Speakers
√ October 7:

Shannon Wiig, Director of Omaha Visitors Center

October 14:

Valerie Stoj, Election Committee.  She will give us an overview of the 2024 General Election.

October 21:

Linda Placzek Kiwanis Safe Environment Training

October 28:

Shawn McCarville, Project Pink support group for Breast Cancer survivors.  October is Breast Cancer awareness month

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Welcome to the Kiwanis Club of West Omaha
 
Founded in 1938 for Kiwanis Club of Greater Omaha and founded in 1961 for Kiwanis Club Westside which have merged together to form the Kiwanis Club of West Omaha. Each has a rich history of community service throughout the years. We are an eclectic mix of ages, genders, occupations, backgrounds and interests. We are all passionate about making our community and the world a better place for children so they can thrive. We are devoted to serving the children in our local community and also children all across the country and worldwide through unique and innovative service projects and fundraising initiatives. Members and invited guests meet each Monday at Noon for food, fellowship, and for the opportunity to hear from speakers about important matters in our region.
 
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The meeting was opened with a prayer led by Greg.This was followed by the Pledge of Allegiance.

Attendance:  17

No winner for the 50/50 Drawing. 

Rod collected Happy Bucks. 

Ila Dean Horn, Franks  partner of 34 years passed away on Saturday. Her services will be at 11:00 on Saturday, May 25th at Heafey-Hoffmann-Dworak-Cutler Funeral home. The address is 7805 W Center Road.

Kip reminded everyone our Golf Outing is June 7th. We need more hole sponsors and more teams. We only have about half as many as last year.  Contact Steve to be a hole sponsor or if you have a team.

Kip said Joann submitted our club for the Distinguished Club Award.  It was approved.

Glen thanked everyone that sent their service hours to him for April. He submitted a total of 184 service for our club.

Ralph said Shot Put for Special Olympics went smoothly. He had 7 of our club to help with it. Stu and his family staffed the Standing Long Jump.

Dennis thanked the following members who helped with placement of flags on Saturday morning. They were Frank, Steve, Joann, Kip, Rod and Dennis.  Also a thank you for the pickup team. They were Frank, Deb, Joann, Dale, Ralph, Laurrie and Dennis.

Next Flag Day is Memorial Day. Meet at Loveland School. 2 more volunteers for placement and pickup would be appreciated. Contact Dennis if you are available.

Deb reminded us to bring in donations for the homeless shelters that Deb and Joann take our donations to. They are Stephen Center, Sienna Francis House and Open Door Mission. No donation is too small.

Dale said volunteering for Completely Kid's and Sacred Heart School is over until this fall.

Rich, Dave, Dennis and Barb helped pack  920 bags for backpacks on Tuesday at Completely Kid's. It went fast, because there were around 30 volunteers packing the bags.

Rod reminded everyone to go to allplay.org to volunteer to help this summer. There are a lot of opportunities for volunteering. You can find something just right for you.

Rod has arranged speakers for June.  He's still working on the one for June 3rd.  They are Executive Director of Omaha Parks Foundation, Creighton Law Professor on Father Flanagan and Union Pacific Community Outreach Director.

Greg introduced our speaker Troy Solberg, Youth Volunteer Coordinator for Henry Doorly Zoo.  Troy has been with the zoo for 18 years. The zoo is consistently ranked one of the world's best zoos, Omaha's Henry Doorly Zoo and Aquarium is the ultimate interactive zoo experience and a biological park leading the nation's conservation efforts. It redefines the term “zoo” by dedicating resources to saving and protecting species around the world. It has the largest animal collection in North America. It participates in World Class Research around the world. They are in the middle of building a new veterinarian hospital. They appreciate volunteers. You can check their website if you'd like to volunteer.

No Meeting on Memorial Day.

Speaker for June 3rd meeting is yet to be determined.

Next Meeting is Monday, June 3rd at noon at Legends.

Submitted by Barb St John

The meeting was opened with a prayer led by Greg.This was followed by the Pledge of Allegiance.

Attendance:  15

No winner for the 50/50 Drawing. 

Happy Bucks were collected.

Ralph said Friday, May 17th is when we will staff Shot Put and Long Jump for Special Olympics. Stu and his family will staff the Long Jump. Rod, Dennis, Dana, Deb, Ralph Joel and his wife will staff the Shot Put.

Dennis said Saturday, May 18th is the first day to place and pick up flags. A big thank you to Dennis and Frank for marking all the curbings and caps to make placement easier. Placement is at 7 am and pickup is at 6 pm. Meet at Loveland School. There are 160 flags to place and pickup. Frank, Steve, Joann, Rod, Deb Dennis and his wife have volunteered to help on the 18th.  A few more volunteers would be helpful. The next flag day is Memorial. Contact Dennis if you are available. So far this project has earned $4000.00 this year.  

Dale said Dennis, Barb, Dave, Rich and Joann volunteered to help at Completely Kid's on May 15th.  This is the last time to help this year.

Dale said Steve, Dana and Rich volunteered for reading at Sacred Heart School last week. That was the last time for tis school year. Dale passed around thank you notes from the children.

Rod reminded everyone that AllPlay needs volunteers. Go to allplay.org to sign up.

Steve said there was hardly any movement on our Golf Outing. It is coming up soon. Let Steve know if you have a sponsor, team, prizes for the raffle or time to volunteer that day.

Greg introduced our speaker Mandy Aleksiak, the Rose Theater Audience Services Director and  Lead Strategist for expansion and retention of The Rose Theater family membership program..She shared a lot of the history and other information about The Rose Theater. It remains dedicated to their original mission: To enrich the lives of children and families through live theater arts and education.

For almost 70 years, the Omaha Theater Company has served children and families in the Omaha area and beyond. Families come together not just for an hour or two of quality entertainment but also to laugh, cry, sigh and witness the magic of theater and its power to bring people together in a shared experience. It was great learning so much about the theater.

Our speaker for next week is Troy Solberg - Youth Volunteer Coordinator for Henry Doorly Zoo.

Next Meeting is May 20th at noon at Legends.

Submitted by Barb St John.

The meeting was opened with a prayer led by Greg.This was followed by the Pledge of Allegiance.

Attendance:  16

No winner for the 50/50 Drawing. 

Dennis collected Happy Bucks.

Dale said Dave, Barb, Rich and Dennis volunteered for Completely Kid's on April 18th. They helped unpack the food that is packed on Wednesdays. It was good to see the prep work that goes into being ready for packing the bags on Wednesdays. Next time for Completely Kid's will be May 15th. Barb, Dave, Dennis, Rich and Joann have volunteered. 

Next Reading at Sacred Heart School is Thursday, May 9th. Rich, Steve, Dana and Joann volunteered. Kip volunteered to be a back up if needed.

Dennis said $3300.00 has been collected so far on the Flag Project. 

May 18th is Armed Services Day . We will place and pickup flags that day. Meet at Loveland School. 7 am for placing and 6 pm for pickup.  Email Dennis if you are available to volunteer.

Barb said we have 35 signed up for our Kiwanis Social Event Tuesday, May 7th at 6 pm at Legends. It should be a fun evening of food and good company.

Greg said the Zoo trip for the Sacred Heart 2nd Graders went well other than it was very cold.  18 children went on the trip.  Dana, Rod, Frank , Greg and his wife volunteered to go on the trip.

Kip, Steve, Joann, Greg & Glenn went to the District Board Meeting last week. We had an Interclub. The main focus is on K Clubs and Key Clubs. Our clubs are encouraged to try and establish one of these. Let Kip know if you'd like to volunteer to look into what this would require.

Steve said thinks are coming along slowly for our Golf Outing on June 7th.  Let Steve know if you have teams, hole sponsors, raffle prizes and if you're available to help that day.

Ralph said he has enough volunteers for Long Jump and Shot Put at the Special Olympics on May 17th.

Deb brought several items for the Homeless Shelters we are giving donations to. She received totes and numerous items from her neighbors.  Don't forget to bring items to our meetings for Deb or Joann to distribute to Open Door Mission, Stephen Center and Sienna Francis House. Small or large donations are appreciated.

Deb Rost was at AllPlay on Clean Up Day. Helping in the kitchen. Barb and Dave were at AllPlay on Opening Day as Greeters. It takes a lot of volunteers to make everything run smoothly. It's a very rewarding experience. Go to AllPlay.org to sign up to volunteer.

Greg introduced our speaker Nebraska State Poet Matt Mason. He has been selected to serve as the Nebraska State Poet for the term of 2019-2024. He is the author of two full-length, Nebraska Book Award-winning poetry collections, as well as several poetry chapbooks. Shortly after founding his own independent press, Morpo Press, in 1997, Matt started The Poetry Menu, a comprehensive website that lists every poetry event in the state of Nebraska. In 2011, he helped bring the Louder Than a Bomb teen poetry festival to Nebraska, establishing an Omaha chapter that now includes participants from more than 35 high schools in Nebraska and Council Bluffs, Iowa. His work with Slam Poetry also led him to find the Omaha Healing Arts Center Poetry Slam, which takes place on the second Saturday of every month. Matt currently serves as Executive Director of the Nebraska Writers Collective and resides in Omaha. Matt read 4 poems to us, which we enjoyed.

Our speaker for next week is Mandy Aleksiak - Audience Services Director of Rose Theater.

Next Meeting is May 13th at noon at Legends.

Submitted by Barb St John