Ang Magiting - The Official Web Site of Rotary Club Makati North

Inspiring Classification

By: Sec. Bob Hecks
August 31 2011

It’s been a while since we had a classification talk. Last week’s was one to remember. We’re lucky to have Rodney (Rod) Gothe as a member.

Visiting Rotarian Bubi Krohn (RC Makati) and two companions of Rod, Marcc Velasco and Steve Marois were introduced. We remembered Marcc from his music performance at our Anniversary party last May. Steve is a colleague in Rod’s travel company for mobility-impaired people.

Chris Bellinger brought some tickets for ‘Cabaret’, Saturday, 17 September at Sofitel Philippines Plaza Hotel. Some of our more adventurous members offered to sell them. By the way, last Sunday’s Manila Times (Sunday Times) Magazine featured Michelle Washington Bellinger and her MMQ theater group, dubbed “multicultural nonprofit arts for charity organizations.”. Sunday Times Magazine quotes Michelle: “It’s something I will do for the rest of my life. And to do it in the Philippines will be an honor.”

In President’s Time Pres. Archie’s topics were RC Sacramento’s Matching Grant for a water supply system at Ave Maria GK village at Tanay, our joint project Career Awareness Seminar with our Sister Club RC Wack-Wack on Friday at Makati Science High School. (Friday is RC Wack-Wack’s regular meeting day.) Pres. Archie’s President’s Message in ‘Ang Magiting’ (August 31, 2011) contained very useful details of much that is going on at RCMN. “Recruit new members” was his final message to us.

Traveling, for mobility-impaired people, can be a hassle, as anyone can imagine. But many want to travel and have the opportunity and resources. People With Disabilities (PWD) welcome the advocacy and commercial services of our speaker Rod Gothe. “They’ve got 365 days a year to travel but lack the confidence in what they would find at the other end,” said Rod. And they want to go to Asia, particularly those travelers from Australia and New Zealand, which is Rod’s main market. Rod showed us photographs of PWDs bungee-jumping and doing other unlikely PWD activities.

Rod illustrated his talk by mentioning prominent PWDs President Franklin Roosevelt, Stephen Hawking, Gov. Grace Padaca and Frank Williams of Formula 1 fame. “They show what can be done by PWDs.”

“So what happened to you” asked Robert Syjuco. We were told that Rod was born that way, which he feels affects his attitude to his own disability. “I’m happy with who I am,” he said. RCMN is more than happy to have this outgoing and enterprising member in our ranks.