June Meeting
OUR NEXT MEETING WILL BE HELD ON TUESDAY, June 9, 2026, at Cheap Charlies in Bloomfield.
Our speaker for the evening will be our own Francis Coleman who will present:
“SCIENCE AND RELIGION IN HARMONY – SOME THOUGHTS ON A CREDIBLE FRAMEWORK FOR CIVILIZATION” – A TALK BY FRANCIS D. R. COLEMAN
Born in 1939, Francis decided that the time had come for him to try to tidy up the “bits and pieces” of knowledge and belief that he had accumulated over a lifetime.
He wanted to see if he could find purpose, meaning, and harmony between that which is known (knowledge), and that which is not yet known or can never be known (belief).
He begins his talk with the recognition of existence as a reality, not an illusion. He then describes the components of existence – matter, energy and consciousness.
He describes two major views of existence – as an act of creation or as a random accident – neither of which can be proved or disproved, despite all the evidence, leaving each of us to make our own choice based on someone’s best guess.
He talks about some of the implications of these conflicting beliefs on existence, including their impact on the purpose of life and the ethics that shape our choices.
He discusses three aspects of consciousness: first, as essential for life; second, for our bodies to function; and third, to allow us to make the choices that shape our destinies.
He calls our attention to how we consciously make a myriad of choices, small and large, every day of our lives, by combining knowledge with belief.
He addresses how inspiration and belief can lead to creeds, religions, and institutions, and how established creeds can struggle to cope with expanding knowledge.
He describes how belief and religion can bring meaning and comfort to our lives while avoiding the risks of cults and zealots.
His talk ends with a personal summary of his conclusions and a universal prayer that he wrote after walking across Spain in 2007 on the ancient Camino.
The evening will begin at 5:30PM with drinks and conversation followed by dinner, club business and our speaker, commencing at about 6:30PM.
If you plan to attend DINNER at Cheap Charlies, please make sure you RSVP by responding to this EMAIL, ASAP or NO LATER THAN 5:00PM, MONDAY, June 1, 2026. Please RSVP as soon as possible so that we can plan for food and seating.
Once again Cheap Charlie’s will have a dedicated waitress to help provide us with an even better dinner experience and the chefs will continue to create custom buffet entrees for us. For this evening we will have the “locally famous” Cheap Charlies BBQ buffet featuring smoked pork ribs, pulled pork, salads, bread/rolls, coffee, and a homemade dessert created just for the Scientific Club!
THE COST OF THE MEAL IS $30.00 and if you plan to attend, payment is preferred to be paid by a personal check (payable to “Bloomfield Scientific Club”) and submitted to our Treasurer, Dave Lonobile prior to the 6:30pm start of the dinner.
Some more information about our speaker, Francis Coleman:
In 2005, Mr. Coleman retired from careers in engineering and law, and moved to
Bloomfield, NY where he now resides.
Since retiring, he served for several years as a member of the board of trustees of the
Village of Bloomfield and on the board of trustees of the Bloomfield Public Library.
He co-founded[1] Ontario County Values, Inc, a not-for-profit company formed to
study and compare various local taxes in the Country of Ontario. He co-founded the
Bloomfield Economic Discussion Group, and has been a longtime volunteer with
hospice in Ontario County.
Prior to retiring, he served as Vice President – Law and Policy and General Counsel
at GNR Ltd., the global registry for the Internet “.name” domain, headquartered in
London, UK, as part of a senior management team brought in to successfully turn
the company around with new marketing, financing and regulatory approvals.
Before joining GNR Ltd, Mr. Coleman served as Vice President – Regulatory Affairs for Mpower Communications, a Competitive Local Exchange Carrier (CLEC) based in Rochester, New York. He designed and implemented Mpower’s regulatory strategy at the FCC to provide local service nationally, while serving as the first chair of the United States Telecom Association’s CLEC Council in Washington, D.C.
He served for 3 years in Washington as Director of Regulatory Affairs – North America at ICO Global Communications, for its planned launch of 12 medium-earth-orbit satellites to provide voice and data service globally. He designed and implemented ICO’s regulatory strategies at the FCC in Washington, in Industry Canada in Ottawa, and at the European Commission in Brussels, to enable ICO’s planned multi-billion-dollar systems of satellites, earth stations, and global networks to compete in the US and Canadian markets. This strategy included novel approaches for satellite access to crowded spectrum, and a number of related economic, technical, and legal matters.
Mr. Coleman had previously served for over 10 years as secretary and corporate counsel to ACC Corp., a publicly traded telecommunications holding company headquartered in Rochester, New York. He was in charge of ACC’s legal and regulatory affairs worldwide, specializing in identifying and overcoming barriers to entry in foreign markets, and he directed its efforts in the areas of corporate governance, regulatory compliance, acquisitions and dispositions, litigation management, and legal counseling.
He designed and implemented ACC’s successful international regulatory strategy in the United States, Canada, the United Kingdom, Germany and elsewhere. Other accomplishments included successfully negotiating and securing the world’s first international simple resale (ISR) licenses from the British Government and the US Federal Communications Commission. These licenses permitted the first international service between the United States and the United Kingdom on leased lines exempt from settlement charges.
Mr. Coleman served for several years in the Law Department of the City of Rochester, specializing in economic development and the environment, after practicing law at the Chamberlain, D’Amanda firm in Rochester.
Prior to his career in the law, Mr. Coleman was an engineer at Grumman Aircraft Engineering Corp. on Long Island, NY where he worked on the design of new aircraft and spacecraft including the Navy F-14 Tomcat fighter and the NASA Lunar Module.
Mr. Coleman co-founded the Genesee Telephone Company, a non-wireline cellular telephone company, and Vehicare Inc, a supplier of on-site services to large vehicle fleets.
Mr. Coleman was born in the UK in 1939, the year that World War II began. His
father was a British officer involved in dramatic Military Intelligence and Counter-
intelligence matters during and after the war. He emigrated from the UK to the US
with his family in 1948, at the age of nine.
He holds a BA in history and math from Franklin and Marshall College, a BAE in
aeronautical engineering from Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, an MS in management
engineering from Long Island University, and a JD in law from Cornell Law School.
His interests include painting, gardening, opera, history, and economics. He is the
author of a number of books, and gives talks on various subjects including
cryptocurrency, space travel, climate history, and science and religion. He has
three beloved daughters and six grandchildren.
Francis can be reached at +1-585-704-5306 (M), fdrcoleman@gmail.com.
Please don’t forget to RSVP as soon as possible to assure yourself a seat at what promises to be a thought provoking presentation!