Club President Ron Auxier
"Anything that is worth doing takes time."
District 6040 Governor Jodi Sundaram
Zones 30/31 Director Brian Hall
Rotary International President Francesco Arezzo
Saint Joseph Past District Governors Don Gladhart (2020-2021) and Hod Symes (1986-1987) flank Rotary International President Nominee Larry Lunsford at last weekend's Show Me Rotary Presidents-elect Learning Seminar in Columbia.
The Rotary Club of Saint Joseph this week at the beautiful Albrecht Kemper Museum of Art.
Kirby Brooner shared an update that Hod Symes was in the hospital Monday for a gallbladder removal but that he is doing better. Please keep Hod and Mabel in your thoughts and prayers.
Our bell was reclaimed from the streetcar. False alarm, apparently.
There was a good crowd of around 30 in attendance this week. Prospective members Micah Carter and Joan Brewer were present.
The lunch this week was a timely (for our program) carnivore's choice of wet barbecued beef and pulled pork. We had a garden salad, rolls, boiled and oiled new potatoes, and baked beans. Someone suggested that we should assign someone to bake home made cookies for dessert. Anyone up for that? Matt Porter might have inspired this section...
Oakley Coleman reported that the preliminary numbers for the spaghetti dinner gross revenue are $10,492, and net revenue is $8,392. The breakdown is $3,470 for sponsorships and $650 for in-kind donations. We had 20 total sponsors: 13 gold, 5 silver, and 2 bronze. We sold 172 lunches for $1,380. For the dinner, we did $4,599 in ticket sales, $427 on walk-up sales, and $66 from the games. We served 276 meals, with 169 dine-in and 107 take-out. The remainder of the proceeds came from the donations of several generous club members.
Black Bowls donations for this quarter (1/1/26 through 3/31/26) go to the Care Portal. which connects churches with people in need to make a difference. Contributions to Black Bowls may be made at meetings with cash or check, or online at our club's Square site.
Meals on Wheels delivery assignments:
April 2 will be Will Woods with Faith Parker and Kelly Morris (solo).
Club's website update:
Our new website address is live at stjosephrotary.org ... https://stjosephrotary.org/.
Also, saintjosephrotary.org and stjosepheastsiderotary.org all point to this website. We are working on continued content updates.
President Ron updated that club that Sleep in Heavenly Peace has now completed and delivered 500 beds in St. Joseph since the inception 7 or so years ago. It all began with Jaxon Ball's Eagle Scout Service Project.
Do you have ideas for a possible district grant community project- involving $5,000 in spending and some sweat equity? If so, please reach out to Oakley Coleman. Our application is due 7/15.
Some good Happy Bucks this week include:
Don Gladhart got a new puppy and really enjoyed attending the Past District Governors reception at Show Me Rotary with Hod
Nick Gertsema plugged the Steamboat Arabia museum, which may be closing?
Faith Parker's daughter (did I get that right) turns 5 this week
Dana Matt got her cars out the shop finally
Micah Carter's little with Big Brothers Big Sisters had a birthday this week
Erik McGuire appreciates Amy Spaeth chairing the District 6040 Annual Statement and Review of District Finances review committee and Shelly is glad that this committee's work has been completed
Ryan Dowell needs help finding qualified students to attend Missouri RYLA (high school sophomores, juniors, and seniors in 2026-2027)
Matt Porter's cat went to the emergency vet but we hope it is doing better... and Chuck Norris even told his wife to calm down one time and she actually did
Ron Auxier is looking forward to You Can't Take it With You by Central High School this weekend... it's Mac's final performance
Susan Campbell went to Denver to see her daughter Julie last weekend
Upcoming Key Rotary Dates:
April 1: Regular club meeting at the AKMA... speaker is Rotarian stories by Jim Ingle and others
April 15: Regular club meeting at the AKMA... speaker is Dr. Elizabeth Kennedy, Missouri Western State University President
April TBA: District grant work project dates to assemble gazebo and install the garden at Life Unlimited
Friday, 4/24 and Saturday, 4/25: District Conference at the Rotary Youth Camp (Shoes for Orphan Souls Roll Call on 4/25)
Wednesday, 5/6: Rotary scholarship luncheon for our 5 high school scholarship recipients at Noon at the AKMA
Wednesday, 5/13: Offsite club meeting at Life Unlimited to see the District Grant project
Thursday, June 18: Rotary Club of Saint Joseph Anniversary Party (details TBA)
Every dollar makes a difference and funds district grants, global grants, and more.
Or if you prefer to send a check, we can assist with the details of this.
This week's program featured an interesting presentation by American Royal CEO Pat Macy.
Did you know that the Kansas City Royals are named after the American Royal?!? Today is opening day, so go Royals!
Pat's dad was a Rotarian in Club 13 (Kansas City) and he remembers volunteering at the Rotary Youth Camp.
Pat shared the history of the American Royal, which dates back 127 years. Kansas City used to be the 2nd largest cattle distribution location in the United States, after Chicago. The peak was in the 1920s. There was a fire and a flood in the 1950s and that led to some changes.
The events all used to be in the West Bottoms, but have been out by the Kansas Speedway for the past few years. A new location is being constructed across from the Speedway and this is exciting for our region. The space will include an agricultural learning center, an arena, and a lot more. This will be the largest convention space in Kansas City, even larger than Bartle Hall!
The American Royal Barbecue Contest has been going strong since 1980.
Assistant Shoes Cheerleader Erik McGuire reports that we have 1170 pairs of shoes so far in the warehouse (not including the shoes that Tim Curry has in his barn or the 2 bags brought in today by Dana and Susan).
Our goal is to exceed 2,000 pairs this year.
Thank you to everyone who ordered Rotary Blend Candles to support Shoes for Orphan Souls, or who contributed funds directly to the club for the purchase of shoes.
We have collected $1,306 from candle sales and $525 from donations to give us an additional $1,831 to go towards purchasing even more shoes... nice!
Of course, it's not too late to chip in more to support the shoes drive or to bring shoes to a club meeting or to our Caravan stop on 4/23.
Our Shoes for Orphan Souls drive lasts through the Shoes Caravan Stop that is scheduled for Thursday, April 23 between 3 and 5 p.m. in St. Joseph. Our club is collaborating with South Side and Andrew County to make this a social event and shoes project celebration at East Hills Library in the CVB area. Rotary International President Nominee Larry Lunsford will be on hand to celebrate with us.
