Less than 8 weeks into office, 
President Karen Valles has left the state on a vacation in another planet state, Oregon. She ditched her secret service detail, and has been having a fine time we hear.
Eric Maldonado showed that he hadn’t lost his touch, calling on Beri Kasper with a mouth full of food, immediately after she had sat down.
Visiting Rotarian Ken Nishimori visited with our exchange student from Poland, Angelina Zywert. Eric also invited Miguel del Barco a realtor from Alain Pinel. Kathy Lafferty reported that Nancy Glenfield came out of cataract surgery with flying colors. Beri Kasper gave a quick update on the Camp ROYAL scholarship recipient’s project to help feed the homeless. Jeff Kasper reported that he had “graduated” (been kicked out) of Kaiser’s Heart Transplant Unit in Santa Clara. To celebrate, he gave a crisp $100 bill to The Rotary Foundation. Edi Birsan gave us a community update and mentioned that he needs some help on Sunday, September 1, 2014 about noontime to go to the Lafayette Library and pick up books to be sold at the Concord Friends of the Library sale in the future.
Our speaker, Darrin Walters from Concord’s Blue Star Tattoos did a great job of explaining the most up to date trends and challenges in Tattoo world. As a third-generation tattoo artist, he had a great deal of information to share. The most prominent message was “Buyer Beware” when it comes to a tattoo parlor. He also talked about the influx of Chinese tattoo ink and supplies, and how he chooses to mix his own ink as opposed to buy pre-made inks. He also touched on what it takes to get rid of a tattoo. All in all, a very interesting presentation!