Category: News

[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.