| Christine's
Connections by
Pres. Christine Semon
 Well,
June is finally here, and summer is almost officially here
(on the 21st it will be); however, if you observe the weather
we have been having recently (in the 80s and 90s)
it seems that it is already here. As we know about living
in Maryland, the weather is very unsteady and unpredictable.
Enjoy!
During
the month of May, our club and I were very busy. On May
10th we had one of my favorite events: Middle School
Appreciation Night! We honored 13 Middle Schoolers this year,
including the newest school in Frederick County, Urbana Middle
School. The students were introduced to us by a variety of
school representatives: Guidance Counselors, Student Support
Teachers, Special Education teachers, Assistant Principals
and Principals. We also had a few representatives speak about
students (they knew) from schools other than their own! Great
teamwork is involved to honor and support all of these Middle
schools students. Our club had a lot of support and teamwork
offered to put on this event! I would like to thank a
few of them, from the bottom of my heart, here: Bud Jackson,
Community Service Chairperson did a great job of organizing
the night, keeping track of guests attending and handing
out certificates and gift bags to the honorees; Ellis Stroup
and Charlie Mertz volunteered to ‘man’ the front
door and be the first ones to greet out 80 or so guests;
David Maloney helped me out with creating the certificates
for the honorees; and Rob Summers did a great job (pinch
hitting for David) as the photographer for the event. Thanks!
We
heard many wonderful stories about the challenges many
of the
students overcame in order to be honored that evening.
The school representatives all seemed very enthusiastic about
their student and offered great stories from the teams of
teachers they were representing from their schools. Their
strides and the way the students persevered towards their
goals inspired us. It seems they are not the same young people
they were when they walked into the school in sixth grade
for reasons of their own. We all laughed a bit and cried
a bit (mostly me!) I am reminded of a quote from Robert Louis
Stevenson that speaks indirectly about what these students,
teachers, schools and our club are doing a great job with: “Don’t
judge each day by the harvest you reap…but by the seeds
you plant.” I know that I am looking forward to seeing
and hear about how this year's Most Improved Middle School
students continue to grow through the years to come!! I am
sure you are too!
On
May 17th we had two representatives from the Sheriffs Department
Explorer Program, Lieutenant Gordon Geesey and
Sargent Anthony Fritz, visit with our club. Ltg Geesey shared
with us about some recent goings-ons and what the program
has been up to and Sgt. Fritz shared about his great and
educational experiences the last few years. They shared some
great stories and accomplishments! We also presented them
a check for $600 to assist with the program and awards.
On
May 22nd, several of us helped the downtown Frederick Kiwanis
Club celebrate their 85th Anniversary. Thanks Jim
W, Charlie M and Ed C for joining me at the dinner at the
Holiday Inn on Tuesday night!! Remember if it wasn’t
for them, our club would not be here, as they chartered the
Suburban Frederick Kiwanis club 35 years ago!!
On
May 24th, Clyde Holloway author of "Pacific War Marine",
a book about his father who served in the Pacific for four
years as a Marine. I heard that
it was wonderful and very
informative.
I am
very sorry
I missed
it, however
I was
at Mount Saint Mary’s University getting ready to
welcome 155 Maryland High School Sophomores at 8am Friday
morning.
I was one of about 50 volunteers for the 3-day event. Our
Kiwanis club sponsored 3 students again this year, from
Middletown, Tuscarora and Walkersville High Schools. I
hope to have them
attend a meeting in the near future to share about their
experiences at the HOBY program! To
give you a brief overview of the 60-hour event with this
amazing
group of students, here is what we accomplished:
3 Keynote speakers; 5 panels on such topics as News and Media,
Volunteerism, World Economy, and educational system; leadership
labs, essay writing, thank you note writing, a fall-out shelter
exercise, a hunger lunch, a talent show with the students
as performers, a service project cleaning The Grotto for ½ a
day, and a social dance one evening. We did bed checks for
the students between 11pm-12 am and wake up calls between
6-7am each day. And our own Governor-Elect Art Riley came
up on Sunday to help with some judging. It was a very exhilarating
and exhausting weekend! There are many wonderful leaders
in this state and at this seminar we gave them many tools
to strengthen their abilities. I am already looking forward
to next year’s seminar!!
On
May 31st we were honored to have Mary Mannix from the C
Burr Artz Library, specifically the Maryland Room, visit
us with her presentation about the treasures at the library.
She offered a very informative and interesting lecture (once
the slide projector got on the right track) and some interesting
pictures of the artifacts available in the library.
To
conclude this months article, I am putting out a plea and
reminder
to keep a few of our cherished members in your
thoughts and prayers, while they work on healing their bodies
at home and in the hospital: Ken Dell, Eric Gatrell and Glenn
Magaha. According to Abraham Lincoln: “In the end it’s
not the years in your life that count. It’s the life
in your years.” These members have definitely given
and offered many years (two of them being charter members)
to our club and much life to the years of our Suburban Frederick
Kiwanis Club with their commitment and enthusiasm. We wish
them all a speedy recovery and hope to see them at a club
meeting again soon! |
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