Stories

Rotary, Rotaract and Interact (from the Gaithersburg Rotary Club Newsletter)

Member of the Senate since September 17, 2013. Vice-Chair, Finance Committee, 2019- (member, 2013-; property & casualty subcommittee, 2015-17; chair, transportation subcommittee, 2015-16; chair, health subcommittee, 2017-18; chair, energy & public utilities subcommittee, 2019-; member, health & long-term care subcommittee, 2019-). Member, Workers Compensation Benefit and Insurance Oversight Committee, 2015-; Executive Nominations Committee, 2019-; Legislative Policy Committee, 2019-; Joint Committee on Legislative Ethics, 2019-; Marijuana Legalization Work Group, 2019-. Senate Chair, Joint Electric Universal Service Program Work Group, 2020-. Member, Joint Information Technology and Biotechnology Committee, 2014; Joint Committee on Cybersecurity, Information Technology, and Biotechnology, 2014-18. Senate Chair, Joint Committee on Federal Relations, 2015-18 (member, 2014-18). Associate member, Women Legislators of Maryland, 2018-. Member, National Conference of State Legislatures, 2016- (vice-chair, communications, financial services & interstate commerce standing committee, 2016-18, member, 2019-; member, executive committee task force on state & local taxation, 2018-; energy supply task force, 2019-). Member, Eastern Regional Conference Council of State Governments, 2019- (energy & environment committee, 2019-; health committee, 2019-).

Member, Maryland Offshore Wind Business Development Advisory Committee, 2013-14; Maryland Electric Vehicle Infrastructure Council, 2013-17. Board of Directors, Metropolitan Washington Council of Governments, 2014- (human services & public safety policy committee, 2017-). Member, Transit Task Force, Montgomery County, 2015; Task Force on the Maryland Achieving a Better Life Experience (ABLE) Program, 2015-16; Task Force to Study Maternal Mental Health, 2015-16; Maryland Economic Development Commission, 2015-. Co-Chair, Task Force to Study Family and Medical Leave Insurance, 2016-18. Senate Chair, Maryland Health Insurance Coverage Protection Commission, 2017-. Member, Southern States Energy Board, 2019-.

Member of House of Delegates, representing District 15, Montgomery County, January 8, 2003 to September 17, 2013. Parliamentarian, 2011-13. Member, Economic Matters Committee, 2003-13 (business regulation subcommittee, 2003-10; corporations work group, 2003-06; property & casualty insurance subcommittee, 2003-13; consumer protection & commercial law subcommittee, 2007-10; chair, banking, economic development, science & technology subcommittee, 2007-13); Medical Malpractice Insurance Work Group, 2004; Joint Committee on Access to Mental Health Services, 2005-11. House Chair, Joint Technology Oversight Committee, 2007-09. Member, Joint Committee on Administrative, Executive and Legislative Review, 2007-13. House Chair, Joint Information Technology and Biotechnology Committee, 2009-13. Member, Rules and Executive Nominations Committee, 2011-13; Regional Revitalization Work Group, 2013-. House Chair, Montgomery County Delegation, 2007-12 (transportation committee, 2003-07; county affairs committee, 2011-13). Member, Maryland Veterans Caucus, 2005-. Member, National Conference of State Legislatures (financial services committee, 2005-07; vice-chair, communications, financial services & interstate commerce committee, 2016-, member, 2007-).

Member, Task Force on Assistance to Disabled Veterans Establishing Small Businesses, 2005.

Trial attorney, Tax Division, U.S. Department of Justice, 1988-2001

David M. Feehan is a world recognized expert in downtown revitalization. For more than forty years, he has provided leadership and management to successful downtown and business district organizations, founded and directed a technical assistance center for community development organizations and a public policy organization, authored numerous books and articles, and taught at two universities. He is often quoted by news media throughout North America, the Caribbean, and elsewhere. He is a frequent speaker at conferences and meetings, and has provided consulting services to many government agencies, organizations and associations. He has served on numerous boards of directors, and has chaired the boards of the International Downtown Association, the Responsible Hospitality Institute, and other organizations. As the chief executive of three downtown organizations and one community development corporation, Feehan managed major real estate and infrastructure projects, successful business attraction and retention programs, and an award-winning parking system. As the chief executive of two technical assistance centers, he provided organizational development, marketing, fundraising and other management support to more than 500 nonprofit organizations. As a consultant, Feehan has helped downtown and business district organizations as well as units of government develop visions and missions, strategic plans, innovative programs, and transformational processes.As an author and professor, he co-edited and wrote the most recognized textbook on downtown management, Making Business Districts Work, and is a frequent writer for journals and trade publications. 

Marilyn Balcombe is the President /CEO of the Gaithersburg-Germantown Chamber of Commerce.  Marilyn is actively involved in land use planning, transportation and economic development. Her primary focus is bringing jobs to the Upcounty.  Marilyn Balcombe is currently on FutureLink and a Past Chair of the Committee for Montgomery. Marilyn is also on the Leadership Group of Montgomery Moving Forward. Prior to being at the Chamber, Marilyn was with BlackRock Center for the Arts in Germantown as the Executive Director during the construction and the first year of operations.  She was also on staff at the Upcounty Regional Services Center as the Community Outreach Coordinator for the Germantown community.  Prior to her work in the community, Dr. Balcombe was an Organizational Psychologist with the U.S. Department of Energy.  She holds a Ph.D. is Organizational Psychology from the University of Tennessee, Knoxville; a Masters degree in Mental Health Counseling from the University of Florida, and a Bachelors degree in Accounting also from the University of Florida.

"I've been doing journalism since the age of 6, when I launched the late, lamented Levey's News (circulation: 1). I served as editor, publisher, columnist, and crayon-er. My mother still has copies for the curious.  My college diploma says I majored in English, but I actually majored in editing the student newspaper. I took over as editor-in-chief on Nov. 22, 1963 (talk about your basic baptism by fire). I did everything from paste-up to tossing bundles on front stoops. It qualified me for my first professional job: cub reporter for the Albuquerque Tribune, a Scribbs-Howard p.m.  I spent 13 months there before falling in love with a young woman who lived in D.C. While on a Labor Day, 1967, visit to her, I decided to apply to the Post. It lasted. We didn't.  In my first 14 years on the staff, I worked as (in order) night police reporter, day police reporter, roving national political reporter, assistant city editor, courts reporter, District Building reporter, Capitol Hill reporter, feature writer, assistant sports editor, and feature writer again.  In June 1981, I was asked to write a daily column. Having tried just about everything else, I signed up. It lasted. Somehow, 3,000 columns later, I have too.  I was born in Manhattan and grew up in the Bronx. I escaped at a tender age to attend the University of Chicago, where I earned a BA with special honors.  I've worked for seven local radio stations and four local TV stations as a commentator and talk show host. I've taught journalism at three local universities. I'm a life master and regional champion at tournament bridge, and I still play competitive slow-pitch softball (good field, spotty hit).  I'm married to historian (and recovering journalist) Jane Freundel Levey. I have two children, both of whom profess to be bored by newspapers, but there's time."

Visit Montgomery, MD is the destination marketing organization for Montgomery County, Maryland – located just north of Washington, DC. Whether you’re traveling to the Metropolitan area for business or leisure, we’re here to bring you helpful information about our area, no matter the season.

The mission of Visit Montgomery is to give our visitors useful information for a visit to Montgomery County and Washington, DC area and to enthusiastically promote, market, and sell Montgomery County, Maryland as a destination for meetings, conventions and travelers, fostering economic development and benefiting and supporting members and the overall business community. We love advocating, promoting, and partnering with local, county and state organizations and government officials in an effort to further these goals.

Close. For Comfort

As the Vice President for External Affairs, Francey Lim Youngberg manages the teams responsible for marketing, communications, fund development, vehicle donations, volunteer recruitment, and special events.  She brings to Melwood 30 years of experience from the private, nonprofit and public sectors including congressional and intergovernmental relations, public affairs/public engagement, fundraising, advocacy, and volunteer management.  Previously, Francey was a presidential appointee under the Obama Administration.  For seven years, she served as the Deputy Assistant Secretary for Public Engagement and Deputy Assistant Secretary for Intergovernmental Affairs for the U. S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD).  She was responsible for managing the key stakeholder relationships of the HUD Secretary to advance the Agency’s budgetary and policy priorities in Congress and in the media.  Francey also represented HUD at several White House councils and initiatives. She led HUD’s team in creating the multi-year agency plans and delivering on their stated goals.

Prior to joining HUD, Francey advised clients for 10 years on cultural competency, merchant and community outreach, minority recruitment, language access needs, and fundraising. Her clients included the Smithsonian, D.C. Government, D.C. Metro Police Department, H Street Community Development Corporation, as well as federal agencies and nonprofits.

Prior to consulting, Ms. Youngberg was a tax attorney for Morgan Lewis in Philadelphia, and Hogan & Lovells in D.C. and a regulatory attorney for the Commodity Futures Trading Commission. She left legal practice to serve as the founding Executive Director of the Asian Pacific American Institute for Congressional Studies.  Ms. Youngberg graduated from Wellesley College and Harvard Law School.  

Dr. Mary Lynne Dittmar is President and CEO of the Coalition for Deep Space Exploration, an industry trade group supporting human exploration, science, and commerce in deep space.  Under her leadership the Coalition has grown from 5 companies to more than 60 over the past three years and is a well-regarded source of information, policy thought leadership, and education in support of NASA’s programs, the aerospace industry, and national leadership in space.

Before starting her own consulting firm in 2004, Dr. Dittmar coordinated R&D and later managed Flight Operations for The Boeing Company on the International Space Station Program. More recently she was Senior Policy Advisor to the Center for the Advancement of Science in Space (CASIS), which manages the International Space Station National Laboratory.  She has also served as a senior advisor to NASA, the DoD, and the FAA.

Mary Lynne is a Fellow of the National Research Society, an Associate Fellow of the American Institute for Astronautics and Aeronautics, and serves on the Board of Directors of the American Astronautical Society.  From 2012-2014 she was a member of the National Research Council Committee on Human Spaceflight, and is currently in her second term as a member of the Executive Committee of the Space Studies Board of the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering and Medicine.  In June of 2018 she was appointed by the NASA Administrator to the User’s Advisory Group of the National Space Council.  She resides in Washington, D.C.

Dr. Mary Lynne Dittmar will talk about the business of space, why space exploration is valuable and how we can all benefit.  The Coalition for Deep Space Exploration is an alliance of space industry businesses and advocacy groups collaborating to reinforce the value and benefits of deep space exploration with the public and our nation's leaders.  The goal is to build lasting support for a long-term, sustainable, strategic direction for human space exploration and science, ensuring that the U.S. remains a leader in space, science and technology.

Perspectives on the Public Interest features adapted Public Interest Podcast interviews with those who seek to improve the state of the world. These conversations are intended to ennoble public service, create a platform for positive civil discourse, and facilitate dialogue with difference.

The stories within these pages provide insight into the lives of men and women who seek to leave the world better than they found it. In this book explore the imaginative, iterative process of discovery that led to the identification of autoimmune disease. Delve into a behind-the-scenes look at how major news networks shape national discourse. Learn how one entrepreneur uses business to create social change. Glean wisdom from politicians of varying partisan persuasions. Gain insight into the corruption that riddles the United Nations, the effects of the Civil Rights Movement and the Vietnam War on the rise of the Nation of Islam, and how communist and totalitarian regimes collapsed amid tales of assassination and intrigue.

Lylie Fisher is the facilitator of Montgomery County Maryland’s Caregiver Support Program. In this role she improves coordination and collaboration amongst caregiver providers, designs culturally diverse communication strategies and identifies how best to increase the availability of resources for caregivers. Ms Fisher is: the lead for Montgomery County’s Dementia Friendly initiative, forging public-private partnerships that generate positive community and business strategies; and a Member of the Maryland Commission on Caregiving.  Prior to joining the County Ms Fisher was the Director of Community Engagement with Iona Senior Services in Washington DC. Under her leadership Iona established the successful Take Charge/Age Well Academy.Originally from Australia Ms Fisher is a recipient of an Australia Council Fellowship for her contributions to national community cultural development. She became an International Research Fellow at San Francisco State University, and has lived in the United States since 1998. Ms Fisher has a BA in Visual Arts, Graduate Certificates in Communications and Social Sciences, and Advanced Graduate Certificate in Transformational Coaching. For over twenty years Ms Fisher has facilitated dynamic programs that support organizations, communities and individuals to powerfully embrace their full potential.

As the Director of the Division of Construction for Montgomery County Public Schools (MCPS), Mr. Seth Adams is responsible for managing operations related to design and construction of school facilities and the implementation of the MCPS Capital Improvements Program. This responsibility spans from the early planning stages to final close out of capital projects. Mr. Adams responsibilities involve matters related to the budget, finances, staffing, resources, project controls, and the development of the annual capital expenditure request and six-year Capital Improvements Program.

Mr. Adams is a licensed Professional Engineer in the State of Maryland and is a Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) Accredited Professional. He received both his Bachelor of Science and Master of Engineering degrees from the University of Maryland.

Laurie Menzel is a Major Gifts Officer for The Rotary Foundation, Zone 33. Laurie’s area of responsibility includes Northern Virginia, West Virginia, Maryland, Washington DC, Delaware, and part of Tennessee. Laurie works from her home office in Alexandria, Virginia and travels throughout the area to meet individually with donors. Laurie comes to Rotary after three years with Girl Scouts’ Nation’s Capital, the largest Girl Scout Council in the U.S., where she was a key member of their major gifts team. In addition to securing major gifts, she chaired their Planned Giving Outreach Committee, which worked closely with volunteers to identify and cultivate potential planned gifts from their peer members; created major donor recognition events; and trained their board members on fundraising. Prior to moving to the Washington DC area, she spent 13 years in Stuttgart, Germany through her husband’s career in the Air Force. Laurie earned a Master’s degree in Non-Profit Management from Regis University. She is a Rotarian (West Springfield, VA club) and remains active with local community service projects. 

Ronnie T. Davis is the president and founder of Longstream Coaching and Training LLC.  With the desire to help people reach their potential and vision, Ronnie has taken herself from educator to certified coach and trainer. With twenty years of motivating individuals to plan, achieve and succeed, Ronnie works with individuals, groups and businesses providing personalized coaching and training.

Ronnie holds a B.S. degree in Elementary Education and Masters Degree in Education, as well as a Certification in Administration from Towson University.  She is a certified Personal Life Coach, Social + Emotional Intelligence Coach and Career/Business Coach, a DiSC specialist and has a certificate in Applied Positive Psychology. 

Ronnie is a charter member and past president of the Southern Harford County Rotary, the area membership chair for Rotary District 7620/ District 1, and sits on the District's education committee.  She is on the Board of Directors of Freedom Federal Credit Union, a board member of The Chesapeake Professional Women's Network and past chair for the Harford County Commission for Women. She is on the Governance Committee for the Arc Northern Chesapeake and the Chair of the Membership Committee for the Women's Giving Circle. Ronnie was nominated for the Athena award in 2012 and 2014.  She is the past Area Director of the Professional Referral Exchange.

Rotarians from the RC of Kathmandu Mid-Town and Dr. Milan Maharjan, Chairperson of Ear Care Nepal (ECN), appear in the picture below.  The big piece of equipment is an operating microscope that will be used in the performance of ear surgeries.  To the right is a portable, battery operated audiometer, which is used to facilitate ear screening without access to electricity.  This piece of equipment is needed to overcome problems posed by frequent power outages in Nepal; and an impedance meter, a very important diagnostic tool that ECN can now use to perform better diagnoses of ear problems prior to surgery.  Global Grant 1637950 provided this equipment at a cost of approximately $19,000.  The Grant is also paying for the screening of 5000 Nepalese children for hearing problems and ear surgery for 100 good candidates for ear surgery to prevent or reduce hearing loss.

The Rotary Club of Potomac-Bethesda is the international sponsor of this Global Grant.  The Rotary Club of Kathmandu Mid-Town is the host Club.  Additionally, financial contributions were provided by the Rotary Clubs of Bethesda-Chevy Chase, Metro Bethesda, and Pleasant Valley, New York, as well as various individual donors.

Dare to Dream, How Rotary Became the Heart and Soul of Polio Eradication, is a high-quality, full-length documentary film that tells the story of how a small group of visionary Rotary leaders dared to set a breathtaking goal of eradicating polio for all of the children of the world. In doing so, they laid the groundwork for the single most successful public health coalition in history.  This film gives Rotarians, and non-Rotarians, the back-story to the incredible decision to eradicate polio. Audiences will be astounded to learn that the Rotary Foundation was not involved in the early days of polio eradication, that the public health community was not interested in eradicating single diseases, and that several prominent Rotary leaders were vehemently opposed to Rotary getting involved with service projects on a global scale.  Yet three successive RI Presidents along with a few other extraordinary Rotary leaders pursued a grand vision and eventually overcame all obstacles in setting Rotary on a course that, more than thirty years later, is set to achieve the most incredible public health victory the world has ever seen.

Tom & Barbara Allen are passionate advocates for all things substance related. Their Maryland based nonprofit James’ Place Inc. provides education, advocacy and scholarships for recovery housing. 

Tom is a past president of the Rotary Club of Columbia-Patuxent and a retire fire protection engineer. Barbara’s career includes many years in executive positions in the computer industry, executive coaching and yoga teacher. 

Barbara’s beloved son, Jim, died in March, 2003. He struggled with substance use disorder for almost 22 years losing the battle to an overdose of heroin and alcohol. Additionally, Barbara’s brother, Bill, and niece, Amanda, also lost their lives as a result of this disease. The ups and downs of these three important people led to the work Barbara & Tom do today. Establishing James’ Place, Inc. and its educational arm Shatter the Stigma® are important means to share knowledge and help other families know they are not alone.  Barbara serves on various local, state and national coalitions and is co-chair of Maryland’s Behavioral Health Advisory Council.  Barbara & Tom are active members of The Compassionate Friends (TCF) since 2003. TCF supports parents, grandparents and siblings who have lost a loved one to any cause, at any age. Barbara served on the national TCF Board of Directors, Barbara is Chapter leader and Tom is treasurer for the Patapsco Valley Chapter in Ellicott City, Maryland

Barwood serves over 5,000 customers per day. Many of Montgomery County’s government leaders and citizens have expressed appreciation for such efficient and dependable transportation services. Montgomery County, the State of Maryland, and the International Taxi and Livery Association have bestowed Barwood with various awards and honors.  With a national reputation as an industry leader, Barwood is highly innovative among ground transportation companies. Every phase of the business is computerized. In 1989 Barwood became one of only 15 companies in the United States to go online with a fully computerized dispatch system that included terminals in the taxis. This technology greatly reduced dispatch time and enhances customer service. Since 2002 Barwood has employed GPS technology, which has many benefits for passengers, drivers, and the vehicles.

January is Rotary's Vocational Service Month

Susan Glover currently serves as VP & Chief Quality Officer for Adventist HealthCare. In this role she provides overall direction for quality and performance improvement in Adventist HealthCare as well as facilitate the design and implementation of tolls and processes to enhance the quality of health care delivery.  Susan is also responsible for the development of services in the Education Institute and in the Prevention and Wellness departments of Adventist HealthCare.  Adventist HealthCare is a non-profit, network on health care services that includes hospitals, home health agencies, nursing centers and other health care services.  Based in Rockville, Adventist employs more than 7,000 people and cares for over 200,000 patients each year among its various entities and services.

Clyde Prestowitz is founder and President of the Economic Strategy Institute. His leadership has propelled ESI into an important role in the public policy process, influencing and often defining the terms of the debate in the areas of international trade policy, economic competitiveness, and the effects of globalization. Mr. Prestowitz has played key roles in achieving congressional passage of NAFTA and in shaping the final content of the Uruguay Round, as well as providing the intellectual basis for current U.S. trade policies toward Japan, China, and Korea.  The Economic Strategy Institute (ESI) is a private, non-profit, non-partisan public policy research organization dedicated to assuring that globalization works with market forces to achieve maximum benefits rather than distorting markets, and imposing costs. This should be achieved on the basis of principles, policies, and institutions consistent with democratic values. Because security and national welfare will increasingly depend on performance in the global marketplace, the Economic Strategy Institute is particularly concerned with developing national and corporate strategies to assure that globalization takes place on a level playing field and the reality is mutually beneficial.

Family will be receiving friends through Friday evening, October 13th and holding Shiva Minyan at 7pm on Monday, October 9th and Tuesday, October 10th. Memorial contributions may be made to CHI, Inc., 10501 New Hampshire Ave, Silver Spring, MD 20903 or to the Montgomery County Humane Society, 601 S. Stone Street Ave, Rockville, MD 20850.

Bilal Haq, a scientist and a poet, was formerly at the US National Science Foundation as the director for marine geoscience programs. He is currently a research associate at the Smithsonian Institution in Washington DC and an associated research professor at Sorbonne University’s UPMC in Paris. As a marine geoscientist he has been honored by several professional awards in and marine sciences in the US and Europe. He was elected a member of European Academy of Sciences, and was honored by Sorbonne with doctoris honoris causa degree for his works on sea-level changes of the Phanerozoic and the impact of the on-going sea-level rise on maritime nations. Haq has broad experience in the academia, the industry and the government, and has also held assignments with the White House and the World Bank in Washington DC. He has taught or undertaken research as a visiting professor at many universities around the world, including MIT, Oxford, Cambridge, Copenhagen, Paris, and at Tongji University in China. His research career also includes a twelve-years tenure at Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution and six years with Exxon Production Research Company.

In geosciences Haq’s publications are amongst some of the most cited. The influence of this work can also be gauged by the inclusion of one of his paper (Haq et al., 1987) published in Science Magazine that is listed among the 100 most influential publications in Geosciences of all times, a list that includes such luminaries as Lyell, Darwin, Hutton and Milankovitch. He has also been honored by his peers by the naming of a marine plankton species and a fossil genus after him.

As a poet Bilal Haq has published four volumes of verse since 2015. Because he has spent most of his career trying to find hidden patterns in Nature, our planet’s past conditions, its ancient oceans and climates, his research took him to some of the most pristine places on Earth that reveal what our World could be like if we had the foresight and will to rehabilitate it. His poetic message is a simple one that we have to relearn to live in peace with Nature if we are to endure. He divides his time between Paris, France, and Washington, DC.

As you know, Hurricane Harvey has hit Texas and Louisiana very hard.  The Rotary District in coordination with the Disaster Aid USA is starting a fund drive.  Please see the Press Release.  Individually and as a club, I urge you to donate generously.  Rotary's theme this year is Make A Difference.  Its time to make a difference.

Your donations will provide the funds for the volunteers to handle disaster related relief from Hurricane Harvey and direct assistance to the victims of the flood.

Donations are needed urgently, and checks (payable to DAUSA) can be mailed to: Disaster Aid USA, 9817 Lanham Severn Road, Lanham, MD 20706. Online donations can be made by visiting the website - www.disasteraidusa.org and clicking-on the PayPal button. DAUSA is a tax-exempt 501-c-3 type organization, and all donations are tax-free. Questions may be directed to:

Paul Mahata (Pmahata@verizon.net) or Bob Grill (Bob.Grill@DisasterAidUSA.org)

Greg Wims
District Governor
Rotary District 7620 of RI