G.A.G. RAGKiwanis Club of Grantville-Allied Gardens

February 2012 “Serving the Community since 1960” www.kiwanis-gag.org

AT THE RIVERSIDE CONVENTION CENTER…The Mid-Year Conference on Saturday, February 11th is great

for every member in Kiwanis, whether you’re brand new to theorganization or if you have some “experience.” It gives you that“we’re not alone” feeling when you are mixing with over 1,000Kiwanis members throughout this great district of California-Nevada-Hawaii. This year, the group planning to attend consists ofthe more experienced members who know the value of the event,and enjoy the camaraderie and the ideas bandied about. Not onlythat, but they’ll have a chance to enjoy the seminars, new projectsfound in the exhibition hall, and the food and speeches at theinterclub luncheon, which counts as an interclub.

You can surprise us there and register on-site if you decide atthe last minute that you’d like to attend.

We leave in the wee hours of the morning, many of uschoosing to carpool with Gene Elmore. Many with G.A.G.Kiwanis will stop for breakfast in Temecula, at the charming“Swing Inn” Restaurant.

Registration at the conference starts at 8:30 a.m. A detailedlineup of workshops and other activities for the day can be foundonline on the District’s website, www.cnhkiwanis.org.

In addition to all of the very motivational and educationalworkshops, you won’t want to miss the Keynote Speaker at theInterclub Luncheon. Kevin Wanzer will share his “Choose toLove” viewpoint with the entire crowd.

All this is quite inspiring. The next large District event won’tbe until the District Convention, to be held August 16-18 at theSanta Clara Hyatt Regency (near San Jose), so let’s start planning.The Kiwanis International Convention will be held in the CrescentCity of New Orleans, Louisiana, June 28-July 1. Don’t miss out!

Since the 9th is the closest Thursday to the actual date ofValentine’s Day, that’s the day we all bring our special person to thesweetheart day event. You might expect some outstanding decorationsand a few surprises.

Get a special sneak preview ofthis year’s Keynote Speaker, KevinWanzer. See the article on Page 4.(The Interclub Luncheon begins at12:30 p.m., and several G.A.G.Kiwanis members have signed up.It’s not too late!)

Hop on Interstate 15 on Saturday, February 11th and head northuntil you get to the Riverside Convention Center! The short trip ishighly recommended for new members, and anyone who wants tolearn about Kiwanis on a larger scale.

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STAFF BOXThe G.A.G. RAG is the official publication and Journal ofthe Kiwanis Club of Grantville-Allied Gardens.The club meets at 7 am every Thursday at the AlliedGardens Park and Recreation Center, 5155 GreenbrierAve. San Diego, CA 92120.Mailing address: PO BOX 601211 San Diego, CA90260-1211.Items in this publication of interest to you or any otherorganization may be copied and used for the benefit ofmankind. Reference from where it was stolen isencouraged.

STAFFEditor…………..………. Byron Y. Newman, ODOur Lois Lanes…….…… Nancy Johnson plus allmembers of G.A.G. Kiwanis who contribute.Official Photographer……… Kathy Butterstein andanyone else with a camera, like Tony and Mary Haasand Doug Grosmark.

KIWANISTIDINGS

by Luisa Moore

February provides us a greatopportunity for training all ourleadership and members. The mid-year conference is being held inRiverside. We can utilize thisopportunity to gain new knowledgeand the sharing of ideas with otherclubs on how we can be more effectivein serving the children of ourcommunity. Let’s get a good grouptogether and make a fun trip onFebruary 11, 2012.

Luisa

Meeting Notes -- January 5, 2012President Luisa was missing today, short hospital stay for hip

replacement, and even though Billie Moore was up all night at thehospital, she looked bright and cheerful nonetheless.

Our special guest today was Tree Lot Kenny. Lewis MiddleSchool had 6 students of the month, with 3 present alongside PrincipalBrad Callahan.

K.O.D. was Kathy Butterstein, who did her usual great job, withfilms of the tree lot story and JibJab Dancers, with Kiwanis members’heads digitally inserted onto animated bodies. It was great, but youhad to be there.

Kathy then introduced our speaker, Dr. Eleanor “Nora” Robbinsof SDSU’s Geology Department. She spoke on “Occupy San Diego”and pointed out that there are 500 cities in the U.S. where similarevents are being held.

With graphs and case reports, she discussed the income disparityin our country. It was quite scholarly, as she argued that corporationsare not people and money is not speech. She talked of homeboundpeople, the Banking Act of 1933 (which should be reversed, she said),and student loans. They wanted to bring jobs back to the U.S. toreduce the homeless population.

Few in the audience that day, if any, would volunteer toparticipate in “Occupy San Diego,” and not all agreed with the effortsof their program.

Continued on Page 4

February Wedding Anniversaries10 Mary and Tony Haas

Club Membership AnniversariesFebruary 1979 John ChandlerFebruary 1982 Boyd Sauter

February Birthdays6 Peter Hoffmann16 Brian Arnold16 Debbie Yost19 Dan Yauger26 Jeannie Labor27 Jim MacDonald29 Dave Erlanson

(Dave actually gets a birthday this year!)

PROGRAM PREVIEWCourtesy of Gary Blume, 2011-12 Program Chair

February 2ndProgram: Fire Reclamation

Speaker: Mike HardingK.O.D.: Gene Elmore

February 9thPROGRAM: Valentine’s Day Special Event

Entertainment: A SurpriseK.O.D.: Luisa Moore

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Hearst K-Kids (Doug Grosmark)K-Kids are collecting “Pennies for Patient,” and don’t laugh,

they do very well at this. They are also making valentines forpatients at Alvarado Hospital.

Lewis Builders Club (Byron Y. Newman)A new faculty advisor has been found by Mr. Callahan, and will

join in with Mrs. Christianson as co-advisors, since Mrs. C can’t bethere every week.

President Brianna is having donations for pets in lieu of anybirthday presents for her on Feb. 2nd which will be donated to theHumane Society.

Membership building is the order of the day, as the census is abit down this year so far.

Patrick Henry Key Club (John Crawford & Kathy Butterstein)Good news regarding the PHHS Key Club. Membership is up

this year -- WAY UP! Patrick Henry's Key Club has more thandoubled in size since last year, jumping from 34 to 87members! That's an increase of 53 members. Amazingly, this meansthe Patrick Henry club is (for now) larger than the Mira Mesa KeyClub, which has been one of the largest Key Clubs in the city formany years.

February will be full of elections and Conventiondiscussions. The Key Club hopes to have its new officers elected bythe Division 21 Conclave, which is being held on Saturday, February25th, at 4pm at Rady Children's Hospital. Several students arerunning for the position of Lieutenant Governors (although there areno candidates from Patrick Henry this year). The club is alsofundraising for the 66th annual Cali-Nev-Ha Key Club DistrictConvention, to be held April 13-15 in Santa Clara, California. Morethan 3,000 people will be in attendance: hopefully Patrick Henry willbe there to see President Andrew Tran get an award onstage.

SDSU Circle K (Boyd Sauter & Chrissy Tanoura)Several Circle K members enjoyed an adventure in the snow on

January 11th (hey, some of these students grew up in SouthernCalifornia – they don’t know what snow is!). A group of Circle Kmembers headed north into the mountains for a few hours of winterfun before heading home. SDSU's Circle K also teamed up withDaphne's Greek Cafe on campus for a fundraiser. The event onJanuary 26th helped raise money for “Operation Have a Heart.”

SDSU Circle K members also had an ice-skating social onJanuary 27th (these kids must enjoy being cold!), and on thefollowing day, helped with a cleanup project at Mission TrailsRegional Park (www.mtrp.org). Mission Trails holds cleanupprojects at least once per month, and they are always looking for newvolunteers.

The Circle K club is also going to hold officer elections duringthe month of February in preparation for its annual DistrictConvention, coming up March 23-25 in Woodland Hills, California.The California-Nevada-Hawaii Circle K District currently has morethan 2,000 members and has possibly grown too large for the WarnerCenter Marriott in Woodland Hills, which has been used for Circle KConventions for many years.

SDSU Circle K members work on a recent Saturday morning serviceproject at Mission Trails Regional Park.

President Scott Frame and several other SDSU Circle K memberstake a day off from volunteering to play in the snow.

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Our Keynote speaker at the Mid-Year Conference inRiverside, Kevin Wanzer credits Kiwanis international forhelping him become the speaker he is today.

In 1983, as an active Key Club member from North CentralHigh School in Indianapolis, Kevin helped host first lady NancyReagan’s visit to Indianapolis in conjunction with Kiwanis, theNBA, and the international Just Say No to Drugs program. In1984, as a result of meeting and working with Nancy Reagan,Kevin was appointed by then-President Ronald Reagan to serveas a delegate to the White House Conference for a Drug FreeAmerica. To this day, Kevin is still the youngest presidentialappointee in American history. Kevin was also invited by Mrs.Reagan to testify in front of the United Nations on the importanceof young people serving their community.

Since 1983, Kevin has spoken in front of 2,500 audiencesand has reached countless students, educators, and parents allover the world including China, Europe, and Singapore. He hasbeen noted nationally as one of the most effective andentertaining speakers for schools, colleges, and to audiences ofadults who work with and empower the lives of youth. An honorsgraduate from Butler University, Kevin served on the staff of theDavid Letterman Show. We know you will enjoy his uniqueand entertaining style and message.

For more information about Kevin Wanzer, please visitwww.kevinwanzer.com.

Meeting Notes, continued from Page 2

January 12, 2012Our sponsorship of Cub Scout Pack #928 was shown to be

particularly valuable by Cub Master Chad Pinkelman, who told of theirmany activities, such as helping out at our Tree Lot, holding a toy driveand generally having a busy December. They’re checking out serviceprojects for February. The pack meets at Marvin Elementary School.

The Club received a plaque from the Junior Wheelchair SportsCamp, an even we’ve been supporting for 22 years. Mary Haas talkedabout Meals On Wheels, and encouraged volunteers to get involved.

Hearst Elementary school honored Student of the Month SarahKosic, a 5th grader. Dr. Doug Grosmark introduced the parents, Johnand Melanie, along with sister Rebecca, teacher Mrs. Vasquez, andPrincipal Jamie Jorgenson. Photos were taken by Mary, and the usualplaudits were offered to this talented student who is excellent in mathand makes top grades in everything. She was appropriately awarded.

K.O.D. was John Chappell, a camper himself who asked questionsabout Yosemite. I don’t think anyone would have known the answers tothose questions, but it did raise some cash for the club.

The speaker, Ben Reade, arrived in the nick of time loaded downwith his camping gear in backpacks… total weight 25 lbs. or so, at atotal cost of about $900… pointing out that to have all this you have tobe a serious camper. Ben, who hikes in the Sierras, began removing theitems from his back pack to show us what was in there. Amazing stuff,such as a camera, a head lamp, a first aid kit, knives, a little stove, toiletpaper, lots of clothing and blankets, and an amazing array of otheritems. Some may like it and feel like running out to buy all this stuff.Not me, as my idea of "roughing it" is turning the electric blanket downto medium.

January 19, 2012We had quite a few guests, including Governor-Elect of the

Kiwanis Cal-Nev-Ha District, Gary Jander, who is a member of ourneighboring club at Lake Murray Kiwanis; Jason Faz, a guest ofmember Brian Arnold; one of Pat Jordan’s La Mesa Lions Clubfriends, John Hood; frequent visitor Josh Jordan; and David Rozul,Lt. Governor of Circle K’s Paradise Division. Kathy Buttersteinpointed out that David had arranged his classes so he’d be free onThursday mornings to attend our Kiwanis meetings. She added, “I’mglad he finally got his priorities straight.”

George Butterstein related how he got a baseball signed by PeteRose. It was also Catnip Day, courtesy of Bobby Frankhouser, whopassed out the cat treats in little sandwich bags to owners of felines.

The drive for electronics and cell phones for New Entra Casa was asuccess, as many members brought in items. John Peterson took histurn leading the G.A.G. Kiwanis Tabernacle Choir in two songs themembers knew (no books needed), and By Newman followed that withtwo funny stories everyone seemed to like (for a change.)

Patrick Henry’s Student of the Month was Max Fang, accompaniedby his father, Zheh, mother Mai Yia, and teacher Bill Miller.

Don Lydy took his turn at the podium as K.O.D. and askedquestions about churches and paints. There were a few lucky guesses,here and there. At the stroke of 8, Don introduced the program withfour speakers, composed of Anna Marie LeMay, Craig Yolles, TimKoehler, and Michael Elgo. The four were representing ToussaintAcademy, a school for homeless teenagers and part of Father Joe’sVillage and House of Charities. Pierre Toussaint was a freed slave, andthe school was named after him. The school currently has about 50kids, with a record of 100% of the children attending their schoolmoving on to college. Currently, San Diego County has about 2,000homeless boys and girls. Mike Elgo explained the House of Charities,which supports the Toussaint Academy.

January 26, 2012We had quite a few guests this morning, including Gene

Elmore’s granddaughter, Angie; Genevieve Suzuki, Editor of theMission Times Courier; Circle K officers David Rozul and AmandaWillis, plus our Edward Jones visitor, Maggie Conway.

Mary Haas passed around cards she had printed up advertisingour website, and recommended people to check it out. KathyButterstein pointed out she would like to have us participate in theSt. Patrick’s Day Parade in Balboa Park, and would look into it forour club as well as our SLP groups.

Terry Shanklin offered an Indian prayer, and the singing wasled by baritone Brian Arnold, followed by a couple of Indian storiesby story teller By Newman (followed by a few groans).

K.O.D. was Myron Pasichny, who introduced his secret greeter“Catch ‘em all” Dan Yauger. Myron then filled his time with somegreat quotes, and asked the members to identify the maker of thosequotes. It was a total and complete win for the club, as no one wasable to get any of them… but you had to admire some of the guesses.

Finally, our speaker, Ms. Bunmi Esho, director of Education atJunior Achievement, a non-profit organization on Mission GorgePlace. Junior Achievement, which started in 1919, offers manyprograms, among them teaching financial literacy, by helping youngpeople as early as the 2nd grade to plan a business, or what they call,“teaching entrepreneurship.” All this started in San Diego in 1950teaching “hands on” programs from balancing checkbooks to how toapply for a job.

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KITCHEN HELPERS

FEBRUARY 2012

Be here by 6:30AM tohelp. No sign-upsheets….plan on at leastone month per year. TellTerry Shanklin.

Member LimericksByron and Nancy (and sometimes even “Doc”) CONTINUEcomposing limericks about each member of the club. It’s adifficult task, and it’s all in fun. We’ll run a few everymonth. Watch for yours. Most of our members like theirs.

Here are MORE:

We have an Erlanson in Kiwanis named Dave,Who travels the U.S. and explores every cave,He's a volunteer guaranteed to please,And he delivers most of our trees,Plus, he steps in if the club needs a save.

Pat Jordan, our token Chicago lad,Uses his accent, which isn't too bad,As president who served us last year,He brought laughs plus great cheer,But when his term ended, he felt glad.

Who knew that our new member Jerry,Was an expert on bugs, small to scary?Ugly but useful, with six or eight legs,They were hard to digest with our bacon and eggs,And the tarantulas were too big and hairy.

February 2012

2 G.A.G. Kiwanis Board Meeting7:00 p.m., Allied Gardens Recreation Center

9 Valentine’s Day Sweetheart meeting7:00 a.m., Allied Gardens Recreation Center

11 Cal-Nev-Ha Kiwanis Mid-Year Conference SouthRiverside Convention Center, Riverside, CA

16 Division 21 Council Meeting (DCM)hosted by Lt. Governor Doug Beckham5:30 p.m., Rady Children’s Hospital Medical Bldg.

25 Division 21 Key Club Conclave and DCM4:00 p.m., Rady Children’s Hospital Medical Bldg.

March 2012

23-25 Circle K Cal-Nev-Ha District ConventionWarner Center Marriott, Woodland Hills, CA

April 2012

13-15 Key Club Cali-Nev-Ha District ConventionSanta Clara Convention Center, Santa Clara, CA

Meals On Wheels Schedule: February 20122nd Mike Brown and Dave Erlanson9th John & Pam Chandler16th Kevin Tostado and John Peterson13th Tony & Mary Haas

March 20121st Mike Brown and Dan Yelvington

If you would like to volunteer for a Meals On Wheels shift, contact a memberof the club’s Board of Directors!

Coming April 21

Registration for the 2012 Kiwanis International Convention is nowopen. Sign up by MARCH 20th to get the lowest rates!