Joan Zecherle is a Faith Community Liaison for Hospice of the Valley, connecting communities to resources on end-of-life issues. She has a B.A. in Human Health Studies and a minor in Religious Studies from Arizona State University, and is continuing her education toward certification in health care chaplaincy.

Pot Luck (bring a dish!) and tour of our property! Address: 627 West 8th Street, Mesa (between Country Club and Alma School)

Join us for a pot luck barbecue and tour of our building! If you haven't been by our building lately, this will be a good chance to see what's happening there. If you've never seen it, come on by and check it out! We'll be barbecuing all afternoon and showing off the building! Bring a dish to share.

Directions: Take the 101 Freeway to the 202 East (northern part). Exit Alma School; go south on Alma School to 8th Street, turn left (east) past Westwood High School. At the corner of Date Street, turn right into our driveway just before the traffic signal. Overflow parking on CHERRY STREET, first street to the west of the property. Westwood High School is another possibility (private property -- park at your own risk).

Dr. Jane Maienschein is Regents Professor at the ASU School of Life Sciences, College of Liberal Arts and Sciences. She is also Director of the Center for Biology and Society. She has received numerous faculty and teaching awards, including the 2000 Parents Association Professor of the Year Chair and a Regents' Professorship in 2002, and President's Professorship in 2007. She currently serves as President of the History of Science Society and on the national board for the Association for Women in Science.

Dr. Maienschein specializes in the history and philosophy of biology and the way that biology, bioethics, and biopolicy play out in society. Focusing on research in embryology, genetics, and cell biology, Dr. Maienschein combines detailed analysis of the epistemological standards, theories, laboratory practices and experimental approaches with study of the people, institutions, and changing social, political, and legal context in which science thrives.

The Humanist Book Club meets on the fourth Saturday of each month at 10:30 a.m., Mesa Main Library, Main Branch, 64 East 1st Street (East of Country Club Way at the intersection of N. Centennial Way -- N.W. corner)

Various reviews from Amazon.com:

"Peter Singer may be the most controversial philosopher alive; he is certainly among the most influential." New Yorker; "Philosopher Peter Singer holds a mirror to the policies of the wealthiest nation-state - the United States - and the reflection is not flattering. In this morally compelling work, Singer calls for a new ethic that will serve the interest of all who live on the planet." Sydney Horton, Audubon; "Peter Singer writes, as always, lucidly and with relentless logic. Getting states to behave ethically is a heroic aspiration, but this book will give even the most obdurate realist much to think about." Gareth Evans, President, International Crisis Group, former Australian Foreign Minister; "Timely and thoughtful... A refreshing intellectual integrity in Singer's efforts to assess the facts on the ground." Andres Martinez, New York Times Book Review; "This thought provoking book should stimulate debate about how to ameliorate the problems caused by globalisation." Wildlife Activist"

Thomas J. Davis is professor of history at Arizona State University, Tempe, where he teaches U.S. Constitutional and legal history. An attorney as well as an historian, he holds a JD from the University at Buffalo, an MA in journalism from Ball State University, and an MA and Ph.D. in history from Columbia University.

Dr. Davis's research interests focus on U.S. Constitutional issues of personal rights, the employment relationship, and legal issues of racial construction and identity. His most recent publications include Race Relations in America (2006) and Race Relations in the United States, 1940-1960 (2008).

An update on the building renovation progress was a main topic of discussion, along with whatever other mattersw were on members' minds.

New meeting dates and location: Fourth Saturday of each month at 10:30 a.m., Mesa Main Library, Main Branch, 64 East 1st Street (East of Country Club Way at the intersection of N. Centennial Way -- N.W. corner)

President Obama's second book will give us more insight into our new president as he disusses politics, values and his vision for America.

Our HSGP member Jim Richardson was born in NYC in 1931. He holds the B. A. from Iona College and a Ph. D. from New York University. Between college and graduate school he was in the U. S. Army from 1952 until 1954, including a year in Korea with the 27th infantry regiment. He taught from 1955 until 1997, specialing in American urban and immigration history. From 1997 until 2004 he worked as a financial planner, holding a Certified Financial Planner designation. He and his wife Marie moved to Fountain Hills in 2005 to be close to two of their five children (the other three are scattered around the country). In the last few years his serious reading has been devoted to evolutionary psychology and the history of philosophy.