Today we hosted three Burk High School students to compete in our annual four way test speech contest. Some friends came to judge the contestants.

Don Pellikan was the Rotarian of the Day. Don's guest was Mark Beauchamp, county commission for PCT 1.  He gave us an update on the new County Jail and Sheriff's office, and other county business. 

Matt Patterson was the Rotarian of the Day. His guest was Tom Talbert, MD. Dr. Tom is working with a new treatment clinic that deals with opioid addiction, what used to be known as a Methadone Clinic.  The opioid addiction is a real scourge in this country. Over 30,000 young people overdose every year. Many have lost jobs, families, friends, and health as they spend $500 or more a week on their habits. Before becoming associated with the clinic Dr. Tom did a lot of research. He found that many saw the Methadone clinics as a crutch, which trades one addiction for another. Dependency and addiction are different things, and those with dependency are not necessarily addicts. Addiction is caused by a mental disorder. We have a pleasure / reward system that is built into our brains. 10% to 15% of the popluation have a disorder that makes this process out of control. It is primarily inherited, and if both parents have the gene for addiction disorder, a child will have 75% chance of developing addiction. It is not a moral choice, but a mental disorder that must be treated as such. Craving something is a normal thing, but an addiction can develop, so methadone allows the treatment of the craving and disorder without giving a feeling of being high.  Combined with counseling, patients can recover and break the cycle of pleasure / reward system of drug use.

Keith Myers was the Rotarian of the Day.  HIs program was a presentation about several of the foreign exchange students who are in our schools this year. We heard from kids from Denmark, Germany, South Korea, and Spain. We learned about some of the differences between their home countries and the US.  One thing they all found out was different here is that the teachers were very friendly, and they got to know their names. He heard about how the students and families are put together, and how much the families are supervised. 

Bill McGuire was the Rotarian of the day.  His guest was Richard Gordon, the Executive Director of the Burkburnett Development Corp.  Web: https://www.burkburnettsports.com/ 

Christina Haworth was the Rotarian of the Day. Her guests were Shannon and Jack Miller who began a project called "Blessing Boxes."  Two of the boxes have been placed in Burkburnett, one at the community garden, and one at St. Jude Thaddeus Catholic Church. 

Danny Cremeens was the Rotarian of the Day. Danny's guest was Mike Tugman, CPA, who gave us facts on the current tax laws. The top earners, 1% of Americans, pay 43% of the taxes collected, the wealthy do pay taxes. For 2018, only the first $10,000.00 of sales taxes paid will be deductible.  Mortgage interest deduction is reduced from the first $1,000,000.00 to $750,000.00. Deductions for employee related travel and expenses has been eliminated. Brokerage fees are no longer deductible. The standard deduction was raised so that fewer tax payers get more than that. Alimony will no longer be deductible. There are many more changes, go ask your own CPA.

Mike Whaley was the Rotarian of the Day. Mike's guest was James Dubuss, the Regional Service Manager at the Ameron Rd. facility. The company is based in Little Rock, AR.  https://www.maverickusa.com/