Club President, Kristin Keller called the meeting to order and welcomed members.
Kevin Courtney offered the prayer and led the pledge to the flag
 
Announcements:
 
Rotary ROCS is 9/24 and there will be many opportunities to volunteer and provide community service along with other Rotarians.  Watch for more details.
 
Rotarian of the Year 2021-22
Kristin recognized Jon Eggert as being the VLR Rotarian of the year.
Jon served as Membership Chair, and Board Director, giving exemplary service to the Club.  Congratulations Jon on this well-deserved award!
 
John Farrenkopf, filling in for Sergeant at Arms, Suzi Oliver provided music as a clue for recent musician/singer deaths, along with some interesting trivia.  John collected Happy Dollars.  It is always a pleasure to have John Cunningham attend a meeting, one reason being that we always enjoy his reporting on Cricket and Soccer.  He did not disappoint and as part of Happy $$ he provided us with these sports facts:  Worldwide rankings/fans : 1. Association Football (soccer) - 4 Billion; 1. Cricket - 2.5 Billion; 3. Hockey - 2 Billion; 4. Tennis - 1 Billion; 5. Volleyball - 900 Million; 6. Table tennis - 875 Million; 7. Basketball - 825 Million; 8. Baseball - 500 Million; 9. Rugby - 475 Million; 10. Golf - 450 Million. USA stats: 1. American Football - 114 Million; 2. Baseball - 40 Million; 3. Basketball - 36 Million; 4. Ice hockey - 28 Million; 5. Tennis 23 Million; 6. Soccer - 16 Million. 
 
Speaker:
Dr. John Newman from Volunteers in Medicine was our speaker.
The mission of VIM is "To understand and serve the health and wellness needs ot the medically underserved and their households, who live or work on Hilton Head and Daufuskie Islands"  Their vision is: "May we have eyes to see those rendered invisible and excluded, open arms and hearts to reach out and include them, healing hands to touch their lives with love and in the process heal ourselves."  VIM was started in 1993 by Dr. Jack McConnell and a pioneer group.  It is the largest free clinic in SC with over 27,000 visits annually and over 50,000 volunteer hours annually. There are 110 physicians and 23 dentists representing 23 medical specialties.  There are now over 100 VIMS across the country which have been modeled after HH, which was the first.  
To be eligible to receive medical care from VIM,  1. Must live or work on HHI or Daufuskie, 2. Be uninsured or underinsured (no usable health insurance), 3.  Be below 250% poverty level.  The need is great and they get around new patients a month.  VIM does not take government funding - it is funded by private donations and grants.  Hope, Purpose and Love - ingredients for a happy life.  They have started a hydroponics Farm-acy.  The entrance to VIM and parking lot is being planted with edible plants and fruit trees for all to have access to healthy food, emphasizing the importance of fruits and vegetables to wellness.  Visit their website for more information:  vimclinic.org