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The La Kiwanian
The Weekly Bulletin of the La Cañada
Kiwanis Club
Serving the Children of the World |
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Wednesday, August 1, 2007 |
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The Kiwanis Club of La Cañada meets
every Wednesday at Noon
Visitors
Welcome
Van
de Kamp Hall in Descanso Gardens
1418 Descanso Drive, La Cañada, CA
91011 |
Upcoming Events
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August 2, 2007
BOARD MEETING FOR CLUB AND
FOUNDATION
7:00 p.m. on Thursday Evening @
CitiBank, La Cañada
August 8, 2007
THE CONVALESCENT AID SOCIETY -
Randy Votsch
Wednesday Lunch Meeting @ Van de
Kamp Hall in Descanso
Gardens
August 29, 2007
APPLE FOR THE TEACHER - Day
Wednesday Lunch Meeting @ Van de
Kamp Hall in Descanso
Gardens
September 5, 2007
CLERGY RECOGNITION DAY
Wednesday Lunch Meeting @ Van de
Kamp Hall in Descanso
Gardens
September 9, 2007
WINE & GOURMET FOOD TASTING
3 - 6:00 p.m. on Sunday at La Cañada
Memorial Park
September 12,
2007
CLUB TALENT SHOW - Tom
Burroughs, Coordinator
Wednesday Lunch Meeting @ Van de
Kamp Hall in Descanso
Gardens
Click
on the following button to view
the long term calendar
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The Prez sez . . .
The Prez sez . . .
Prez Steve Hagerty spoke for everyone
- it was great to have Hal Thomas back. (Hal and
Julia moved to Burbank and then Julia broke her
hip, so Hal has been busy for a few months.) Jim
Edwards was also welcomed back by the Prez.
The Prez also reminded everyone about
the Board Meeting tomorrow evening at Citibank. All officers,
board members and committee chairs are encouraged to attend and
all members are welcome!
Hal Thomas
ANNOUNCEMENTS
Bill Scherkey is still distributing
Wine and Gourmet Food Tasting tickets to our members. A few
members have already sold their original four tickets and have
requested (and received) additional tickets. If you need more
tickets, just give Bill a call.
Gigi Schleuter is collecting the
Silent Auction items for the Wine and Gourmet Food Tasting.
She can use small items as well as large. The small items can
be grouped with larger articles for a single auction package.
Mary Gant had Wine and Gourmet Food
Tasting postcards that can be sent out or given to potential
attendees. She is also looking for advertisers for the W&GFT
brochure/program.
Diane DellaValle gave an update on
upcoming InterClubs. On September 12th there will be an
InterClub with the Jewel City Kiwanis Club; the meeting is a
Tuesday evening meeting with dinner at Clancy's Broiler in
Glendale. September 13th is scheduled with a club that meets at
Glendale Memorial.
Pat Anderson announced the big Chamber
event here at Descanso on Sunday, October 7. This will be the
Play It Safe Emergency Expo.
Pat Anderson
Bachy Bachmayer encouraged us to
support the Children's Hospital.
Carl Christensen gave us an update on
future programs and highlighted the Talent Show on September 12.
THE PROGRAM
The Kiwanis International Convention was held
in early July in San Antonio, Texas. Our Club was well
represented; members attending included Steve Hagerty, Daryal
Gant, Mary Gant, Harriet Hammons, Linda Magarian, Diane Dell
Valle, Carl Christensen and Carl's wife, Irene.
Everyone came back "pumped up" and shard some part of their
experience with us.
Daryal Gant gave us an overview of the
size and purpose of the convention. There were over 6,000
attendees; about 3,000 were voting delegates from around the
world who were there to represent their clubs and vote on
Kiwanis International business. There were three long meetings,
but Daryl thought there was one big initiative: all Kiwanis
Clubs are now allowed and encouraged to have different types of
clubs and different types of membership. The goal is to
encourage membership growth.
Diane and Daryal
Steve Hagerty was most excited about a
new Kiwanis program called the Key Leader program. This
consists of a weekend at a camp for teenagers from grades 8-12
geared to teaching leadership skills and techniques. The
program is open to all teens (not limited to Key Clubbers) and
has been very successful across the country.
Dianne DellaValle stated she went to
her first Kiwanis convention in Montreal as a member of Kiwanis
and came home as a Kiwanian. She was thrilled by all the
stories of individual Kiwanians affecting the lives of other
people. She showed a video about a Jamaican boy who lived in
poverty and surrounded by crime in the slums. He became
involved in a Kiwanis Builders Club (for 7th and 8th graders)
and earned the right to attend an International Key Club
convention because he was such a good speaker. (Joan Peters
said she was there and heard him.) He met a Kiwanian couple
at that convention, became friends with them, and ended up being
adopted by them after his mother died.
Carl Christensen liked the forum he
attended called How to Kill Your Club. This was a discussion of
how we can stifle growth by sticking to too many old traditions
and being boring. A willingness to change is very important in
keeping members and attracting new members.
Steve and Carl
Mary Gant talked about the
camaraderie. Kiwanis makes it so easy to get to know a lot of
great people who are upbeat, friendly, and interesting. The
convention makes socializing easy, and Mary really
enjoyed the many Hospitality Suites,
Linda Magarian attended a forum on
Marketing Kiwanis. Most Kiwanians learned about Kiwanis from a
friend or acquaintance. The best way to attract new people to
Kiwanis is to be able to tell a story about your own experience
in Kiwanis. Linda also liked the message from LaDonna
Gatlin about dealing with stress. LaDonna pointed
out that having a one-on-one experience with another person you
are helping is a great stress reliever. Linda challenged
us to think about the amount of time we each individually spend
working with children through Kiwanis and suggested we might
want to develop some programs that would allow more of us to
work directly with children.
The program ended with Daryal giving
us three sayings he heard at the convention:
A Kiwanian should never have to
whisper, "Boy, I'm glad I didn't bring a guest today."
Every Kiwanian should ask, "Is
the club better off because I'm in it?"
When you're through changing,
you're through.
A Week At The All-American Soap Box Derby Championships
By Steve Hagerty
Every July Soap Box Derby racers from around
the country (and several other countries) converge on Akron,
Ohio for the All-American Soap Box Derby World Championship.
Racers come from local race districts or from Rally districts.
All racers come as Champions, as they have won in their local
races or have accumulated sufficient rally points in their
district. Throughout the week they are always referred to as
Champions, since all have been Champions in their local areas in
order to get the invitation to race in Akron. This year’s event
is the 70th running of the Derby. The following is
an overview of what happens during Derby week.
Day One – Monday: Registration Day.
All families arrive at a parking garage in downtown Akron where
each Champion checks in and receives a sequential number
indicating their position in the Champion’s Parade. Over the
next few hours as each number comes up, the Champion is put in a
car and driven five blocks to the front gate of the Canal Park
Baseball Stadium. A police motorcycle meets the car a couple of
blocks from the Stadium and – with sirens blaring – escorts the
Champion to the Stadium.
On reaching the Stadium, Derby Officials
escort the Champion onto a stage where an announcer introduces
them and reads off some biographical information supplied by the
Champion’s parents during pre-registration. (A Derby tradition
occurs while the Champion is on stage. Each Champion throws
“gifts” into the crowd in front of the stage – candy, buttons
with the Champion’s picture, various sized Frisbees with the
Champion’s name imprinted on it, etc.) After leaving the stage,
the Champion receives his randomly drawn Heat and Lane
assignment for Race day. They also receive a duffle bag
containing a Derby hat, a jacket, a sweatshirt, a Derby watch, a
Champion’s plaque (with a spot for a picture to come later), and
three t-shirts. The Champions will wear these shirts – with
CHAMPION in big letters across the shoulders – for all events
during the coming week. (During this time Parents also get to
stand in their own lines, to register and get their own packet
of information.)
Opening Ceremonies come later in the
afternoon. After greetings from Derby officials, an
inspirational greeting was delivered by ex-Notre Dame and
University of Akron football coach Jerry Faust, followed by an
official welcome by the Mayor of Akron. At the end of the
ceremony, each Champion released the balloon (received when they
entered the park) into the Akron sky. In the evening all
Champions meet behind center field at the ballpark, and then
parade into and around the field prior to the evening’s Akron
Aeros – Harrisburg Senators game. (As each Champion enters the
stadium they videotape a message for later in the week.)
Day Two – Tuesday: Inspection and
Weigh In. Rally and Masters Champions show up at Derby Downs
Topside at 7:30 for Inspection rework (if necessary) and
weigh-in. (Local Stock and Super Stock Champions come later.)
Champions whose cars arrived at Akron and require no additional
work received a VIP ribbon at check-in, and are allowed in first
to get their cars out of the barns and through the individual
driver/car picture and weigh-in lines.
Afterwards the Champions whose cars need
rework -- and their car handlers -- are let in to retrieve their
cars and start correcting the items noted on their inspection
sheets. Work areas are set up on the asphalt outside the
barns. Changes are to be completed in two hours, although this
rule is not enforced. (There are a number of Derby officials
around during this process, both to advise on the requirements
and help with the rework.) Fortunately the Derby has a parts
sale booth open during this process!
The picture line is at the top of the
racetrack. Each driver/Champion is photographed with their car,
and then the Car Handler gets included in the picture. The
final line is the weigh-in line. Each Champion gets weighed,
each car gets weighed, and each Champion gets weighed in their
car. Weight adjustments, if necessary, are done at this time.
Then the cars go back in the barns for the night.
Day Three – Wednesday: Testing,
Alignment, and Wheels. Another “early show-up” day at Derby
Downs Top Side, and another day of waiting outside the fence
until the race car category/type is called. Once inside each
Champion and their Car Handler head to the barns to get their
car. Then it’s to the top of the track for the Champions test
run.
(The Akron track is three-lanes running down
the side of a hill. Built by the WPA in the mid-30’s, the upper
part of the track leading to the starting line is fairly steep.
The slope levels out beyond the Starting Platform and runs
almost 1000 feet to the Finish Line. At the Start Line, the
cars are placed on individual metal plates that can move up or
down to “calibrate” any advantage out of the lane.)
Lane selection is done at the top of the
hill, where each Champion selects the lane the have drawn for
Saturday’s first head. The Car Handler then hooks the car to
hold it back while slowly walking down the hill. (The upper
part of the hill is long enough to stage approximately fifteen
cars in each lane in back of the starting line.)
At the starting line, each Champion gets in
their car and when all three are ready, the paddle drops and the
cars head down the hill. Time to the finish line is slightly
under thirty seconds. There is a long runout at the end of the
track. Once stopped, cars are loaded onto a return trailer, and
the car and driver head back to Top Side.
Each Champion is next given thirty minutes to
perform final car alignment. Wheel selection comes next. All
Akron races are run on new Derby-supplied wheels that – in
theory – are the same. After the new wheels are put on the car,
it is weighed again – just to verify that the car hasn’t gained
any weight since the previous day! Finally the cars go back
into the barns. The Champions won’t see their car again until
Race day.
Later in the afternoon all Champions show up
at Trackside for group pictures. Four individual group pictures
are taken – one each for Local Masters, Local Super Stock, Local
Stock, and Rally Champions. Then the four groups are put
together for a combined Champions picture.
In the evening Champions and parents go their
separate ways. Each year the Champions have a party. This
year’s party is at a local game center featuring arcade games,
batting cages, basketball goals, and other activities –
including a dance. Parents go back to Derby Downs for the
first-annual “Old Timers” race. Last year one of the winners
was disqualified because the kingpin of their car had been glued
into the car. This year sixty cars were randomly selected at
Parent checking, and the kingpins of each car were inspected (by
removing them from the axle assembly). As a “reward” these
parents race down the track in Adult cars, in their own race.
It quickly becomes apparent that the Parents are as intent on
winning as the Champions!
Day Four – Thursday: Family Picnic
day. All Derby families are invited to meet for a picnic at
Howe Meadows in the Cuyahoga Valley National Park north of
Akron. The day’s events include various organized activities
(rock-climbing wall, Frisbee gold, volleyball), individual
activities (hiking, fishing, biking), and train rides on the
Cuyahoga Valley Railroad. Lunch and dinner are provided for all
families.
The day ends with a “Concert In The Park”
featuring a local swamp-pop band (Cats On Holiday). Good group,
pleasant evening on the grass, until … The Midwest states often
experience squall-line storms in the summer months. Heavy rains
that move in quickly, and last for fifteen to thirty minutes.
The squall-line that ended the concert was typical, and left the
band trying to quickly cover their instruments and the audience
running to their cars while getting drenched.
Day Five – Friday: Super Kids
Classic. The only planned event for the day is the Super Kids
races for severely-disabled kids. These racers go down the hill
in two-person cars, since each Super Kid requires a helper
driver in the car. Super Kids is a separate organization from
the All-American Soap Box Derby, but since their objectives are
similar they have been invited to participate in Derby week for
the last five years.
For most families Friday is a free day. It
is an opportunity for families to visit attractions in the Akron
area, including the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in Cleveland and
the Pro Football Hall of Fame in Canton. It is also an
opportunity for down time, to help get ready for the following
“big” day.
Day Six – Saturday: Race Day. The
day starts early. Rally Champions and Local Masters Champions
arrive Trackside by 6:15 for check-in. (Local Stock and Super
Stock Champions arrive shortly after.) Champions are separated
from parents at this point.
At 7:30 buses start arriving at Top Side,
bringing the Champions from the bottom of the hill. As each bus
pulls up, parents applaud the Champions off the bus and into the
Top Side staging area. Car Handlers are let in to the area
class by class, to help pull the cars from the barns and stage
them in first head order. Once staged, the Car Handlers are
again sent outside the fence while the Champions get ready for
Opening Ceremonies. (The Champions are then re-weighed, to
verify that they haven’t gained a lot of extra weight since
earlier in the week!)
Ceremonies start at 9:00. The Champions all
parade down the track, following a Color Guard and an Akron High
School Marching Band. After the ceremonies the Champions are
again bused Top Side for the first race.
The races are held in category order – Rally
races first followed by Local races. In each category the order
is Masters, Super Stock and Stock. The first head takes over
three hours, and eliminates two-thirds of the Champions. Racers
and heats in the six categories are:
Masters, Rally 54
Racers 19 Heats
Super Stock, Rally
50 18
Stock, Rally
57 20
Masters, Local
57 19
Super Stock, Local
134 45
Stock, Local
133 45
The three cars in a heat move into the
Starting Gate seconds after the previous heat is released. As
soon as the cars hit the starting paddles, a digital timer in
front of the cars starts counting down time. The three Champions
have a maximum of 45 seconds to get in their cars and into their
racing positions. Once each Champion is ready, the paddles drop
and the cars are under way. Thirty seconds later one Champion
heads on to the next heat round, and the other two exit with
their memories.
It only takes four heat rounds for the Local
Champions (and three rounds for the Rally Champions) to
eliminate all but the Champion round finalists. (As the day
progresses the “luck of the draw” factor becomes more apparent,
as over sixty percent of the heat winners come from lane 3.)
Final heats go quickly, and the trophies are ready to be
awarded. All races are completed by 5:30.
The final event of the day and the week is
the Champions Award Ceremony in the auditorium at the University
of Akron. All Champion round winners are introduced to the
audience, and various awards are announced/presented to local
race districts and race directors. Then each of the Champions –
all 485 of them – are brought on the darkened stage, one by
one. Each walks through a fog into a spotlight that follows
them across the stage, as the message they recorded earlier in
the week plays on a big video screen above them.
And so the week comes to an end. Champions
head home, to all parts of the country, with memories of an
event-filled week. And three t-shirts with CHAMPION in large
letters across the back!
HAPPY & SAD BUCKS
Paul Westmoreland found an editorial
in the New York Times this morning from Dinuba and had
Happy Recognition Bucks.
Paul Westmoreland
Linda Magarian had five Happy
Bucks for the three weeks she spent with her son in the
Central Valley.
Linda Magarian
Diane DellaValle had a Happy
Buck for three special people at the meeting - member
Hal Thomas, almost new member Greg Powell, and friend
Jim Campbell.
Diane Delle Valle
Jim Campbell
Bob Martin had two Sad Bucks
for missing the meeting last week. He takes the train to
San Juan Capistrano every weekend and returns on Wednesday
morning. Last week the train was three hours late arriving in
SJC, and then it broke down on the way back and was pushed back
to the LA Station.
Bob Martin
Gigi Schleuter was celebrating the
one-year anniversary of her successful new Skin Care business
with a Happy Buck.
Gigi Schleuter
Jim Edwards had a Happy Buck
to be back for a lunch meeting, and he had a Sad Buck
because his friend - Jim Campbell - had to call
and invite him.
Jim Edwards
Howard Backer had an Offer Buck.
He had a book about the Enron debacle to give away.
Howard Backer
Jack Dawson was pretty sure he had a
Happy Buck because his wife convinced him he
shouldn't ski any more.
Jack Dawson
Daryal Gant's Happy Buck was
for the full page ad in a local paper about member Joel
Peterson's new business because the ad mentioned that Joel
was a member of our Kiwanis Club.
Daryal Gant
Fred Schooley was Happy
that Jack Dawson had only turned in his ski equipment and
not his tennis racket.
Fred Schooley
FACTS AND FICTION
Music: piano tunes by Tom Burrows
and Ed Moulton leading us in America the Beautiful,
Welcome Back, Hi Neighbor, and Come On Kiwanis.
Opening:
flag
salute by Melinda
Thompson
and the
inspiration by Jim
Reynolds.
Guests: Jim Edwards
introduced Jim Campbell,
Gigi Schleuter brought her
husband Jim, and
almost-new member Greg Powell
was welcomed by the Prez.
Anniversaries: Glen Pettit celebrated
his 24th anniversary and contributed $24.
Birthdays: Pat Anderson celebrated
her birthday on the 26th of July and donated $26.
Fines: for not wearing your Kiwanis
pins
Secret Greeter: Glen Pettit
Fifty-Fifty Drawing: Gigi
Schleuter
Master of the Cash Box: Bill Watts
This Week's Editor: Melinda Thompson
This Week's Photographer: Paul
Westmoreland
Webmaster and Coordinator: Jeb Long
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