Kiwanis Club of North Suburban Golden K St. Paul

On this last December meeting date and the last meeting for the year – I wasn’t sure if I should write a blog, but since I was the resident Santa for the day – staff assignment from some guy in a red suit from the North Pole, I guess I’ll just put down my thoughts about this meeting. The meeting was really just a social event, but then, when you really think about it, that’s a big part of what Kiwanis is to any of its members. We gather weekly to share experiences, serve our communities and learn new things, but the fact remains, we gather together.

This meeting was attended by a large number of guests, all of the wives and friends of our members. It was good to see a room full of people enjoying good food, good conversations and a very laid back sing-a-long lead by one of our members sons, Kim Whiting – son of Jim (and Lu) Whiting. It was a fun time – lots of old favorites and a few special solos by Kim – all very much in the spirit of the season.

This leads me to add just a few reflections on the season and the year just past. As with any year with members in this age group, we had our sad moments with the passing of a few of our long serving members, but we had some pretty good highlights too. We served a lot of communities and provided time and guidance to a variety of young people in our community. That is what we are all about and we do a very good job each year measuring out our support in so many ways: providing food to the less fortunate, ringing bells for the Salvation Army kettles, listening to young student read and see them grow and learn, bring flowers to many on special occasions throughout the year, support local businesses, support the parks in our neighborhood and even park cars at Saints baseball games. Yes, it has been a good year for all of those reasons.

As we finish off the year in celebration with family and friends, I’m sure we will recharge our batteries and be ready for another great Kiwanis year ahead. To everyone that reads this blog – Merry Christmas, Happy Holidays and Happy New Year – hoping 2012 will bring us all together again to do all the things good Kiwanians do everywhere.

Just a reminder that there is no meeting on December 27th – it’s our year-end break. Stay warm – have a good time with your families and join us again in 20112 –the first meeting will be Tuesday, January 3rd and we will get an update from Christine Pulver, director of Keystone Community Services on the food shelf activities. Also, we will hear from Sheryl Erickson, coordinator of their client outreach programs. Bring a friend and join us in the New Year – the social time starts at 1:30 Pm and the meeting starts at 2:PM.