January 26, 2010 - Diversity Kiwanis Club Regular Meeting
Original Pancake House
 
President Lisa Carlson called the meeting to order on Tuesday, January 26 at the Original Pancake House at 41st Street and Kiwanis.
 
Members and guests attending:  Lisa Carlson, Carla Cooey, Jack Stengel, Marlys Fisher, Mike Tolzin, Carlos Cobos, Kulani Moti, Emily Steinhoff, Nicole Anderson, Bill Zortman, Kris Isakson, Tracey Robinson, Andrea Gunner and Kimberly Stockinger
 
Our speakers for today's meeting got snowed in in Albert Lea, MN, last night and were unable to make it to town in time for our meeting.
 
Mike Tolzin updated everyone on the Superbowl Squares fundraiser, which will raise $500 to ship shoes for our shoe drive for Guatemala.  Out of 100 squares, we have 16 left to sell.  Grab a square before they are all gone!  Please email Mike Tolzin as soon as you sell a square so that he can keep the board updated to ensure that we do not oversell our board.  Mike will keep everyone informed as these last 16 squares sell.
 
Carla Cooey updated everyone on the Guatemalan Shoe Drive.  The shoe flyers are at the printers.  She is having 50 of the large posters made.  (Carla received a phone call right after our meeting that the posters are ready to be picked up.)  We will copy the 8x11 flyers on our own.  We need to obtain good-sized boxes to use to collect the shoes.  Kimberly Stockinger volunteered to contact Karl's TV and Mahlander's to see if they would have some boxes that we could use.  If any of you have large boxes we could use, let Carla know.  Emily Steinhoff has contacted Tel-Drug, through her wonderful fiance, and Tel-Drug has agreed to put six collection boxes in their store for shoes.  Carla has contacted the YWCA day cares and hopes to get collection boxes and flyers at the day cares.  Volunteers are asked to meet at Carla's home this Saturday at 2pm to decorate boxes for the shoe drive (email to follow with directions.)  Carla has paper left over from last year's shoe drive to decorate the boxes, but if volunteers could bring extra packing tape and markers on Saturday, it would be appreciated.  Shoes will be collected the month of February at Tel-Drug and the month of March at all other locations.  We will plan a shoe-packing date in early April and hopefully get the shoes shipped by mid April.  We are still going to be short funds to ship the shoes, so additional funds will need to be generated.
 
Kimberly Stockinger gave an update on the meeting several DKC members had last week with a representative from the Red Cross and Ryan Rickert from Mission Haiti.  On behalf of the DKC, Kimberly was able to present 1000 blankets donated by Sanford Hospital to Mr. Rickert to be included in one of their cargo shipments to Haiti.  Mission Haiti operates orphanages in Haiti which currently educate over 1400 children.  The number of children attending these orphanges is predicted to rise enormously due to the earthquake.  The sponsorship for a child to attend school for one year in Haiti is $50.  Kimberly encouraged DKC members to get involved sponsoring children to attend school.  Mr. Rickert expressed that right now the things needed most in Haiti are not things easily collected by our DKC members, but the DKC will keep in contact with Mr. Rickert and run a future collection for whatever items are most needed at that time.
 
Mike Tolzin indicated that he has reserved February 22 at the Pizza Ranch on East 10th Street as the night that DKC will work at the Pizza Ranch to raise funds for our projects.  Our club will receive points in five different areas, including the number of people our club brings to Pizza Ranch on that night.  The more points our club receives, the more money our club will receive.  We will be working three hours and will need four people there at all times.  It was discussed that we perhaps have eight 1 1/2-hour shifts.  If you are interested in volunteering that night, please email Mike.  Volunteers are asked to wear their DKC shirts to the event.  If you do not have a shirt, you can contact BD Promotions at 371-1772 or sales@bdpromotions.net to obtain one.  We will really need to get the word out to people to enjoy dinner at Pizza Ranch on Monday Feb. 22.  Our guests should bring in a coupon that we will give them showing that they are there on behalf of the DKC.
 
President Carlson thanked our guests for attending.  It is always exciting to see new faces and to see our club growing in membership and in energy!
 
Carla Cooey
Co-Secretary
http://www.diversitykiwanis.org
www.mndak-kiwanis.org