9/21/2009 Laurie Lachance Assesses the Maine Economy
Sergeant at Arms
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Janet Parkhurst was our Sergeants of Arms today. Thanks Janet!!!!!
Greeter
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Rick MacKenzie served as Greeter today. Doug Legg will be our Greeter for the September 21st meeting.
50/50 Tickets
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Nancy Gallagher sold $98 for the 50/50 raffle today and Lucille Zelenkewich was the winner of $49. Lucille will sell tickets next week. Jo Dennis won 10 free tickets in next week's 50/50 drawing on September 21st.
World Service Cup
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The donations for this month's World Service Cup will go to support efforts to address Post Polio Syndrome, which affects polio survivors many years after the initial onset of the affliction.
Fined for pictures in the Paper
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No one had their picture in the paper last week and so there were no fines levied.
Cell Phones
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A $10.00 fee for cell phone ringing continues for the 2008-2009 Club year. No fines assessed today.
On Leave
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Cam McKay
Joan Phillips-Sandy
Paul LePage
Visiting Rotarians and Guests
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Erica Humphrey introduced Roger Woolsley, Director of the Career Center at Colby.
Suzanne Uhl-Melanson welcomed Cliff Hannon from the Waterville Sunrise Club.
What can you do?
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* Tell Board Members what you are passionate about for community projects
* Tell the program committee about interesting speakers/topics you would like to listen to
* Be involved, join a committee
* Be active
* Be positive
Happy Dollars
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Seth Sherwood shared a great experience taking their kids to Storyland recently.
Suzanne Uhl-Melanson shared an interesting tale of the challenges she and Jeff had to overcome last week end getting their dock in for the season.
Paula Mitchell was glad to be back from a 20 hour round trip to Watertown, NY to see her grandson play in a high school football game. Good luck with the scouts, Paula!. South Bend is an even longer hike!!!
Marc Pitman shared his experience recently camping out with a group of students who were going through a holes experience in the parking lot of the United Methodist Church recently in order to create an awareness of the homelessness problem here in Waterville. He applauded the youth for initiating this experience.
Nikki thanked the Club for sponsoring her attendance at the recent RYLA week end in the Forks. She came away a little bruised but had a very good week end.
Karen Heck recommends that everyone should experience hiking on the Bold Coast of Maine up in Washington County. She and Bruce had a great time there recently. She also recounted the tale of their lost .. and subsequently found dingy down on the coast. Finally she is very happy and excited about everything the Club is planning for this year around the issue of domestic violence and noted that the impetus is coming from others beside herself.
Jo Dennis recounted a great time she and some friends had on Snow Pond recently with Gary and Martha Hammond.
Kim Lindlof shared that her stepson, Jared Poulin, will soon be heading out on a national tour of the musical Altar Boyz in which he will be playing the lead character.
Sarah Sugden is very happy about Madeline's 1st birthday; the availability of penicillin; and for a road trip she and her 2 sisters took to Cape Cod for a family wedding recently. They had a wonderful time on the Cape and even survived a flooded I-95 north of Boston on the way back.
Announcements:
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Tim Beals provided the Club with a review of the Auction slip guidelines for this year:
* The Auction will be held on December 2 & 3 this year.
* Note a change in venue: This year it will be at Central Maine Motors on KMD.
* $25 minimum to be announced on the radio.
* No used goods.
* Cash is good.
* Slips need to be back by October 20th.
* Pink slips go to the donor. White and Yellow slips get returned.
* For Professional Contacts in the region: Please write down any professional contacts you might have in the region (physicians, lawyers, accountants, therapists, etc). Tim and the committee are trying to arrange for some 1:1 contact to work with this group more effectively.
Nancy announced that the PR Committee will be meeting right after today's meeting.
Nikki announced the Domestic Violence Vigil that will be occurring from 5 to 7 on October 7th at Castonguay Square.
Upcoming speaker schedule:
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September 28, 2009 Tom McAdam, Kennebec Behavioral Health
October 5, 2009 Jacob Blondin and Drew Drummond, International Woodfuels
October 12, 2009 Columbus Day, NO MEETING
October 19, 2009 Garret Martin, Maine Center for Economic Policy- National Health Reformfuels
October 26, 2009 Anita Diaz, Rotary Youth Exchange Student from Argnetina
Waterville Rotary Club Web Site
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http://www.clubrunner.ca/waterville
Today's Program: An Overview of Maine's Economic Indicators (Laurie Lachance, President of the Maine Development Foundation)
Mike Roy introduced today's speaker, Laurie Lachance, CEO of the Maine Development Foundation. The subject of her presentation was Finding Opportunities in our Economic Challenges.
Where we are now: Recessions have been occurring in the 70s and into the 90s. Oil prices triggered many past recessions. This time oil prices were again a factor in Maine, surpassing its effect in the early 80s. The stock market simultaneously tumbled again. People had been outspending their resources. We are now beginning to bounce back.
Federal interest rates have not been having their usual balancing effect. Credit card and mortgage delinquency rates are rising.
Maine's last recession was in the early 90s. Maine lost 35,000 jobs. Between 2007 and July of this year we lost 23,000 jobs.
Maine has had job growth between 1995 and 2007. Manufacturing employment dropped from 17% to 10%. Health care rose from 10% to 16%. This is above the national average and a red flag. Maine's unemployment in July was 8.5%â€"below the national average.
Auto sales and building supplies (Maine's two largest tax revenue areas) dipped into negative growth in the last two years. Building permits are below 1990 levels. Requests for food stamps are up, as are bankruptcy filings.
Population growth from 1970 to the present averaged .4% annually. This growth is uneven: southern Maine has the largest growth, Aroostook County the smallest. Our birth rate is lower, and we are aging as a state. The midcoast has the highest average age. Kennebec County is slightly above the average age. The population is moving to rural areas, raising urban costs for providing services.
Closing the income gap between Maine and the US is the most important action we can take.
Maine's productivity rate is 24% lower than the rest of the US. Maine's businesses are not investing in themselves.
What to do:
* Invest in higher education. It will raise employment potential and earnings.
* Invest more in research and development. We are losing our younger people to southern New England.
* Invest in infrastructure. 12% of our bridges need repair, as do 25% of our roads.
* Invest in the telecommunications infrastructure.
* Reduce the cost of doing business in Maine. This cost is 7% higher than the national average. The housing affordability index is dropping.
* Cut health care costs. They are 50% higher in Maine than the national average. Medicaid costs have quadrupled since 1990.
* Cut electricity costs. They are 40% above the national average.
* Cut taxes
* Raise per-capita income. Maine's annual per-capita income is $13,000+ lower than the New England average.
After her presentation, Sarah presented Laurie with a Rotary Four Way Test keychain with the thanks of the club.