2012 Float Riders and Outwalkers
The Rotary Rose Parade Float Committee Inc presents “Inching Towards the End of Polio” the theme of our January 2, 2012 float.
A happy and determined inchworm in medical attire represents “the final inch” of Rotary International’s 25-year effort to end polio worldwide.
In addition to contributing nearly one billion dollars, Rotary’s global network of community volunteers has mobilized “National Immunization Days” (NIDs) in countries as small as Ghana and as large as India. In just over 25 years, Rotary funding and Rotary field volunteers have helped vaccinate more than three billion children.
Several of those Rotary Club international volunteers will be riding on our 2012 float (Float Riders) and several more will be walking alongside the float (Outwalkers). As a group, they are generally referred to as “Float Participants.” They will be wearing the identifying jackets and caps they wore on their NID trips to many different countries.
Rotary International President Kalyan Banerjee and Binoita
Kalyan Banerjee is married to Binota, a social worker, and they have two children and four grandchildren. is chair of United Phosphorus, Bangladesh, and a director of United Phosphorus Ltd., one of the largest manufacturers of agrochemicals in India, and Uniphos Agro Industries Ltd. Born in Kolkata in 1942, he earned a degree in chemical engineering from the Indian Institute of Technology, Kharagpur, in 1964. He is a resident of Vapi, Gujarat, where he has contributed significantly to its development as one of the largest industrial estates in India, helping to provide infrastructure for health care and education.
Banerjee has been a member of the Rotary Club of Vapi since 1972. He served as club president in 1975-76 and district governor in 1980-81. He began his international service to Rotary in 1995, with his appointment to the RI Board of Directors. He has gone on to serve as general coordinator of the Poverty and Hunger Alleviation Task Force (1997-98), trustee of The Rotary Foundation (2001-05), and chair of the Southeast Asia PolioPlus Committee (2009-10). He has served on numerous other committees, including the International PolioPlus Committee (2008-09), Reach Out to Africa Ad-Hoc Executive Committee (2009-10), Leadership Development and Training Committee (2009-10), Permanent Fund Committee for India (2008-09), and the Child Mortality Emphasis Coordinating Team (2008-09).
Banerjee is also active in many other organizations, including the American Chemical Society, Indian Institute of Chemical Engineers, and the Senate of the Vishva-Bharati University. He has served twice as president of Vapi Industries Association and is a past chair of the Gujarat Council of the Confederation of Indian Industry. In addition, he is a trustee for the Jai Research Foundation.
Kalyan Banerjee is married to Binota, a social worker, and they have two children and four grandchildren.
Rotary District 5030 – Seattle, Washington
Rotary Float Outwalker Ezra Teshome is a 27 year member of the Rotary Club of University District in Seattle, Washington. He is a past Club President and is the 2013-2014 District Governor Nominee for Rotary District 5030
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For over 15 years, Ezra has led more than 800 Rotarians and friends from the U.S. and Canada to his homeland, Ethiopia, to participate in the National Immunization Days.
He was also involved in promoting Rotary’s work to eradicate polio in the world through a feature documentary , “After the Rains.” Ezra has a passion for this cause and is committed to continue his service work until polio has been eradicated from our planet.
Ezra and his wife Yobi have been married for 32 years and are blessed with three daughters, a son, and a grandson. They are pleased to be participating in Rose Parade activities with the Rotary Float Committee.
Rotary District 5240 – Ventura, Santa Barbara, San Luis Obispo, Kern Counties
Roxanne Nomura is a charter member and Past President of the Rotary Club of Carpinteria Morning. A Realtor, mother of two and grandmother, Roxanne is also the wife of Rotary District Governor Wade Nomura, a Polio Survivor.
Roxanne traveled to India in 2010 on an National Immunization Day (NID), to the city of Moradabad in the state of Uttar Pradesh. She was part of a massive volunteer mobilization that immunized 916,000 children under the age of six in that one city.
In the 2012 Rose Parade, Roxanne will be a Rotary Float Outwalker, proudly wearing the yellow NID jacket that she wore while volunteering in India.
Roxanne reflects that “through Rotary, we are changing lives around the world, and the eradication of polio is only the beginning.”
Rotary District 5260 – San Fernando Valley, Antelope Valley, Eastern Sierra
Julie Jenkins is Past President and International Service Chair of the Rotary Club of Burbank Sunrise. Her classification is television distribution. Julie is a polio survivor, as were both her parents. Her late father, Richard Jenkins, was proud to be a Rotarian and served as President of the Rotary Club of Niles, Ohio. She will be a Float Rider on the 2012 Rotary Rose Parade Float.
Julie was privileged to participate in the NID in India in February 2010. She was part of a five member team to Badaun in Uttar Pradesh to support the on-going efforts of local Rotarians and health care workers as they strive tirelessly to eradicate polio in India.
“Everyone involved in the process knows that this is a critical time and the opportunity to finally eradicate the disease” says Julie. “So they must push harder than ever to get the task done. It’s very humbling to witness their dedication and to consider the millions of children over three generations that have been protected from polio by their determination and diligence.”
Patty Fallahee joined the Glendale Sunrise Rotary in November of 2010. Currently Patty holds the position of “Event Chair” organizing all special social events for the club and has accepted the nomination of Sergeant-at-Arms for 2012-13.
She has been involved in many club service projects, most recently catering the “Kettle Kick-Off” breakfast for the Salvation Army and feeding more than 250 people. Patty and her husband are the owners of “The Spot Gourmet” catering in Glendale; her business classification in Rotary is catering.
Patty is excited to represent Rotary in such a fun and festive way by participating in the Tournament of Roses Parade as a Rotary Float Outwalker.
Patricia Ellis will be an Outwalker with the Rotary Rose Parade Float. She is a relatively new member of Rotary, inducted to the Rotary Club of Bishop, California in 2009. She was immediately asked to be the Club Secretary for 2010-2011 and is now completing her second term. During this past year she has undertaken the management of Bishop Rotary’s “Snack Shack” at several local fund raising events, as well as volunteering to serve and clean at a local Soup Kitchen.
Patricia is well known in the community for her outstanding success in fund raising for her sons’ schools, her Church, and many Rotary charitable programs. For the past 10 years she has been Co-Chairperson of the very popular annual “Bishop Mule Days Celebration” concert and dance, which provides a vital economic boost for many merchants in this scenic Eastern Sierra town.
Professionally, Patricia has worked in office administration, human resources, accounting, and bank management. Patricia has two sons. Her eldest is a freshman in high school and her youngest is in 6th grade. When they were in the primary grades she parent-taught the school’s physical education class and when they started playing soccer, she became an AYSO coach.
Rotary District 5280 – Los Angeles Basin
Larry Bender
Larry Bender is a member of the Rotary Club of Hawthorne, California in District 5280. Recently retired, his classification was Cable Television Administrator. He has one daughter and four grandsons.
As an Outwalker with the 2012 Rotary Rose Parade Float, he will be wearing his hospital work uniform from a Polio Corrective Surgery Camp in Ghatkopar, India.
Larry was part of a visionary District 5280 corrective surgery team which first traveled to India in 1995 to work with Indian Rotarian Doctors to perform 500 surgeries over a 4 day period.
This surgery camp concept was expanded in India and transported to Africa. Cataract Removal-Lens Implant, Ob-Gyn, Plastic & General Surgeries and Dental procedures were added to the Polio Corrective Surgeries in Uganda, Ethiopia, Nigeria, Zambia, Swaziland, Madagascar, Lesotho and Tanzania.
“Working in the Polio Corrective Surgery Camps,” says Larry, “I am astounded by the love of parents who come from all over to give their children a better chance for success in life. Then I feel sad that these children were here because they didn’t get the polio vaccine drops in time to prevent the disease.”
Joe Harding is a member of the El Segundo, California Rotary Club in District 5280. He served as Club President twice and is currently serving the district as the RYLA Chair and District Trainer. His classification is Hotel Manager.
While in Uganda participating in a polio corrective surgery project, he realized he needed to do more to bring light and attention to Rotary’s global effort to eradicate polio. Along with another Rotarian, he started R.A.C.E. ( Rotary Approaches Complete Eradication ) and has since run 8 marathons for the End Polio Now campaign.
Joe continued to travel with Rotary and the Polio Corrective Surgery team to India twice, Madagascar, Nigeria and Ethiopia. While in India he was able to see the massive undertaking of a National Immunization Day and the amazing efforts Rotary puts forward to rid the planet of this horrible virus.
Joe is the proud father of two daughters. His oldest is in Interact and serves as a youth counselor for RYLA. He is a Rotary Foundation Major Donor and his daughters are both Paul Harris Fellows.
Rotary District 5300 – San Gabriel Valley, San Bernardino County, Southern Nevada
Juan Carlos Quiroz–Zolezzi is a member of the Rotary Club of Upland, California in Rotary District 5300. His Rotary Classification is Real Estate. He will be an Outwalker with the 2012 Rotary Rose Parade, wearing the jacket he wore while participating in a polio eradication National Immunization Day (NID) in India.
Juan Carlos is 35 years old, born and raised in northern Mexico. His academic background is in law and he is a licensed attorney in Mexico. He moved to the United States in 2003 and has been working in the business side of Real Estate.
He serves on the Board of his Rotary Club, and in February 2011, he had the opportunity to participate in a National Immunization Day (NID) in India. He was sent to the city of Badaun in the state of Uttar Pradesh, one of the last places in India where polio is still endemic.
About his NID experience, Juan Carlos says, “By joining the fight against polio, we have the opportunity to give humanity a world free of a very damaging disease and be a model for eradicating other diseases. Rotary provided me with a unique experience to be able to go to a distant land, connecting with people and children of a very different culture.”
Juan Carlos and his wife, Barbora, have a baby princess of 16 months, and they are expecting their second baby to be born in January 2012.
Rotary Float Outwalker John McDannel joined Rotary in 1973 and is a Senior Active member of the Rotary Club of Pasadena. He is a retired United Airlines 747 Captain. He earned his business/economics degree at the University of La Verne and his MBA from the University of Southern California. He was a commissioned officer and pilot in the US Air Force.
After his military service, John spent 32 years flying a variety of airplanes for United Airlines. He was chosen to fly the Reagan Charter around the country during his campaign for president in 1980. For 25 of those years, he was concurrently employed as an officer of Trans World Bank which was located in the San Fernando Valley.
John served as President of the Rotary Club of Van Nuys in 1985 and chaired the 1986 Rotary District 5260’s Business Conference. More recently, he is serving as a board member of the Pasadena Masonic Temple and an Officer of the Pasadena Masonic Lodge.
In 2011, John participated in the Rotary International “End Polio Now” visitation team to end polio in India. About this experience, John says, “In 1985 I was assigned to a committee that helped kick off the Polio Plus program at our RI Convention held in Kansas City, Mo. Visiting India was truly a life event for me to see how much progress we have actually made on the world stage since 1985. Right now, we are only a few cases away from defeating this horrible disease. Rotary has worked with, challenged and stimulated world leaders to work together to eradicate this devastating disease.”
John and his wife Mary have three grown daughters and five grandchildren.
Rotary District 5320 – Orange County, Southern Los Angeles County
Herb Trumpoldt, a 47-year member of Rotary, is Past President of the Rotary Club of Placentia and Past District Governor of Rotary District 5320. A retired sales manager from a major manufacturer of industrial rubber products, he has a son, a daughter and three grandchildren.
Since 1994 Herb has been a member of the Rotary Rose Parade Float Committee, serving as Chairman for our award-winning float in the 1999 Tournament of Roses.
In February 2011, Herb participated on an NID team to India. Since his return, he has been
making presentations to Rotary Clubs describing his amazing experiences. Stories like Herb’s help inspire Rotarians and our many partners to stay focused on “the final inch” toward the worldwide eradication of polio.
“Though it was exciting to be in the trenches delivering those two drops of polio vaccine to little Indian children” Herb says, “our other purpose was to encourage those great Indian Rotarians to stay the course. As our Rotary Float illustrates, we are this close.”
Terry Geiling is a past president of the Rotary Club of Long Beach, CA. and currently serves as Chief of Staff for the District Governor District 5320. He is president of the American Gold Star Manor, an affordable, senior housing facility established for women who lost sons and daughters in the military.
As club president, Terry directed the efforts of Rotary Club of Long Beach club to become one of the largest 100% Paul Harris Fellow clubs in the Rotary family. He organized and led two international projects that provided library books, computers and clean water systems to small schools in rural Mexican villages.
In February, Terry will be administering polio vaccine to the children of farm workers on his 3rd NID trip to the agricultural areas surrounding Caborca, Mexico.
Terry is heartened by the parents who eagerly turn to Rotarians for their children’s lifesaving vaccine and is personally fulfilled by the opportunity to give back to the world community.
Rotary Float Outwalker Brian Russell is a member of the Rotary Club of Long Beach where he is 2011-2012 Assistant to the President. He is Rotary District 5320 New Generations Director which oversees all of the youth programs Rotaract, Interact, RYLA and Youth Exchange. He was Director for the Multi District Interact Symposium that served over 160 high school aged leaders, Faculty Advisors and Rotarian Liaisons at a weekend leadership camp at the Outdoor Education Center.
He is developing a New Generations Advisory Group comprised of the Executive Directors of the YMCAs, Boy Scouts, Girl Scouts, Boys & Girls Clubs, and Camp Fire clubs in District 5320 to discuss the challenges of our youth today and how we can serve them better.
Brian is Vice President for Field Operations for the Long Beach Area Council Boy Scouts of America. He is also on the Board of the Long Beach Day Nursery, which started in partnership with the Rotary Club of Long Beach almost of a century ago. He is also on the Board of Managers for the Los Altos YMCA Branch and the Early Childhood Education Board.
Brian and his wife Anna have been married 23 years and have 2 teenage sons.
Rotary District 5330 – Riverside and Imperial Counties
Vicky Wallace
Vicky Wallace is the immediate past president of the Rotary Club of Lake Elsinore, California in District 5330. Her classification is manufacturing. She and her Rotarian husband Steve have two daughters.
As an Outwalker with the 2012 Rotary Rose Parade Float she will be wearing the “Team Nigeria” jacket worn while participating in the polio eradication National Immunization Day (NID) in Nigeria.
Vicky’s NID experience was life-changing. After returning home from Nigeria she and her husband Steve decided ‘Service Above Self’ would be their life. Two years later, in 2007, on another NID trip to Nigeria the youngest daughter Crissy traveled along. Oldest daughter, Kelly — also a Rotarian and living in Ireland — is planning her NID participation to India in Feb. 2012. ‘Service Above Self’ are three words that represent what Rotary is and does; it defines the Wallace family too!
Rotary District 5340 – San Diego County
Linda Stouffer
Linda Stouffer is a 25 year member of the La Jolla Golden Triangle Rotary Club in San Diego California. She is a Past President having served in 2008-2009.
She has been to Bolivia on a Rotary water project and most recently attended her first NID with the support of the rotary Club of Agra Taj City in District 3110 in India. This NID went into predominantly Muslim communities in Agra where the cooperation between Rotarians and the community leaders was inspiring. Parents recognized that the quality of their children’s lives depended on Rotarians reaching out with the critical polio vaccine that will prevent this crippling disease from affecting their loved ones. Rotary’s global network has brought hope to these families and allowed volunteers from nations far apart to touch each other in a significant way.
The Rotary Rose Parade Float is not an official Rotary International program.