Events

Jeffrey A. Kottler is one of the most prominent authors and presenters in the fields of counseling, psychotherapy, health, education, and advocacy. He has written over 100 books about a wide range of subjects, including On Being a Therapist, Creative Breakthroughs in Therapy,  Bad Therapy, The Client Who Changed Me, Divine Madness, Stories We’ve Heard, Stories We’ve Told: Life-Changing Narratives in Therapy and Everyday Life, Relationships in Counseling and the Counselor’s Life, On Being a Master Therapist, Secrets of Exceptional Counselors, and most recently, Living and Being a Therapist: Selected Writings of Jeffrey Kottler.

Jeffrey has also written several successful trade books about a variety of psychological themes: Private Moments, Secret Selves, Divine Madness: Ten Stories of Creative Struggle, Change: What Leads to Personal Transformation, What You Don’t Know About Leadership But Probably Should, and the best-selling true crime book, The Last Victim: Inside the Minds of Serial Killers that was produced as a feature film (Dear Mr. Gacy).

Jeffrey has been a counselor, therapist, supervisor, and educator for 45 years, having worked a preschool, middle school, mental health center, crisis center, hospital, medical school, refugee resettlement agency, nongovernmental organization (NGO), university, community college, private practice, and disaster relief settings. He is also the founder of Empower Nepali Girls, a foundation that supports and mentors at-risk children He has served as a Fulbright scholar and senior lecturer in Peru and Iceland, as well as worked as a visiting professor in New Zealand, Australia, Hong Kong, Singapore, and Nepal. Jeffrey is Professor Emeritus of Counseling at California State University, Fullerton and is Clinical Professor in the Menninger Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Science at the Baylor College of Medicine. He currently lives in Houston where he works on projects related to refugee trauma with the Alliance for Multicultural Services.

Carol Levin was born in Waterbury, CT and graduated from Curry College in Milton, MA with a degree in Early Childhood Education. After completion of her husband's military service with the Air Force and as Judge Advocate General in Wichita Falls, the Levins moved to Katy. Carol taught at the New Hope Child Development Center, A Child’s Reflection, and Yorkshire Academy, where she remained for thirteen years. She received specialized training in Alphabetic Phonics through the Neuhaus Center, reading and language programs through Scottish Rite, and the Orton Society.  She is a member of the International Dyslexia Society and the winner of the 2005 Grinspoon-Steinhardt Award.

When she opened Tutorials for Excellence®, in 1999, her program was quickly recognized as a leader in reading, language, math, and test preparation (including TAKS, SAT and ACT).

Carol has great success in helping children with dyslexia, learning disabilities and processing problems. Her enthusiasm, devotion and boundless energy, combined with her passion for learning, make her an ideal source of support and encouragement to her students.

Carol is active in her community. She is on the Board of Directors for Breath of Life and MADD. She is a member of the International Dyslexia Association.  She is an active member of the Katy Rotary Club.

Carol is married to Stuart “Stu” Levin, Attorney at Law of Levin and Atwood, LLP. Their oldest son, Jason, his wife Stacey and their daughter Hayley moved to Katy. Later, Jason and Stacey were blessed with their second child, Addison Levin. In September of 2006, the Levin family suffered the tragic loss of their youngest son, Todd, to a drunken driver. Since then, the Levin’s have spent much of their spare time assisting MADD.

Helping children, assisting community, and dedication to family define Carol as an educator and a person.

Foster is a leading immigration law firm delivering the full spectrum of U.S. and global immigration solutions. Renowned for responsive, customized service, Foster works on behalf of the largest employers worldwide, top emerging and midmarket companies, investors, and individuals and families. Through experience, leadership and technology, Foster’s team solves the most complex immigration matters. Foster never forgets that behind every case there is a person, a family, and their livelihood.

BARBARA BRONSTEIN

President and Founder, Second Servings of Houston

Raised in New York, Barbara has called Houston home for over 30 years. She graduated from Tufts University (Medford, MA) before earning an MBA in Marketing from New York University (NY, NY). After a successful career marketing some of America's leading brands for Unilever, Mars, and Coca-Cola, Barbara piloted a banquet food rescue program known as "Banquet Bounty for the Hungry" for 18 months. It served as the precursor to the nonprofit organization, Second Servings of Houston, which she founded in 2014.

Barbara has always played an active role in the local community. In addition to numerous leadership awards, Barbara was recognized by the Houston Chronicle as one of “Houston’s Most Fascinating People of 2015” and one of 12 “Houston Heroes” in 2016.

Dr. Mehdi Alavi is a founder and President of Peace Worldwide Organization, an international organization based in Greater Houston.  His academic credentials include Ph.D. from Texas A&M University, MBA from University of Houston, and BS/MS from Texas Tech University.  He is a registered professional engineer with over thirty-five years of experience, mostly in management or advisory roles in the oil & gas indistry.  He is an author of books on interfaith, human rights, and peace.  Dr. Alavi has been living in Houston since 1973, married with four children.

Rotary Blue Badge criteria require a vocation presentation from each member, here is your chance to give a brief (elevator pitch) re-introduction to the club on your vocation(s) or what gets you up each day.

Please contact Gerard Simon if you want to participate.  gsimon@collector.org or 346-274-7909

Cecile is preparing a Business Directory so be sure you are listed correctly.  She sent an email 8/22/2018 with a pre-look.  Let her know if you are changes.  cecileschutter@yahoo.com or 713-670-6357

When the first plane hit on 9/11, Billy was on the 85^th floor of One World Trade Center working as a commodity options trader for SMW Trading Company.  Despite twice thinking he would die that day, he made it out of the building, helping others along the way.  His survival story has been retold numerous times in books, magazines, on radio and TV, and online.  In addition, Billy has spoken about his 9/11 experience to numerous gatherings, including church groups, student bodies, rotary clubs, and other private and public groups.  

Billy is a native Houstonian and a graduate of Rice University.  He began his career as a financial advisor in Houston in 1996.  In 2000, Billy and his wife Tobey moved to New York City where he became a Coffee options trader on the New York Board of Trade.  After the birth of their first child in 2003, Tobey and Billy returned home to Houston, and Billy went to work for his father in the oil and gas business.  He has since moved on to pursue other endeavors, including the redevelopment of the old Palace Lanes on Bellaire Boulevard.

In his spare time, Billy coaches his daughter’s soccer and softball teams, serves on the Owls Fan Experience Committee at Rice University, and is the Harris County coordinator for the organization named CoCoRaHS (pronounced KO-ko-rozz), a grassroots volunteer network of weather observers that provides weather data for natural resource, education, and research applications.  You can find him tweeting about the weather regularly.

Billy and Tobey live in West University Place where they are raising three children – Isabella, Luke, and Lexie.

Christof Spieler, PE, LEED AP is Vice President and Director of Planning at Huitt-Zollars, working on land use, transportation, and open space planning. He is currently serving as project manager of the Greater Houston Flood Mitigation consortium, a group of experts in hydrology, ecology, and urban planning that are working to assist decision makers and the public to address flooding in the Houston region. He teaches in Architecture and Engineering at Rice University, served on the board of  Houston METRO from 2010 to 2018, and has contributed to national APTA and NACTO standards. Spieler holds a BS and MS in Civil Engineering from Rice.

Nate Arneson serves as the Community Liaison at United Against Human Trafficking.  He primarily works to support the coordination of the Houston Rescue & Restore Coalition, expand Community Engagement Initiatives, support outreach events, and implement demand-reduction programs.  This is Nate’s first year living in Houston, Tx.  Prior to living in Houston, Nate and his Wife lived in Guatemala as Peace Corps volunteers working with the Ministry of Health and Ministry of Education to improve the overall health of rural communities living without vital resources.

Chris Peifer was named City Manager of West University Place in November 2015.

Chris's experience is both extensive and varied, having served as City Manager, Assistant City Manager and Public Works Director at West U, and Deputy City Manager in League City. Prior to his positions in Administration, he directed the Public Works Departments in League City and was the Assistant Director in Sugar Land. His public service is even more varied with experience in public works, finance/accounting (including contracting with various regulatory agencies under the Department of Treasury during the banking crisis, related to deregulation), economic and community development, finance, real estate and construction. In West U, his major focus areas include fiscal strength and process improvement, as well as strategic resource and infrastructure development.

Chris attended Albright College in Reading PA, where he earned his bachelors of Science degree. In the course of his career, he has supplemented his collegiate education with courses varying from public works to public administration, obtaining certifications in the Public Information Act, the Texas Open Meetings Act, and the Public Investment Fund Act. He is also a Certified Emergency Program Manager.

Throughout his career, Chris has been highly involved in municipal professional associations, including serving as a Board Member for the Texas Municipal Utility Association.  He is a member of the International and Texas City Manager Associations, the American Public Works Association, the American Water Works Association, the Texas Water Utilities Association and a host of other municipally oriented associations.

Chris will retire from the City this coming January.

Adam W. Richard is the Head of Distribution at Entoro Capital. He is co-founder & partner of Sutton Stone, founder of the Houston Bitcoin Meetup, co-founder of the Houston Ethereum Meetup, and previously co-founded and was CEO of Volt markets (Boost VC, Plug & Play, and Creative Destruction Labs alumnus), and was co-founder and CTO of Metal Networks, Inc. (Surge Accelerator alumnus). Adam has been a CTO, CPO, software project manager, start-up adviser/mentor, brand strategist, web developer, UX & UI designer, graphic designer, photographer & cinematographer. 

Joe Haralson has been a Ranger since 1981. This makes him one of the force’s most senior Rangers, and he is one of the best.

Michael Landrum is presiding Judge in the 113^th Civil District Court, in Harris County.  He has held this bench since his appointment by Governor Rick Perry in May, 2013.

Michael is a native Houstonian. He grew up in the Spring Branch area and attended Memorial High School.  He received his B.A. from The University of St. Thomas and a law degree from the University of Texas.

Michael Landrum holds specialist certifications in the fields of Civil Trial Law and Civil Appellate Law from the Texas Board of Legal Specialization. 

Before being sworn in as judge, Landrum dedicated his legal career to representing businesses and business people in matters involving a wide variety of transactional, litigation and appellate matters.

In addition to his official duties, Landrum teaches a class about American courts at Houston Baptist University, serves as judicial liaison to the Houston Young Lawyers Association, lectures in continuing legal education programs, judges student mock trial and moot court competitions, and is active in Houston Bar Association activities.

Danny Kahalley, Director of Admissions at Saint Thomas’ Episcopal School, has

fifteen years of experience in education administration and has worked for

numerous schools and colleges in Tennessee, Alabama, and Texas at the primary,

secondary, undergraduate, and graduate level. He has his bachelor’s degree from

Rhodes College and master’s degree from the University of Alabama. His

daughters, Lydia and Islay, both attend private schools in Houston, and wife, Lisa,

is an Associate Professor of Pediatric Psychology.

Specialist Steven C. Baskis successfully completed Infantry training at Fort Benning, Georgia in 2007 and went on to deploy with the U.S. Army’s distinguished 4th Infantry Division, a unit that crossed the Normandy beaches in World War II. While serving as a Personal Security Specialist in 2008, Baskis was severely wounded by an improvised explosive device during military operations in Baghdad, Iraq. May 13th, 2008 marked the day in which Baskis lost his sight and suffered multiple shrapnel injuries to the head, neck, arms and legs which resulted in significant blood loss, hearing loss, loss of smell and nerve damage to left arm. Steve explains how this traumatic experience has forever changed his sight and vision. “I may have lost my physical ability to see, but I have a new vision, a new perspective to guide me through life and all of it’s amazing challenges.

After war and debilitating injuries, Steve has gone on to climb 2 of the 7 tallest mountains in the world which include Mount Elbrus in Europe and Kilimanjaro in Africa. A documentary titled “High Ground”, captures Steve and 11 veterans’ amazing journey to climb a 20,000 foot Himalayan peak, Lobuche, which sits in the shadow of Mount Everest. Another documentary Steve had the opportunity to be featured in is “On Me”. The film follows five completely blind veterans down a stretch of white water river rapids in Montana. Baskis has found a love for adventure and physical challenge. Actively pursuing half marathons, a half ironman, cycling nearly 800 miles from the capital of Canada to the capital of The United States, snow skiing down cold mountains in Colorado and white water kayaking 226 miles of the Colorado River through the Grand Canyon, are just a few of Steve’s thrilling adventures.

“I now want to give back to the people who have helped me, through my foundation called Blind Endeavors”, Steve says. The Blind Endeavors Foundation’s main purpose centers around educating, conducting research and making more people aware of what is possible, no matter the level of adversity faced.