december 2011
Monarch Beach
sunrise rotary on the california riviera
MBSR’s 22nd Vocational Day by Gary Maxwell
On November 16 MBSR held its 22nd Annual Vocational Day at the Ritz Carlton in Laguna Niguel. The program provided 143 high school students a job shadowing experience in their vocation of choice. An early breakfast was followed by a special program featuring 16 year old Taylor Carol singing “To Dream the Impossible Dream” from “The Man of La Mancha.” A leukemia survivor, Taylor has used his incredible voice to raise over six million dollars for pediatric oncology, a shining example of “service above self.” DG Greg Owen followed Taylor’s brilliant performance with a moving speech on how Rotary changed and enhanced his life, and invited the students to consider joining the Rotary family. The program’s featured speaker, The Honorable Cormac Carney, Judge of the U.S. District Court for the Central District of California, followed with yet another heartfelt story recalling his journey from high school “C” student to federal district judge, with stops along the way at the Air Force Academy, All-American UCLA wide receiver, professional football player, and turning down a contract to play alongside San Francisco’s Jerry Rice in order to attend law school at Harvard, where Judge Carney met his future wife and used skills he’d learned in football to succeed in the classroom. Judge Carney’s speech about integrity, truth, and persistent hard work warmed and touched each generation in the room. After the program, 34 different companies or government agencies hosted the students for job shadowing, giving each student a chance to experience their chosen career, and learn if it matches their dreams. Shadowing activities included witnessing courtroom procedures, meeting judges, riding on a Sheriff Department’s patrol, designing graphics, and collecting marine information from an Ocean Institute boat. Vocational Day provides guidance to young adults at one of life’s most difficult times, while they are transitioning from childhood, where decisions are made for them, to independence, where they must make, and live with, their own decisions. Any guidance Rotary provides is an investment in their future, and ours. Pictured: MBSR Vocational Day; bottom: DHHS Students of the month Gillian Slee (second from left) and Shane Djokovich (second from right). M B S R m e e t s o n W e d n e s d a y m o r n i n g s a t 7 a m a t t h e R i t z - C a r l t o n L a g u n a N i g u e l • www . m o n a rc h b e a c h r o t a r y.c o m