3/19: Chief Dan Curia: Charleston Fire Department

March 19, 2019: This past week, the Historic Rotary Club of Charleston welcomed Charleston Fire Chief Dan Curia. Chief Curia was sworn in last July as the 12^th chief for the city. But has been working with the department since he was announced as chief in March of 2018. He came to Charleston from Durham, NC where he served as chief and other roles for 15 years. Dan said he hopes he can serve the city for 10 years and achieve the goal of making Charleston a safer place to live, work, and visit. He said one of the unique aspects of his job, is that the primary goal is trying to reduce the need for firefighting. We need to look beyond the paradigm of responding to fires and look at prevention.

It has been almost 12 years since the tragic Sofa Super Store fire. Dan explained how that event set the Charleston Fire Department on a trajectory to become a model department for the nation in terms of tactics and training. Chief Curia said he remembered exactly where he was when he heard about the fire, as many in the firefighting community did. After the fire, CFD was at a very low point and it was critical that the community came together to support them as they moved forward. Chief Curia gave credit to all that were in the department and the community that made that possible.

CFD now has 17 fire stations, operating on a $36 million annual budget. About half of the calls they receive are on the peninsula. As everyone who drives downtown knows – traffic, narrow streets, and flooding make getting around in a normal vehicle a challenge, not to mention a fire truck! One of Chief Curia’s early goals was to reduce the number of responses that the department made every day. In the past CFD was dispatched to every 911 call that came in, including minor traffic incidents. This was because fire stations are typically closer than EMS and the firefighters can render aid until other first responders arrive. That policy has changed so that CFD is now only dispatched to calls that involve life-threatening situations. This has caused a decrease in daily responses which obviously saves dollars, but more importantly keeps resources available in case an emergency happens.

Another primary focus of the department is promoting CPR training for the community. All CFD firefighters are certified and Dan cited a statistic that every minute that passes without a person receiving CPR reduces chance of survival by 10%. The time it takes a person realize that someone is having cardiac arrest, call 911, and then for first responders to arrive can be critical. IF someone nearby can render aid it greatly improves survival chances.

Chief Curia kindly took several good questions from members. One question was what is a major risk for fires that some people may not be aware of. Dan said that most of the residential fires they respond to are from kitchen fires. Someone asked about impacts of flooding and sea level rise, and Dan recalled how a fire truck was damaged after it responded to the Shadowmoss area during the flooding from Hurricane Joaquin in October 2015. That vehicle was ruined. The department has been approved this year to purchase a High Water Vehicle (HWV) to be able to respond to flooded areas. In closing, Chief Curia complimented Rotary for our commitment to service and said he thought that local people serving their community is the way we can make our world a better place.

Jeff Webb, Keyway Committee

IN OTHER MEETING NEWS

- Rob Dewey gave the Invocation and led us in the pledge.
- Lisa Van Bergen introduced our visiting Rotarians & guests.
- President Alex Dallis presented Health and Happiness.
- Peter Shahid introduced our keynote speaker, Chief Dan Curia, Charleston Fire Department.

MORE IN THIS WEEK’S KEYWAY

March 26, 2019 | Issue 4924 | President: Alex Dallis

COMING EVENTS

March 26 – No Meeting
April 2 – Dr. Dondi Costin, President of CSU / Board Meeting @ 11am
April 9 – No Meeting
April 16 – Evening Social @ the Charleston Riverdogs
April 23 – No Meeting
April 30 – Scott Walker/Gordon Rooney, Piccoleto Spoleto

NEWS BRIEFS

No Meeting on March 26^th

This coming week is Spring Break for most lowcountry school-aged children, so we will NOT meet this Tuesday, March 26^th. We hope members will take this opportunity to enjoy special time with their families.

Rotarians are Reading Rock Stars at Mitchell

When is the last time you had the undivided attention of everyone in the room? And when was the last time your children or any children gazed at you wide-eyed with absolute adulation? Well, that is the experience of every Rotarian who is part of our Rotary Readers program at Mitchell Elementary. Each week we visit a class at Mitchell to read to the youngsters. It’s a simple task – the reading is not difficult. We learn in business to write on a sixth-grade level, but the reading we do here is on a 5-K level. The returns for this simple task, however, are amazing! Each child is transfixed on your words and for just a brief time in your week you are a Rock Star! All the goofiness you might save for singing in the shower you can let loose reading “Go Dog Go” or “Fox in Socks.” There is just no way you can go back to work after such an experience without a smile on your face.

This is a place for Rotarians truly to make a difference in the future of our community. Lighting the fire of learning in just one child will benefit our city for decades to come. Multiply this benefit by the many children we touch each year and the many years this program has been in service and you can see that this simple Rotary gift is nothing less than a game-changing uplift to our community.

Maybe you should consider service as a Rotary Reader. It really does make your day! And, come to think of it, when you consider the great benefit this service gives to our city, when you read these kids, maybe you really are a Rock Star!

Charleston Riverdogs Social on April 16

In lieu of our meeting on Tuesday, April 16, we will have a family-friendly social event at the ballpark that evening. We hope everyone will make plans to join us as our Charleston Riverdogs take on their rivals from Greenville – the Greenville Drive. First pitch is 7:05pm. We will have a picnic supper on Dolby’s Deck (3^rd base side) from 6pm-7:30pm. The picnic will include Flame Grilled All-beef hamburgers, Hebrew National hot dogs, and Wisconsin Beer Brats with all the traditional picnic fixings (lettuce, tomato, onion, and sauerkraut) served with roasted loaded baked potato salad and fresh sliced watermelon. Ice tea, lemonade, water. There will be a cash bar for those wanting an “adult beverage”. There is no charge for Rotarians or children 3 and under. Non-Rotarian guests and children 4 and over is $25. The $25 includes a ticket into the game and the picnic supper. Be on the lookout for an EVITE in your inbox and please be sure to RSVP by April 2 as a headcount is needed for planning purposes.

Rotary District All Club Conference

The Rotary District 7770 All Club Conference was held this past weekend in Hilton Head, SC. President Alex and his wife, Robin, President-Elect Sandy Morckel, President-Elect Nominee Heidi Finniff and District Membership Chair Digit Matheny attended and represented our club. Our club participated and was showcased in the “House of Friendship” with a video created by our PR committee.

There were many opportunities for attendees to network and exchange ideas with members from other Clubs at the Conference. A wide variety of recognized experts in a broad range of Rotary and Rotary-related topics were scheduled throughout the weekend to provide a wealth of inspiration and information for attendees in support of specific club issues and activities.

One of the activities that was available to the attendees was a hands-on service project. Rotary has partnered with non-profit Rise Against Hunger, an international food relief program, and attendees participated in assembling meal packages for distribution to those in need worldwide. A similar project on Hilton Head earlier this year provided 16,000 meal packages and the goal is to significantly exceed that result at the Conference.

We look forward to hearing more about the Conference in the coming weeks.

Rotary District Spring Training Conference

The Rotary District 7770 Spring Training Conference will be held on Friday, April 26 at Orangeburg-Calhoun Technical College, which is right off I-26 and an easy drive from Charleston, from 9am-1pm. The conference will focus on the Rotary Foundation, Rotary Public Image, Communications and Rotary Leadership. This is a wonderful opportunity for any member to get involved, learn more about Rotary and meet fellow Rotarians from around our District. Carroll will take care of registering our members, so please let her know if you are interested in attending. The club will pay the cost of your registration.

“Women in Rotary”

Rotarians need to be on the lookout for the next issue of Skirt magazine. The incredible women of our Rotary club will be featured in a profile of the “Women at Work” section. A fun evening and pampering session was enjoyed by all the women of our club this past Tuesday’s at McKees where photos were taken and Rotary fellowship was enjoyed over drinks and hors d’oeuvres. What a wonderful opportunity for Rotary and our Rotary club to have some of its members spotlighted in this publication.

January Dues Statements Past Due

If you have not paid January dues, please do so as soon as possible. Past due notices have been distributed via email. If you receive one, please pay promptly. If you have any questions or concerns, please contact Carroll.

Our Club on Social Media

Members are encourage to follow all of our social media channels and share posts with their followers too! We also need members to send us picture of anything they do that relates to Rotary – service projects, meetings, events, etc. We would love to keep our accounts full of smiling Rotarians! Photos can be send to Mike Sottak, mikesottak@gmail.com, or Rob Byko, rob@bykorealty.com.

MEMBER NEWS

Member News

Our own, Ja’net Bishop was the featured author and guest speaker at the Rotary Club of Martinez-Evans, Georgia this past week. She was featured as part of the club’s Women’s History Month.

We welcomed two babies into our Rotary family last week! Baby boy Llewyn Ford Youngs (son of Margaret Ann Youngs) was born on March 13 at 1:16pm and weighed 6lbs, 13 oz. Everyone is doing great — Big Sister Frankie is said to be “super excited”!! Baby girl Lawson Carmer Teller (daughter of Kerby Teller), weighing in at 7lb. 7oz, was born March 14 at 4:50pm. Mom, Baby Lawson, Big Brother Mason and Kerby are all doing great! Congratulations to both Kerby and Margaret Ann on their new additions!

Proposed New Member

The following membership candidates have submitted an application and signed letter of agreement to the Historic Rotary Club of Charleston:

Michael Smith – sponsor: Robert Sullivan; classification: Banking
Conor Bini – sponsor: Heidi Finniff; classification: Banking/Business Services

In the event you know Michael or Conor, please tell a member of the Board how he will serve the ideas of Rotary.

MEMBER SPOTLIGHT

Jeremy Divis

- Joined: 2018
- Sponsor: Charlton Wieters
- Membership Involvement: New Member – looking forward to becoming an engaged member.
- Classification: Laboratory/Manufacturing
- Profession: Questron Technologies Corporation, Sales Manager
- Something Unique About Yourself: I’ve lived in quite a few places around the United States. I grew up in Omaha, Nebraska and met my wife, Marrie, in Tampa, Florida.

Birthdays

March 27 – Kelsey Willey
March 28 – Sam Steinberg
April 2 – Rhett Dunaway
April 7 – Alex Dallis

By the numbers

Attendance on March 19, 2019: 64

Not in attendance: Baggs, Bailey, Barry, Beam, Bishop, Buzon, Carico, Channell, Clary, Coghill, Cohen, Cooper, E., Cooper, J., Cooper, M., Crouch, Deavenport, DeGraff, Diminich, Divis, Drafts, Dukes, Embry, Fellabom, Fink, Galizia, Gill, Giovanniello, Holmes, Hudnall, Husser, Jones, C., Kaynard, Kohli, Leonard, Moring, Morris, Oswalt, Ravenel, Raver, Riley, Rust, Saboe, Seguer, Sidebottom, Smith, M., Smith, P., Strickland, Taylor, Tecklenburg, John, Tecklenburg, Joseph, Teller, Thomas, Weber, Whitaker, Wieters, Williams, A.

Out of Town Make-ups: Steve Dopp – Greenville, SC; Kay Minson – Poipu Beach, Hawaii; Ja’net Bishop – Martinez-Evans, GA

WELLNESS TIP

Go to bed 10 minutes earlier.

By the end of the week, you’ll get 70 extra minutes of sleep. If you keep it up all year, you’ll have slept 60 hours more. Imagine how well-rested you’ll feel!

AREA CLUB MEETINGS

Mondays

Summerville – Oakbrook: 7:30 a.m., Monday, Westcott County Club, 5000 Wescott Club Drive, North Charleston
North Charleston: 12:30 a.m., Monday, Hilton Garden Inn, 5265 International Blvd, North Charleston.
Summerville Evening: 5:30 p.m., Monday, Montreux Bar and Grill, 127 W. Richardson Ave., Summerville

Tuesdays

East Cooper Breakfast: 7:30 a.m. Tuesday, Cooper River Room at Waterfront Park, Mount Pleasant
Charleston: 12:30 p.m., Tuesday, Hall’s Signature Events, 5 Faber, Charleston
Goose Creek: 12:45 m. Tuesday, Gilligan’s, 219 St. James Ave., Goose Creek

Wednesdays

Daniel Island: 7:30 a.m. Wednesday, Daniel Island Club, 600 Island Park Dr., Daniel Island
St. John’s Parish (John’s Island): 7:45 a.m. Wednesday, 2817 Maybank Highway, Unit 1, John’s Island
Mount Pleasant: 12:30 p.m., Wednesday, Harbor Breeze Restaurant, 176 Patriots Point Road, Mount Pleasant
Summerville: 1 p.m. Wednesday, Sticky Fingers, Summerville

Thursdays

North Charleston Breakfast: 7:30 a.m. Thursday, Embassy Suites, 5055 International Blvd., North Charleston
Moncks Corner: 12:30 p.m., Thursday, Gilligan’s Restaurant, Moncks Corner
St. Andrews (West Ashley): 12:30 p.m., Thursday, Bessinger’s BBQ, 1602 Savannah Highway, Charleston.

Fridays

Charleston Breakfast: 7:30 a.m., Friday, Harbour Club, 35 Prioleau St., Charleston

SOCIAL MEDIA

Our Rotary club actively uses social media — and we encourage you to interact with us through social media.

We’re on Facebook. Take a look at our page and be sure to “like us”.
We’re on Twitter. You can follow us @chasrotaryclub.
We’re on Instagram. You can follow us @ChasRotaryClub.

ABOUT THE KEYWAY

The Keyway has been published weekly as a newsletter for the Rotary Club of Charleston for more than 90 years.

President: Alex Dallis
Keyway editor: Don Baus don@sgaarchitecture.com
Executive secretary: Carroll Schweers, carrollschweers@gmail.com
Mailing address: Rotary Club of Charleston, P.O. Box 21029 ,Charleston, SC 29413-1029