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November 20, 2007 No. 7 Vol. 86
This Week’s Program: Thanksgiving Program With The
Reverend Christopher Schuller
Kiwanian of the Day Stan Shaver will
introduce the Rector of St. Thomas’ Episcopal Church on Snell Isle who
will conduct our Thanksgiving program.
Father Schuller came to St. Thomas’ in June of
this year and follows the Reverend Chris Thompson, a former member of
this Kiwanis Club.
Father Schuller is a native of St. Louis,
Missouri. He received his B.A. in English from the University of
Michigan and led a colorful life before answering Holy Orders. He sang
in rock and roll bands in his twenties and he and his wife ran a
hand-painted T-shirt business in Key West. He then traveled to Germany
and taught English to Germans working in international business.
He studied at a number of seminaries including the
South Florida Center for Theological Studies in Miami, The School of
Theology at the University of the South, and at Harvard Divinity School.
He received his Masters of Divinity at Episcopal Divinity School in
Boston.
Before being called to St. Thomas’, Schuller
served as Rector of St. Paul’s Episcopal Church in Jesup, Georgia. Now,
he, his wife Betina and their two daughters reside in the church Rectory
on Snell Isle.
While we’re thinking about all we have to be
grateful for, let’s add to the list our thanks to Father Schuller for
sharing his time and Thanksgiving thoughts with us today.
Last Week’s Program:
Kiwanian of the Day Scott Boyle introduced our
speaker, Stefanie Barsema, the Recruitment Specialist for Big Brothers,
Big Sisters of Pinellas County. Big Brothers, Big Sisters is the oldest
and largest youth mentorship program in the country. Stefanie, a
University of Florida grad, has been with the local organization for a
little over four years. Before moving into recruitment, she served as a
Match Manager and as coordinator of the Site Program. She explained that
despite the name, BB/BS also serves Pasco and Hernando counties,
matching adults (Bigs) with children 5 – 13 (Littles) who need mentoring
and one-on-one attention to thrive. In fact, the mission of the
organization is to “help children reach their potential through
professionally supported one-to-one mentoring relationships with
measurable impact.” Their vision is to provide a mentor for every child
who needs one.
Stefanie told us that the Littles they serve do
not come from the juvenile justice system and are not emotionally
disturbed. They are everyday kids living in tenuous circumstances as a
result of divorce, poverty or the incarceration of a parent. They may be
experiencing problems academically or with peer relationships, problems
that can be helped by having a stable, interested role model they can
look to for outside-the-family fun and guidance. Generally, the child
has expressed an interest in having a mentor or a parent or school
counselor may have suggested it. The child is interviewed to ensure that
this is something the child wants and could benefit from. Potential Bigs
are also interviewed, background-checked and fingerprinted before being
matched with a Little. The organization provides professional support to
the mentors and checks in with them weekly with guidance and advice if
needed.
Stefanie explained that there are 40,000 children
living in poverty in Pinellas County alone. 3,000 of them have an
incarcerated parent. Evaluations and long-term follow up by BB/BS shows
that most of these children can get back on track academically and
socially with a mentor who will spend 2-4 hours twice a month with them
over the course of a year, the minimum commitment required of Bigs.
However, because there are few places adult volunteers can make such an
impact on a child’s life (95% of Littles matched with Bigs avoid
involvement in the juvenile justice system), many Bigs and Littles
develop a familial relationship spanning many years, beyond the cut off
age of 13 for Littles.
The greatest need right now is to find Bigs for
the 284 children waiting to be matched up. Two-thirds of those are boys
10-13, most in St. Petersburg, who have waited a year or more to be
matched and who will age out the system sooner than the younger children
5-9 who are more frequently requested by Bigs. Local sports teams offer
free tickets to Big and Little “sports buddies” who want to spend part
of their time playing sports and part of their time watching sports. For
those adults who’d prefer less of a commitment, there are Site programs
at every school and school-based child care center where a Big can spend
one hour a week with a child in a supervised setting between the hours
of 9:30 – 6:30.
If you’d like to explore the possibility of being
a Big Brother or Big Sister, check out their website at
www.bbbspc.org or call Stefanie
at 518-8860. Even if Big Brothers Big Sisters is not for you, please
consider having a representative of BB/BS speak to your professional and
civic groups, to your company’s employees or at your church or
synagogue. Give someone, maybe you, a chance to make a world of
difference in the world of a child.
Guests And Visitors
One guest, in addition to our speaker, joined our
49 members Tuesday for lunch. Blake Atchley was the guest of JC
Russell, hosted by Steve Cunningham in JC’s absence.
What’s Happening?
St. Petersburg Kiwanis Club Receives Banner
Patch
We received a thank you letter from John B. Sloan,
the Executive Director of Kiwanis International Foundation as follows:
“Greetings from the International Foundation…I am
writing to you today to thank you for your generous support of the
Annual Club Gift campaign during the 2006-2007 administrative year. The
gift that you made enabled us to support the important work being done
at all levels to change the lives of children around the world. Enclosed
is a banner patch in recognition of your participation in the Annual
Club Gift campaign…we hope that we can count on your continued support
during the 2007-2008 administrative year!”
Do You Have A Favorite Children’s Charity?
Bob Byelick let us know that we can add to
the pool of applicants for grants from the Boys and Girls Committee.
Requests for proposals will go out to all the nonprofits who’ve applied
or been awarded funding in the past, but the committee would like to
extend its reach and impact. If you have a favorite children’s charity
or other nonprofit that offers programs to serve children, an invitation
and application will be sent to the contact person at your request. The
committee has $20,000 to award this year. Typical grants range from $500
to $2,000.
Don’t Be Late, The Holiday Party Has A New Date
Lorin Bridge announced last week that the
annual Kiwanis Holiday Party Progressive Dinner will take place on
Sunday, December 16th at 5:00 p.m. at Harbor Isle. Mr. and
Mrs. Lorin Bridge, Mr. and Mrs. Harvey Ford and Mr. and Mrs. Skip
Horstman (Kim) are the gracious Kiwanians hosting the Progressive
Dinner. A sign-up sheet is circulating, so sign up to enjoy this great
Kiwanis holiday tradition.
Bruce Watters Jewelers Cocktail Party
By now you should have received your invitation to
attend “The First With The Finest,” a cocktail and hors d’oeuvres party
to be held on Thursday, November 29th from 5:00 pm to 8:00 pm
at Bruce Watters Jewelers at 224 Beach Drive NE. RSVPs are required, so
call 896-6661 to register you and a guest at no charge. If you have not
received an invitation and would like to, let Nick Gizzarelli
know at today’s luncheon. It’s a great opportunity to let your loved
one(s) pick out a holiday gift of quality!
Giving Thanks
Anne Frank: "I do not think of all the misery, but
of the glory that remains. Go outside into the fields, nature and the
sun, go out and seek happiness in yourself and in God. Think of the
beauty that again and again discharges itself within and without you and
be happy."
John Fitzgerald Kennedy: "As we express our
gratitude, we must never forget that the highest appreciation is not to
utter words, but to live by them."
Kiwanian Of The Week
We’re including a new feature to help members new
and old get to know each other better. A short biographical “portrait”
and a picture of a fellow Kiwanian will appear in each issue as we
receive them. New members can cut them out and use them as flash cards
until they’re familiar with everyone!
Name: Dick Koch
Company and Title: USAF (Retired)
Joined Kiwanis because?
I helped charter the Sun Prairie (WI) Kiwanis Club in 1971 while I
was at graduate school at the Univ. of Wisconsin. I love the
opportunity to make a difference with needy children in our community.
Your single favorite
Kiwanis experience/event?
Working in the parking lot during the annual All Children’s telethon.
Tell us about your
family, including pets.
Dale, my wife of nearly 50 years, and I have two children, Debbie and
Steve. We are blessed with four grandchildren, two of each species. I
bought Bambi, our black cocker spaniel, when Debbie and Steve were five
and three. She was with us for 17 years.
Perfect day away from
work? Fresh water fishing
for large mouth black bass. Salt water fishing comes in a distant
second.
Best vacation ever?
Australia and New Zealand with Steve and his family. We were
accompanied by two friends from Sioux Falls, SD, who we met on a tour of
Spain and we all visited friends in Sydney. Hearing our 15-year old
granddaughter, Marissa, sing in the Sydney Opera House is the top of the
mountain for me!
Last book you read or
favorite movie? Currently
reading “Trojan Odyssey” by Clive Cussler. Also enjoy anything by Brad
Thor.
Sports or art walks?
Being a scholarship basketball player at the Univ. of Wisconsin,
sports wins this category. Also played first base for 11 years in fast
pitch softball.
Beach or mountains?
Mountains. The closer I get to nature, the better I feel.
One thing most people
don’t know about you? I
prepared Congressional testimony during my Pentagon days. Working with
the people on the Hill was indeed an eye opener as to how government
really works. “Works” may be an overstatement!
Quote to live by?
“Live for today for tomorrow may never come!”
If you were on Kiwanis
Survivor, who would you vote off the island?
Anybody who does not realize the importance of a good hug!
Best of all is it to preserve everything in a
pure, still heart, and let there be for every pulse a thanksgiving, and
for every breath a song.
- Konrad von Gesner
TODAY’S QUIZ:
- Which president
moved Thanksgiving up one week to stimulate the Christmas shopping
economy: Theodore Roosevelt, John Kennedy, Franklin Delano
Roosevelt, Dwight D. Eisenhower or none of the above?
- What is the only
tree that grows in California’s Mohave Desert?
- On June 26th,
1945, the charter of the United Nations was signed by 50 countries
in San Francisco. The text of the charter was in which five
languages?
- The most abundant
metal in the Earth’s crust is what?
LAST WEEK’S QUIZ:
- Satchel Paige
was the first Negro-League player elected to Baseball Hall of
Fame. He was inducted in 1971.
- The Communist
Party's 75-year controlling regime of the Soviet Union ended in
1991.
- The shortest verse
in the Bible consists of just two words: “Jesus wept.” It
appears in John 11:35.
- The wristwatch was
invented in 1904 by Louis Cartier.
PRAYER OF THE DAY We Gather Together
We gather together to ask the Lord's blessing;
He chastens and hastens his will to make known;
The wicked oppressing now cease from distressing,
Sing praises to his name: He forgets not his own.
Beside us to guide us, our God with us joining,
Ordaining, maintaining his kingdom divine;
So from the beginning the fight we were winning;
Thou, Lord, wast at our side, All glory be thine!
We all do extol thee, thou leader triumphant,
And pray that thou still our defender wilt be.
Let thy congregation escape tribulation;
Thy name be ever praised! O Lord, make us free!
Amen
--Traditional Thanksgiving Hymn
(Translation by Theodore Baker: 1851-1934)
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