Lawrence Central Rotary

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Sister Cities Travelers Visit Lawrence Central

It was a day to celebrate young people, their families and other guests at Lawrence Central Rotary on August 12 when two Lawrence teen-agers presented a program about their experiences in a sister city exchange this summer and Kevin Munge, an exchange student from Helsinborg, Sweden was introduced.

Nia Rutledge and Haley Lockwood-Peterson each spent 10 days in Hiratsuka, Japan, living with local families, soaking up local culture, going on field trips and even taking time to do some shopping. Nia had made a video of the highlights of her trip and Haley passed around pictures she had taken. Both had been sponsored by Central Rotary and were at the meeting with parents and grandparents.

Lawrence youth in grades seven to twelve are eligible for a Sister Cities’ Exchange Program that involves 10 days in a Lawrence Sister City. Ken Albrecht of the Sister Cities’ Advisory Board also attended the meeting and thanked Central Rotary for its support of what he called “a very worthy project.”

Haley said she would like to be bilingual and believed this was a good start. She is still in contact with the families who were her hosts. Nia said her impressions of Japan included crowded streets, the Tabata Festival (similar to our Fourth of July), learning about Japanese food and a fireworks display on her last night there.

Kevin, who had only been in Lawrence for two days, said he is adjusting quickly and is looking forward to playing soccer at Free State High School where he will be a senior this year.

August 21, 2015
Lawrence Central Welcomes Stephen Mason

Lawrence Central inducted a new member in early August. Stephen Mason who is a recreation center programmer for the Lawrence Parks District. You’ll be hearing more about him in the weeks to come when we schedule his vocation talk. He’s pictured here with sponsoring member Glenn Davis and Club President Kate Campbell.

Welcome Stephen!

August 14, 2015
Becca Burns Discusses Shelter, Help, and Hope from The Willow

Becca Burns presents Kate Campbell with a certificate of appreciation from the Willow.

Shelter, Help, Hope are the offerings of The Willow Domestic Violence Center and Becca Burns, Willow director of Volunteer Services , outlined each for Central Rotarians on July 29. Burns also presented Central Rotary president Kate Campbell with a certificate of appreciation for the club’s support of The Willows through donations of goods and services.

Domestic violence is not just physical violence, although it is often included, Burns said. Violence can be psychological, financial, sexual and spiritual. Abusers can use threats, manipulation, and isolation against a partner.

And, even when children are not the target of the abuser, although 40 to 60 percent are, 100 percent of children who live in an abusive home are damaged.The most resilient children are the ones who have a good relationship with the non-abusive parent and connections to other loved ones, she said.

The Willow offers a 24-hour hot line, a safe shelter home, court advocacy, and intervention. It provides a range of services for children both in the shelter and in the community, ranging from art and music programs to healthy parent classes and information about the effects of domestic violence on children.

“One of our most important jobs,” Burns said “is to make sure people know they are believed and that resources are readily available.It also helps all victims of abuse to know, through The Willow, that others have been through this and are now doing well. It takes away the isolation.”

The Willow hot line phone is 785-843-3333.

August 5, 2015
We’ll Miss You Carolyn DeSalvo

As the Rotary year came to a close we bid farewell to 2014-2015 President Carolyn DeSalvo. It was a bittersweet meeting because no only was she stepping down from the role of President, she also was leaving Lawrence Central as she is moving with her husband Frank DeSalvo to Washington state where she plans to open up a new integrated medicine practice.

She was surprised a the meeting by her long-time Rotarian father honored her with a Paul Harris Fellowship in her name.

Her wit, wisdom, and steadfast support of our club will be missed. We’ve heard that she is already being heavily recruited by the local rotary clubs in her new hometown.

August 2, 2015
Local Counselor Abby Young Uses Heart–Centered Hypnotherapy To Help Patients

Abby Young is a licensed counselor who uses hypnotherapy in her work. “But,” she said smiling at her audience of Central Rotary Rotarians, “it’s not the kind of entertainment hypnosis people have heard about. I don’t make people quack like a duck.”

She is a graduate of KU in journalism and worked for a while as a photojournalist. But episodes of depression and anxiety prompted her to consult a therapist who helped her and spurred her interest in social work and therapy.

“An entrepreneurial shift and an undirected life shift” are what she said led her to take training in hypnotherapy.

“Stage hypnosis is a state that resembles sleep,” she said. “Hypnotherapy is the use of a relaxed state to provide therapeutic benefit. “Ten percent of our thinking is conscious,” she said “ 90 percent deals with the subconscious—long term memories, emotions, habit patterns, addictions, creativity all dwell in the subconscious.”

She trained in the Wellness Institute style and works a lot with age regression, taking some of her clients back to childhood.

“People repress emotions and don’t experience them fully. Going in deeper makes people uncomfortable but we can experience emotions, work on expressing them and come to new conclusions.”

She is a counselor with Tillery Time Counseling with offices in Lawrence and Ottawa and is one of the leaders for a Good Earth Gatherings workshop, August 22 in Baldwin “Letting Go: Living Free of Shame.”

July 24, 2015