Category: News

Hey Sister! Invites to engage from China to Seattle to Pittsburgh — by way of a WATER Safety, SKWIM and Study Trips

Email blast: Lots to do and talk about from China to Seattle to Pittsburgh — by way of a WATER Safety Outreach effort.

1)

From 3-4 pm on Saturday, May 5, at the meeting room in the Squirrel Hill Branch of the Carnegie Library, corner of Murray Ave and Forbes, we’re calling a BRAINSTORMING Meeting in advance of a pending 2-3 week trip to Pittsburgh this summer for up to 25 youngsters from Pittsburgh Sister City in China.
Got ideas? Input welcomed. Kids are expected to be ages 10 to 16. Many will travel with an adult guardian.
There is a new push in China’s educational efforts for “study trips” for kids. Learn about this and our connections at this open community meeting while Li, the CEO of the education company in China is in Pittsburgh.

2)

From 8:30 to 11:30 for adults and from 11:30 to 1 pm on Saturday, May 5, and the other Saturdays in May except on Memorial Day Weekend, all are invited to the Saturday Swim School at northside’s Oliver High School. https://Swim.CLOH.org/saturdays/
We had a great time this past weekend with members of the Pittsburgh Triathlon Club. Plenty of room for training or to sharpen your water skills in advance of summer.

3)

Lifeguards are in high demand. Citiparks needs to hire 50+. The Pittsburgh Project needs to hire 7. Another local university needs to hire more than 5. We’ve been training guards at the Saturday Swim School and Citiparks beings a new class on May 8, Tue & Thurs.
I also need junior guards and swim instructors. Volunteer, apply, help:

4)

We get to make a presentation on Tuesday in Seattle to Washington Recreation and Parks Association Conference, on water safety, SKWIM is the name of the game.
Tuesday evening we do a demonstration game with staff and swim team / swim lesson participants at the JCC in Seattle.
Wednesday evening we take SKWIM to the North Shore Lagoon Swimming Pool at Anderson School in Bothell, Washington.

5)

A splendid Water Safety Outreach program for the region is being crafted for this summer. We’re looking for a title sponsor and teams, swim pools, camps, scout groups and other individuals to participate. Send me an email or text message now if you want to get involved on the ground floor, or come to any of the next two Saturday Swim School for more insights in person.
Mark Rauterkus       Mark@Rauterkus.com 

Executive Director of SKWIM USA, a 501(c)(3)
PPS Summer Dreamers' Swim & Water Polo Camp Executive Coach

Middle School Swim Coach at The Ellis School

Former Varsity Boys Swim Coach, Pittsburgh Obama Academy

Recent Head Water Polo Coach, Carnegie Mellon University Women's Club Team
Pittsburgh Combined Water Polo Team

http://CLOH.org

412 298 3432 = cell

Election for American Academy of Audiology — President Elect

Catherine V. Palmer, my wife, is on the ballot for President of AAA. Dave Jedlicka, a worker at the VA Hospital and a former student at Pitt, plus more, posted this on Facebook.

Vote for Catherine, so posts Dave.

This is not a popular vote as it is only open to members of the Academy. So, those of us in the general population have to sit this out and just try to remind the audiologists in our lives to vote — and vote for Catherine.

A web page and video statement from Catherine is online. See: https://www.audiology.org/catherine-palmer-phd

group photo of past presidents
Past presidents at AAA Convention in Nashville, TN, in 2018.

The term goes one year as President Elect, then a year as the President, and a third year as the Past President. Then, after that, she’d join an elite group of about 20 people that are “past presidents.”

 

[412-public-news] Busy year so far. Yes, I am of the year-of-the rooster.

The month has been busy. Three updates below:
1. Catherine’s stories,
2. my new duties as executive director of a nonprofit, and
3. my presentation to California swim coaches.

#1) My wife’s fourth story was recently part of the national radio show,
Moth Radio Hour, and associated podcast. For a bit of humor, tune in. Tip:
the full recording of the show is worth the time as the second and third
stories are amazing too.

Full show: https://themoth.org/radio-hour/live-from-portsmouth

Just Catherine’s story: https://themoth.org/stories/shopping-in-china/

Link to all of Catherine’s online stories: https://themoth.org/storytellers/catherine-palmer

#2) I’ve got a new advocate role with a budding nonprofit to go along with
my local swim coaching with Pittsburgh Public Schools, the
Bloomfield-Garfield Corporation, The Pittsburgh Project and The Ellis
School. I’m now the executive director of SKWIM USA.

New Executive Director of SKWIM USA, a 501(c)(3)

#3) My presentation with (slides, audio, and links to videos) to last
week’s Pacific Swim Coaches Clinic about game-play, water polo, SKWIM and
our approach in Pittsburgh, PA, USA, is now documented and shared at

Thinking again about aquatic game play — Presentation at NorCal’s Pacific Swim Coaches Clinic

Planning for summer is in full swing. If you think my efforts with
sportsmanship, teamwork, aquatic safety and aquatic fun can help you and
yours, email or come to the Saturday Swim School at Oliver High School on
the city’s Northside. We can visit there and better sustain these
wave-making activities. http://swim.cloh.org/saturdays/

Updated: City voters in the general election picked “YES” on ballot question! Thank you.

Update: At the general election in November 2017, the voters in the city of Pittsburgh elected to change the city’s charter to allow city workers the opportunity to take on part-time work as athletic coaches for Pittsburgh Public School. More than 31,000 YES votes, 73%, were in favor. By the way, the unopposed re-election of Mayor Bill Peduto, D, generated 95% support and 39,000 votes.

Click photo above to link to the Post-Gazette article.

Quote:

Ms. Rudiak took up the issue after Mark Rauterkus, a swimming coach at Pittsburgh Obama 6-12, approached her. Mr. Rauterkus heard that a part-time coach at another city school had to give up that work because of his city employment.

“We’re shrinking the pool of available coaches, knocking them off,” said Mr. Rauterkus, 57, of the South Side Flats. he called the referendum “a positive step” that “might endear more people to live in the city if they could coach their kids here.”

Listen to this radio interview

Radio host, Dimitri, talks with Coach Mark Rauterkus about more people being eligible to be hired as part-time coaches at Pittsburgh Public Schools.

https://soundcloud.com/1dimitriradio/mark-rauterkus-swimming

Ballot Question

Three time champion: Catherine’s story rocks at The Moth’s Grandslam

There was a tie in the points served by the judges in the audience, but the winner was named. Catherine won for the third time in Pittsburgh.

heads of Catherine and Mark
Catherine Palmer, award winning story teller, and husband, Mark Rauterkus, after the show in Pittsburgh in October 2017.
scores with names and order of speakers
Catherine wins. The scores and the order of the ten speakers.

Bishop Zubik and Catherine at the gala for The DePaul School of Speech and Hearing

Bishop and Catherine
Bishop Zubek and Catherine at the gala for DePaul School of Speech and Hearing.

To be honest, the meetings that were shared in the story that happened in City Hall and in Church after mass were with Pittsburgh’s former Bishop, Bishop Wuerl. This photo, taken a few years later at a special event for DePaul School show Bishop Z and Catherine. Both served as board members for the school.