This morning I was able to drive around, enjoy the cooler temperature, watch the clouds floating against the blue sky background, and reflect on the past month.
I am humbled by the tremendous effort the Taste & Tunes Committee has put into this year‘s event. With August being membership development month, we do have several prospects on the way to joining our club. Maria Dietrich reports that our Interact club at Liberty High School has finished its club bylaws and constitution and hopes to receive its certificate within a month. Stay tuned for an announcement of a date for their charter night.
Announced at the last meeting, our Rotary International President Holger Knaack sent an email announcing that the African region has been certified wild Polio virus-free. This milestone is an incredible public health achievement for Rotary members, the African region, our global polio eradication initiative partners, and a huge step forward on the road to global polio eradication. But we still have important work to do in order to eradicate wild polio in the last two endemic countries. We need every Rotarian to help finish this fight and continue raising $50 million each year for Polio Plus (more at our meeting on 9/16). Thank you Rotary.
Taste & Tunes Desert Edition 2020 is one month away. You know by now the great need to make the event a success to help the Northeast Community Center Pantry and to help our Bethlehem Rotary Foundation fund grant requests. We still need personal and corporate sponsorships from $300 to $5,000 (or more). And we need non-dessert auction items like vacation rental vouchers or tickets to concerts or sports events
But the “Icing on the Cake” is our online dessert auction happening October 4th through October 18th. While we have been receiving dessert items, the reality of the pandemic has many bakeries and restaurants hesitant to commit to our cause but wish to help in some way. This is where each Bethlehem Rotarian can also help our community businesses. Offer to purchase a dessert item or more so that they can be a part of the event and get the advertising exposure that Taste & Tunes will provide and gain new customers who saw their items on the auction - a win-win for all.
Last week Becky Bradley, Executive Director of the Lehigh Valley Planning Commission gave us the latest news on development in our area. Warehouse sprawl is expected to continue with 33 million square feet of approved warehouse space with 14 million more proposed. She gave us details on what is known as the Fourth Industrial Revolution.
To manage this LVPC has goals to achieve the rise of the on-demand economy.
- Efficient and coordinated development pattern.
- Connect mixed transportation modes.
- Protected and vibrant environment.
- Competitive, creative, and sustainable region.
In the 45 minute presentation Becky presented a comprehensive list of upcoming projects and initiatives the LVPC is working on with our local governments. More information can be found at www.lvpc.org.
Becky A. Bradley, AICP
This week Cal Virgilio from the Granola Factory will be joining our meeting to tell us the story of this downtown Bethlehem business that started in a basement and moved to the current facility and how they have become an important part of many grocery stores from the East Coast to the Midwest.
See you Wednesday!
