Tidings

President Mike Boland started the July 21 virtual luncheon meeting by leading the Pledge of Allegiance.

After watching a YouTube video of the Marine's Hymn, Jeremy Alexander gave a meaningful invocation from his own life and one of his client's.

Our speaker was Judi Patterson from Mental Health America who told of the current mental health struggles many are facing and gave some helpful strategies for dealing with them.

We celebrated the July birthdays of Jeremy Alexander, Danny Williams, June Prewitt and Chuck Day.

Next it was some for self-fines and Bill's Bucks.  Our members pledged:

• Karina Sousa - apologizing for the mess her dog Ruby made in the office hallway and thanking Doug for cleaning it up
• Carl Nettleton - celebrating Oceans Global Institute's new app
• Doug Frost - apologizing for not being ready for the meeting and sharing the discovery of 6 signed letters from J. Edgar Hoover and 1 signed letter from Herbert Hoover found during the office overal
• Judy Leitner - supporting the Club

The meeting ended with a recap of past events and look forward to the future events.  If you missed the meeting you can watch here:

The Club made a decision to hold more virtual meetings -- and that was fabulous for attendance at our meeting May 17, 2022!

President Mike Boland started the virtual meeting with the Pledge of Allegiance.

Claire LeBeau shared an Irish blessing, with a nod to her family's Irish roots.

Youtube led us in a rousing rendition of "You're a Grand Old Flag."

Mike was glad to welcome Division 11 Lt. Governor Sergio Rosas to our meeting.

We all enjoyed the pre-recorded presentation from Victoria Eichler of the City Heights Music School and Mariachi Victoria de San Diego.

Fines and Bill's Bucks were pledged from:

• Karina Sousa - no badge

• Claire LeBeau - has her badge which she was supposed to return after Laurels

• Doug Frost - has way too many badges

• Judy Leitner - great program coming up in August at Home Depot Design

• Mike Boland - left Karina’s birthday social early

• Shaun McArdle - celebrating the Maritime Museum’s lecture on how to make a sail

• Sergio Rosas - thank you for a great program

After a recap of past events and preview of upcoming, Mike rang the closing bell.

If you missed it, you can watch the recorded video here:

And, then make sure to come to future in-person and virtual events!

So many familiar faces joined the May 3rd luncheon at Tom Ham's Lighthouse!

In addition to members we have seen and some we haven't seen in a while, we were happy to welcome:

• 4 guests from Grantville-Allied Gardens Kiwanis Club - Alan and Grace Young, George and Kathy Butterstein
• Life member and beloved, retired administrator of the Club - June Prewitt

• Grant recipients - Javier Guerrero from Coastal Roots Farms and Angelica Ocampo from International Relief Teams
• 4 member spouses and significant others - Jerri Jordan, Emily Krause, Dr. Joyce Gattas, Sandy El Asmer

President Mike Boland rang the bell to start the meeting and led the Pledge of Allegiance.

Justin Frisco led our invocation.

Jay Jeffcoat led our song -- Take Me Out to the Ballgame -- and then introduced our speaker, Sarah Beckman from Forever Balboa Park.

We inducted new member Kevin Currier.

And, much merriment ensued when we asked for fines and contributions to Bill's Bucks including donations from:

• Karina Sousa - celebrate her birthday; great to see old and new friends

• Doug Frost - soon to have new son-in-law

• Judy Leitner - forgot her pin

• Mike Boland - didn’t bring his mother

• John Rush - missed most meetings

• Joe Sigurdson - no pin or badge & 43rd anniversary

• Brian Krause - 17th anniversary and married in Balboa Park at the Natural History Museum, Karina’s birthday, welcoming Kevin, reconnecting with Javier, welcoming Angelica

• Jay Jeffcoat - 5 years with his significant other, fraternity brother memorials at UCSB

• Javier Guerrero - thank you for grant to Coastal Roots Farms

• Glen Honig - arrived late, daughter getting married

• Heather Robinson - please come to Key Club event May 11

• Jim Melvin - grandaughter’s volleyball championship from Harvard-Westlake

• Shaun McArdle - celebrating 87 years young!

The Kiwanis Club of San Diego welcomed 7 scholars and 6 university representatives to our meeting on April 19, 2022!

President Mike Boland rang the bell to kick off the meeting and lead the pledge of allegiance.

New member Jeremy Alexander gave a meaningful welcoming invocation.

Scholar Elizabeth Gaitan, a music student as SDSU, led the crowd in a verse from "This Land is Your Land."  She graciously accepted this role on the spot as she walked in the door to the luncheon.  Thank you, Elizabeth!

Scholarship Committee Chair Justin Frisco welcomed all our guests.

Later Elizabeth led the singing of "Happy Birthday" to Steve Morris, who interviewed the honored scholars:

• Cesar Caro, Cal State San Marcos
• Isabelle Etore, Point Loma Nazarene
• Elizabeth Gaitan, SDSU
• Sol Griffin, USD
• Kalo Grimsby, UCSD
• Luke Loprete, SDSU
• Emi Matsu, Point Loma Nazarene

Congratulations to a well-deserving group!

The April 5 luncheon began with Karina Sousa, Club Secretary, ringing the bell and leading the Pledge of Allegiance.

Shaun McArdle led a meaningful invocation, and Doug Frost led singing of America the Beautiful, not All Along the Watchtower - which he really wanted to lead!

The members were thrilled by a presentation from Ron Lee, of Skydiving Innovations.  

We celebrated the upcoming birthdays of Doug Frost, Steve Morris, and Shaun McArdle. 

Then we got a grant recipient update update from Teresa Valenzuela and Azahalia Valdez of the San Diego Futures Foundation.  Azahalia told us she had been involved with Kiwanis since childhood, so it felt like she was coming full circle to attend our luncheon.

Fun times were had by all!

A group of Kiwanians met for breakfast at the Broken Yolk in the Gaslamp Quarter on March 15th at 7:30 a.m.! 

The early start didn’t seem to be a problem with the vibrant members and guests in attendance. 

It was great to see Tom Bauer and Luis Ocana in the house! Jim Floros outbid all for the dog toy + treat combo donated in honor of Ruby Sousa’s birthday. 

Brian Krause was late so was fined by being the Chairman of the Day but did a fabulous job introducing our fearless fencer, Judge Vic Bianchini!

Judge B, the world champion fencer, enlightened the group on the world of fencing. It was an amazing program and we all learned some valuable information!

The Club went on an outing on 3/1/22 to the River Center at Grant Park, still under construction. 

We donned hard hats and vests, and Rob Hutsel, President and CEO of the San Diego River Park Foundation, led us on a tour through the construction site, as we imagined what was to come.

 

Afterwards we enjoyed a box lunch nearby, and President Mike Boland asked the Club to open their hearts and wallets, giving all collected money directly to the San Diego River Park Foundation.

A fun outing for all involved -- looking forward to more Kiwanis adventures!

What a whirlwind it's been -- we were back in person at the Admiral Baker Clubhouse for our luncheon 2/8/22.  

President Mike Boland rang the bell to begin the event.

Ricardo Sandoval led the invocation, asking us to each reflect on how the pandemic is affecting us all.

Doug Frost led us in singing "America the Beautiful."

Mike Boland introduced and welcomed our speaker from Partners Therapeutic Horsemanship - Bobbi Buettgenbach.   Partners Executive Director Karen Crampton also attended and answered questions. 

We inducted new member Jeremy Alexander to the Club -- welcome, Jeremy!

We were happy to celebrate these member birthdays:

• Heather Robinson - 2/1
• David Gugerty - 2/5
• Tim Callan - 2/9
• Glen Honig - 2/14
• Lauren Cook - 2/21
• Vic Bianchini - 2/21
• Scofield Hage - 2/24

We also got an update from the Boys and Girls Club.  They received a centennial grant pre-pandemic but construction was halted at the time.  Thank you to our member Ricardo Sandoval for the update and his guest Connie Alvarez.

As is customary, our members were very generous with their donations, including:

Mike Boland - who forgot his Kiwanis Pin

Elaine Boland - who is happy to be with the Kiwanis Club

Monica Ball - who loves Kiwanis

Ryan Callan - who was happy to have his son Ethan visiting

Ricardo Sandoval - who was happy to see guest Luis Ocana at the luncheon

Shaun McArdle - who updated us on a blood drive at the Point Loma Yacht Club

Karina Sousa - who is energized by the guests and new members plus the recent Kiwanis events

Joe Sigurdson - who had to leave early

Can't wait for our next event!

Going virtual did not dampen the enthusiasm of the Kiwanis Club of San Diego on January 18, 2022.  

President Mike Boland rang the bell to begin our virtual luncheon.

Judy Leitner led a moment of gratitude, particularly focused on the events at Congregation Beth Israel earlier this week in Colleyville, Texas.

Some of us sang along, although on mute, to "My Country 'Tis of Thee."

Justin Frisco introduced and welcomed our two speakers from SDSU Athletics - Curt Apsey and Derek Grice.  They updated us on the soon-to-be Snapdragon Stadium.

We also got an update from the MAAC Project.  They received a grant last year from the Kiwanis Club and used it to purchase umbrellas for their outdoor tables -- which are getting a lot of use now, especially as more students are sitting outside.  Thank you to our guests, Elsa Roth and Tommy Ramirez.

Many of our members were very generous with their donations, towards the end of our Zoom meeting, including:

Mike Boland - celebrating a birthday

Jay Jeffcoat - watching the Chargers play in Vegas

Gordon Boerner - recovering from illness

Justin Frisco - happy to be in the Club

Ryan Callan - also happy to be part of Kiwanis

Susan Day - who purchased the items Mike auctioned off from his recent trip to the UK

If you missed the excitement, you can watch it all online:

We hope to see you soon!