Rotary Club News

The Coast Guard Foundation, a non-profit organization committed to the education and welfare of all Coast Guard members and their families, announced today the completion of the Captain Jimmie H. Hobaugh Coast Guard Community Center. The Foundation will host a ribbon cutting ceremony and grand opening celebration on Monday, July 27 at 1:00 p.m. in Sault Ste. Marie, Michigan. Anne Brengle, Coast Guard Foundation president; RDML June Ryan, commander for Coast Guard District 9 (Cleveland); and CAPT Stephen Teschendorf, captain of the port will share remarks. The grand opening is the culmination of a project that has been under development since 2001 – the Coast Guard Foundation took up the cause three years ago to bring the project to fruition.

A small feeder container vessel ran aground off the coast of Papua New Guinea. A large part of its cargo consisted of 32 containers of mosquito nets owned by international charitable organization the Rotary Club through their subsidiary Rotarians Against Malaria, a not-for-profit Non-Governmental Organization (NGO) engaged in a program aimed at eliminating Malaria in Papua New Guinea by the use of Long Lasting Insecticidal Mosquito Nets (LLIN’s) which are delivered free of charge to every household in Papua New Guinea. The nets aboard the grounded vessel were not insured and the charity simply did not have the funds to pay a salvage award.

Fairweather, LLC has announced the appointment of Lori Davey as the company’s new general manager. Davey will be responsible for directing all of Fairweather’s business activities and overseeing the company’s expansion and management of Deadhorse Aviation Center. A member of the Edison Chouest Offshore group of companies, Fairweather LLC is a 38-year-old Alaskan company and a leader in providing remote medical, aviation, logistics and scientific support services to Alaska’s natural resource industry.

Attorney Stephen H. DonCarlos was appointed to the Port Commission of the Port of Houston Authority by the Harris County Mayors and Councils Association on Sept. 19. The Harris County Mayors and Councils Association is an organization representing 26 cities in Harris County. Port Commissioners serve two-year terms without pay. DonCarlos was named to the seat previously held by Jimmy Burke. Burke  had served as Port Commissioner since 1999. An attorney with Reid, Strickland & Gillette, L.L.P., DonCarlos was elected as Mayor of the City of Baytown in May 2006.

Lorianna Kastrop has been elected as Chair of the Redwood City Port Commission, the first woman to hold the position in the Port's 76-year history. In June 2008, Kastrop was the second woman in history appointed to the Port Commission. The first was Marguerite Leipzig, in the early 1980s, after having served on the Redwood City Council, including two years as mayor. Kastrop was reappointed to the Port Commission in 2012. Kastrop is vice president and controller of The Kastrop Group, Inc. architectural firm, of which her husband, Michael, is principal architect.

Global Diving & Salvage, Inc. welcomed John Ferguson, Business Development Manager, to their Offshore Support Division. Ferguson has over 17 years of experience in the offshore and international Oil and Gas industry. He will be using his expertise to prepare for opening a Houston office as the General Manager. His current responsibilities include expanding Global's commercial diving, ROV, and environmental services within the Gulf of Mexico region and evaluating international market potential.

WIN Group, the Haitian conglomerate that owns and operates Terminal Varreux in Port-au-Prince, situated just five miles from the epicenter of the January 12 earthquake, and Seacor Holdings Inc. (NYSE: CKH) have launched an emergency response project to enable the crucial marine terminal to resume receiving bulk fuel and containerized cargoes thereby replenishing the stricken country’s rapidly dwindling supplies of gasoline, diesel fuel, fuel oil, propane gas and edible oils used for cooking. Terminal Varreux receives and stores in excess of 70% of Haiti’s fuel oil used for power plants, gasoline and diesel used for land-based fueling stations, propane used for multiple applications and edible oils used for cooking.

Suzy Kelly, CEO of Jo-Kell Inc., received Inside Business’s 2008 Women in Business Achievement Award. The award was presented at a luncheon on December 15th at the Norfolk Waterside Marriott. Jo-Kell is an electrical distributor and solutions provider servicing the military, commercial marine, and industrial marketplace. Kelly is involved locally in Lead Hampton Roads and the Chamber of Commerce. On a National level, Kelly is the Mid-Atlantic regional vice chair for the Aircraft Carrier Industrial Base Coalition and founding partner in Women Impacting Public Policy.

The Los Angeles-class, fast-attack submarine USS Providence (SSN 719) and residents celebrated their namesake relationship during "USS Providence Day" June 9. "USS Providence Day" is a one-day community outreach effort designed to foster the relationship between residents and their namesake submarine. "We've enjoyed a long and prosperous relationship with the city of ," said Cmdr. Michael Holland, commanding officer. "USS Day" was composed of numerous outreach events, including engagements with area business and civic leaders and visits to local organizations. During a visit to the , crew members toured the facility and spoke with patients. "This is just a great day for me," said Army veteran and patient Thomas Quartino.

Adm. Owen W. Siler, 85, commandant of the U.S. Coast Guard from 1974 to 1978, died from heart failure July 17 at St. Joseph's hospital in Atlanta. A World War II veteran, Siler served in combat duty aboard two ships in the Pacific and participated in the occupation of Northern Honshu, Japan, following Japan's surrender. His Coast Guard career highlights included serving as a deck officer afloat, as an aviator performing search and rescue patrols, and ashore in the law enforcement, marine safety and environmental protection fields. Other assignments included chief of the search and rescue branch in Juneau, Alaska, deputy chief of staff in Washington…