May is Mental health month and has been a topic of many news interviews and TV ads. Mental Health Awareness Month was started 76 years ago by Mental Health America.

The Mental Health Month ribbon is green, symbolizing hope, strength, and support for those affected by mental illness.

 

You may wonder why is it important for Rotarians to discuss mental health. Mental disorders can severely impair a person’s ability to function at work, in relationships, and other social interactions. Depression and anxiety are two of the most prevalent mental health concerns.

 

Rotarians are not exempt from facing these and other mental health issues. If they are not facing mental problems themselves, often there are family members in need of support. Rotarians should learn how we can help with those who struggle with mental illness.

 

The Rotary International Convention of 2024 offered sessions on mental health. I attended a session entitled, Expressions of Trauma. This session was designed to make Rotarians aware of the signs of trauma as they seek to serve their communities in the aftermath of a disaster. These trauma signs can range from a distorted sense of time to diminished capacity to perform simple task.

 

Traumatized people need safety, predictability, connection, trust, and control. The speakers for this session also made the point that we need to be aware of these signs in fellow Rotarians as we serve together. It’s okay to ask a fellow Rotarian, "Are you okay?"

President Vera McKissic called the May 29, 2025 meeting of the Rotary Club of Arlington, Texas to order. Col. Jim C. Campbell Quick led the club in an appropriate Memorial Day-themed prayer and led the club in a rousing rendition of “God Bless America”. Past President Barry Bondurant and recent member Claudia Perkins introduced visiting Rotarians and Rotarians with guests. President Vera reminded us to record our volunteer hours on the club’s website or to write them down on the check-in sheets set out on the tables outside every Rotary meeting. Vera also asked (implored? begged?) Rotarians once again to sign up to present the prayer and pledge and to serve as greeter at future meetings. Finally, President Vera reminded the club of the upcoming Rotary District Conference that will take place on June 14, 2025 at 6:00 p.m. at the Embassy Suites by Hilton – DFW, 2401 Bass Pro Drive, Grapevine, Texas.

Don Mebus led the club in what passed for song as the club warbled (emitted? bellowed?) an almost plausible rendition of “This Land is Your Land”. Please don’t blame Don. He could not have been more enthusiastic and his singing was terrific, as it usually is. Moreover, his choice of song could not have been more appropriate. However, the club’s tunefulness needs work. Perhaps remedial singing lessons...

As she has for many years, Sally Hopper announced those Rotarians celebrating birthdays this week (Larry Jordan on May 27 and Jeff Williams on May 30) and those with Rotary anniversaries this week (on May 26 Mac Martin had been a Rotarian for three years). Those wishing to make birthday contributions to the Rotary Foundation may do so by contributing online via the club’s website or by bringing a check to Sally made to the order of The Rotary Foundation. The club’s contributions factor into the sums available to the club via Rotary District Grants and other grants and make possible our numerous community service and other service programs.

Rotarian Richard Urso introduced Elizabeth Jordan, who presented the week’s program. Ms. Jordan is with Preserve International, an organization attempting to improve nutrition in East Africa. The problem Preserve International combats is seasonal poverty, which is common to almost all agricultural regions of developing countries.

 

Seasonal poverty is often referred to as the lean season. It is the precarious period between planting and harvesting when incomes plummet and food becomes scarce. Though it is difficult to grasp the full scale of its impact, it is estimated that seasonal poverty affects somewhere between 300 million and one billion of the world’s rural poor. And yet, despite being one of the biggest obstacles to rural development and the reduction of global poverty, the issue has remained largely under the radar in many international development circles.

 

Not surprisingly, women are key players in the fight against hunger and food waste. In Uganda, over 75% of agricultural labor is performed by women, and yet less than 7% of women own land. Women are the backbone of small-scale agricultural and the key providers of food for their families. It is therefore critical that women play an essential role in the development and integration of improved food preservation and storage practices in agricultural communities around the world.

 

Preserve International empowers women in Yumbe, Uganda by tailoring curriculum for best agronomic practices and post-harvest handling to the unique needs of women living in the BidiBidi Refugee Settlement and the surrounding host communities. Preserve International’s solutions to seasonal poverty include food dehydration to create shelf-stable food, improved grain storage and preservation of food via canning.

 

Preserve International partners with Sparky Social Enterprise, a Ugandan-based company, to offer food dehydration using locally available technology. The Sparky Dryer is a food dehydrator that runs on solar power and organic waste and dries fruits and vegetables quickly, making them last months rather than days.

 

Preserve International also works with farmers, schools and other on-the-ground organizations to improve grain storage methods for a healthier, longer-lasting harvest. And it teaches both water bath and pressure canning techniques to educate farmers regarding means of preserving crops for both family consumption and sale at local markets. The objective is to increase both crop yields and profits and to utilize the estimated one third of food that is lost by reason of spoilage.

 

President Vera honored Ms. Jordan with a book that the club will contribute to the John Webb Elementary School library on her behalf. She thanked our visitors and visiting Rotarians for joining us and invited them back to future meetings and service projects.

 

Vera presented an appropriate quote of the week, which comes from noted playwright George Bernard Shaw: "The greatest evils and the worst of crimes is poverty." Vera then led the club in a rendition of the Rotary Four-Way Test and we were adjourned.