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A 100% Attendance Rotarian at Sea:
Keeping Connected through eClub One
 

Water's Warm!
Time is Right!
Let's Go Diving!

Back in December of 2002, eClub logged a makeup from a visitor who was working at sea. Where? That’s right, on the cruise ship Crystal Harmony off the Baja.

 

That got our attention. After verifying that this was for real we invited Drew Vactor, a 17-year perfect attendance Rotarian and webmaster of the Tucson Rotary Club, to tell us his story.

 

Follow his odyssey. You just might end up in one of his cruise ship computer labs.

eClub: Drew, tell about yourself and how you became involved in Rotary.

 

Drew Vactor: You can learn a lot about me at my website(s), especially on the history page for The Tack Room restaurant.  Here is the short version:  I graduated from the University or Arizona (Tucson) 1969 with a BS in Business, Marketing Major & Radio/TV minor.  Married one week later.  Kandie (Karen Levitz Vactor) and I will celebrate our 34th anniversary this summer.  We moved east for 5 years, working first for RCA Corporation in Corporate staff marketing and later helped Levitz Furniture Corporation grow from 12 to 55 stores.  
 

I was the Regional Merchandising Manager for Southeastern U.S., based out of Atlanta, when I had an opportunity to take over the management duties for our family owned restaurant in Tucson.  I interviewed with my dad for the job.  He offered me half the pay for twice the hours.  How could I turn down that deal?  He died 10 years later, but during those 10 years, we shared the operating duties and had a wonderful business relationship built out of trust and respect.

I operated the restaurant for 26 years of 80 hour weeks.  Along the way we stacked up 19 consecutive Mobil Travel Guide 5 Star Awards and, when the American Automobile Association began awarding restaurants, we then concurrently began a run of 8 consecutive AAA 5 Diamond Awards.  Many of our staff have been there for over 20 years and even though I retired from active operations in 2000, they all remained, continuing the high award rankings.  I am still the landlord, but others now carry on the day-to-day activities.

 
During those years, I was on various community committees and boards.  Rotary was my weekly escape from my own industry and a way to meet key people from all over our valley.  Rotarians were in many different endeavors and provided me a refreshing weekly break from the restaurant world.  I have completed 17 years of perfect attendance, despite my 80 hour weeks in the restaurant business, by making up in such places as Jerusalem, Munich, Edinburgh, Dublin, Calgary, Vancouver, Ketchikan (Club #2000), Great Barrier Reef (Cairns, Australia), Papeete (Tahiti) and many Carribean Islands.  

 

With my extensive travels, E-Club One finally had to bail me out in December when I was working onboard the Crystal Harmony.  We were never in a country that had a Rotary meeting on the day we were in port.  It was just before New Years Day and I was thrilled to spend time at the E-Club One site learning about the Rose Bowl Parade being prepared for Rotary International.

Once extricated from the daily grind of the restaurant business, I had time to pursue two activities I truly enjoy, Scuba Diving and Computers.  Kandie and I both became Scuba Instructors and we teach class and pool sessions every week all summer long.  We also take bi-weekly trips to San Carlos, Sonora, Mexico, where we certify our students in the warm summer waters of the Sea of Cortez.  That leaves us time in the off-season to pursue other interests.

I started doing Web Site Design while still operating The Tack Room and since retiring from daily operations have been able to help provide a web presence for small businesses with limited budgets.  I have been involved with computers since we put in our first Local Area Network (LAN) at The Tack Room in 1984.  As a small business operator, I had to learn many of the technical aspects of keeping our network running, installing upgrades and software and teaching others how to use the system.

Using this background, in both hospitality and computers, and after a substantial amount of personal travel at sea, I contacted the owner of a computer services contractor that supplied computer instructors and network operators for cruise ships.


eClub: Tell us about The Computer University at Sea - what is the purpose; how does it operate; who sponsors; the program and your role in it; the students; the results (credit hours, degrees, certificates); how a Rotarian might get involved?

 

Drew Vactor: Computer University at Sea is the operating name, used by Crystal Cruises, for their onboard computer center.  In the computer "lab" there are more than 20 computers used for email, internet access and teaching.  Crystal contracted this operation out, for the past six years, to a company called Highseas Computer Services, or HCS.  

 

Dave McFarland started HCS in 1997 after being frustrated while at sea because, although the technology was there, there was no way to use the internet to keep in touch.  He had successfully run his own software company and was comfortably retired when the opportunity arose to build an onboard system for Crystal Cruises.

 

Starting with a few computers in a small room, he eventually developed very successful computer centers on both Crystal Harmony and Crystal Symphony.  In order to staff the computer centers, he runs land-based training classes.  Technical support is provided from headquarters in Nashville, Tennessee.  

 

The teaching program is carefully scripted to provide an entertaining class while taking advantage of previously developed methods that lead to positive classroom response from guests of all ages.  Those Instructors with the best ratings can progress to the position of "Dean", or onboard manager.  The Deans are responsible for administering the computer system, controlling the Instructor and classroom schedules and giving 2-3 lectures, per cruise, in the theater.  I am currently one of 12 deans in the HCS system.

One of the goals of the Computer University at Sea program was to provide continuing education credits.  The HCS system was approved by the University of Michigan and, under certain circumstances, can provide accredited CE credits.  However, most of the classes are basic, entry level classes, appropriate for new computer users.

The HCS contract with Crystal ended during our last term onboard at the end of 2002.  No longer required to be exclusive, HCS was successful in acquiring contracts with 3 major cruise lines, including Princess, Celebrity and the new Oceana luxury cruise line, scheduled to start up in mid-summer, 2003.  Oceana is headed by Joe Watters, past president of Crystal Cruises.

 

Within 2 years, HCS may have as many as 20 ships under contract, requiring a rapid ramp-up in the Instructor corps.  My wife and I have been selected to help with the training as well as help develop the programs that will work best in the new environments on the various ships.

Candidates are typically couples (any two people who can share a stateroom) who can be at sea from 30-60 days at a time.  They should be computer literate, but need not have technical skills.  Backgrounds in hospitality, travel and education are preferred to technical computer backgrounds for the Instructor positions.  Candidates should be comfortable with ocean travel and air travel and enjoy international adventure.  Orientation training classes are given periodically around the country, by invitation, at the candidates own expense.  Instructors are volunteers, but all cruise expenses are normally paid after the first trial cruise.

I will give you another address later, but for now, those who are interested in more information may email:
HCS@5StarDesign.com.

 

eClub: After all that, what is your vision of Rotary and the Internet?

 

Drew Vactor: With over 2 million Rotarians spread around the globe, the Internet is the best way to keep in touch.  It is not as portable as the Rotarian magazine, but it can provide more timely response to projects, issues, and fellowship.  Many Rotary Clubs now have web sites with current calendars and meeting schedules.  Some provide their weekly bulletin ONLY online.  Others provide password protected access to their rosters for their membership.  

 

E-Club One is unique because there is no "face time" with members, but for most of Rotary, the interpersonal relationships advanced at regular meetings remain an important ingredient while the Internet is becoming a vital tool.  With travel and time shifting becoming more important, the Internet provides Rotarians with more flexibility in a time when fewer people find time in their busy schedules to make it to a weekly meeting.

In our Club of over 300 members, The Rotary Club of Tucson, Arizona, group email has become the favored method of disseminating information to the membership, allowing for quick changes and frequent reminders for events.  Events have better attendance than ever, with the email reminders.  Our Club secretary has more time, now that telephone calls take up less of the day, so that we now publish our weekly "Tucsotarian" bulletin in color, in house, every week.
 

eClub: How are we going to get from today's reality to your vision?

 

Drew Vactor: Today's reality already includes substantial internet usage.  Most homes and businesses in the United States and many in the rest of the world already have internet access.  In order to make a successful transition, many clubs will have to provide a small amount of training for their members and make certain their Club Secretary, whether staff or volunteer, is computer literate and has the hardware and software tools to get their membership up to speed with online access.

Those clubs that cannot build their own web presence, should budget for a small informational site for starters.  In many cases, their Rotary District can provide a minimal presence for them until they can expand.

 eClub: Thank you, Drew, for sharing your odyssey as a Rotarian and your vision of Rotary on the Internet.

 

We invite our viewers to use the email contact below to suggest other Rotarians with interesting careers and accomplishments who might share their story with eClub One and its visitors.

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