Greetings fellow Rotarians! Our speakers today were Dave Bittersdorf and Charlie Moore. Shortly after purchasing 12 self-propelled rail cars from a Texas transit operation, Dave formed All Earth Rail in the hope of launching commuter rail service that links Essex, St. Albans, Rutland, Burlington, Montpelier and possibly White River Junction.  The hope is that once the system is up and running, it will not only expand the routes of Vermont’s two Amtrak trains, but it will provide safe, reliable and cost-effective passenger service between Vermont’s many cities and towns. The main challenges faced by this company are centered on the acquisition of both the tangible assets and the rights to utilize existing passenger railroad tracks.  To assist in this process, Dave brought in Charlie Moore who has over forty years of experience in the rail industry under his belt. Dave and Charlie concluded their presentation by answering some questions from our members.  You can learn more about this initiative in the following Seven Days article:  https://www.sevendaysvt.com/vermont/david-blittersdorf-bets-on-vermont-commuter-rail/Content?oid=7098903

 

 

            Thank you to the Rotarians who have already filled slots at this year’s event.  The slots are filling up nicely, however, we appear to be particularly light on the morning, afternoon and clean-up shifts on Sunday, September 3^rd. We ask that every Rotarian be responsible for filling two spots. Rotarians are encouraged to fill spots with friends and family members.  You may either sign up at meetings or at the website by clicking on the following link:

 

 

 

            Habitat for Humanity is seeking volunteers to help on its Burlington site.  They would like to fill the following slots as soon as possible: 8 on each day of August 18^th and August 19^th.  If you would like to volunteer, please sign up on their website at: https://vermonthabitat.org/construction-volunteers/ 

 

 

            The next opportunities to volunteer at the food shelf will be on August 24^th   and September 28^th. Please let Sharon Dettenrieder know if you are able to volunteer for any of these shifts.

 

Upcoming Meeting Schedule:  August 24, 2017 – Our speaker will be Kristin Humbargar, Director of the Essex Hub for Women and Business.  She will be discussing steAmfest Essex.

 

 

For the complete list of upcoming speakers and information about the Club, please go to our website at www.essexrotary.org   Be sure to also follow us on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/EssexVermontRotary , on Instagram at https://www.instagram.com/essexvermontrotary/ and on Twitter at https://twitter.com/essex_rotary

 

 

       Yours in Rotary,

 

Jason Ruwet