ur Rotarian of the Day today is Tom Wilson. Tom graduated with a BSME from SMU in 1964. He worked for General Electric for four years, and then Dover/Norris Division for 13 years. He also worked for Materials Unlimited, where he was self-employed, for six years, and was a partner in Custom Sales for 16 years.

Tom retired in 2003, and then in 2004, he took a “Where’s Wilson?” trip around the perimeter of the United States. Altogether, the trip took 101 days and encompassed 19,000 miles.

Tom has been married to Laura for 35 years, and together they have four children and five grandchildren. He’s a member of St. John’s Episcopal Church and the Oaks Country Club in addition to Tulsa Southside Rotary.

Tom, thank you for arranging our program today!

This Week’s Program

Sister Ephrance Nuwamanya

ur speaker today is Sister Ephrance Nuwamanya. Ephrance was born and raised by middle-class parents in central Uganda, just west of Kampala. She has two older sisters and a younger brother who died when he was four. She is part of the Muganda Tribe.

When Ephrance was 17, she had just completed Senior Four when she lost both parents within a short time: her father by cirrhosis of the liver and mother by asthma.

Determined to finish school, she struggled to find funds to complete her high school education, Senior Five and Six. With the help of scholarships, she became a registered nurse and midwife from the Mulago School of Nursing.

For 22 years, Ephrance was the lead staff member in charge of the CBHC (Community Based Health Care) rural clinics for the College for Tertiary Studies located in Bushenyi, Uganda.

She is currently the coordinator for BIRD (Bushenyi Integrated Rural Development), in partnership with BARHD (an Oklahoma based non-profit which has assumed responsibility for the programs initiated by VOOM & CTS). In addition to the 10 rural health clinics, she also oversees the administration of the Orphan Student Program, which provides scholarships to nearly 200 secondary students who have lost one or both parents to HIV/AIDS or malaria.

She is married to Joash Nuwamanya, a former banker, and has six children. Ephrance is a member of The Rotary Club of Bushenyi and serves as Director of International Services.

Ephrance’s interests and hobbies include making friends, playing net ball, learning to be an effective communicator, sightseeing (nature and the countryside), and being gender sensitive. She does not know how to swim, but she does speak four languages: Luganda, Renyankole/Rukiga, Luo, and English.

Sister Ephrance, thank you for being with us today. The Rotary Club of Southside Tulsa welcomes you!

Southsider Quick Notes

Last week…
- Our ROD last week was Steve Glenn, and our speaker was Elizabeth Frame, Mayor Taylor’s daughter.

- Happy birthday to Kevin Best!

- We should have our slate of new officers this week. Finally.

- The North Tulsa Club’s Ed Lacy Banquet will be April 14. The cost is $50, and Nolan Richardson is the keynote speaker.

- Ask Don if you need any information about the Mayor’s Employment Fair, which is May 2.

- Remember: if you pledged to match John Haley’s $1,000 donation to RI (to help make up for the clubs that can’t make their $3,000), make your checks out to the Southside Foundation.

- We have a new fine! If you don’t get up and greet our visitors, you will be fined. If we do this right, our poor visitors will never get a chance to finish their lunches.

- Keith James let us know that our new district governor has an initiative to add 1,000 members to this district in 2010, so that we’ll have 6,110 members in district 6110.

- This year’s Be Wise Immunize is the 20th anniversary of the event! Talk to Bob Hinton if you were at the first few Be Wise Immunize events.

- Don? David? Have you guys gotten your dictionaries out yet?

- Tom Wilson had an RI update for us. The good news is 50 percent of our members have donated their $100. The bad news is that we haven’t received a donation in a couple of months. Let’s get on it, everybody!

- April 2 is the Engineers in Action fundraiser, A Night in Bolivia. All Southside Rotarians are invited to come, as thanks for all the help we’ve given them in Bolivia. Tickets are $40 per person, and the event starts at 6 p.m. at the Boston United Methodist Church, 1301 South Boston here in Tulsa.

- Tracy Raines, our lovely accountant, has started sending out monthly email statements. Be sure to check your inboxes!

- Dolly Dixon let us know that she went to the doctor last week, and there is no sign of cancer. Hooray!

- Here’s the weekly update on Biscuit Acres:

• - We need to match the funds that Randy has committed (see below). Pledge, network, whatever you need to do. Get donations from outside the club.
• - According to John Benjamin, the VCA Hospitals are considering donating $5,000 collectively. The Oxley Foundation has donated $1,000. We’re getting there!
• - If Ben Estes got with you and gave you boxes to assemble and distribute, get on with doing it this week!
• - For a biscuit plaque, it’s a $125 donation. For a bench, it’s a $1,000 donation. For a picnic table, it’s a $1,500.
• - Remember, the dog park opens on JUNE 6. Mark your calendars.
• - Randy Sullivan has committed up to $5,000 to Biscuit Acres for a challenge contribution to all members of Southside to COLLECTIVELY match his $5,000. Member contributions can be in the form of a pledge to the Southside Rotary Foundation and given to the Foundation over a period of months. $100 per person will get us there. Of course, a higher contribution will help those members who cannot do the $100. Members are encouraged to use the pledge form to receive commitments and contributions of all sizes from as many non-Rotarians as possible. Thank you, Randy, for this wonderful opportunity.
• - Remember, if you have any ideas or would like to help out in any way, let Don or John Benjamin know!

- Next week, our speaker will be Pam Chew, a former Rotary Scholar.