Tim Richards

Rotary Stats

Club: Rotary Club of Dearborn

My Rotary Info

How long have you been in Rotary? Estimate if you do not know exact dates.
Approximately 8 years, two different times with a break in between , caused by work obligations that made participation extremely difficult.

List the Rotary clubs you've belonged to.
Dearborn (MI) Rotary Club

What club offices or leadership positions have you held?
Board Secretary

Have you held district or int'l offices?
No

eClub works for me because...
eClub offers me the convenience and fllexibility of doing makeups, which allows me to achieve my goal of having perfect attendance for meetings August 2007-July 2008. eClub works for me because the two sessions that I have attended on line were very interesting and informative--the first on resumes and the second on outsourcing.

About Me

How would you describe yourself? List qualities that friends might use to describe you.
Friendly, competent and rational.

What are your favorite things, in personal and work life?
Cooking Gardening Reading

Is there a quotation that gets you through the day, or is very meaningful to you?
" Great is the mystery of birth and death. Impermanence surrounds us. Be awake each moment; do not waste your life." (This is a Buddhist verse that I learned at the local Zen Buddhist temple in my home city of Ann Arbor, MI. I do not know the citation)

What type of vehicle do you drive, or doperfer another mode of transportation?
1996 Acura Integra

What type of pets do you prefer?
3 cats

My special skills and talents are...
working with people to get things done

Education and Occupation

Level of traditional education:
Masters Degree

Describe it:
Library Science

Do you have a specialty degree?
Yes

Where did you attend High School?
Phillips Exeter Academy, Exeter, NH

Where did you attend college?
Colby College, Waterville, Maine (undergrad) University of New Hampshire, Durham, NH (undergrad) University of Michigan (grad)

I use my degree in my current occupation:
True

What is your current occupation?
Library Director

How long have been at your current occupation?
I've been a librarian for 31 years

What was the least favorite job you've ever had?
Lifeguard

Entertainment/Interests

What are your hobbies?
Gardening Cooking Reading

Do you watch sport? Who are your favorite teams/players?
Yes; I watch college basketball (men & women), college football, college baseball, college ice hockey, college soccer ( men and women), college softball; professional football, professional baseball, professional ice hockey, professional soccer and tennis Favorite sport: Baseball. Favorite teams, Boston Red Sox, Boston Bruins, Boston Celtics, New York Giants, New England Revolution, University of Wisconsin Favorite player: Curtis Grandeson, Detroit Tigers

Do you like to camp?
No

Do you prefer books or movies?
Books

Food

Do you like to cook or go out for dinner?
Cook

What is your favorite meal?
The next meal that I am going to cook

Miscellaneous

What is your favorite book and why?
Melville's Moby Dick because of the truths it conveys about the human experience.

If you could be anyone for a day, who would it be and why?
Placido Domingo in his prime. My secret ambition is to be an opera singer. Unfortunately, I have no talent.

If you could meet your great-great grandparents, what would you ask them?
I would ask my great- great grandfather (a Union Army Chaplain) why he volunteered to participate in the action at the Battle of Fredericksburg and, as a result, get himself killed during the Union Army's crossing the Rapahannock river.

If money were not an a concern, what profession would you choose?
Librarianship

What is your favorite movie? Why?
My Brilliant Career. This is a delightful film about an independent young woman's struggle to assert herself in rural, stodgy late 19th century/early 20th century Australia. I enjoy the dialog, the camera work and the character development. If I recall correctly, this Australian filnm had a brief run in the U.S. in the 1980's. I have never been able to find it on video in the U.S..

What might surprise people about you?
I was a certified jump master when I was in the Army

If you could muster the courage, what would you like to do?
I do not want to do anything that requires me to muster courage. If I had the talent, I'd love to sing at the Metropolitan Opera in New York City.

If you relive one day, which would it be?
The day my wife and I were married.

If you could take only three items with you to a space colony, what would they be? (Your family is already coming with.)
A copy of Moby Dick, a recording of Schubert's Trout Quintet, my omelette pan

What is the best advice your parents gave you?
Take responsibility for your actions

What is the best advice you have given your children?
It is up to you whether you choose to be happy or not

If you could be any animal, what would it be and why?
LIon. Independent, but part of a group that works together

Describe the most beautiful sight you have ever seen:
Oakland Army Depot in 1972, when I "mustered out" of the U.S. Army after a tour in Vietnam.

Where would you like to retire?
Ann Arbor, Michigan

The world will be a better place when…
We all really listen to each other