| Kiwanis is a global organization of volunteers dedicated to changing the world one child and one community at a time. |
NEWSLETTER Kiwanis Club of Cedar Rapids Wednesday, January 21 The meeting was called to order by President Bob Hatala, Esq. 27 Members in attendance. Guests: Interclub visitors from Fort Madison: Joe Bowen, Jim Lynk, Terry Stence and Timm Lamb Birthdays: Kelly Allen Jan 23 Announcements: Dan Breitbach announced that Farmer’s Breakfast tickets are on the way. Each member is asked to be responsible for 25, and to help identify corporate outlets for tickets; Ron Sunderman asked for suggestions for March programs. Happy Bucks: Duane Kurrelmeyer [Welcome Back!!!] happy to be at the meeting after the longest streak of absences in his 36 years as a member; Jim Moriarty celebrated his 31st wedding anniversary and is also has been absent for a while; Jim Platt recognized the accomplishment of Regis’ own: Zack Johnson and Kurt Warner, both having good weekends; John Schweitzer also had a buck for Zack and Kurt; Charlene Boardman is looking forward to a couple of months in Florida; Jim Doyne happy to have survived a round of downsizing at WMT, and his niece, a cancer survivor, turned 21; Don Grimm’s nonagenarian mother joined the digital world with a brand new email account; Chuck Wehage mourns the hemorrhage of tranny fluid from his ’85 Pontiac, but happy to have passed on the club presidential portfolio to Bob Hatala, skipping only one generation; President Hatala was happy to be crutch-free; Joe Bowen contributed a buck for the nice interclub; Joe Schmall paid a buck to hear about Dan Breitbach’s family spread in today’s Gazette; Dan Breitbach responded with five bucks – the aforementioned article was about the close relationship between his family and Freddy Jackson, NFL running back from Coe; Pam Landon fessed up for yet another recognition in the local business pages. Upcoming Programs: February coordinator Laurie Worden will host Darlene Schmidt of the Community Health Free Clinic next week, and Dr. Ryan Sunderman the week after. Speaker: Monica Vernon, Cedar Rapids City Council, and leader of her market research firm, told of the frustrations of trying to establish an effective working relationship between the Council and the City Manager, while dealing with a $7B hit to local infrastructure. Although Council positions are “part time jobs”, dealing with the various executive and legislative agencies that are key to flood recovery requires members to represent the city on site in Washington. Effective lobbying demands intense coordination at the congressional staff level. Effective red tape cutting requires constant contact with numerous federal agencies, because the funds must properly go through many wickets. And the rules are not written in may cases, and not real clear in any case. Ms. Vernon thinks we could do better. Word for the day: Submitted: Chuck Wehage |