President’s Message

December 2008

THANKSGIVING! --By the time this article the holiday we call "THANKSGIVING" will be over, and most of the leftovers consumed as well.  A feast that we enjoy before we take on the Big One, Christmas. Indeed, even the day after is dedicated to that most dreaded of days, Black Friday, the busiest shopping day of the year. So, just that quickly, Thanksgiving is over. Not a real good chance to actually ponder what the holiday means.

Of course, we know that Thanksgiving celebrates the survival of early settlers to the continent we call Pilgrims. "Pilgrim," in its generic sense, means one who travels for a religious purpose or belief, and our pilgrims escaped before the ax fell in Europe. So, in a real sense, the holiday has a definite religious side. It is a national day for giving thanks for all that we have, and in recognition of how much better off we are than the rest of the world.

But just to Whom or What are we giving this "Thanks?"  If we say we are giving thanks to "God," are we running the risk of mixing God with a national holiday and thereby invoke the consternation, dare I say wrath, of those who want government and religion in a separate universe? Indeed, our Kiwanis Clubs need to be mindful of the beliefs of all its members during the holidays.

For my part, I try not to judge or evaluate the motives or belief structures of our members, although you all probably know my own personal beliefs and values. Rather, I evaluate a person by their conduct toward others, and particularly those that we are dedicated to help. I look at our members and see the heart and desire to reach out to the mom who needs help at Christmas, or the family that will get a solid meal because we spent a day at a food drive, or the senior that will only make it to college because we had a crab cioppino dinner and a July 4th carnival.

Of course, the list can go on and on. We can discuss the ultimate source of all the good things we enjoy until we are blue in the face. But the rubber meets the road when those that have decide, for what ever reason, they should share it with those that have not. So, being privileged to be a part of all that is done by all of you fine people, I say "Thanks For Your Giving" - of your time, of your money, and most of all, your hearts - to the kids, to the Seniors, and to the Redwood City community.

   ... PREZ BILL

Bill Morris
President 2008-2009

By the way.... if you want to check out what's
happening in Key Club Division 34 North, check out...

www.keyclubd34north.org

Sequoia Key Club sells popcorn, cookies and water
at Sequoia High School during a Car Show..

Let's Talk Turkey from a Newbie's Point of View!!

Our club joined with the Redwood City club for the John Farley Annual Thanksgiving Turkey Drive the Saturday before Thanksgiving. This is a very special event that provides a lot of food for the needy at this very special time of the year and, as a side benefit, also produces a lot of visibility for Kiwanis since TV spots featuring Kiwanis participation are aired on channel 11 the entire week prior to the event.

This year the Lucky Store in Woodside Plaza participated in the event. Caroline McHendry from the Redwood City organized everything, so all we had to do was show up!!  President Bill Morris, Larry Graves, Elizabeth Gheleta and George Kerewicz, Craig Thorson and his son Jeff, Roy Souffront, Liz Pollard and Donna Vaillancourt were all on hand at various stages during the day to hand our flyers and collect the turkeys.

Being a sales person I thought this would be a cake walk. no way!!  Trying to convince folks to donate money is very different than selling houses to someone who wants to buy.  For example; I have learned a 100 ways to avoid eye contact! I learned to ask for money/donations without looking directly at the donors. And yet some folks would walk right up to our table with open wallet and ask how much we wanted. Al Quebec was a real cheerleader and kept our spirits up. It really was a blast and I can't wait till next year.

By the end of the day we had collected a lot of turkeys, bags of groceries, and lbs. of food!! We are waiting to hear from the Lt. Governor exactly what our totals were. Thank you to everybody who participated and special thanks to Elizabeth Gheleta and Caroline McHendry for organizing us. The food was donated to Second Harvest and Saint Anthony's kitchen.

--- Liz Pollard