunniffe was happy to remember the 150 year anniversary of the birth of Frank Lloyd Wright; Frieda Wallison was happy that Ducky Derby sponsorships had reached $106,600. Chris Bendon washappy to have eaten at Rob Ittner's Rustique Restaurant; Dan Furth remembered his Uncle John who skippered a landing craft at Omaha Beach on D Day. Only four of the 16 passengers survived that day. Fortunately, Uncle John was one of the four. Mike Kosdrosky is happy for his Dad's 88th birthday.
Kathy Klug won the raffle but drew the Jack of Spades. There is now $298.00 in the Jackpot!
Our Board of Directors met Friday morning, June 9. This was the last meeting of the 2016-17 Board.
Membership:Dave Ressler, CEO of Aspen Valley Hospital was approved for membership. Dave was an active member of our Rotary club several years ago, and we welcome him back. Several more persons are in the membership "pipeline." Many thanks to Justin Barrow, our membership chair for the past two years.
Ducky Derby Budget Approved: The Board reviewed and approved a complex budget for the 2017 Ducky Derby. Once again, you can say (and yes, it is the truth!) to purchasers of ducks, "100% of your $10 or $50 or $100 donation, will be used to help youth groups and other worthy Rotary projects."
Ducky Derby Math 101: *
- It costs $100k to produce the Ducky Derby
- We raise more than $100k in sponsorships; this covers all our costs .
- Our "profit" is likely to be $200k.
- $100k goes back to the youth groups who sold ducks.
- $100k is used by the Rotary Club of Aspen to pay for such things as scholarships, international projects, and grants to local non-profits.
* These numbers are rounded so you can remember them, and very conservative. Actual "profit" is predicted to be more than $200k
Incoming President Scott Russell announced that new committees will be forming at the end of June and asked all to step up and join one or more of the committees.
The Weekly Newsletter of the Rotary Club of Aspen.
Thursday June 15--Peter Wallison, Nationally renowned attorney and author of many books including 'Hidden in Plain Sight', which details the 2007-2008 financial crisis and its legacy. Mr Wallison has a storied resume which includes being a U.S. House of Representatives page in his teens, Special Assistant to N.Y. Governor Nelson Rockefeller, General Counsel for the U.S. Dep't of Treasury, White House counsel to President Ronald Reagan and currently co-Director of the Financial Markets Deregulation Project for the American Enterprise Institute. Peter will discuss the current investigation of President Trump, the differences between Pres. Reagan and Trump and why Reagan was a successful President. 
