| Christine's
Connections by
Pres. Christine Semon
 Well,
November went by very quickly and now December has rolled
in. Our Maryland weather did not let us down by being its
unpredictable self!. In November, we experienced warm
summer-like weather, lots of rain and wind, like springtime
— now it is time to pull out those warm sweaters.
Ya gotta love our ever-changing Maryland weather!
In
our club we had some great presentations last month! Our
first
presentation was by Bruce Gourley from the Community
Action Agency. He shared about some of the many projects
and accomplishments the agency is involved with in the Frederick
area. I heard that it was a very informative presentation
with a focus on the needs of the Food Bank. Unfortunately,
I was not able to attend the
club meeting,
as I was in McLean,
VA at Division 20’s 29th Sponsored Youth Night, supporting
Mr. Dale Larson who has organized all of them in the past.
He claims that next year will be his last one and he will
finally turn it over to someone else. (I have also heard
him say this same thing several times before!) There were
about 175 people attending including Kiwanians, Circle
Kers, Key Clubbers, Builders Clubbers and parents. It was
a very
nice event, as usual, celebrating the Kiwanis family and
all we do in the community, together.
The
next week, on the 16th, we had a very busy night. Were
honored by having Dustin Sclater, from (Amica Insurance
Company) attend our meeting. He shared with us how to
identify
and
possibly
combat Insurance Fraud. He had a very informative presentation
for club members and I know we all learned
something new. That same night we also had Lori Herringa
representing the Frederick County Community
Foundation
attend. She presented
our contribution check to Michael Koval, President of Special
Inspirations, Inc. As you recall, the check for (for over
$4,700) was earned from the proceeds of the Silent Auction
we
had
in September. Mike Koval expressed his appreciation for all
the hard work our club has done to support his organization
(which supports local families with special needs children
in several ways) and looks forward to an ongoing relationship
with our club.
On
the 23rd, we took a break from our weekly meeting and all
enjoyed
time with friends and family for Thanksgiving.
Some of us are probably still having turkey soup and turkey
pot pies! On the 24th (Black Friday) several Kiwanians braved
the crowds at the mall and helped out at the gift-wrap tables.
A special thanks to Larry, Glen, Bill, Charlie, Jim W, Ed,
Phil, Leslie, Debbi and Dave for your time and efforts!!
I was not able to help out, as I was in Delaware spending
time with my Grandfather and other family members for Thanksgiving
dinner #2. I will probably make it up over the next few
weeks during the rest of the gift-wrap! Oh yea, please
check your schedules and the online schedule for gift-wrap!!
There are still lots of slots to fill!! If we sign up early,
it might cut down on the amount of lovely <g> reminder emails
Dave sends to us! Click
here to see the current schedule.
On
November 30th, we had a wonderful program from several
of our own
club members. We were celebrating Veterans Day
a little late; however, it was worth the wait! The stories
shared were very informative and inspiring, in my opinion.
Thanks again to Phil, Dave, Charlie, Glenn and Jim Wiggins
for briefly sharing with us some their history serving
our country
in their specific branch of the military. They shared some
amazing stories that varied from very frightening to funny.
Thanks again to all of you for doing what you needed to do
to get the job done, the safest way you knew how!! Also,
on November 30th, our own Ed Crawford had a Birthday!! Neither
Rob nor I brought a copy of The Chatter (which usually helps
remind us of important Birthdays and Anniversaries of members),
so I neglected to mention it during our meeting. I am so
sorry for not wishing you a happy birthday (or having the
club sing to you) on your special day!! Thanks Ed, for the
reminder during the Happy Bucks part of our program. So,
I’d like to use this venue to wish you a very Happy
(belated) Birthday and we all hope it was grand! Thanks also
for all you do for our club!
As
most of the club knows, I drive a lot for my day job and
Kiwanis
related events. I have learned to adjust to the
traffic issues by listening to books on CD/tape the last
few years. It is a great destresser! I just finished listening
to a great book, called “The Generosity Factor”,
co written by Ken Blanchard (Author of One Minute Manager)
and S.Truett Cathy (Founder of Chick Fil-A). I usually don’t
suggest or recommend books to others, however this one is
fantastic and I felt it was very appropriate for our club
(with upcoming gift-wrap and what we do all year around)
and generally for the holiday season. It is a short book
(only 2 tapes, unabridged) that has a great message! I would
like to summarize it here, however to really get the essence
of it, I would highly recommend you check it out from your
local library (you can usually keep it for 3 weeks) and read
it for yourself.
It challenges us to examine differences between wealth and
generosity; successes and significance; and achievements
and service in our life. It focuses on discovering the Joy
of giving your time, talents, treasures and touch generously
to others. The main character chooses to live by five main
principles: 1) He owns it all; 2) Every day is a blessing;
3) Action is required; 4) Remember your blessings and 5)
Thank Him. If one takes the first letter of each principle,
you get the main focus of the book. To me, the main message
I learned was that when good things consistently flow out
of a heart (and are freely given) it eventually changes that
heart to a generous heart. Acquiring wealth tends to be the
current societal focus, however when one can discover other
reasons for doing this, the community and world can be impacted
more profoundly.
I
feel that each of our members, the Kiwanis Club of Suburban
Frederick, and our whole Kiwanis family (including our
sponsored
Builders club, Key Clubs, and Circle K) currently have very
generous hearts and probably have discovered the generosity
factor in their own lives. However it is often nice to have
a reminder of it, and the impact it makes, to others, especially
during this time of year. As Aesop once said, “No Act
of Kindness, No matter how small, Is ever wasted.”
Member
Ken Dell recently took ill and is recuperating at home.
Ken, we miss you at our weekly meetings and Dave tells
me he sorely misses you at the giftwrap tables you so faithfully
manned every evening in years past! Get well soon!! I wish you all a safe and wonderful holiday season! I hope
you will enjoy time with and continue to create many wonderful
new memories with your friends and families! God Bless You
all!! |
