Meeting:  chair Darryll White; music, Jerome; grace, Steve

 

Attendance/Guests:  24 including Anette Wagers and Curtis Nikol, guest speakers from Crimestoppers; Miao Tsai, Rotary Club of Ottawa

 

Pub Night:  contact Bob Lamoureux or Ben if you wish to join other Rotarians at Newcastle Pub on March 8

 

Gift Cards:  contact Rob Dunseith to purchase cards which allow us to fund projects not covered by casino funding

 

Cambodia - house for landowner that donated land for our dugout:  Darryll White advised that he had raised $600 of the $750 needed to replace this familiy's delapidated home - if you can help, please contact Darryll to get him your donation

 

Fred  (Finemaster):  table questions about Alberta raised a nice sum - questions included official fish (some kind of trout); official stone (petrified wood); official mammal (big horn sheep); official bird (big horned owl); largest lake (Lake Claire); how many rivers flow through Fort MacMurray (5); largest national park (Wood Buffalo); official tree (lodge pole pine)

 

50/50:  Brent and Bill did not match cards

Guest Speakers:  Anette Wagers is an employee of Crime Stoppers Association of Edmonton and Northern Alberta, she has a degree in marketing from a college in Victora; Curtis Nikol is president of his own firm and is a member and current president of the Board of Directors of CSAENA

 

Curtis advised that Crime Stoppers in Edmonton has been in operation for 31 years and was started by lawyer Bob Matheson.  Bob wanted more data to help solve an assualt on his daughter and then Chief of Police Bob Lunney suggested Bob start Crime Stoppers in the hopes of getting such information.  Bob visited New Meixco where Crime Stoppers was started and brought the idea back and created the association.  CSAENA is funded 100% by donatiuons - no government funding is involved.  They have 2 full time and 1 part time employees - Anette does communications and Anna does reenactments of crimes.

 

Anette added that tips are 100% anonymous which is a valuable part of the program - people don't want to get involved or don't want their family targeted.  The mission of CSAENA is to improve community safety.  Crime Stoppers was started by a police detective in New Mexico who was trying to solve a brutal murder and needed more information than what was forthcoming.  He decided to set up a separate telephone line and advertised that tips would remain anonymous and a reward would be available if a tip resulted in an arrest.  He also did a reenactment which was broadcast on a local televison channel.  A tip from a viewer generated a succesful lead and that was the start of Crime Stoppers.  There are 5 chapters in Alberta.  CSAENA covers the largest area.

 

 Succeses for CSAENA:  tips received ( 2014 to date 444, 77,000 since started); arrests (15 in 2014); cases cleared/solved (44 in 2014, 14,000 since started); charges laid ( 50 in 2014); property recovered ( $2,500 in 2014, $17,482,000 since started); value of drugs seized ($85,750 in 2014, $59,511,000 since started), drug seizures also help solve other crimes;  rewards authorized ($4150 in 2014, $1,333,700 since 1983).

 

Anette, through her communication portfolio, tries to encourage people to use the tip line and to donate so the program can continue.  She has also developed a new website CSAENA.  Tips come by phone, text, online.  They now have an APP for smart phones.  With the change in the way people communicate 1/3 of tips now come electronically.  People who give a tip get a tip number and they use that number to contact CSAENA to determine if they have been granted a reward.  If so, they get the reward from a teller at their local ATB.  Donations cover the cost of filming reenactments, the cost of rewards and the cost of staff to provide the information to the public about the program.  Reenactments are filmed by ITV (now Global) and broadcast on Global (they put the Global logo on the film so CBC & CTV decline to broadcast).  There are a year's worth of reenactments available on the website as well as talks by police officers about various types of crime, such as fraud.  Crime Stoppers is no longer broadcast on radio but they will attempt to resurrect that type of information dissemination (plus ads in newspapers).

 

Anette and Curtis were thanked by Dan Graham.

Blessed are those that can give without remembering, and take without
forgetting.
 
One day a florist went to a barber for a haircut. After the cut, he
asked about his bill, and the barber replied, 'I cannot accept money
from you, I'm doing community service this week.'
The florist was pleased and left the shop.
When the barber went to open his shop the next morning, there was a
'thank you' card and a dozen roses waiting for him at his door.
 
Later, a cop comes in for a haircut, and when he tries to pay his bill
, the barber again replied, 'I cannot accept money from you, I'm doing
community service this week.' The cop was happy and left the shop.
The next morning when the barber went to open up, there was a 'thank
you ' card and a dozen donuts waiting for him at his door.
 
Then Mike Duffy came in for a haircut, and when he went to
pay his bill , the barber again replied, 'I cannot accept money from
you. I'm doing community service this week.' Duffy was
was very happy and left the shop.
The next morning, when the barber went to open up, there were a dozen
Senators lined up waiting for a free haircut.
 
And that, my friends, illustrates the fundamental difference between
the citizens of our country and the politicians who run it.