The Brewster Rotary club held its monthly August meeting August 7 at Aversano's Restaurant on Route 22. Almost 2 dozen Rotarians and their guests gathered to celebrate fellow Rotarian Willis Stephens be welcomed into the Rotary Club's Prestigious Paul Harris Fellowship Club. The Paul Harris Fellowship is awarded to a Rotarian who exceeds a certain predetermined financial contribution threshold to Rotary over their lifetime. The 93 year old Mr. Stephens, a former NY State Assemblyman, thanked his fellow Rotarians for the honor, stating "the reason I've lived so long (to achieve the distinction) is because I rarely say anything! Thank you!" and sat down, which drew a large round of laughs and applause from the crowd which included County Executive Maryellen Odell and Acting Commissioner of the Putnam County Bureau of Emergency Services, Ken Clair Jr.
Later in the meeting County Executive Odell and Commissioner Clair outlined a Citizens Preparedness seminar program which is currently underway. It helps people identify necessary items they will need in case of a natural or man made disaster like the three recent tornadoes which struck Putnam County and left much of the county without power for days. "Although we had the power restored most of the county with in 7 days, we need to have people prepared for emergencies," said Clair. The County will be holding a Citizens Preparedness Seminar in late September, which is also National Preparedness Month, at the County Training and Operations building (TOPS) located in the Donald Smith County government campus on Old Route 6 in Carmel. Each attendee will receive a backpack filled with some of the necessary items a family might need in an emergency such a flashlight and reusable water bottle. (Families are invited but the limit is one backpack per family). This seminar is being sponsored by the Brewster, Carmel, Mahopac , Kent and Patterson Rotaries.
For more information on the Citizens Preparedness Seminar visit