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December musical theme: In honor of the holiday season, Rick Harrell (Veteran Outreach; Heroes' Voices), our song master, played “Deck the Halls” at our first December meeting.
Rotarian of the Month: President David recognized Scott Plakun (IT Consulting; The Plakun Group) as the November Rotarian of the Month. A successful club needs the active support of its members to accomplish its goals. This support often involves activities that are not seen by many members. It is difficult for any single member in our club to know how much Scott does for the Rotary Club of San Francisco. For his support of this club as a board member, technical support expert and consultant, webmaster, advisor and many other reasons, we honor Scott Plakun as November 2016’s Rotarian of the Month!
  Rotary Service: December was a month highlighted by Rotary service projects. The club supported expectant homeless mothers by supplying them with diaper bags full of resources to give their babies a healthy start. We participated in the Institute on Aging’s annual Cable Car Caroling event, traveling across town to the homes of seniors to give them a little holiday cheer. Several members assisted the Salvation Army with their annual bell-ringing event in Union Square. Finally, at our holiday party, we gave gift items to support the San Francisco Fire Department’s Toys for Tots program.
BBQ Review: Club Secretary Rhonda Poppen (Grant Writer; GRANTdog) took us on a personal journey of her life as it relates to barbecue. When it comes to southern barbecue, pork is king. Rhonda noted that her hometown of Smithville, Virginia is known as the ham capital of the world. When she was a young child whose grandfather raised pigs, Rhonda and her cousins would become attached to them and name them until it was time to roast them on the barbecue pit. Her first date with her husband, Bill, was at a pork barbecue competition. As a newlywed, she moved to Texas where she discovered Texas style barbecue. But her heart is still in the South and her loyalty is to Carolina style pork barbecue using a vinegar-based barbecue sauce. For anyone wanting to experience this southern style, Rhonda encourages you to visit Rusty’s Southern on Polk Street in San Francisco.
 Guest Speaker: Our December 6 guest speaker was the Honorable California Assemblymember David Chiu. Assemblymember Chiu gave us some interesting insights on the workings of the California State legislature and some of the key issues confronting California.
 Annual Holiday Party: Our annual holiday party, in the Colonial Ballroom of the Westin St. Francis, was one of our most successful with 140 members and guests enjoying a festive luncheon. Past club president and past district governor Eric Schmautz (Banking - Business; Wells Fargo) reminded us of our club’s origins by explaining that the first meeting of the Rotary Club of San Francisco was held in the very same room almost exactly 108 years ago. Rotary Club of San Francisco founder Homer Wood made a surprise appearance - portrayed by President-Elect John Mathers (Management Consulting; eVo Associates) - to review some of the many great accomplishments of our club.
Paul Harris Award: In keeping with the 2016 Rotary holiday party’s recognition of its club history, we honored Robert Scott Thomas with a Paul Harris Fellowship. Robert, age 87, is the father of Rotarian Heidi Kuhn (International Media; Roots of Peace) and grandfather of Rotarian and current board member Tucker Kuhn (Non-Profit - Humanitarian). In 1940-41, when Robert was 10, his father, William “Bill” Hill Thomas, then President of the Rotary Club of San Francisco, handed Robert the gavel and named him as club president for a day. In 2007, then-President John Hoch continued the tradition by naming Robert’s grandson, Christian William Kuhn, president for a day when Christian was 10 years old. Rotary has been part of this family for many generations: Robert’s grandfather, Erskine Baker McNear, was a member of the Rotary Club of San Rafael in the 1920s.
Annual Business Meeting: President David called the annual business meeting of the Rotary Club of San Francisco to order for purposes of electing board members for terms beginning July 1, 2017. John Mathers, Nominating Committee Chair, presented the report of the nominating committee, and the club membership accepted the report by acclamation, electing these club members to join the board beginning on July 1, 2017:
Rhonda Poppen, President-Elect
Jim Bradley (Insurance Agencies - Property; CAL Insurance), Treasurer
Luis Moran (Real Estate Sales; Coldwell Banker), Secretary
Elizabeth Whitney (Rotacare Bay Area), Director of Public Relations and Communications
JT Forbus (Accounting - Bogdan & Frasco), Director of Club Service
Congratulations to our newest board members! And thank you to the members of the Nominating Committee and to all those who expressed interest in serving.
Dinner with RI President John Germ: If you plan to attend the January 3, 2017 dinner, you need to do two things. First, register and pay for the dinner. The second, inform President David so he can confirm that club members are seated together. More information is available here.
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It's time once again for our annual kick-off to the New Year: Financial Prognostications from club members who work closely with investments. This year's panel will be chaired by Allan Herzog.
Don't miss this opportunity to meet RI President John Germ and hear him speak at a dinner in San Jose.
Our host hotel is unable to provide space today because of a very large annual conference.
Frances Dinkelspiel, author of Tangled Vines: Greed, Murder, Obsession and an Arsonist in the Vineyards of California, will tell us about the world's biggest wine crime: a 2005 arson that destroyed millions of bottles of fine California wine, including some made by her great great grandfather in 1875.
Club member Lynn Luckow, offers us an insider's look into crowdfunding for U.S. based 501c3 nonprofit organizations - and how it is expanding the donor pool and democratizing philanthropy. Lynn, who is the Founder & CEO of 
New and prospective members are welcome and encouraged to attend this informal meeting. Come and enjoy some food and drink while you meet other new and prospective members and learn more about the club.