This week we welcomed Asher Schiavone, the Economic Development Coordinator from the City of Bethlehem, to talk about Keystone Innovation Zones (KIZ) in South Bethlehem. Asher gave an informed presentation on what businesses qualify for these tax incentives and how they impact the city. His presentation included some fun examples such as Bonn Place Brewing and Globies which are washable, throw able paint balls...certainly not what one may think of as businesses that operate in the KIZ zone.
Asher Schiavone speaks to club members
We were also treated to two Shadow presentations from students from BAVTS. We heard from Brienna Aszil from Liberty High School, whose area of interest is Culinary Arts and Lauryn Stauffer from Northampton High School whose passion is Education Technology. As always, thank you for being part of a very special and important experience for these young adults.
BAVTS Shadow Presenters
Thea Phalon thanked the Rotarians who have volunteered to serve on the Board for the upcoming year and beyond. Thanks to those members, the roster is filled and will be voted upon by the club at an upcoming meeting. I will send out a separate message indicating the date that we will hold the election. It is a requirement to have a quorum at this meeting, so please be sure to mark your calendar and attend (once the date is established!)
In other “Rotary Action” this week, a special thank you to Dee Dee Foran and the RAGAS (Rotary Action Group Against Slavery) Committee for organizing another event to raise awareness about human trafficking. On Friday night, in Prosser Auditorium of Moravian College, more than 140 had registered (and most attended!) a movie screening along with discussion and refreshments. Events like this raise awareness to not only this important societal issue… but it raises the awareness in the community about Rotary and what we can do to help!
RAGAS attendees queuing up for admission to the event
Please be sure to come to our lunch meeting this week as our program is action packed! We will hear from Cathy Abreu as she presents her classification talk AND we will be presenting checks to four (4) recipients of grant funding from the Bethlehem Rotary Foundation! Each recipient will have a few minutes to tell us a little about how the grant will support the good work that they do! As we present more grant awards it will be great for us to hear, first hand, about the difference we are making! Come and get to learn more about Cathy and see our Foundation in action…
I always encourage you to visit Bethlehem Rotary website to keep an eye on our upcoming programs; however, I would just like to remind you that Rob Vaughn will be doing his “Year in Review” program for us on February 20th. That is always a great program and I would ask that you mark your calendar for that meeting!
Some reminders:
- There is a district grant training webinar scheduled for Tuesday, January 15th. Please contact me if you would like additional information on how to participate.
- Registration for District Conference is open. The conference this year is in Allentown, so it will be very convenient for us all to attend. Here is the link to view the event and get registered… District Conference Registration
