Spindrift February 4, 2021
ZOOM MEETING/ IN MEMORIAM: JOHN KRUSE
Last Thursday’s meeting was broadcasted exclusively on Zoom. President George Lesley opened with an invocation asking for support and strength for Paula Kruse and family on the passing of her husband, John Kruse, an active member of our Club for the past 23 years. John served as President of ECNH in 2003-4, and was instrumental in having the Spindrift published on a weekly basis, as it is today. His obituary appeared in the January 30, 2021 edition of the LA Times. NB City Council-man and ECNH Member Will O’Neill will be adjourning the next CC Meeting in John’s honor. A date for a service in John’s memory has not been set. May he rest in peace.
Roy Shlemon led the group of 21 participants with the Pledge of Allegiance to Old Glory.
Pres. George furnished an interesting bit of trivia regarding our U.S. paper currency: Andrew Jackson is currently on our $20 bill, to be replaced with Harriet Tubman, political activist, and abolitionist before and during the Civil War, who escaped slavery and conducted the Underground Railroad helping to free 300 slaves…. Faces on the following denominations: $2- Thomas Jefferson; $50- Ulysses S. Grant; $100- Ben Franklin; $500- Wm. McKinley; $1,000- Grover Cleveland; $5,000- James Madison; $10,000- Salmon Chase. Ed. Note: All of the high-denomination bills were last printed in 1945 and were officially discontinued in 1969 by the Federal Reserve due to lack of use.
ANNOUNCEMENTS
The CA/NV District Exchange has sold out on its fundraising SuperBowl Football Pool, in which members of 18 different Exchange Clubs participated. Pres. George indicated that ECNH should be utilizing such a football pool in future years as a fundraiser….Because of the relaxation of some of the restrictions regarding COVID, the Club will again be having their next meeting this Thursday, 2/4 on their outdoor patio, with lunch being served at or about 12:20 pm. The meeting will also be broadcast on Zoom. Please contact Richard or Bob if you are planning on attending in person.
PROGRAM
Secretary Richard Swinney presented the day’s featured speaker, Rima Nashashibi, who is the Founder and President of Global Hope 365, an organization whose mission is to improve the lives of women and children who have been abused. Their goal is to end harmful practices against women and girls such as child marriage, human trafficking, modern-day slavery, and other forms of gender-based violence. Rima is passionate in her commitment to this cause; in outlining her presentation, she furnished the following interesting points:
CHILD MARRIAGE, defined as a marriage involving a minor under the age of 18, is legal in the U.S… In California, there is no minimum age to marry, and 10 states do not have a minimum age requirement…..Child marriage is legal in 46 states, with only DE, NJ, PA, and MN having laws banning the practice. In the U.S., between 2000 and 2010, about 248,000 child marriages were recorded, most involving young girls (as young as 12).….. Globally, approximately 14 million victims of forced marriage occur on an annual basis.
Global Hope 365 and the CA Coalition to End Child Marriage has defined underage marriage as a fundamental violation of human rights, and the organization is waiting to sponsor legislation on both a State and Federal level to “make child marriage illegal, with no exceptions. To date, 5 Orange County cities (Irvine, Anaheim, Newport Beach, Yorba Linda, and Fullerton) have passed resolutions banning forced marriage involving minors. The AMA has voiced its disapproval of child marriage, noting a higher rate of sexually-transmitted diseases, increase infant and maternal mortality, increase in poverty, and increase in domestic violence and abusive relationships. 80% of such marriages end in divorce.
HUMAN TRAFFICKING: There are over 40 million victims of human trafficking, involving both labor (25 M) and sex (15 M) annually throughout the world…..Human trafficking usually does not involve a violent crime, and often involves spouses, parents, and friends of victims, i.e. individuals who know the victims…..Other motives for trafficking include fraud, force or coercion, and financial gain. Parents are not protecting victims and often give consent to the practice, for financial or other reasons Middle-school and high school students are often recruited by traffickers right on campus, where they are groomed and lured with promises of parties, designer items (e.g. clothing, purses, shoes, etc.), new cell phones; and drugs. Global Hope 365 acts to raise awareness by educating and empowering potential targets, their parents, friends, relatives, and teachers. As the result of the passage of A.B. 1227, curricula are being developed to address the issues at the public school level. Parents and mentors are taught to heed warning signs, such as use of cell phones without adequate parental oversight; sudden drug use; new expensive items; changes in behavior; hiding computer screens; the presence of new, often older friends; etc.
For more information, and/or to become more involved as a volunteer or advocate, please contact Rima at rima@globalhope365.org or Yasmeen at yasmeen@globalhope365.org. You are also encouraged to visit their website at www.cacoalitiontoendchildmarriage.org.
SUPER BOWL QUIZ – Once again, Super Bowl is upon us, and an email was sent to you by Secretary Richard with an Entry Form attached for the Bob Robins Memorial Super Bowl Quiz. If you have not received it, please contact Richard Swinney for a copy. Of importance is that there is a $5 entry fee and that the entry must be received by no later than next Saturday to be eligible for the winnings. All the information you need is printed on the backside of the entry form. Good luck!
Ed. Note: Stay safe! See you all at the meeting!