President John rang the meeting to order at 1:30 PM. He announced the birthdays, wedding anniversaries, and club membership anniversaries for December, which received a round of applause from the membership.
Rick Kaiser and Gene Autry led us in a rousing rendition of Home on the Range, followed by Mike Diehl's meaningful invocation for the holiday season.
Guests:
George Halsell introduced speaker Dan Tucker, Executive-Director of Working Waterfront Coalition
Del VandeKerk introduced Mark Moder with Wildbird
Sue Parsons brought our Exchange Student from Hungary, Janka Eszik
Members on Zoom: Dick Tucker, Nathan Twining,Loch Trimingham and Monty McAllister
Honoring Ralph Rinne 1924-2025
Tim Farris, substituting for Dr. Roland Trenouth, provided a tribute to Dr. Ralph Rinne.
Ralph was born on February 26, 1924. He died on November 24, 2025 at home surrounded by a family that loved him. He was 101 years of age - 94 days short of his 102nd birthday. His beloved wife, Eleanor, pre-deceased him. They had four children: Bruce, Rhonda, Lisa and Michelle. All who loved him.
Ralph joined the Rotary Club of Bellingham on June 31, 2000 with the classification "Medicine-General Surgeon-Retired”. He was a member of this club for over 25 years and a Paul Harris Fellow +2.
Ralph’s original appointment as a surgeon in Bellingham was on November 24, 1956. He served as the Chair of the Department of Surgery from 1959 to 1977 and as Chief of Staff of both the medical department and the surgery departments at both St. Lukes and St. Joseph’s Hospital. Nurses and doctors (including anesthesiologists who worked with Ralph in the operating room), routinely stated that Ralph was a revered surgeon, describing him as “brilliant” and “gifted”. Ralph worked as a surgeon in this community for 44 years performing some 20,000 surgeries. He retired on March 31, 2001. It was noted that Ralph "saved lives for a living” as evidenced when a speaker at Ralph’s 100th birthday party (a community event) came to thank Ralph for saving his wife’s lie - still grateful some fifty years ago.
A funeral service, open to the public, will be held at St. James Presbyterian Church at 11 am on December 11th. It will be followed by a public burial, with color guard and taps at Bayview Cemetery. A reception follows at The Bellingham Yacht Club at 1 pm. Club members are invited to attend.
Steve Ban stood to offer his own memories of Ralph. Steve noted how Ralph drove he and his wife, Jan, to the hospital for the delivery of one of their babies. Ralph went on to serve as something of a grandparent to his children. Steve talked about the many different points of views that he and Ralph had discussed – all that were respectful. Steve concluded by noting that Ralph was his "go to doctor” in his pediatric practice.
Bellringing will be December 20th at Lakeway and Bakerview Fred Meyers at both doors. Rick Kaiser has taken over as Chairman for Dick Tucker in lieu of his hiking accident on the Rotary hike.
It will be 10:00am-6:00pm with 2 hour shifts, but you can always sign-up for more than one shift :)
CLICK HERE to register for your preferred time and location.
Holiday Fun!
December 15, 2025 Evening Meeting at 5:30 at the Holiday Inn at the Airport. Spouses, family and friends are invited. Please sign-up ASAP for meal guarantee.
Project Purpose:
Skookum Kids is seeking funding of $140,000 to assist with the purchase of three slightly used vans. RCOB would contribute approximately $85,000 of this total with the remainder obtained
from designated donors. While currently serving 200+ families each year, acquiring these vehicles will significantly improve the ability of Skookum Kids to serve a greater number of children and families throughout Whatcom County and Northwest Washington for years to come.
Your donation will enable his organization to replace aging minivans which are used to transport children to and from appointments, sometimes across the state! Eighty percent of foster children have court-mandated visitations.
The Nominating Committee is pleased to announce the following slate of candidates for the 2026-2027 Rotary Year. These candidates, are eligible for the election next week, December 8, 2025.
President - Nathan Twining
President-Elect - George Halsell
VP/Program Chair - Mark Knittel
Board Members (club members vote for 2; the 2 with the most votes will be elected):
Aaron Booker
Justin Guillory
Scott Herman
Sue Parsons
Our Hungarian exchange student, Janka Eszik:
She announced that she was planning to join other exchange students from our district on a West Coast road trip and was offering to do various jobs to help fund her trip.
President John announced that the book, Red Paint, is available to any club member who would like to read it.
Del Vandekirk presented Mark Moder, Executive Director of Wildbird Charity, with a Club check for $1,000. Mark told us that, back when Wildbird was getting started (2016), it fed about 25 students each weekend. Recently, the organization provided food bags to some 1,210 children in 43 different schools around Whatcom
County!
Weekly Payment Reminder
VENMO:
@RCOB- Bellingham.
Give Sandee a call if you need help. 360-734-5532.
CASH / CHECK:
Yes, we still take these and saving on fees is appreciated.
Our Program Speaker was Dan Tucker, Executive Director of the
Working Waterfront Coalition.
The Coalition is an advocacy group for marine trades and businesses that require access to the Bellingham waterfront. The group is a nonprofit, 501c-6 organization committed to preserving and enhancing the working waterfront in the region. It is membership based. The Board consists of volunteers. Dan is the only paid employee.
Dan noted that waterfront businesses and trades generate some $1.6 billion a year in revenues and approximately 6,400 jobs. This includes maritime related businesses, fisheries, marine oriented trades and more.
The organization's vision is: A vibrant, sustainable waterfront that supports the local economy and maintains a unique character. It seeks to do this through support for the maritime industries and fisheries, while providing recreational and cultural value to the community. It’s work includes collaborating with stakeholders, including businesses, community leaders, the Lummi Tribe and
government agencies. The goal is to promote public awareness by acting as an information hub and network for the waterfront.
Dan explained that environmental stewardship was an important element of the Coalition's mission. In its work, it partners with the Port of Bellingham on the
initiatives and projects. It also collaborates with local organizations like Sustainable Connections, the Community Boating Center, Bellingham SeaFeast, Northwest Innovation Resource Center, Work Source, the Opportunity Council and more. It supported development of the Bellingham Dockside Market and Bellingham Sea Feast.
Dan closed by noting that the organization engages in national and state lobbying efforts. It serves as an "anchor organization" of the Maritime Washington National Heritage Area, while monitoring other issues in the city, county and at the Port.
RCOB apparel, including polo shirts, dress shirts, vests and hats is now available. These are items that every Club member simply must have in his/her wardrobe! Besides looking great, Club members will be contributing to branding for the RCOB as well as supporting our Club's Foundation, which will receive part of the proceeds.
Click on the button below for the the clothing catalogue, with the Order Form on the last page. Fill out the order form, turn it into Vinson Latimore at a meeting or email a scanned copy to embroidery@choicesscrubs.com.
