And there we were, in person for the second time in two years, at the lovely Green Hills Country Club. Marilyn checked us in, assisted by Chris, who operated the hybrid video system.
President Joe greeted us warmly, and all felt normal once again.
Mark Johnson led us in the Pledge, and Chris Mount-Benites shared some inspiring quotes for the invocation:
- “Whether you think that you can, or you think you cannot, you are right.” Henry Ford
- “My mission in life is not merely to survive, but to thrive, and to do so with some passion, some compassion, some humor and some style.”
- “If you don’t like something, change it. If you can’t change it, change your attitude.”
Maya Angelou
Chris also shared his thoughts about tolerance. He asked that we tolerate each other’s ideology, politics, approach and perspective, and that we respect and accept each other for who we are.
Visiting Rotarians who were introduced:
Nat Crawford from San Francisco Club #2, and Frances introduced Jim O’Donnell from the San Francisco South of Market area that includes Dogpatch.
Sunshine report:
Patrick Goudy passed away after a battle with pancreatic cancer. Our thoughts are with his family.
Pierre is in a care facility in Pacifica and Mary Hunt is recovering from an operation on her shoulder. We send them both our best wishes for recovery.
Announcements:
Saturday, April 30th FUNdraiser:
Dinner and Cabaret, Come Fly with Me Over the Rainbow, the music of Frank and Judy
Backyard of the Krolik home in Hillsborough
Click here for more information and for tickets: suggested donation $125, or $200 for 2
April 9th Service Day:
Coyote Point, 9am, area clean up
Nat Crawford from SF Rotary #2:
Fundraising event for ALPS (projects with local youth)
Fri, April 1st, 6-9pm
SF City Club
$125 per ticket
President Joe acknowledged International Women’s Day, and the brave citizens of Ukraine
Rotary Means Business, presented by Alden:
Wed, March 16th, 5-7pm
Speaker: Buddy Burke
No charge for the event, and Emily Matthews will be catering
President Joe presented badges to:
Bobba Venkatadri
Christine Krolik
Chris Mount-Benites
Jennifer introduced Michael Brownrigg for 2 Truths and a Lie -
Michael had so many incredible adventures from his time in foreign service that he did 3 Truths and a Lie:
- Driving through Syrian desert, got chased by Syrian special forces for inadvertently crossing into a secret Syrian Air Force base.
- While serving in Hong Kong, purchased a small antique bowl which turned out to be very valuable and is now in a museum collection.
- While traveling in the north of Syria, Marty Brownrigg, Michael’s wife, took a photo of a bridge that terrorists had blown up, which the Syrian government had denied had happened. The photo made it on the cover of the Secretary of Defense’s briefing book.
- While in Embassy in Beirut, building came under mortar fire. Frantic call made to Assistant Secretary of State led to threats to militia leader, which worked to stop the shelling.
Can you guess the lie? Amazingly enough, it is the tamest story of the valuable bowl. We are lucky to have Michael safely back in the USA after those adventures. Thank you for your foreign service, Michael!
Christine Krolik introduced today’s speaker, former Hillsborough Mayor Paul Regan, author of
The Forensic, a true story that reads like a fictional spy novel.
Paul explained forensic accounting as basically “detective accounting,” using financial records to uncover wrong-doing. Paul is clearly one of the world’s foremost forensic accountants and told us about the many cases he has worked on world-wide.
The story told in the book is how Paul, as a young man, worked with an attorney, John Clark, for five years to bring a (spoiler alert!) successful case of investor fraud against one of the richest and most powerful men in the world, Howard Hughes. Hughes was surrounded by an attack-dog attorney and ruthless advisors, and proving his malfeasance was a daunting task. Two witnesses who were lined up to testify never made it to court: one suffered a blow by an ax to his head, the other completely disappeared.
The story is woven with a case of Cold War intrigue involving Russia, Hughes and the CIA. Those who have read the book highly recommend it, and it is available on Amazon.
After a number of questions regarding this fascination topic, we adjourned with thanks to the Green Hills Country Club for the delicious Mexican buffet and excellent service.
