Events

Moryt Milo is a San José Spotlight editor.

Her work as a journalist and newspaper editor includes coverage of government, business, politics and health care. Her commentary has been featured in the Miami Herald, Los Angeles Times and National Geographic online.

As former Silicon Valley Business Journal editor, she established the publication as a must-read for the local business community. Prior to her tenure at the SVBJ, she reported and then served as editor of the Silicon Valley Community Newspapers. She was a contributor to the Progressive Media Project, a publication launched to diversify the country’s op-ed pages, where her commentaries were picked up nationwide.

During her career, she garnered numerous awards for her body of work in writing and breaking news coverage from the California News Publishers Association. Her newsrooms have been honored with general excellence for their reporting and overall news coverage.

Moryt sits on the board of NAMI (National Alliance on Mental Illness) in Santa Clara County where she moderates events and interviews mental health advocates including Tom Insel, former director of the National Institute for Mental Health, Santa Clara County Superior County Judge Stephen Manley on his behavioral health court programs, and Dr. Kenneth Rosenberg, documentarian and producer of the award-winning film “Bedlam.” She also served on the board of Loaves & Fishes Family Kitchen.

Physiologically speaking, why do we feel so good in a beautiful environment? What happens in the body when we experience beauty? Scientists have wondered about this for years—and now we have answers, both to the “what happens” and the “why.” Join me as I share these remarkable findings.

Carol Woodard was born and raised in San Francisco. From an early age, she knew she wanted to pursue one of two paths: medicine or interior design. When it came time for college, she attended UC Berkeley as a pre-med major. But by the end of her junior year, she realized she was ahead of her time—medicine was still largely a world for white men, and she did not see a place for herself within it. She ultimately graduated with a degree in Child Development.

She went on to meet her wonderful husband, raise four children, and today enjoys five grandchildren. Somewhere along the way, she came to an important realization: medicine is often reactive, while interior design—when done thoughtfully—can be profoundly proactive.

She returned to one of her original calling, studied interior design, and became a professional designer. Over the years, she has also earned certification in Applied Color Psycho-Physiology and, more recently, in the Neuroscience of Design.

Her practice has always focused on creating interiors that support the health and well-being of those who occupy them. Intuitively, she has long understood the healing power of a well-designed environment. Today, that intuition is validated by hard science.

Dave Hoyt has been a volunteer at the Computer History Museum since 2015, leading tours of the museum and giving presentations on the museum and computer history. He has a degree in engineering and an MBA, both from Stanford. He has worked in the analytical instrument industry, with both public companies and startups, and as a case writer for the Stanford Graduate School of Business.

Presentation

The Computer History Museum in Mountain View houses the largest collection of computing artifacts in the world, including many rare or one-of-a kind items. This presentation will discuss the history of the museum, the visitor experience, and unique artifacts that are not usually included in docent-led tours.

Cynthia Gregory is an award-winning writer and author of Journaling As Sacred Practice: an Act Of Extreme Bravery (2016), What Is Possible From Here (2021), LOVE NOTES From the SOUL (2024), and LOVE NOTES From the SOUL 2.0 (2025).  She is a member of the California Writers Club, Redwood Writers Chapter, and a member in good standing of the International Coaching Federation.

Cynthia’s mission is to help shift-makers and cultural creatives translate their meaningful life experiences into compelling stories. She does this through hands-on writing workshops, individualized author coaching, and transformational writing retreats that support writers at every stage. She earned her bachelor's degree in journalism from Gonzaga University and her master's degree in literature from Mills College.

Dan Orloff has spent more than four decades connecting Silicon Valley to its own soundtrack. As Founder and Chief Rock Officer of San Jose Rocks — a 501(c)(3) nonprofit documenting and celebrating the music heritage of Santa Clara County — he is on a mission to prove our region belongs in the same conversation as Nashville, Memphis, and Motown.

On May 29, Dan brings Rotarians a genuine music-history detective story: the long, winding path to unwinding one of rock’s great mysteries — where, and when, Grateful Dead first performed under that name. The trail runs through Ken Kesey’s Acid Tests, a modest downtown house, and decades of conflicting accounts. And it leads to San Jose Rocks discovery of two key artifacts, long thought lost to time, that finally pinned the story down for good.

A longtime Santa Clara Valley resident, marketing veteran (Orloff Marketing, since 1992), and managing partner at Pruneyard Cinemas, Dan is a past president of the Campbell Chamber of Commerce and a member of the Board of Directors of the Rotary Club of San Jose. He has produced and promoted live music across the region for over 40 years.

And he won’t leave Saratoga out of it — expect a few local gems, pieces of Saratoga’s own music history hiding in plain sight. Come for a band you already know. Leave knowing your own backyard helped launch them — and how San Jose Rocks proved it.

Mark Fischer-Colbrie has more than 30 years of experience in building laboratory tools and diagnostic, therapeutic, and medical device companies. He was most recently CEO at Strateos, Inc., a software technology and automation company that seeks to accelerate life science research by enabling cloud access to broad-scale automation. Previously, Mark was the CEO for over ten years at Labcyte Inc., which invented novel lab tools and automation that have been adopted worldwide.

Before Labcyte, he ran business development and was the CFO at Adeza Biomedical Corporation, a women’s healthcare company. He holds four issued patents for diagnostics and therapeutics. In 2013, Mark was named Ernst & Young Entrepreneur of the Year, Life Sciences for Northern California. Mark is the former Chairman of the Board for JDRF International, the largest global funder seeking a cure for type one diabetes.

As a 21-year JDRF volunteer, he served on the JDRF International Board for 7 years and was a member of multiple committees including Research, Finance and Nominating & Governance. For the Greater Bay Area JDRF Chapter, Mark served as the Chapter President for 3 terms and has been a board member for 18 years. Mark holds a BA from Stanford University and an MBA from University of California, Berkeley. He served on a life sciences industry board, the Analytical, Life Sciences Diagnostics Association (ALDA), from 2011 to 2024. Mark enjoys long-distance endurance events and has completed 14 Ironman Triathlons. 

Becky, Jeffrey and Mushu are a skilled companion graduate team from Canine Companions.  Becky is considered the facilitator while Jeffrey is the recipient of Mushu.  For the past nine and a half years, Mushu has assisted Jeffrey with working on independence skills, helped to mitigate his disability, provided him with opportunities for responsibility, and facilitated social interactions in public. Together they have attended countless therapies and adapted sports sessions, she has accompanied him on every hospital visit, they have hung out together backstage at the theater while he’s waited for his turn on stage, and they have traveled across the country multiple times. No matter where they go, Jeffrey delights in introducing his best friend to everyone he meets.     

Reiko Iwanaga has been a Saratoga Rotarian for over 30 years and lived in Saratoga for over 40 years. She was named the Saratoga Citizen of the Year in 1991. Some recognitions have included from the County Supervisors, the Japanese Consulate, the Saratoga Historical Foundation and the Japanese American Citizens League. She is in the San Francisco Japanese Cultural Hall of Fame and was honored as one of 7 National Endowment for the Arts Fellows in 2025 at the Library of Congress. For decades, she has been the head dance instructor for the San Jose Obon Festival, the largest in the U.S.

May Lee (also known as Ms. Purple!!) is a world traveler who has visited all 7 continents, an avid foodie who has dined at numerous Michelin starred restaurants across the globe, a freelance web journalist who has covered her favorite soap opera (ABC's General Hospital) at the Daytime Emmy Awards for over two decades & a dedicated supporter of her alma mater - the University of Tennessee, Knoxville where she has funded two annual computer science scholarships & dedicated a terrace to be named after her father who immigrated from Taiwan.   She previously worked at Hewlett-Packard & its spin-off Agilent Technologies in various roles starting off as a software engineer before moving into technical support & then marketing roles.  She currently works for Gray Hawk Global deploying to McMurdo Station in Antarctica 5 months each year as a Broadcast Engineer in charge of the TV/radio facilities there. 

May a.k.a. Ms. Purple!! 

Linda is a retired k-8 science teacher who taught teachers about the ocean at the Monterey Bay Aquarium summer institutes for 30 years.  She now volunteers at the Saratoga History Museum as the Director of Education programs. All the schools in Saratoga come for the interactive Pioneer Living program where children visit the Saratoga Blacksmith's home, wash clothes on a washboard, write on slates, read McGuffey readers in the one room schoolhouse, and visit the new Blacksmith building to learn about what blacksmith's do.

Her talk today features archival photos of some early people and their activities that built the little town that later became Saratoga.

Terrance Hunter is the President, Director, and Founder of Empowering the Fatherless, a 501(c)(3) nonprofit dedicated to uplifting fatherless youth, supporting returning citizens, and breaking cycles of generational trauma through mentorship, education, and transformational storytelling.

Terrance Hunter is a recognized speaker, advocate, and author whose life journey embodies resilience, redemption, and purpose-driven leadership. As the President, Director, and Founder of Empowering the Fatherless, Terrance leads a mission to uplift fatherless youth, mentor formerly incarcerated individuals, and inspire communities toward healing and transformation.

After serving 30 years in the California Department of Corrections, Terrance emerged with a renewed sense of purpose and a commitment to turn his life experience into a platform for change. His powerful story is captured in his books, “My 30 Years with the California Department of Corrections” and “A Purpose-Driven Transformation – After 30 Years of Incarceration”, where he shares hard-earned lessons on accountability, perseverance, and the power of hope.

As a transformational speaker, mentor, and reentry advocate, Terrance uses his lived experience to guide men, youth, and families toward hope and restoration. Through Empowering the Fatherless, he leads programs that strengthen emotional intelligence, build leadership skills, and reconnect individuals to their inherent worth. His work has positioned him as a respected voice in community empowerment, restorative justice, and fatherhood advocacy.

Through his work, Terrance has become a voice for second chances, a mentor to those navigating life after incarceration, and a champion for breaking cycles of fatherlessness. His leadership continues to inspire individuals and organizations nationwide to believe in the possibility of transformation—no matter the past.